The Staggering Failure of Public Schools By Teresa Shuff Trujillo Reprinted from the ASTD-OC OrangeSpiel Newsletter, October 2008
I was not surprised by the April 1, 2008 headline stating our schools are failing. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell’s America’s Promise Alliance released a report on high school graduation rates in America’s 50 largest cities. New York and Los Angeles are graduating less than half of their students, and Detroit is only graduating one-out-of-four. The complete report can be found at www.AmericasPromise.org. Locally, 13 of the 27 school districts in Orange County, California did not achieve their annual yearly progress measurements under the No Child Left Behind legislation. Statewide, the California High School Exit Exam led to approximately 26,000 more drop outs last year when it became to prerequisite to a high school diploma. The 2007-2008 drop out rate for California is roughly equivalent to the population of Fullerton. 126,000 California students did not complete high school. Many of the social reforms we have seen in our schools was long overdue. Separate but equal schools are neither separate nor equal. More than 60-years-ago, the wisdom of the courts were used to begin desegregation right here in Orange County with the Mendez v Westminster case. The landmark Brown v. Board of Education followed eight years later. But schools remain a system of haves and have-nots. “About 58 percent of students served by the urban districts within the largest metropolitan20areas graduate, compared with 75 percent in nearby suburban communities,” states the report prepare by Christopher Swanson of the Editorial Projects in Educational Research Institute. “The more typical situation, however, is characterized by sharply lower rates of high school completion for the city districts.” The report was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the America’s Promise Alliance. I agree with the major tenants of the report. But, there are other subtler issues affecting educational outcomes. Much of it has to do with the social expectations and messages which have been developed by the community, parents and employers. First there is the marketing messages that career educators have seared into our collective conscience. This marketing has been so successful that most of us take it for granted that you have to graduate from college to be successful. This belief affects how we hire, train, promote and retain our workforce. But, what is the truth, and how do we seperate truth from the wishful thinking of the education marketers? The staggering truth is that only one in four Americans will attain a bachelor’s degree. So, it is not just our high schools that are failing—it is the whole pre-school through college education system. The U.S. Departments of Education, Commerce, and Labor keep extensive records on education and the workforce. All of these statistics are available on their websites. Here is a thumbnail sketch of education outcomes: • 75% n ational high school graduation rate according to the 2004 U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics • 65.5% of high school graduates enrolled in college in 2006 according to the Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics • 52% college graduation rate after 6 years of college according to National Center for Education Statistics, US Dept Ed Placing Graduation Rates in Context NECS 2007-161 October 2006 • 26.5% is the percentage workers who are college graduates according the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics. · There are nearly 16 million high school students in this country, but only 3.9 million seats at 1308 degree granting institutions recognized by the US Department of Education. The reality is that there is only one seat for every four students at a university. Truly understanding these numbers is sobering. It is also imperative that employers design their hiring needs around the available workforce. Vocational education was winnowed from school budgets because the emphasis was to insure that every student was going to receive a college prep curriculum thanks to the No Child Left Behind legislation. It is much more expensive to provide vocational education than it is to provide a college prep curriculum. Vocational education requires a lower teacher to student ratio, large workshops, expensive equipment, and higher insurance. Local school districts were eager to abandon vocational education and adopt the message that college as the=2 0means to a secure future for their graduates. There is yet another point where the message and reality are very far apart—the new economy requires and educated workforce. The U.S. Department of Labor reports that only 30% of the job titles in their database require a college degree. This does not mean that 30% of the available jobs require a degree, just 30% of the job titles. And many of the job titles that don’t require college degrees are well-paying careers that benefit from on-the-job training and apprenticeships, in other words—earn while you learn opportunities! Many trades have trouble recruiting young people. But, who will be our auto mechanics, plumbers, construction workers, soldiers, police, firefighters, skilled labor, and other workers—all the foundations of our economy that don’t require a college degree? At some point three-out-of-four young citizens realize that they won’t achieve a college degree. This is where local business can step in and improve the outcome for students in our community. Reaching out to middle school and high school students with career days, field trips and open houses at our businesses may entice them to pursue jobs and careers in their neighborhoods. This is good for business and good for the community. Reaching out to teachers with classroom resources is another way to bridge the real world versus the school room. Education is the greatest equalizer in our society. Every student who earns their way to college with hard work, good grades, and a winning attitude should be rewarded with an admission to college. But the Manhattan Institute for Public Policy Research reports that only 32% of students leaving high school are qualified to attend four-year colleges. They are reporting on academic preparedness—not the social, emotional, or financial preparedness to attend college. It is time to view K-12 public education as an entry into the economic engine. It means that the emphasis must be placed on preparing our youngest community members with a skills set that will prepare them for life—not just for college. To do this employers will need to reach out to educators and partner for success. Teresa Shuff Trujillo is the president of Book Workshop, Inc. in Fullerton, California. She has working in the printing and publishing industry for over thirty years. She helps writers achieve their publishing dreams through free monthly writer’s gatherings and critiques and a variety of publishing services. Teresa’s e-mail address is [EMAIL PROTECTED] Teresa Trujillo Book Workshop/Mighty Designs 1501 E. Orangethorpe Ave Suite 130 Fullerton, CA 92831 (714) 525-0882 FAX (714) 879-7153 Cell (714) 926-8343 -----Original Message----- From: Dick Margulis <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Teresa Trujillo <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: tcp@techcommpros.com Sent: Wed, 15 Oct 2008 11:00 am Subject: Re: [TCP] Fwd: NYTimes.com: Amusing, but Not Funny I don't know that this is on-topic for the group, but it's not like=2 0 we're burning up bandwidth with anything else. In any case, here's the link, for those who were puzzled by Teresa's cryptic post: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/14/opinion/14herbert.htm As it's the Times, you may be required to obtain a free login ID. Or not. One can never tell with the Times. Dick Margulis http://ampersandvirgule.blogspot.com/ ______________________________________________ ComponentOne® Doc-To-Help® 2008 delivers streamlined authoring features, including new end-user features, all within the brand new Microsoft Office 2007 style interface. Download your FREE trial! http://www.techcommpros.com/componentone/ Interactive 3D Documentation Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com ______________________________________________ ComponentOne® Doc-To-Help® 2008 delivers streamlined authoring features, including new end-user features, all within the brand new Microsoft Office 2007 style interface. Download your FREE trial! http://www.techcommpros.com/componentone/ Interactive 3D Documentation Parts catalogs, animated instructions, and more. www.i3deverywhere.com _______________________________________________ Technical Communication Professionals Post a message to the list: email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, unsubscribe, archives, account options, list info: http://techcommpros.com/mailman/listinfo/tcp_techcommpros.com Subscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe (email): send a blank message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Need help? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] Get the TCP whole experience! http://www.techcommpros.com
