As we approach National American Education Week, one of the major points of discussion is whether the U.S. needs to create a national curriculum and core standards. The first argument that would be made is that a national curriculum will make sure that every student across states is academically equal in the classroom. The second good thing would be that this would get rid of any discrepancies in student academic placement when it comes to changing school districts. Both can be argued to be beneficial, but the fact still remains that regardless of the curriculum, no two students will ever be academically equal in the class room.
There is no evidence that creating a national curriculum will increase the overall academic achievement in the U.S., nor is there any evidence that proves every subject has a specific way it should be taught or that each individual school should be ran the same way. Not only do the learning patterns of each individual student vary depending on social and economic influences but it can also be said that the location of the school impacts students’ academic success as well.
At the end of the day, it does not matter how many assessments you put into place, how many mandatory reading assignments you create or how many highly educated teachers you employ. The academic success of a student is greatly influenced by his or her socio-economic standing. Whether a student has a support system and an academic environment that aims at to promote their success can and will be a huge factor in whether he or she prevails academically.
Let’s face it ― the biggest problem with national core standards is that it neglects to take into account the socio-economic impact of a student’s environment on their performance in school. Most people do not want to address it, but it’s true. Students who live in areas that are more poverty-stricken tend to have lower graduation rates. It’s not that they are not smart or they are not capable, but when you take into account violence and poverty, how can a student completely focus and commit to their work material?
Often, students are caught in gang violence or are not getting the required amount of food intake and, as a result, find it hard to pay attention in class. So it does not matter how “equal” we try to make the curriculum in our public schools if we do not first fix the bigger problem. We are only masking it.
If government officials want to make a national curriculum, then they first need to help improve our schools. Students will never be academically equal in the classroom, but their access to resources can be. The government wants to improve the overall academic excellence across the nation but is not making an effort to provide every school with the resources to do so. What are guidelines for teaching if students are not provided with the tools to learn? Every school, no matter the location or dominant population of the area, needs to be provided with the computers, books, tutoring availability, clubs, access to food and activities that all contribute to academic success. Once we have worked on outlawing all of the factors that hinder student performance, then we can talk nationalizing curriculum and core standards.
The U.S. loves standardized placement tests so much that every state has their own. I don’t know how many intelligent high school seniors I’ve seen struggle with graduating because they could not pass the FCAT for reasons beyond their control. Assessments, and even certain curriculum, are not a correct identifier of intelligence, nor will nationalizing them increase the performance of students who have not been able to explore every resource of academic help.
Students need more than core standard 101 if the government ever wishes to effectively nationalize our curriculum. They first need to nationalize their involvement in our school systems. We get it ― our more suburban schools are easier to assist, but schools in inner-city areas need resources, too. Contrary to popular belief, students in poverty do not score low or drop out because they want to, it because no one has encouraged them not to.
