Reflective Essay: Improving The Education System

Title

Gun control, abortion, unemployment, climate change, discrimination, and inequality fill the newsreels every day in our country. Capitol Hill is teeming with debates over issues that hold great significance to the current generation. Many of these topics and ones to come will never be agreed upon by all sides as having a fair situation. In contrast, I believe the improvement of the education system is the most important social issue that can be resolved and then used to improve so many other problems in our society through aspects such as merit pay, Common Core, and increased vocational opportunities for all students

In many states, teachers are underpaid. Though money is not the motive for most teachers, without enticing salaries, many are lured away from the teaching profession and graduates looking for a first year teaching position are not given much to look forward to. So, since teachers are not paid adequately, raising the pay scale would ensure that our children are left in the hands of quality educators. One way teachers can be sufficiently compensated is by merit pay. The formula is simple; as test scores and evaluations rise, so would the teachers’ salaries. Although controversial, it is just one of many

debatable topics in education. 
The most recognized challenge in the educational system is Common Core.

Many argue that a uniform curriculum is a step toward socialism and the dreaded communism; however, I have no idea why a nationwide standard was never set.  Several states have already withdrawn from Common Core or modified and renamed it, but Common Core can only offer the United States positive benefits. Through a nationwide standard and uniform testing, our country can be accurately evaluated on the same scale. As the higher standard is adopted, schools will rise to meet and exceed that standard. While Common Core is effective in meeting the needs of students on an academic path, there still needs to be alternatives for students better suited for a vocational

occupation.  
Under the current education system, students are restricted from deviating from the path of a regular diploma. While it sounds like a reasonable expectation, not all students are college bound. Some students need an alternate path for success that does not stipulate the traditional course requirements. Every student should be required to complete the regular curriculum through ninth grade; however, students should have the option of diverting to a vocational tract from tenth to twelfth grade. This would allow the student options in lieu of failing or becoming a high school dropout. Because a student cannot excel in a regular academic setting should not mean he or she cannot be successful. There will always be jobs that require these vital vocational skills and many of them pay as much or more than careers that require a college degree.
Our nation’s educational system has many opportunities available to address problems that affect student success. While some may be controversial, the general public must be willing to accept change in order to move forward. Remedies to our problems are already available if our citizens will allow leaders to make the necessary decisions to ensure our students will succeed in all categories. While education is not the solution to all other social issues, its improvement will serve as a foundation to advance many other social concerns.