Part 4 (1980-2000): The Bottom Line

 

    Part 4: The Bottom Line is based on the years of 1980- 2000. These years in American education come after a time of crucial change in schooling for the United States. The stage of American schools before 1980 was full of separation between race, gender, and class. Once these academic/education issues had been resolved, there came the article "A Nation At Risk." This article brought to light what many believed was a new, different issue in America's educational system.  

    The "A Nation At Risk" article was a response to America's failure to keep up with other nations economically, technologically, and academically. This failure was blamed on the public schools and educational systems of the country. Due to such failure and embarrassment, American corporate businesses took over many of the schools in the United States. Business leaders believed that if students were to perform better academically, then the economic future of America would increase. These large corporations felt that students should be taught and better prepared to join the workforce. Sponsorships, standardized tests, rigorous courses, and higher graduation requirements were just a few of the changes that were made to create a wiser and more innovative future workforce. 

    Although many of these changes had already been made, there was no proof of a connection between education and the economy. Many of these corporate businesses and governmental leaders believed that these changes would be beneficial not only to the nation but also to the students, which proved to be quite the opposite in many cases. The standardized tests caused some students to stay behind, and the importance of subjects such as science and math left no room for other less important subjects that interested the students. Companies did not see a drastic change in the economy of their business and the abilities of their new employees. Difficulty in graduating and getting into colleges discouraged some students, but one thing parents and students did enjoy was their ability to choose where they wanted to attend school. 

    Vouchers and other financial systems were set in place to help students to attend private schools where they couldn't before. Many low-income families benefitted from the school choice decisions and sent their children to private schools so that they would be able to receive the best education. This also benefitted the nation in the sense of less segregated schools based in suburban and urban areas. Although this had some benefits for the students and private schools, there were some disadvantages of parents being able to choose where to send their child to school. Public schools were decreasing in enrollment, and they were losing a decent amount of their funding. 

    School choice had always seemed like a great idea to me growing up, but after reading part four and doing some research, I am unsure about it. I always knew it was beneficial for the students, especially those from low-income homes who have big dreams. My uncertainty lies in the idea of school choice improving public education. I want to say that it does improve public education because it brings about competition. Schools would want students to choose their school, so they want their education/curriculum to seem elite compared to others.  The continuous desire to be the best will continue to bring about change and improvement in American public schools for years to come.