Education Reform and Politics

Education Reform and Politics

With the election coming up I wanted to discuss the issue of education and politics. Education has become a major point in the today's campaigns. I want to explore what steps the government plays in the role of education and see what has worked and what has not. We as a society should be asking questions like, "Do we still have the same problems that existed two decades ago and what are we doing to address these issues?" or "Why are we falling behind the rest of the world?" The decisions that the politicians make will affect the whole education community especially how us teachers prepare for our daily lessons.

The first Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) was passed by Lyndon Johnson in 1965. President George W. Bush Instituted the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) witch emphasizes in closing the achievement gap throughout the country. Today Barrak Obama has spent billions of tax payer's money on preparing our youth for the global market place. Every president has had different agenda's and challenges when it comes to education reform. Lately there has been a common theme, closing the achievement gap especially in low income school districts, having highly qualified teaching staffs, using state of the art Data Systems, and a useful student assessment system. Each plan has good intentions in place but the underlying question remains "Is it working?" We still are falling behind other countries that are spending less on education. What is the answer?

Today Barrak Obama and Mitt Romney have put education on a short list of important issues that will hopefully win them an election. Past presidents have set forth campaigns to improve the educational system. Both Obama and Romney have some of there own ideas on education reform but still are using the ground work of the NCLB system. They each have there own set of goals and recommendations in dealing with the education system as a whole. This paper will be focusing on their plans to reform the K-12 schools and not there plans for higher education. Let's take a look at the pro's and con's of each candidate's plans for education reform.

Barrack Obama's education reform plan which he instituted in 2009 has some good ideas and concepts. He has implemented "Race to the Top" program, in attempts to higher standards and a have a better assessment system to prepare students for college and the work force. Obama is building and implementing data systems to help teachers and principles improve instruction. Although Obama has implemented this at a federal level he has given states the authority for flexibility with this law. There are 33 states that are not meeting standards and are been giving more time to catch up and to meet national standards. Every time something gets implemented it takes time to work, they have giving schools more and more time and made minimum standards easier to reach.

Mitt Romney's education plan is to reform the already existing NCLB plan. He wants to be able to take students from low performing schools and give them options to go to better performing schools. He wants to reward good teachers based on performance rather than tenure. He wants parents to be able to access better data systems and be more involved in their child's education. All are good policies but like many policies before it still does not give much detail. Moving students from low performing schools will not ensure for a solid education. It is important