Why are American Students Still at Risk

Ed in O8 is an American organization that has been set up to raise awareness because they believe that American students are losing out, and are not being prepared to be successful adults. Here is a brief excerpt from the report A Stagnant Nation: Why American Students are Still at Risk which shows the lack of progress in the school reform movement since the 1983 release of the National Commission on Excellence in Education’s letter to the American people, A Nation at Risk.

“Our schools have been under-performing for 25 years,” said Roy Romer, the chairman of ED in 08. “America is slipping farther and farther behind the rest of the world academically because we have been unable to enact meaningful reforms or substantially improve student learning in the last quarter century. We know that the American public supports education reform – the missing piece is leadership – on national and local levels. Without vigorous national leadership, states and schools cannot significantly improve their antiquated education systems. Students in our nation’s schools deserve a robust and world-class education that offers them a pathway towards the American dream.”
A Nation at Risk, published on April 26th 1983, warned that American schools were being eroded by a “rising tide of mediocrity.” The report was one of the first comprehensive assessments of the American education system and explained that America’s once unchallenged schools were being overtaken by its international competitors, and America’s weak education system was undermining American prosperity, security and society. A Nation at Risk documented deep problems in America’s academic standards and expectations, the time allocated for learning and the quality of the teaching force.
ED in 08’s report, A Stagnant Nation: Why American Students Are Still at Risk, explains that few of the National Commission on Excellence in Education’s recommendations related to time, teaching and standards, have yet to be enacted. The report also says that America’s economic future remains gravely at risk....."

It is thought that some students have fallen too far behind and it is too late for them to catch up. Longer school days, better teachers and higher standards are all featured as part of the way forward.

The fact that many students have fallen so far behind and that 70% of 8th graders are not proficient in reading is of great concern to the American nation.

With figures such as these it is all the more important that these students have access to ongoing continuing education, if they are to be employable in the future.

To read more about this organization you can visit Ed in O8