by Vivian Madison

Created on: August 17, 2009

In the United States, we have (in theory) a wonderful resource which is accessible to every citizen: education. Unfortunately, we have squandored and nearly destroyed this valuable resource. Who is to blame? Everyone; that is, society as a whole. A lot of fingerpointing occurs in any discussion of the failing education system, and various people or groups get blamed: teachers, administrators, students, parents,etc. Each of those groups share in the blame, but parents need to take a good share of the responsibility for the failure of the education system. After parents, society in general has contributed to the decline of the education system.

Most teachers enjoy what they do, or they did at one time. Unfortunately, incompetent teachers exist, just as do incompetents in any other profession, and they should be removed from their positions. The majority of teachers, though, are competent at what they do; even more so when they are given the support and resources they need.

Strong teachers' unions have made it difficult to dismiss teachers from their positions and have made pay raises nearly a guarantee. A teacher can earn a pay raise just by putting in a certain number of years or by gaining additional education, neither of which necessarily guarantee a more qualified teacher. Merit plays too small a role in teachers' pay raises. Standardized tests, though, are not a good indicator of a teacher's performance.

Poor usage of tax money, overpaid administrators, and lack or misuse of resources also contribute to the failure of our education system as well, but the blame should be focused on parents, and, by extension, society as a whole.

The decline of the family unit, which is a result of changes in societal norms, is at the heart of the failure of our education system. I have worked for several years for a supplemental education provider where I see students who have not thrived in our education system. Since the service we provide is expensive, the students I see come from middle to upper class homes. One thing that most of these students have in common is a chaotic home life. This is certainly not universally to blame for all education problems, but contributes to a significant portion of them. Although I typically don't see students from the lower socioeconomic brackets in my daily work, many of these students also come from chaotic homes, often more intensely so than the higher classes.

The students I see should have every advantage, considering

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