Educational Reform in America

It is unquestionable and undeniable that a country with a leading educational system will wind up leading economically in the future. In today’s competitive market, every nation is competing for their chance on the leader board of wealth. Although the United States has been seeded number one in the economic field for the past few years, many countries in Europe and Asia are challenging that spot for the number one position, especially China. Many articles from news sources read, “Can China Compete?” and “Can the New Chinese Economy Compete with the US?” but not anymore. Now the articles read, “Can the US Compete with China’s New Economy” and “Can the US Keep Up?”

Of course economic stability has everything to do with how well the country will run and function, but if the educational systems lack the ability to support such a superpower of an economy like the United States, can it really compete with other nations in Asia and Europe? Those countries for the majority, all have superior educational systems when compared to the educational systems that are in the United States. So, can the infamous country with the world’s leading colleges also lead in the educational standards of the foreign competitors?

Majority of the candidates who run for presidency promise for educational reform, this promise, however, is not a promise that can be kept. Many presidents that came before President Obama has preached about educational reform in America and how many of the schools in the U.S. lack the ability to compete with schools in foreign nations. Much like the past presidents, President Obama has promised us an educational reform that would make the American schooling systems be able to compete competitively with the other nations. However, do not get your hopes up just yet. The economic problem and national security always come before any educational reform.

President Obama’s slogan is “Hope” and many people in America are still hoping for a miracle to occur. Unemployment is a disaster that strikes countless American families nowadays. Major companies such as Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual are either bankrupt or merging with other large companies to prevent an entire collapse in the job market. Other major companies such as AIG, General Motors, and JPMorgan were provided bailout money by the government in order to stay afloat in the markets. The government told the American people that these companies were “too big to fail” and that the bailout was necessary in order to keep the United States economy healthy. Despite the bailout, the companies that were bailed out are still in turmoil and the majority of those companies did not recover well enough to hire more employees.

The availability of jobs is getting fewer every month. The more qualified a person is, the safer he or she is from losing his or her job. On the National Center for Education Statistics website (nces.ed.gov) it states “Workers who have a record of high academic achievements are unemployed less and earn more than workers with lower [academic achievements].” This is an obvious trend, but how does education directly affect how the economy will be? An example of a country with a high educational standard is South Korea. From the time South Korea was a country to the present day, Korea has made education an importance in every child’s youth. There are no laws that require students to attend high school or college in Korea, but if a student decides not to attend college or even high school, the chances of that student acquiring a job is very slim. Almost all of the unskilled jobs are taken by immigrants. For a Korean to earn enough to support his or her family, he or she must attend and graduate college. In Korea, the unskilled jobs are considered shameful, such as factory work. My grandfather used to own a factory where he would hire Pakistani immigrants instead of Koreans due to their cheaper pay. When my father and mother were planning to build a new house, they used Chinese laborers due to their cheap cost of labor. The United States is somewhat like Korea, where the majority of the unskilled labor has been taken my immigrants. This, however, does not give an excuse to accuse the immigrants of stealing a country’s jobs.

I have given a survey to my teachers and students of Wakefield High School in Massachusetts and asked them about the educational systems in the United States and what President Obama can do to fix it.
The first survey question asked “how important do you think higher education is now for students of this age?”

Majority of the student body and teachers answered that higher education has never been more important than it is now. Considering the fact that Americans without higher education are losing jobs left and right, it has become more important than ever to receive some degree of higher education. President Obama has stated on his webpage (barakobama.com) that “preparing our children to compete in the global economy is one of the most urgent challenges we face. We need to stop paying lip service to public education and start holding communities, administrators, teachers, parents and students accountable…” Even President Obama believes it’s a necessity to stop paying lip service to public education and start to compete competitively with the global economic powers.

Brian, a student in Wakefield High School, stated, “…even though having a degree doesn't necessarily mean that a person is intelligent, [a degree] is still needed” explaining how even students recognize the importance of a college degree. Even if it does not signify that one is intelligent, it has now become almost a necessity to earn a degree in order to live in what is considered the middle class.
I questioned another student, David, asking, “How important is higher education for students like us?” He replied quickly, “I don’t see why this is even a question… As is obviously known, students who have a college education are more successful at life and contribute to society and to the economy.” David is telling the truth. Although college does not guarantee a successful life, it does, however, increase the chance of being successful at life.



The second question I asked brought up the issue that President Obama addressed on his website. The issue stated, “After graduating high school, all Americans should be prepared to attend at least one year of job training or higher education to better equip our workforce for the 21st century economy.”

When I asked the question “Do you think one year of job training/higher education is enough for a person to compete in the job market?” to the students and teachers of Wakefield High School, I received mixed opinions. Over 60% of the survey takers replied that one year of job training or higher education is not sufficient enough for a person in modern day America to compete nationally; given that the persons who have taken one year of the said educations do not compete globally. However, the issue of competing globally is not an idea that can be disregarded lightly. The remaining 40% of the survey takers replied that not all people are suited for college education. Such people include: people who cannot afford to attend college, people who do not want to work professionally, and people who just simply do not want to attend college or any level of education. Both answers are correct. However, the increasingly competitive global market has led to the idea that “no college degree = no work.” Many people just cannot live life working minimum wage in a factory job. The price of necessities for life has risen and the price of education has risen as well. Especially with the economy at a slump, the persons without a degree are suffering even more so than the people with degrees who have lost their jobs.

Inequality has been a major issue in education since the American educational system was built. I asked, “No Child Left Behind Act is providing almost $54.4 billion in 2001 in federal funding to schools in need of money. Do you think programs like these have done enough to prevent some schools from being “inferior” to others?”

Almost all of the faculty and students that I have surveyed concluded that there will always be inferior schools in America. One of the teachers commented, “…The demographics of Lexington are not the demographics of Harlem, for instance. That’s an uncomfortable reality we don’t always want to acknowledge. But we’re naïve if we don’t recognize the inherent inequities in our society or believe that they don’t somehow impact education.” Lexington is a town that is above average in their income. Even if we compare Lexington High School to Wakefield High School there is a noticeable difference. Many programs in Lexington, such as the core curriculums, athletics, and music, are better funded than in Wakefield. Inferiority is explained by Victoria, a student and a friend of mine, who now lives in Mount Prospect, Illinois. She mentions that, “In my high school, every teacher is provided with a Macbook (A laptop from the company Apple). Every classroom has their own computer projector.” She also mentioned that “they charge for everything here. This is the only public school I've been in that had a registration fee for attending.” Mount Prospect’s students pay to be superior while Lexington’s students have well providing funders. Two schools are equally superior, but one achieves its superiority through a different method than the next. I believe that the only way inferior schools will get equally superior is if that school somehow finds a way to charge students or take larger taxes from the residents in the town. One has to keep in mind that those inferior schools are usually in towns and cities with lower income rates, which means charging anything more than what they are charging now is not an option. Christopher, a student who also attends Wakefield High School, pointed out that, “Well… that’s just life” as I asked him about how he feels about the inferior schools in America.

Although Wakefield is a town of above average income rates, our school still struggles to find money for basic necessities, such as paper. Many teachers from last year have been cut due to shortage in the budget. Also, the school day has been changed in order to properly fit the current financial budget. I noticed that sometimes certain departments lack copy paper. I remember last year, our math department ran out of dry-erase Expo markers and some of the teachers from the math department had to buy their own. Another sad fact is that some bathrooms and classrooms are missing huge chunks of their ceiling. Some classrooms as well as the hallways leak when it rains and snows. I find it amusing to see the students avoiding the trashcans in the middle of the hallways that are put up to collect the dripping water. When I watch the students dodging the trashcans and buckets, it somewhat looks like watching a game of Frogger.

Moving away from the topic of inferior schooling, we get to the topic of “did the government do enough to change the educational system.” I asked multiple students and teachers the question, “Do you think President Obama’s administration has done enough over the few hundred days to revise the educational systems in America to become more feasible with the current economic troubles?” I also provided them with the statement from President Obama’s webpage stating, “We will recruit an army of new teachers and develop innovative ways to reward teachers who are doing a great job, and we will reform No Child Left Behind so that we are supporting schools that need improvement, rather than punishing them.” All survey takers responded, “A few hundred days are too short of a time period for any president to make a large enough impact on the nation.” This is true that it is too early to figure out what President Obama will do, but we are all hoping for a change and revamping of the educational system in America.

The controversial issue of high school students dropping out has become one of the leading topics of the current educational discussions. I asked this contentious matter to my fellow students and teachers of Wakefield High School. I stated and asked, “It says on the Department of Elementary & Secondary Education that ‘Statewide, 79.9 percent of the 74,380 students who entered high school as ninth graders in 2002 or transferred into the class graduated within four years. Of the remaining students, 6.4 percent are still in school, 1 percent completed high school without earning their competency determination, .8 percent earned a GED (General Educational Development), 11.7 percent dropped out and .2 percent were expelled.’ Do you think the high school drop rate is high?”



99% of the people I surveyed agreed that the dropout rate is extremely high. A teacher commented that “Any dropout rate is unacceptable.” The remaining 1% of the surveyed answered that “the dropout rate should be higher to encourage unskilled labor.” The last 1% commented that the unskilled labors would help the economy by funneling money from the bottom up. This idea, although clever, is still somewhat flawed. Another teacher commented, “The dropout rate is high but in other countries, they weed out students who are not so interested in school with tests at the end of junior high school. These countries usually direct these students into skilled trades. In Germany, companies actually work with high school students and train them to be skilled in particular jobs.” Maybe America can learn a few things from Germany. I believe that the ideas that are based around what the German companies think and use are logical. However, it does not guarantee that all those students who dropout will work in the said factories. The same teacher also commented, “To prevent dropout rates, there needs to be more after school programs to help [kids] with homework and to keep [them] busy and out of trouble.”

The follow up question to the dropout problem was “why do you think the students are dropping out at such high rates and what do you think the government can do to reduce the drop rate? What do you think the school systems can do to reduce the rates?”

Answering the question, “Why do you think the students are dropping out at such high rates?” A teacher provided me with an answer, “As long as there is poverty and there are ‘broken’ families, children will continue to drop out of school.” Adding to this answer, I think there are kids who just are not mature enough for education and feel as if learning is not needed in order to live in the current world.

The second part of the question asked, “What do you think the government can do to reduce the drop rate?” Some students and teachers answered that “the way of fixing this issue was to first fix the homes of the kids that are dropping out. Since the work ethic is reflected upon how the kids have been raised, the government should target homes of those dropouts in order to fix this reoccurring issue.” A student answered, “The thought of going somewhere to ‘learn’ for a quarter of the day seems stupid and unneeded for many students. Schools can do a better job to prevent this by offering ‘cooler’ programs and courses. This would provide more choices for the students and provoke more interest helping them stay in school.” The schools must spend money to provide the said “cool” programs. I believe what the student meant to say was that some students are not focused academically. This is cleared up by a teacher, who stated that “…students that are not academically gifted have been turned off to the idea of high school. These students are forced to sit in academic classes as opposed to learning job skills that students in the past have had the opportunity to.” These students may be more content if they were to attend a vocational school rather than an academically focused high school.
The next question that I asked was, “It says on President Obama’s website “We will continue to make higher education more affordable by expanding Pell Grants and initiating new tax credits to make sure any young person who works hard and desires a college education can access it” When the message reads ‘any young person who works hard and desires a college education can access the grants’, do you think initiating this new tax credit to help pay for college would motivate some high school students into further expanding their careers in the high education field?”

99% of the survey takers agreed that loans, grants, and scholarships may help to increase the number of students that attend college. However, they also agreed that students who are not already motivated enough for academic studies will wind up not attending college at all.

Do I think the overall educational system in America needs fixing? Of course I do. Do I think the past few presidents have done enough to reform the educational system? I have seen them try desperately to create legislation to help the system, but I did not see the action to an extent that the reforms dramatically impacted the system. I continuously notice that the competing countries rise in economic and educational power as the United States waits at the top without improving either attributes. I strongly believe that the government of the country as well as the people of the country must step up in order to reformat and transform both the fiscal and the learning systems of America so that the United States could once again be the forerunner of the economic and educational marathon. As I usually end my articles, all that we can do for now is to raise our voices to the cause and speak out for the changes that we desire. It is, however, up to President Obama and his administration to decide if it is time for America to step up and become the leader in education once again.

Thank you to everyone that participated in my survey. Even if you were not quoted in the article, your information did not go to waste.
I will further update this educational topic as the Obama Administration goes on.

A Socialist Against Labor? Barack Obama

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama couldn't let General Motors fail, but he won't concede he's taking over the company.

With a 60 percent equity stake in the carmaker and $50 billion in taxpayer money riding on GM's success, the federal government isn't exactly a hands-off investor.

As GM enters into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Obama's economic team is stressing that its goals are to maximize the return to taxpayers and to exit from its involvement as quickly as possible. But as one administration official put it Sunday night, there is an inevitable tension between those two objectives.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. (daily kenoshan) - General Motors, the 100 year old industrial superpower and maker of Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and other automobiles, announced they will file for bankruptcy protection, the outcome of which will cut 21,000 jobs and reduce to 2600 the number of automobile dealerships. President Obama applauded the reorganization move and estimated the time frame for the court action to be completed at 60-90 days. Once the bankruptcy is finalized, the government will own 60% of the failed GM Corporationand will pump billions into the leaner, reorganized company. This will be the governments biggest foray into private industry in history.

Germane Chomsky Article

http://www.chomsky.info/articles/20090521.htm
Obama and his ultra, fascist, right wing, American President policies. But, as Steven Colbert put it, "but, he makes the kids like it." This is Noam's key line here: "Small wonder that the President advises us to look forward, not backward -- a convenient doctrine for those who hold the clubs. Those who are beaten by them tend to see the world differently, much to our annoyance."

Sotomayor/Obama Rant

We shouldn't elect somebody based on their biography. Would you want your surgeon to be somebody who was hired based on their biography or their ability? Sotomayor is playing the Latina card. And Obama, who was also elected based on his biography, loves to use it.

*Portions of this rant come courtesy of Jack O'Brien.

Obama's SC Nominee

Today, Obama announced that he has nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor as a Supreme Court Justice to fill in sitting Justice David Souter's shoes. I don't know much about her, so I'll have to do some investigating. Hopefully, she is a Thurgood Marshall or a Bill Brennan, probably not though. Well, we'll see if the Senate approves of her.

Obama Speaks At Notre Dame

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – President Barack Obama strode head-on Sunday into the stormy abortion debate and told graduates at America's leading Roman Catholic university that both sides must stop demonizing one another.

Obama acknowledged that "no matter how much we want to fudge it ... the fact is that at some level, the views of the two camps are irreconcilable." But he still implored the University of Notre Dame's graduating class and all in the U.S. to stop "reducing those with differing views to caricature. Open hearts. Open minds. Fair-minded words. It's a way of life that always has been the Notre Dame tradition."

One of the noisiest controversies of his young presidency flared after Obama, who supports abortion rights but says the procedure should be rare, was invited to speak at the school and receive an honorary degree. "I do not suggest that the debate surrounding abortion can or should go away," the president said. - Yahoo!

It would have been awesome to witness the person who stood up and said "stop killing our children" during Obama's speech.

Funny Pic of the Day (4/17/09)

Watch Out For...

http://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/Leftwing_Extremist_Threat.pdf

I previously (in error) thought the Obama Administration was a one-sided offender, but I guess not.

Our Man Obama To Run For UN Seat

WASHINGTON, (AFP) – US President Barack Obama's administration announced it will run in May for a seat on the UN Human Rights Council -- a body the Bush administration had shunned.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the US ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, said the United States wanted a seat to help reform the body from within, according to the State Department.

Speaking to reporters later, Rice echoed criticism from those in Congress and the administration of former president George W. Bush who said the Geneva-based body routinely demonized Israel but ignored human rights abuses in other parts of the globe.

Bush sucks! Bush sucks! Go-Obama!

"Don't Fear" - We Won't Barry!

LONDON – President Barack Obama is telling people worried about the economy not to "shortchange the future because of fear of the present."

Obama said Wednesday he feels the best advice he could give to people everywhere would be to say that "despite the current hardships, we are going to get through this." He said people should plan "sensibly" for the future, no matter how difficult times are presently.

The president told a London news conference that "fear is not the way to go." He also took issue with comparisons of the current economic turmoil with the Great Depression in the United States in the 1930s, saying "this is not what happened to our grandparents generation." - Yahoo! News

Plan sensibly. You heard the man.

Obama Will Reduce Nuclear Arms

LONDON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev began their first face-to-face talks Wednesday, hitting the restart button on U.S.-Russian ties by trying to move forward on nuclear arms-reduction efforts.

Obama acknowledged before the meeting, on the eve of a G20 economic crisis summit in London, that the two former Cold War foes had some genuine differences but insisted they could still find common ground.

One major concrete achievement widely expected from the Obama-Medvedev encounter was an agreement to start talks on a new treaty limiting long-range nuclear missiles, to replace a pact that expires this year.

I trust fully that Barack will be able to not only limit nuclear arms, but will totally outlaw them. Himself. He's strong.

Obama Meets W/ A Silly Brit

LONDON (AP) -- As President Barack Obama sought to rally the world's powers to fix a lifeless global economy, the White House announced Wednesday that Obama and Russia's president were ready to negotiate on reducing both nations' nuclear arsenals.

The flurry of diplomacy came as Obama stepped on the world stage for the first time as president, aiming to shore up both America's economy and its reputation across the globe. The White House confirmed that Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev would announce new talks to limit the number of nuclear warheads, the first major negotiations in years over what Obama called the gravest threat to humanity.

Ahead of the G-20 summit of the world's richest and emerging economies, Obama said he came to listen, not lecture -- but also to lead. Pushing for unity, he said, "We can only meet this challenge together."

The world's greatest diplomat sure will teach that redcoat a lesson! <3>

Obama Book About Election!!!

NEW YORK - Obama campaign manager David Plouffe has agreed to a seven-figure deal to write a book about last year's presidential election.

“The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama's Historic Victory” will be published by Viking next fall.

According to a statement issued Wednesday by Viking, the book will offer a unique, high-level account, including "the deliberations about whether to run against long odds, the epic primary battle with Hillary Clinton, the drama of the general election campaign against John McCain and the strategic roads taken — and not taken ... The book will also detail the business lessons to be learned from the formation and the functioning of an unprecedented $1 billion start-up — use of technology, crisis management, grass roots and personnel management."- MSNBC

I can't wait to be the first one at Barnes and Noble!!! <3

Obama Seeks More Muslims

In a bid to get more Muslim Americans working in the Obama administration, a book with resumes of 45 of the nation's most qualified—Ivy League grads, Fortune 500 executives and public servants, all carefully vetted—has been submitted to the White House.

The effort, driven by community leaders and others, including Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), was bumped up two weeks ahead of schedule because White House officials heard about the venture, said J. Saleh Williams, program coordinator for the Congressional Muslim Staffers Association who sifted through more than 300 names.

"It was mostly under the radar," Williams said. "We thought it would put [the president] in a precarious position. We didn't know how closely he wanted to appear to be working with the Muslim American community." - Chicago Tribune

Affirmative action applied to religion. Reverse discrimination.

Obama Asks CEO of GM To Resign

The Obama administration asked Rick Wagoner, the chairman and CEO of General Motors, to step down and he agreed, a White House official said.

On Monday, President Barack Obama is to unveil his plans for the auto industry, including a response to a request for additional funds by GM and Chrysler. The plan is based on recommendations from the Presidential Task Force on the Auto Industry, headed by the Treasury Department.

The White House confirmed Wagoner was leaving at the government's behest after The Associated Press reported his immediate departure, without giving a reason.

General Motors issued a vague statement Sunday night that did not officially confirm Wagoner's departure. - Politico

The government intruding on private enterprise. Real nice.

Chavez: Obama's "Ignorant"

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday called President Barack Obama "ignorant," saying he has a lot to learn about Latin America.

The Venezuelan leader said he had been ready to name a new ambassador in Washington when Obama took office, but put that on hold after the new U.S. president accused him of "exporting terrorism" and being an obstacle to progress in the region.

"At least one could say, 'poor ignorant person,"' Chavez said on his weekly television and radio program, adding that Obama "should read a little bit so that he learns about ... the reality of Latin America."

Chavez's relations with Washington grew increasingly strained under former President George W. Bush. The Venezuelan president expelled the U.S. ambassador and withdrew his envoy from Washington in September. Top diplomats have yet to be restored at either embassy. - FoxNews

You know what Hugo? You're right, bud.

Obama Guarantees Better Days Ahead

LOS ANGELES – Buoyed by adoring crowds far from Washington's political wars, President Barack Obama guaranteed Americans on Thursday that the nation's economy will recover, though he asked them for patience.

Obama looked every bit the campaigner as he sometimes mocked his GOP critics, and sometimes asked people to forgive his shortcomings. In general, his demeanor and message were more upbeat than in recent days when public fury over executive bonuses dominated Congress.

"We will come out on the other side stronger and a more prosperous nation," he said, acknowledging the nation's economic crisis. "That I can guarantee you. I can't tell you how long it will take, what obstacles we'll face along the way, but I promise you this: There will be brighter days ahead." - Yahoo! News

Okay, but you have nothing to do with the economy. It's the Congress, stupid!

Tax The Rich

The Obama Deception

This is the trailer for the latest Alex Jones flick. It tickles my fancy. It will be on Prison Planet.Com on Sunday, March 15.

More Peeps Hatin' On Barry