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Blog ArchiveWhat Matters Most to Americans?
Graham Spanier
Guess what? It’s not education. November 3, 2008 With the election upon us, I have been fascinated by the media’s recap of important issues to the American public. I believe voters’ guides provide an excellent snapshot into the top concerns of the American public. Unfortunately, that picture is not pretty for those in education. The New York Times “Election Special Issue” covered “Where the candidates stand on what matters most to Americans.” Education was not among those 11 issues featured in the Sunday print edition (http://elections.nytimes.com/2008/president/issues/education.html). And the Times is not alone: it wasn’t until the third debate that we heard the candidates touch on educational policy. Obviously, education is having a tough time competing for attention with the current financial crisis, global security concerns, the health care crisis, and wardrobe-gate. But as a lifelong educator, I am concerned about the state of education in this country. The United States has one of the highest high school dropout rates in the industrialized world. According to the IES National Center for Education Statistics, (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2008/2008353rev.pdf) only 73 percent of high school students earn a diploma, and that number is much lower in many urban areas. What’s more, one state education secretary notes that tens of thousands of our high school seniors receive empty diplomas because they fail to master basic skills. The sad reality is that diplomas are often handed out to those who “show up and shut up.” Fewer than half of our high school graduates are ready for college level math and science. A Raytheon survey of 11- to 13-year-olds found that 84 percent would rather clean their room, eat their vegetables, go to the dentist, or take out the garbage than learn math or science. Imagine that. Even going to the dentist beats math and science. What are we doing wrong? Preparing our youth for life beyond high school should be near the top of our national agenda. Organizations such as the National Science Foundation, the Council on Competitiveness, and the Business Higher Education Forum all have sounded the alarm about the perceived decline in primary and secondary education. They have issued a call for our nation to improve teaching and learning and to expand access to education. This should be an issue that matters. |
