Why Education Matters — Familiarizing Yourself and Myself
No matter what any one else says or believes, education paves the way for the future of humanity. It is just the very first step of many key steps for the improvement and progression of our society. This blog focuses on the topic of quality education for all students and why it is of such importance. There are countless of obstacles blocking the path to achieve this goal, but the issue I believe to be most predominant goes to funding, with the environment of the school and its neighborhood a close second.
When I talk about education, I don’t mean just education in general, I am talking about quality education for all. This might seem irregular or even foolish, but just as how not all things are created equal, education is, in fact, not equal across countries, or even within the same city. Funding not only affects the quality of the teachers, but also the numbers of programs offered as well as the meals provided.
I went to elementary and junior high school in a relatively well off area. The school there, education-wise is above average, yet at the same time it was lacking severely. The insufficient funding that both my schools got led to the cancellations of a lot of after school programs as well as some courses. I strongly believe that exposing young children to a variety of things is the best way to get them to find their best interest. They can discover interests and hobbies they never knew existed or liked. The lack of funding schools get prevents them from getting this kind of exposure. For instance, there used to be a basketball team for both genders in my junior high school, yet during the years I attended, only a female team existed.
Strong, quality education can pave the way for so hundreds, if not thousands, of possibilities for students. Lack of funding leads to millions of students not getting the education they deserve and they are put at a clear disadvantage for the future. A prominent example would be the Specialized High School Admissions Test (SHSAT) for NYC student. Students from a higher income junior high schools have a much higher probability at passing the test as opposed to those from lower income areas. This disparity in educations provided between two schools within the same city should not exist or be this extreme.
A strong foundation can be built from a quality education. Future leaders as well as more capable and knowledgeable individual are born from such foundation. With more capable people in the future, we can see a slew of new innovations and creations that can make the world a better place to live in. We may see a better economy, a more efficient method of producing energy from renewable sources, and maybe even have a way to combat climate change. These are all speculations for now, and I look forward to learning more with you guys as we go along.
There are a number of questions that I believe are crucial to get a better understanding at the topic at hand:
- With the wealth of the US, why are schools lacking severely in funding?
- How will better funding affect students going into higher education (undergrad and above)?
- Is the environment surrounding the school equally as important to the funding the school receives?
