Preparing for America’s Future
The phrase “preparing for America’s future” is synonymous with the word “education.” The dictionary defines education as “acquisition of knowledge or skills; especially in an institution of learning.” Herein lies America’s future. The classroom is the place where individuals today learn the skills enabling them to become the teachers, doctors, lawyers, business executives, and productive citizens of tomorrow.
If the United States is to continue to be a world leader, we must actively support education in action, not only in speech. Every citizen contributes to the American educational system. It is the responsibility of every voter to elect officials who sincerely back educational progress. Politicians have tremendous power to enhance educational quality. Our future depends on the intelligent judgment of the candidates and their stands on all issues, especially this one.
If the United States is to continue to be a world leader, we must actively support education in action, not only in speech. Parents must work with teachers and school administrators to bring about positive change. Too often parents are unable, or more sadly, unwilling to become involved. Academic encouragement from a parent is probably more important than positive or negative reinforcement from a teacher. In order for schools to be a complete educational experience which produce well-rounded people, parents must make a great contribution by giving their time and talents to academic and extracurricular activities.
If the United States is to continue to be a world leader, we must actively support education in action, not only in speech. A part of this topic to which many people have an aversion is money. If we expect realism to coincide with idealism, we must be willing to pay the monetary cost for quality educators, quality educational materials, and quality educational facilities. The joy on an elementary school child’s face when she masters simple addition and the sense of pride a high school student experiences when he comprehends a Shakespearean play are priceless. For the sake of our nation and its children, we have no choice but to invest our dollars for quality education.
Most importantly, students need to be motivated to want to achieve for themselves. Only then can they receive the ultimate benefit of education - which is the satisfaction of learning to achieve desired goals. From this motivation, students will strive for respectable families, subsequently for respectable communities, and ultimately for a respectable country that lives up in every way to the title of world leader.
Until now, we have spoken mainly of classroom education. However, learning has other forms. Increasingly, many students today hold part time, after-school jobs. These jobs are beneficial even when they are unrelated to the student’s future field of study or work. Jobs impart a further sense of responsibility already demanded for managing schoolwork. Unfortunately, jobs take time away from other extracurricular activities. It is up to each individual to allocate time according to his or her own needs. Responsible students today become responsible citizens tomorrow.
Another type of learning is on-the-job experience. Many high schools offer work release or co-op programs in which students are released from school earlier in the day if their job is consistent with courses being studied. Such programs help produce knowledgeable future employees for American industry.
To regain America’s economic stature in such areas as electronics and automobile production, we must strive to be leaders. It is as simple as motivating people to care. We must erase apathy and replace it with empathy. Competition and the drive for excellence have propelled our country forward in the past. When we once again instill these drives in American students, we will progress farther.
The final type of education is moral. Children who have learned a proper sense of morality carry it into adulthood, thereby enabling them to make proper ethical decisions. No matter which belief system is taught, people need something in which to believe. Strong values and self-confidence in one’s decisions create happy and productive individuals. The internal future of America depends on proper ethical and social judgments. For any nation to be truly wonderful, its inhabitants must not only be scientists and scholars, but also compassionate and sympathetic people.
Education - from classroom academics to job experience to moral beliefs - is the foundation of the future, our future! A solid education today equals a strong America tomorrow.