It is a fact in our history that there have always been the fortunate(whites) and less fortunate(minorities); the have and the have nots. The fortunate have been able to afford the best things in life while the less fortunate does whatever it takes to get by. That does not mean the less fortunate have not tried to make things better, it has been harder to make it happen. Slaves were punished for being able to read and write because it was looked down upon for a "negro" to be educated. Today, minorities share the opportunity with whites to be educated but the value of the education is still unequal. Many schools in the high poverty school districts do not have enough books for students to study in nor out of the classroom. This causes an increase in the lack of comprehension of the core academic courses such as math, science and reading and basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic.
In today's society, students need to be capable of operating various technological devices to keep up with the ever changing trends. However, it is practically impossible in the high poverty school districts to teach these skills because the school districts cannot afford to purchase the devices and parents cannot afford to own these devices in their homes. Children of all races need to have exposure to different things to enhance their learning and productivity. Teachers need to be compensated for their skills and abilities to academically prepare our children for the future. Teachers also need to be carefully selected according to higher standards than the current selection process. If children in high poverty school districts and communities are not exposed to activities in math and science they will not have an interest.
According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (2010), the US is behind countries like China, South Korea and Finland in the subjects of math, science and reading due to the culture of the education. Teachers in China and South Korea are recruited from the highest levels of the graduating classes and are paid as much as engineers and scientists. In my opinion, the United States do not spend enough money on resources to provide a good education yet politicians complain about those who need federal assistance to maintain their household. If education was more of a priority than fighting an unnecessary war, then the poverty rate may decrease because more people will have access to a good education to obtain better jobs to provide for their families. If we spend more money on resources to provide adequate education for the children of our future then we would be able to score higher on these standardized test that in my opinion only reflect what can be done on paper and not in production of services.
Lee, Kurtis PBS NewsHour Extra, December 10, 2010 www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/us/july-dec10/education_12-10
Sincerely,
Educated Social Worker and dedicated parent of a 3rd grader
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