Sociology of Education Reflection Paper

Sociology of Education Reflection Paper 6

The Nation at Risk report is one of the most influential documents in the history of American education. In 1981, the National Committee on Excellence in Education set out to identify the problems in American education system. They stated that the United States were falling behind to other developed country. South Korea, Japan, and Germany sprung ahead of the race with their automobile and new technology. This is very similar to the effect of Sputnik. The nation was pushed to action out of fear. The report stated many problems, but some of the main points that were established were the lack of motivation, deficit of qualified teacher, low standards and expectations.

First of all, the report identify the lack of motivation. Students only do the bare minimum in order to graduate. That’s largely because almost all of the school system emphasized the minimum line. Education and learning should be something that continue on beyond childhood. However, the motivation to be a Learning Society, was seriously lacking. Secondly, students lack motivation due to the low standards and expectations that the school provides. Many did not offer qualified textbooks, and the requirement to graduate were too low. Some only ask for 1 year in math and science. As a result, despite the increase in the over all grades, student performance dropped dramatically. Third, there is a deficit of qualified teachers in subject such as math, physics and sciences. Teachers were not trained adequately for the job and they are severely underpaid. Therefore, many people who would have been great teachers turned away from the job.

The Nation At Risk report provided some very insightful information in my opinion. I found myself agreeing with a lot of their proposal, such as the development of a learning society. I do think that learning should be a main part throughout all stages of people’s life. Since curiosity is a natural function for humans, so should learning. Secondly, the idea of high expectation for all students is an admirable one, however, teaching to the test isn’t going to be beneficial in the long run. While I did agree with many of the things they said, I find the facts reported, hard to believe. A lot of the “statistics” were very subjective, such as college admission reported a decrease in qualified applicants.