“Let us pick up our books and pencils. They are our most powerful weapons”. While this quote may read as any other inspirational saying, there is truth in its meaning—a truth which the Taliban recognized and feared when they attempted to kill Mayala Yousazai, the young Pakistani activist to whom the quote belongs (Yousazai 2013). In education lies civilization, and in civilization, a flourishing of freedom and ingenuity. Accordingly, the greatest civilizations in history placed much emphasis on educating their citizens; from the Greek ephebic instruction to the Roman grammaticus, education has been the driving force of humanity. It comes as no surprise, then, that education is one of the most widely debated topics in America. From politicians
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As the American education system stands today, there is a dizzying number standards across the states, differing wildly in quality and rigor. While some states like Massachusetts and New Hampshire are known to have high standards, many states do not. For example, in 2015, the average math and reading scores on the NAEP in Alabama were thirty-four points lower than the average scores in Massachusetts; twenty states had mean scores below the national average (U.S. Department of Education 2015). Opponents of national standards often claim that there is no need for such guidelines as parents are free to leave if they do not like a school’s curriculum. But therein lies the problem: if a family moves from one state to another, the children may be forced to do remedial work to account for differences in state standards, or, even worse, simply be left behind their peers, struggling to learn new material on their own. Stanford education professor Linda Darling-Hammond explains, “[The creation] of national content standards would help ensure that all students are expected to have an opportunity to learn rigorous content in academic subjects.” In other words, national content standards would provide a framework for effective teaching. In order to uphold content standards, however, another set of guidelines must also be implemented: professional accountability standards. Effective teaching requires instructors who are capable of teaching to high standards. To quote Linda Darling-Hammond once more, “Professional accountability seeks to ensure that all educators will have had access to profession-wide knowledge concerning best practice… that they will have made a moral commitment to use this knowledge in the best interests of their
As the American education system stands today, there is a dizzying number standards across the states, differing wildly in quality and rigor. While some states like Massachusetts and New Hampshire are known to have high standards, many states do not. For example, in 2015, the average math and reading scores on the NAEP in Alabama were thirty-four points lower than the average scores in Massachusetts; twenty states had mean scores below the national average (U.S. Department of Education 2015). Opponents of national standards often claim that there is no need for such guidelines as parents are free to leave if they do not like a school’s curriculum. But therein lies the problem: if a family moves from one state to another, the children may be forced to do remedial work to account for differences in state standards, or, even worse, simply be left behind their peers, struggling to learn new material on their own. Stanford education professor Linda Darling-Hammond explains, “[The creation] of national content standards would help ensure that all students are expected to have an opportunity to learn rigorous content in academic subjects.” In other words, national content standards would provide a framework for effective teaching. In order to uphold content standards, however, another set of guidelines must also be implemented: professional accountability standards. Effective teaching requires instructors who are capable of teaching to high standards. To quote Linda Darling-Hammond once more, “Professional accountability seeks to ensure that all educators will have had access to profession-wide knowledge concerning best practice… that they will have made a moral commitment to use this knowledge in the best interests of their