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Education report: Shortcomings of US schools pose national security threat Summary: A new report finds that the lack of preparation of young Americans for a globalized world is so severe that it poses a national security threat. The report says that American education fails to prepare children for the highly technical jobs that both the private sector and the military need to fill. It also says that foreign-language education is lacking and that our “national cohesiveness” is weakened due to under-educate and unemployable people. These shortcomings in education will undermine American security and will put economic prosperity, global position, and physical safety at risk. Ms. Condoleezza Rice stated that education is “the glue that keeps us together,” and focused on nationwide unity to improve the weakened conditions. Two strong indicators of America’s weakness in education are the poor placement of U.S students on international rankings of math and science as well as reports from the Defense Department that state that three-fourths of young Americans are not qualified to join the armed forces. These numbers indicate the areas of struggle for the U.S education system. A few recommendations are given to improve the weaknesses in our education system. The first is to extend both the school day and school year, as the U.S has the shortest learning day and year of almost all countries in the industrialized world. Another is to emphasize science, technology, and foreign languages in addition to reading and math. Also, the report suggests the introduction of a “national security readiness audit,” which would measure how well schools are teaching “the skills and knowledge necessary to safeguard America’s future security and prosperity”. Not everyone in the task force signed off on the recommendations. Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers said that “the final report does too little to recognize public education’s role in America”. Another who disagreed was Harvard national security expert, Stephen Walt, who said that the report “exaggerates the national security rationale for reforming US K-12 education”. He did not believe that a national security threat was of concern for the near or distant future in which we had to alter our education. Relevance: In recent U.S history there have been many attempts at education reform. Starting in the 1950s, education reform focused on the Civil Rights Movement. Throughout the 50s, 60s, and 70s, we saw many changes in public schooling including the elimination of racial segregation and the banning of school prayer. In 2001, the United States Act of Congress, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), was enacted. The act was first proposed by the administration of President George W. Bush and was signed into law by the President on January 8, 2002. NCLB was a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. The main goal of NCLB was to improve education for disadvantaged students. It was also designed to hold schools and states more accountable for student progress. In order to receive federal funding, states must give students in certain grade levels a statewide assessment. NCLB supported education reform by starting annual testing, report card requirements, teacher qualifications, and funding changes. Evaluation: The rapid changes in our environment call for adjustments to our education programs. Throughout history, education had to adapt with new developments such as desegregation, affirmative action, and advances in technology. Economic growth has also impacted education reform. As a student in high school you often hear something along the lines of, “You’re not going to get anywhere without a degree.” The reason for this is that the value of education has increased and it is that much more important for everyone to have the opportunity for higher-level education. Generally speaking, education reform focuses on improving public education by creating a successful work environment and equal opportunity for all students. Currently, the focus for U.S education reform is to prepare American students for a globalized world. In order to do that it has been proposed that the U.S extend both the school day and school year, emphasize science, technology, and foreign languages, and introduce a “national security readiness audit”. Questions: 1. Why is it that American schools have a shorter school day and year than most? 2. Is the problem really that severe that it is a national security threat? 3. Would setting higher standards for state assessments help? 4. How successful has NCLB been in the past decade?

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LaFranchi, Howard. "Education report: Shortcomings of US schools pose national security threat - CSMonitor.com." //The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Mar. 2012. .

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