I just wrapped up 46 pages of “The American Policy Landscape” by Rippner (2016), which discussed the structures and policies as relates to education. Each state, actually each county all have their vision of what constitutes as educational needs of the children their community. Education is the wild wild west, and until those who control policy come together for a common goal, students will remain underserved and undereducated across America. I believe countless examples prove our system of education is broken but here are just a few.

1. The structure of higher education needs a reboot. Although more students are going to college every year, the structure makes it difficult and prevents students from flowing smoothly from high school to college or vocational schools (Rippner, 2016). Tanner (2013) would argue that the American schooling structure was built on the premise of inclusion of opportunity. Looking around today and you would be hard press to find this current system focused on opportunity and inclusion. Education has become increasingly more exclusive through the promotion of zoning, economic segregation, and charter schools that target special populations. Note, not all charter schools target students, and this is not a blog about Charter Schools, which might come at a later date. With that said the less fortunate continued to be underserved by a system whose priority has shifted from focusing on promise to competing in a global market (Tanner, 2013). Due to these different views, the system of education is fragmented. For example, government plays a prominent role in early childhood education, K-12 is controlled more by the local and state board of education, and institutions and states control higher education. In my experience working in higher education these three systems rarely ever talk and often recommend or institute policy that impacts one another. If I told you my wife and I never spoke and made decisions independently of one another, you would bet our marriage wouldn’t last long. This is how the system of education operates, and our students are caught in the crosshairs.
2. Education has way too many stakeholders and unfortunately, the most critical stakeholder, students, get lost in the shuffle. Each stakeholder from elected officials to business owners have their hands in policy that impacts the students in our education system. These stakeholders effect policy and those in power are not in a rush to change that anytime soon. There is no more prominent stakeholder than big business. Big business has had a significant impact on education because America cares about the bottom line (money). Because of this government, districts, and schools have been influenced by the big business, wealthy philanthropists, and other wallets outside of education who sell what they believe is the formula to save education (Levine and Levine, 2012). These influencers do not only set the agenda, in many circles, have been giving the power to define policy. Defining policy allows these influencers to identify and analyze solutions to the problems they see with education (Rippner, 2016).

Before ever addressing the performance of our students in education, policymakers and influencers must address the fragmented system that ails education in America. I watched a documentary by Michael Moore “Where to Invade Next,” and I highly recommend it. It covers a gamut of American issues, but the one on education is shocking. From school lunches to Finland’s education success. If you want to see what student success could like when systems function as one I highly suggest you give the documentary some time.

Levine, M & Levine, A. (2012). Education Deformed: No Child Left Behind and the Race to the Top. ‘This Almost Reads Like Our Business Plans’. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 82(1), 104-113.

Rippner, J. A. (2016). The American policy landscape. New York: Routledge.

Tanner, D. (2013). Race to the top and leave the children behind. Journal of Curriculum Studies : JCS., 45(1), 4-15.