Today’s education in America is far from perfect. But, in truth, it has never been perfect. Education has existed in this country for a long time, despite the existence of certain problems. In response to these problems, education has changed, and so has a student's ability to acquire skills, especially for college and getting a career.
In order to improve our educational system with better teaching methods, first we must look into the past to see where the problems started. Some of the problems have been resolved, while others still exist today. Around the 1870’s, one of the challenges in American education was just getting kids to come to school. According to Erin McCarthy, some kids were too busy working, and they couldn't come to school …show more content…
Transportation to the school was also hard. Most kids had to walk 4-5 miles everyday. According to Erin McCarthy on MentalFloss.com, the attendance rate was about 59% everyday. Students need to spend time at school to learn and acquire skills. Now, the attendance policies are stricter, and you have to be at school more days of the year. McCarthy also shares this about the school year: “When the Department of Education first began gathering data on the subject in the 1869-70 school year [PDF], students attended school for about 132 days (the standard year these days is 180) depending on when they were needed to help their families harvest crops.” Another problem, according to U.S History.org site, in the entry on education, which appeared in the early 1900’s was that schools, especially in the South, were segregated by race. The black schools probably had less money than the schools for white people did, …show more content…
But why are students unprepared? A conversation on TED.com argues that life skills should be taught in schools in order for students to be prepared for college and getting a job. Some examples of things that should be taught were how to write a resume for a job, how to write a check, and what taxes are. This could be really important for getting a job or going to college, and most schools don’t teach it. Another thing that proves to be effective in schools is career prep. According to Education Week, in an article about the subject, a 7th grader had a mentor that helped him stay on track with school and help him pick a field to major in. According to the article, “Middle schools are increasingly looking for ways to expose students to careers so they understand the relevance of what they are learning and stay on track. The hope is that with a goal in mind, they will be inspired to take rigorous classes, be engaged in learning, and increase the likelihood that they will be prepared for college.” The 7th grader that had this expirience said that it really helped him later in life, especially in high school. 90% of the students that were involved in the program stayed on track in high school, meaning they got good grades, had a positive attitude, and also knew what career they were
In order to improve our educational system with better teaching methods, first we must look into the past to see where the problems started. Some of the problems have been resolved, while others still exist today. Around the 1870’s, one of the challenges in American education was just getting kids to come to school. According to Erin McCarthy, some kids were too busy working, and they couldn't come to school …show more content…
Transportation to the school was also hard. Most kids had to walk 4-5 miles everyday. According to Erin McCarthy on MentalFloss.com, the attendance rate was about 59% everyday. Students need to spend time at school to learn and acquire skills. Now, the attendance policies are stricter, and you have to be at school more days of the year. McCarthy also shares this about the school year: “When the Department of Education first began gathering data on the subject in the 1869-70 school year [PDF], students attended school for about 132 days (the standard year these days is 180) depending on when they were needed to help their families harvest crops.” Another problem, according to U.S History.org site, in the entry on education, which appeared in the early 1900’s was that schools, especially in the South, were segregated by race. The black schools probably had less money than the schools for white people did, …show more content…
But why are students unprepared? A conversation on TED.com argues that life skills should be taught in schools in order for students to be prepared for college and getting a job. Some examples of things that should be taught were how to write a resume for a job, how to write a check, and what taxes are. This could be really important for getting a job or going to college, and most schools don’t teach it. Another thing that proves to be effective in schools is career prep. According to Education Week, in an article about the subject, a 7th grader had a mentor that helped him stay on track with school and help him pick a field to major in. According to the article, “Middle schools are increasingly looking for ways to expose students to careers so they understand the relevance of what they are learning and stay on track. The hope is that with a goal in mind, they will be inspired to take rigorous classes, be engaged in learning, and increase the likelihood that they will be prepared for college.” The 7th grader that had this expirience said that it really helped him later in life, especially in high school. 90% of the students that were involved in the program stayed on track in high school, meaning they got good grades, had a positive attitude, and also knew what career they were