As a new school year begins, so does the evolution of how we educate our children and measure its effectiveness.
As the business world looks to evaluations and statistics to measure production, quality and even employees, our schools are now turning to many of the same practices – utilizing standardized testing to rate the performance of teachers, curricula’s and students. While some might argue the biased nature of such testing, the results weigh heavy on the minds of school administrations around the country.
But as this new school year begins, I’m reminded of something President Obama said during one of his State of the Union addresses several years back. Take a look…
“That responsibility begins not in our classrooms, but in our homes and communities. It’s family that first instills the love of learning in a child. Only parents can make sure the TV is turned off and homework gets done. We need to teach our kids that it’s not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated, but the winner of the science fair; that success is not a function of fame or PR, but of hard work and discipline.”
As a former student grounded in family values, I’ve always believed that education is contingent upon three factors: the teacher, the student and their parents. If even one of those areas falters, the educational experience will ultimately suffer.
We can no longer be naïve to believe that better teachers will undoubtedly produce better students. Students and parents need to accept responsibility for the process as well in order to achieve the best results possible.
