Crisis in Education in the United States
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Much of the current crisis in education in the United States is the result of policies enacted to improve schools - standards and accountability (Kohn, 1999). The problem is that the emphasis on testing is squeezing education out of the curriculum. Students are basically being prepared for tests, not educated. The high concentration of effort directed towards improving tests scores means less time devoted to helping students develop creative and critical thinking. American schools are devoted more to memorizing and practicing rules and skills than to helping students understand what they are doing. Creating a learning experience that arouses and sustains children's curiosity, enriching their capacities and responding to their questions in ways that are deeply engaging should be the goal, says Kohn. He believes that this type of education would benefit students because they would be able to reason answers to test questions rather than just answer them by rote learning. The Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) is a test used to compare a student's performance against a national norm (Carter, 2000). It is used by the Atlanta Public School system test system for third, fifth and 8th grades as mandated by the Department of Education. According to Governor Roy Barnes' education reform bill, elementary and middle-school students will also be tested on a measurement known as a criterion-referenced competency test (CRCT) for language arts, math and reading. Science and social
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l that they have the resources they need to do their job (Chaddock, 2000). There seems no doubt that good teachers are at the basis of good education and improving test scores.
In California, results of the Stanford 9 showed improvements in student test scores again in 1999, though some point out that when new systems are introduced, scores often increase for the first few years as teachers and students become familiar with the test system (Groves, 1999). There was much furor when the Stanford 9 was first used. Many students fled the classrooms when faced with the test; others simply filled in answers quickly and without thought just so they could get it over with; others left the room in tears. In Los Angeles, which has a high immigrant population, students were required to take the test in English even though many were not fluent in the language. It was feared that such problems would pull down overall scores.
The new education policy in California is to demand more accountability based on testing coupled with an emphasis on basic skills such as phonics instruction in the lower grades. At the center of the accountability system is an academic performance index which will use test scores to rank California's schools: pe
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Approximate Word count = 3949
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page)
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