A study by a nongovernmental organization in America revealed the extent of fall in quality of teaching standards in the country. Quality of teaching of American history in the country was assessed and overall grade that 28 states received was a ‘D’. Of course, the performance of students cannot be attributed directly to the efforts of teachers alone. However, there is no denying that poor standard shows the extent of all in quality of teaching in America.
The government has adopted a straightforward approach of helping those schools that improve standards and punishing those that do not improve standards. The onus of using resources properly to achieve goals has been left in the hands of schools. Further, the No Child Left Behind Act provides that standards shall be determined by states. This ensures the Federal government does not come up with unrealistic or unreasonably low standards because of lack of local knowledge.
The No Child Left Behind approach has been criticized for not providing results. The process of trial and error will continue until the right balance is found. However, there is no denying that this emphasis on standards of teaching and education has helped shift focus back on education. For a long time, the fact that America was at the top of the world in virtually all important areas and aspects lead to complacency. Today, studies like the one mentioned above show the stark ground reality.
There is a fear that China will overtake America as the biggest economy and that it may lose its second position to countries like India and Brazil in a few more decades. It is not just a question of status alone. The fact that American economy is slowing down means quality of manpower is coming down. Globalization has changed the scenario and the education system is now being overhauled to tackle this crisis.