This post is a summary of two reports: 1) ¨Education and the 2012 election.¨ Published at Huffingtonpost.com at 4 Nov 2011. Written by Gaston Caperton. And 2) ¨Education to play significant role in 2012 elections.¨ Published at Theepochtimes.com at 9 Feb 2012. Written by Shar Adams.
For decades, americans have been searching for a president who could put the school system on his or her back, make education the government`s top priority. Unfortunately, every four years it seems like a new issue comes along that pushes education to the back ( economy, terrorism, health care ).
Will 2012 be different? It is soon to tell. But for education advocates like myself, this election is a unique opportunity to seize the public dialogue and steer it toward a serious conversation. The reality is that education plays a role in many of the key issues that will decide 2012 presidential race. How can we put more americans back to work? Education. How can we lower our long-term debt? Education. How can we become energy independent? Education.
Education can be the silver bullet if we invest the necessary time and the resources. Unfortunately, both are becoming scarce. As the U.S. continues to plummet in the global education standings, we can not afford to continue wringing our hands.
We have a lot of big questions when it comes to education, questions about the role of the federal government, the nature of the curriculum and the integration of technology.
While jobs and the economy are headliner issues for most americans, education will likely play a significant role in elections this year, according to a recent research for a forum for education.
With long-term unemployment a reality in many communities. Americans increasingly see the relationship between education and the economy. The research indicated education had move up on par with health care and the national debt as an issue of concern.
David Winston, president of the D.C. research company says, ¨ people are beginning to realize that one of the outcomes of having an education system that is not producing what it needs is that you are seeing skilled work going overseas because other countries have better labor pools and have really skilled workers.¨
The forum followed of the research touched on a range of key education issues this year, ranging from the reauthorization of the ¨ No Child Left Behind¨ act to raising the dropout age to 18. The new goal of the NCLB act is to have 100% of students reaching proficiency in mathematics and reading by 2014.
The Obama administration has proposed changes to NCLB act : to grant schools flexibility, to teach with creativity, and to replace teachers who are not helping kids` learn.
Steer - direct or guide.
Wringing - very wet or to wash.
Outcome - result or consequence.
Pool - a supply of people for use when needed.
Dropout - stop participating or attending.
