Governance

The local public school system in America is vitally important to the community that it serves. The connection to a higher standard of living is anchored in a well-educated workforce. That relationship is so important that many studies have been prompted linking the benefits of education and economic performance. Knowing the benefits, governments from around the world keep formal education funding as a large portion of their budget.

As the government focus has become much greater, politicians and business leaders call into question the global competitiveness of American schools. This sentiment is due, in a large part, to schools not graduating students more skilled in areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). According to the National statistics, STEM jobs increased over 24% from the ten year span of 2004 and 2014 requiring over 6 million jobs, yet schools are not training enough students to fill the need. This comes down to the direction from the State Department of Education and not the local school Districts. Though the State publishes curriculum standards for Districts to comply, the funding for programs is less than adequate. School Districts all around the country struggle to fund exceptional programs that are needed in the STEM areas as many times, they are costly. The challenge is often that with the onset of technology, the need for devices is constantly changing and upgrading at a particularly high cost. This constantly changing environment found in the business world is not necessarily conducive to the educational world.

Though the education system is transforming to include more STEM in the State of California, there are certain consistencies that hold true. The more local the control, the better served the student can be. The locality will have the best idea how to serve the students and that is what it is all about. The profession of education is a service industry. Though we are faced with challenges, serving the students in the classrooms transcends all hurdles lending hope to the idea that people make the difference, not programs. Taking that ideal and employing a service learning environment can build a community of people that look to help other people with learning about their world.

Until next time...