Issue Position: Education

Issue Position

Over 50% of high school graduates who enter college must enroll in remedial courses before beginning studies in their selected discipline.

Many school children today have difficulty reading and writing or performing math problems without a calculator. Some have no idea about why the Revolutionary War was fought, or even who it was fought against. The cause of the Civil War is usually limited to a singular topic and fails to address all of the reasons for the conflict. This poor academic performance is occurring despite significant expenditures of money per child.

Politicians hold hearings and high powered education summits to discuss the problems. They keep coming up with more federal programs that dictate standards and spend more taxpayer dollars while transferring educational decisions from the local level to the federal government. Yet, the problem continues to explode. Why?

There is no one answer, just as there is no one solution. Classroom techniques that hide students who do not care to learn or are struggling with the concepts presented by educators must be reformed. "No Child Left Behind" has forced our teachers to concentrate on teaching for the test at the expense of teaching students how to analyze and solve problems with critical thinking. It is true that some scores have gone up in Math and English, but a remedial rate that remains over 50% for college freshmen is not acceptable.

A new emphasis must be placed on the basics of education. Students must comprehend what they read and express their ideas in a written form using correct grammar, not relying on spell check. Students must be capable of solving mathematical equations without the assistance of a calculator. Teacher and student performance must be evaluated and both should be recognized for exceptional performance and held accountable for poor performance. Parents must stop expecting "A's" for "C" work and instead focus on student performance and knowledge. Classroom discipline is essential for a proper learning environment and must be enforced. There are no excuses for poor behavior that denies others the opportunity to learn.

School is supposed to be where students are prepared for adult life. So attending class must be more than a reality version of Face book. Communities must work with their school districts to create new and innovative ways to emphasize the importance of education to the students. Therefore, local control is paramount to identifying and correcting educational problems.

Textbooks need to focus on teaching the subject instead of influencing social, political, multicultural and environmental issues. In Civics, learning how the government runs and how the checks and balances of our system of government work should be the focus of that class, not how to be a good global citizen. The fault lies with the career politician, who through the Department of Education, dictates a curriculum that fails to prepare the students for adult life and instead focuses on some cultural or social issue.

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