In a country that is considered the second richest in the world it is a shame to know that 13% of our student population never even graduates high school. Locally our public school system generated over $62.9M (2001-2002 school year) representing $5,913 per student annually.1 Nationally the average per student is approximately $6,100 so the argument that we lack funds for high education expectations would be moot. Equally disturbing is the performance of our students on the National Achievement tests. In the year 2002 eighth graders in the State of Arkansas scored below the National Average on all four test categories; Mathematics 261/274, Reading 260/263, Science 143/149, and Writing 142/152.2 The question that you may ask is “Why are we so far behind the National Average?”...the question we should be asking ourselves as parents and as a community is “How can we produce the next generation of leaders?” Even nationally according to the PISA mathematics and science literacy assessments eight countries outperformed the United States in mathematics literacy, and seven had higher average scores for science literacy. The United States had higher average scores than seven countries for mathematics literacy and seven for science literacy.3 (this is out of twenty seven nations in the OECD: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development). If the nation's report card is in this much turmoil, then it is not impossible to believe that the future of out children has got to start on the local level.
You may wonder what is hindering out children’s academia. I believe it starts with the focus on extracurricular activities. The local school system only requires that our athletes (football players to cheerleaders) obtain a 2.0 GPA starting in the eighth grade.4 if a child is already only achieving this level of mediocrity one can only imagine the negative effect of additional time spent away from studies will have. It is my opinion that a student should not only be required to perform to a higher level in school, but also have one teacher and one personal recommendation to be able to participate in extracurricular activities. This would entice children to want to perform to a much higher standard to be able to be the quarterback of the football team, the head cheerleader, the forward on the basketball team or the pom squad captain. Of course, this is only one area. As parents we have got to be involved in our child’s education. If last weeks Science test is not important to you, it will not be important to your child, nor will last nights homework. As a community we have got to sponsor more education oriented community events, our children and future leaders need to know that education is important to our entire community; whether it is a book drive, volunteering as a speaker at your local school or even having a company sponsored career days. I believe another enticement to a child’s need for education is their dream of success. We as a community have a responsibility to reveal to them the opportunities that are available to them with the proper education and commitment.
Our school system does not need more funding; it needs more support from its parents, teachers, and community.
Footnotes:1 http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch_detail.asp
2 http://nces.gov/nations reportcard/states/profile.asp
3 http://www.urban.org/
4Arkansas Activities Association / Little Rock, AR
