Educational Crisis Do You Feel

Educational Crisis

"Do you feel like you live in a nation of idiots?" (Moore 128). This country is in a serious educational crisis, one which gets worse each year. The very foundation of our educational system stifles individual creativity and independence, yet even that little promise is being threatened by massive budget cuts in this volatile economy. Overall, it is clear that this country is in the midst of a major educational crisis, one that will need the cooperation and action of everyone in our society to help structure things in a more progressive manner to help provide a better future for our children.

There are major problems with educational institutions in this country that are hindering millions of students from receiving the best education they can get. One of the most dangerous aspects of this is the very structure of American schools. Here, the research suggests that Schools -- with their cell-block-style, forced confinement of both students and teachers" (Gatto 149). This stifling environment is producing students who are encouraged to follow an assembly-line style life where they are expected to train to be workers, rather than to be encouraged through education to be entrepreneurs and movers in society. Today's schools are stopping students from exploring their educational possibilities in order to meet out-dated standards and impress school board members. Thus, our system is "an educational system deliberately designed to produce mediocre intellects, to hamstring the inner life, to deny students appreciable leadership skills, and to ensure docile and incomplete citizens" (Gatto 152). This is creating a situation where the lack of engagement and excitement is creating poor educational opportunities for students currently in the mix of educational institutions. Here, Michael Moore states that "the American mind is alive and well. It just isn't challenged with anything interesting or exciting" (Moore 129)

Moreover, the volatile economy has taken a massive toll on education in this country. Budget cuts threaten the very little resources schools are already struggling to work with. Special enrichment programs are often the first to go, as budget cuts continue to cause havoc in today's schools (Lopez 1). This means that most of today's kids are being exposed less to the arts, music, and other activities that make learning fun and engaging. According to the research, "at every level of public education, from elementary school to graduate school, constant budget cuts are decimating once-great institutions and devaluing our greatest resource -- eager young minds," (Lopez 1). The economy has a major impact on education, but educators can step in to try and raise awareness of the importance of preserving enrichment courses. Working with grass roots campaigns to protect enrichment courses can help shield them from being the first to be affected by budget cuts, and thus keep kids engaged in learning.

Apparently, class and socio-economic status has less to do with education than previously thought. Many would believe that most upper class students have greater access to education because they have the money to invest in private schools, which are supposed to offer better educational opportunities. Yet, as Michael Moore points out, a number of this nation's leaders have been notoriously uneducated. Moore uses previous President George W. Bush to highlight the idea that although some people may attend "good" schools, those schools may not be providing a good education (Moore 130). He illustrates his point further by mentioning a study where 40% out of 556 seniors at some of America's top schools still did not know when the Civil War began or ended (Moore 130). Essentially, this shows that despite having money to invest in private education, upper class individuals are still being robbed of a better education because of the structure and composition of this nation's school system in general. Private schools are just as vulnerable to the issues that public schools are facing today.

Each one of us carries a responsibility for trying to improve the situation. Parents and familial groups have a huge responsibility to augment educational strategies. In the environment where most school systems employ strategies to make students part of the masses, without individual attention or nurturing, it is important for the family to step up and educate children about independence and autonomy. According to the research, "schools train children to be employees and consumers; teach your own to be leaders and adventurers. Schools train children to obey reflexively; teach your own to think critically and independently" (Gatto 155). Encouraging them to engage in learning material that goes beyond the simple curriculum offered at most public schools. Education should not be purely the responsibility of the institutions overwhelmed with responsibility, but should be extended to include more individualistic elements that stem from within the familial unit. Teachers also carry a heavy responsibility. They need to embed more energy into their teaching strategies. Low energy is a common problem across America's educational institutions and "boredom is the common condition of school teachers" (Gatto 148). Teachers need to bring more energy and stop putting blame for inefficiencies on the institutions and policies to make the energy uplifted and inspiring within the context of their individual classrooms. This will undoubtedly feed into the lesson plans, making them more exciting and engaging for the students, who are struggling with boredom themselves. American society and government also has a major role to play in improving education in this country. Together, they must preserve what little resources are left for education, but also they must call for viable reform that will help improve the situation for millions of students across the country. A lot of this includes investing in aspects of our infrastructure outside of schools, including libraries, museums, and other non-traditional educational locations that help expand and augment the schooling kids face everyday in our tired institutions (Moore 137). This also includes making sure that attention is given to students with special needs, like behavioral issues, disabilities, or ESL learners. These students need special attention in curriculum drafting and ensuring there is funding to provide for special education funding. From an individual standpoint, voting for particular measures to ensure such funding is essential. From a government and societal standpoint, it is crucial that these students receive enough exposure and attention to show how important protecting funding for them is.