Archive for 'Research'
Study Cites Dire Economic Impact of Poor Schools
Posted on 27. Apr, 2009 by Admin.
by Javier C. Hernandez (April 22, 2009)
The economic recession may be the least of our worries. Increasing educational disparity throughout the nation may be the larger problem. Education (or the lack thereof) is directly tied to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The future of our nation depends on educational reform. What are the recent findings?
“The study, conducted by the management consulting firm McKinsey and Co., pointed to bleak disparities in test scores on four fronts: between black and Hispanic children and white children; between poor and wealthy students; between Americans and students abroad; and between students of similar backgrounds educated in different parts of the country.
“The report concluded that if those achievement gaps were closed, the yearly gross domestic productof the United States would be trillions of dollars higher, or $3 billion to $5 billion more per day.
“Nationally, the gap in test performance between white and Hispanic students grows by 41 percent from Grade 4 through 12, and between white and black students it grows 22 percent, the report said. Students educated in different regions also showed marked variation in test performance, despite having similar demographic backgrounds. In Texas, for instance, schools are given about $1,000 less per student than California schools, but Texas children are on average one to two years of learning ahead of their counterparts in California.
The disparity of education in the United States of America is indeed daunting. We must continue to work hard – harder than ever. However, we cannot give in to pessimism.
Together, we must seek out new and innovative ways to address the nation’s many challenges. Diversity should and can be synonomous with opportunity and achievement.
It is the opinion of UEC that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all model, and certainly our traditional public education system does many things right. However, we must continue to seek new models of education, such as charter schools, vouchers, performance pay, and professional pathways so that children throughout the nation have the same opportunities as their counterparts in wealthier areas of the nation.
What do you think?
Read the entire article here.
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Youth volunteering on decline since Sept. 11
Posted on 27. Apr, 2009 by Admin.
by the Associated Press (April 22, 2009)
How do our youth measure up in the area of community service with youth from previous graduating classes?
“An analysis of federal data has found that the percentage of teens who volunteer dipped in recent years, ending an upward trend that began after the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
“CIRCLE researchers used data from the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey for their study. . . . They found that one in three teens, age 16 to 18, volunteered in 2005, representing a peak in community service for all age groups since the survey began tracking volunteerism in 2002.
“In 2006, however, that rate dropped to 29 percent and then to 28 percent in 2007, the most recent year for whic
h data is available. Those are the lowest percentages for that age group since the data has been collected and just one percentage point higher than adults 25 and older each of those years.
“Separate market research done for VolunteerMatch, an online site that links visitors with about 63,000 nonprofit groups, found a similar decline in queries from under-18 users.”
While the data from both reports is telling, UEC is optomistic that today’s youth will rise to the challenges of our brave new world. However, we as citizens and educators must be the example for them. They must see us serving.
Read the entire article here.