The Education System of the 21st Century

The Education System of the 21st Century

“Education is the passport to the future for tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.” ~Malcolm X

While watching television recently, I came across a commercial for an older episode of the Oprah Winfrey show. This particular show was to address a documentary entitled, “Waiting for Superman.” I sat and watched the 45 second commercial and became so engrossed I wished I could have called my mother. Coming from a family of Native and African American heritage, education has always been a priority growing up. My grandmother instilled in her children the ideals and principles of not only obtaining a great education but also to taking pride and valuing their education. When the time came, she would teach her grandchildren those same ideals and principles and constantly remind us that furthering our education beyond high school was not an option but a requirement. It was imperative we continue educating ourselves in order to compete with our classmates as well as our peers throughout the world. Before her passing, my mother had always been an educator in some form or other since before I was born. I can recall many instances when I accompanied her to teach Adult Literacy or tutor children at the local library. I thought it was so cool for her to be able to teach adults and children how to read and at the same time instill in them the value of education. I remembered a conversation she and I had where we discussed the education system in America versus the system in other countries. At the time she was a college instructor and had taught in the public school system for over seven years, which convinced me she would have a lot to say. The thing that most surprised me was when she said, “This system is not preparing our children to compete with children of the world.” I thought, “WOW! She’s an educator and she has issues with public education.”

Now let’s fast forward to the first episode in a two-part series on public education in America. I was so geared up and ready for this discussion. Much to my chagrin it did not address the issues in a manner in which I felt was inclusive. Education is a four-part component: student, parent, teacher and administrator. Judging from the first episode, one would gather that teachers in America as a whole are doing a poor job of educating our youth. This took me by surprise and made me livid. How could administrators sit here and point fingers at a group of people without acknowledging that we all have a part in this? One of the panelists said that the reason why children in other parts of the world are succeeding more than American children is because of how they value education. Growing up I was always taught that completing your homework was not enough. Studying, coupled with completing your assignments, is what mattered. This was how society knew you valued your education.

The question remains: “How is the value of education an international issue?” First, let’s look at the facts. Here in America, students tested in the fourth and eighth grades test below average in subjects like math and science versus students in Asian and European countries. This statistic is very alarming to me and the first question that I had was “why?” How can one group of tested students out-perform another group of students? Both groups are equal in age, education and learning abilities. So why are students in other parts of the world able to score higher on these exams? The only answer I was able to come up with is Asian & European groups tend to value their education more than we do. President Obama stated in an interview that his daughters could not get the same level of education from a DC public school that they receive at the elite private school they attend (Obama: DC schools don’t measure up to his daughters’ private school The Washington Post). The article goes on to discuss the lottery system for some schools. President Obama states “it’s heartbreaking that some parents rely on a lottery to get their children into a school that they believe will meet their needs.” I whole-heartedly agree. I can remember my journey from elementary school to high school and having to endure this same archaic lottery system. The anticipation of waiting to hear from a school you truly would love to attend only to find out you weren’t ‘accepted’, not because of your education level or test scores, but simply because your number wasn’t drawn. As an adult this would have me believe that the best education for my child is one where I pay an exorbitant amount of money, or a place that my child “won.” Does this become the value of their education here in America? Why is it that children in other parts of the world can receive the same education (unfortunately in some instances a better one) just because they are children? Why do we in the US rely on archaic and demeaning tactics to educate our future? If we continue, at this rate, children here won’t be able to compete with their peers simply because their parents couldn’t afford their education, or because “their number wasn’t picked.”