Politics, Society and Culture in Education

After doing my research for the group power point presentation, I was surprised to find out that the government currently spends almost half of our tax dollars (41%) on education. There is an incredible amount of money being exchanged in the name of education. This fact alone creates a political issue out of schools across America. I consider much of politics and society to go hand in hand, and I see it as a chicken-egg routine. America wants to see its tax dollars being spent wisely, and the whole NCLB act wants every student in America to take a standardized test and shine. I can't say that the implementation of standardized tests is a complete travesty, though. In my research, the issues of improved technologies and globalization flooded the net. Our children will be in a world much farther than we are in now. They will NEED to be capable of competing on a global level, and technology skills are a must have, not a bragging right. I do believe that NCLB has reared its head with unnecessary force; the conditions under which some students are tested needs to be changed, namely students with special needs and students who are ESL. One issue that was discussed in our class was the increase in ESL students in recent years, and how school systems do not make any special accommodations for these students. The best way for someone to learn a language is to immerse oneself in it, but what about the parents and families of that student? How can that child’s parents help them with their homework if they cannot speak English? What’s more, how likely is it that a child will perform to their full academic potential on a standardized test if they are having trouble reading the questions? This particular situation is one of the oxy-morons of education that I do not have a suggestion for on how to fix. Me and the entire general public, I guess. Not that more money would not fix the situation (bilingual textbooks, translators, tutors, language lessons for teachers, etc), but the American people do not want to spend MORE money on teaching students English, they just want better schools. And by better schools, they want higher test scores. This part I do not agree with. The academic performance of one student on one day of school (under stress, no less) cannot validate an entire year of school. Education is such an individual experience; it is difficult to quantify what is quality education. Who is to say that a child did not learn anything valuable just because they did not master what was on one test? The thing I constantly heard in high school was, “It’s not on the regents, so I won’t teach it”. So it is not worth knowing?

The increase in ESL students also demonstrates the social impacts on education. Typically, non-English speaking families live in inner-cities and have a lower socio-economic status. Students in this situation do not receive an education equal to an economically privileged student. Aside from financials, students also learn at different rates and with different instructional methods. Boys and girls learn differently from one another. Students also have broken homes, divorced parents, and cultural familial roles to deal with as well. The world is not what it once was, and students are pressured as much as the rest of us. It is difficult to know one’s place in society when there are so man expectations to live up to. Many times, teachers think about how their jobs are changing and how they have to live up standards and appeal to diverse learners, but how often do they think about being a kid? I try to keep myself in perspective reminding myself that I am a student as well. I try to keep in mind how I manage school into the rest of my life, and the stress I find myself under at times. Managing three classes, a full time job, and a social life can be very challenging. I cannot imagine if I had children on top of everything else. I know that students do not have the same complexities as an adult, but the students’ emotional development is also on a small scale as well. Small things to us are the big things to them. I feel that the prerequisites mentioned in the Nature of Education and Schooling reading (vision, character, and competence) are especially important in today’s society. How else can a child develop the mentality he or she needs to survive emotionally in this world?

Schools are a mini-model of the society in which they exist. The school community needs to be one of tolerance, safety and understanding. I feel that in order to effectively teach students to be an active and successful part of our society, we must embrace our differences and mold our educational system to guide change, not respond to it. Our classrooms should be student-centered places for authentic learning. Teachers should teach scaffolded instruction and also lead by example. Classroom environments should be welcoming and full of encouragement. I have seen some teachers criticize students’ art work and creative writing, which I am completely opposed to. Children should not go to school to be judged; they should come to a place that empowers them to be as creative and subjective as they want. Our society is no longer one size fits all; we all wear different clothes, celebrate different holidays, speak different languages, have different family structures, learn in different ways, and have different values and beliefs. There is no way we can shape all of our children into one mold. Though our students are small, we must not lose sight of them as individuals. They must become independent thinkers at a young age, so they are prepared for the world to come.