03/02/2020
CHALLENGES FOR PAKISTAN'S EDUCATION SYSTEM
How to Improve Student Achievement
Just like a tripod—it takes a dedicated PARENT—STUDENT—and TEACHER to improve student achievement. All three must work together with mutual respect and cooperation.
The CHALLENGE is to decide what and how each student learns best and then open doors so they continue to excel. One size does NOT fit all.
It is time to ask some serious questions and find solutions that are not based on spending an increased amount each and every year. Instead, we must provide our students with the employable skills they need to compete for jobs in the global economy.
Here are some of the challenges which must be faced before quality education can be achieved.
1) The school finance formula in most states does not assure an equal educational opportunity for each student. State Legislators need to pass a new school-based formula which includes the resources required to teach the unique group of students attending each school. Line-item, school district budgets hide and waste money. Too often, tax dollars do not reach the classroom or meet the learning needs of the students attending each school.
2) Teachers receive pay raises based on the number of years taught and credit hours of college courses completed—not on how well students learn. Since 80% of the cost of educating students is on salaries, compensation must be based on teaching performance.
3) Giving teachers tenure after only three years instead of basing their continued employment on student achievement does not reward excellence. No other sector of society has such job security. It is time to change the teacher tenure laws in each state.
4) The average student drop-out rate in most states is 20%. For Black and Hispanic males, 30-50% drop-out before graduating from high school, depending on the school. Most of these students are not dumb. In fact, 84% say they are simply bored with what they are forced to learn. We must teach relevant knowledge and job skills so students choose to come to school each day.
5) High school students need to learn financial literacy to be able to manage the money they will earn. Focusing State assessments on just reading and math without teaching students personal finance skills is setting them and our Nation up for failure.
6) States can save hundreds of millions per year by redrawing school district boundaries and put those funds into vocational programs to teach students employable skills. Paying tiny districts to stay small is a huge waste of tax dollars and does not provide the comprehensive curriculum needed for their high school graduates to compete for jobs in the global economy.
7) We do not have enough qualified science, math or vocational teachers willing to teach in Pakistan’s schools. It is time to revise teacher certification requirements to allow more people with the real world, work experience in these practical, technical skills to teach our middle and high school students.
8) We must also stop blaming our teachers for low student achievement. They are NOT paid, baby sitters. Classroom disruptions, bullying, and violence are getting totally out of hand in some schools. When classrooms are disrupted by unruly students, the other students cannot learn and teachers cannot teach. Parents must be responsible for their child’s behavior and encourage them to take learning seriously.
9) The focus must be back on learning practical, real-world knowledge and skills plus stop socially promoting students to the next grade level. A high school diploma must certify to employers and colleges that each graduate can actually use what they have been taught.
10) One size does not fit all. Only 25% of high school graduates actually earn a Bachelor’s college degree. The other 75% need to learn employable skills while they are still in high school. Graduation requirements should allow students the CHOICE of taking more CTE courses as substitutes for the college-prep courses most states currently require to earn a high school diploma. Schools also need to work with business and industry to teach relevant skills and knowledge. Specific, industrially recognized certificates can be earned and issued while students are still in high school so they are employable right after they graduate rather than forcing them to wait and take on huge debt to go on for post-secondary training.
To meet these challenges and improve our K-12 schools / Colleges will require the joint effort of many dedicated and persistent people. Leaders from business and industry, legislators, educators, parents and child advocates must now step forward.
Remember that TRIPOD?
It takes the PARENT, STUDENT and TEACHER working together to produce life-long learners. Remove any of these three participants and it becomes very difficult for any student to succeed—no matter how much more money we spend.
