Sarah+M.

= = The Issues With Public Education

The idea of public education was initially a great concept because it had as its basic premise the education of all children in the United States, regardless of gender, race, religion, or social/economic background. Unfortunately, the reality of public education today has become something entirely different. The quality of public education varies widely from school to school, the differences usually being based on the social/economic environments of where the schools are located. This brings to mind the theme of George Orwell’s book, //Animal Farm,// namely that “all men are created equally, some are just more equal than others.”

Public schools are supposed to provide all students with a safe and intellectual environment. In order to solve state and local money problems, governments typically respond first by decreasing the amount that is spent on public education. Governments argue that they have no choice- they must decrease the number of schools, decrease the number of teachers, and mandate that schools cut down on many other costs. As education budgets are cut, school systems respond accordingly by cutting down on costs, hurting children in the process. Many high schools in the Atlanta area have close to 3,000 students. Classroom sizes at some of these schools range anywhere from 30 to 50 students. when schools enroll thousands upon thousands of students, the students simply become a number. The largest school in the U.S., is located in Plano, Texas, and has an enrollment of 5,282 students, and the school’s class sizes are in the 50s. With such a large school, it is likely that discipline may be lacking and there can not possibly be a support network for students. There is no doubt that large schools and large classrooms likely lead to feelings of anonymity for many students. There is no adequate support network in many of these large public school schools, and it is not uncommon for many of these students to just “fall through the cracks” and go unnoticed. In order to succeed in a large, under-funded, public school today, a student would have to be strong, thick-skinned and have a lot of initiative and self-determination.

So as I think about the progress of the United States as it deals with public education, I sometimes wonder if public education will ever improve in the United States. Whenever I read articles regarding the state of education in our state and our nation, I often think about how unfair it is that the quality of education is for the most part based on where one lives. How is it fair to the children whose parents cannot afford to live in the nice, wealthy neighborhoods to receive a substandard education simply because of where they live? Not to mention, in order for the states to reduce their costs to public schools, they have eliminated the money provided to schools and teachers to purchase supplies and tools for learning in the classroom. Parent-Teacher Associations in wealthier neighborhoods typically raise money and make up for lack of funding for supplies and tools, so those schools don’t go without. Many students in poorer schools are forced to share outdated textbooks, and in many of those schools, those students don’t even have access to basic calculators in middle school or high school math classes. No one can argue that students who have never used even a basic calculator in a middle school or high school math class are not at an extreme disadvantage when compared to students from other schools.

The public education system in the United States may have the ability to improve, but in order to do so, public education needs to become a much bigger priority for all involved.

By: Sarah M.

My Op-Ed recording: