Texas Education System

The year is 2012. In the movie Back to the Future II, two years from now, in 2016, Marty McFly travels from the past to save his family’s future. The future is almost upon us, and yet it would seem that our education system has changed little since Back to the Future hit theaters in 1985. “We still have same teachers, in the same parts, in the same schools, with the same level of knowledge, with the same equipment’s, and much the same standard of parental support” (David). Ironically, we have been steadily implementing policy after policy, increasing standards and accountability, promoting oversight and rule… the list goes on, and yet our progress seems minimal, our educators complain of underfunded classrooms, and our legislators complain of underperforming schools. The question of “how to improve our education system” is not getting satisfactorily answered because our system is not broken, merely underdeveloped. The truth is that America has made paces in improving its education technique or system; the problem that remains is for us to entrust our educators with the greater pliability and autonomy that they need to excel.

Education development has been an important matter in Texas for decades. Texas has been known for their improvements and reformation in public schools since their first attempt of a public school system. Within these improvements, came issues that escalated to create our public education system today. The issues that helped arrange the system are desegregation, equity in funding, and education policy.

The current state of the Texas education policy is very complex and its roots can be traced all the way back to times were there was no equality in the public school system, we can even say it can be traced as far back to the state’s split from Mexico. This was a very problematic situation that began to be reformed heavily starting in 1954. The legislations that passed to resolve this problem have morphed the Texas Public education policy into what it is today.

The gap between the nation’s best and worst public schools continues to grow. Our country is based on freedom and equality for all, yet in practice and in the spectrum of education this is rarely the case. We do not even have to step further than our own city and its public school system, which many media outlets have labeled “dysfunctional” and “in shambles.” At the same time, Montgomery County, located just northwest of the District in suburban Maryland, stands as one of the top school systems in the country. Within each of these systems, there are schools that excel and there are schools that consistently measure below average. Money alone can not erase this gap. While

The public education system in Texas can and should be improved for and by everybody in the state of Texas. A great man named Nelson Mandela once said “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Without education we would just be meat and bones working just for survival, not enjoying life. Education is what brought us from the stone age to the moon. I believe that we should spend more money on improving the public education system because students right now will be

In 1836, Texas won their independence from Mexico and one of the main reasons why is because they wanted to establish public school system for education. The first public school establish in Texas, Anglo-American, was in 1840. Five years later, Texas became an official state of America and continues their development in public education for children.

Site Based Decision Making, more commonly referred to as SBDM, was mandated by the state of Texas for implementation in 1992. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) set the definition of SBDM in 2010 as:

The role legislators and courts have played in the Texas Education System is sadly poor. Citizens have been concerned about the education of our young people for many years, “failure to establish any public system of education, although possession of almost boundless resources,” Public education has gotten a myriad of policy changes, amendments, revisions, and laws altered to meet the needs of Texas students. How has the Texas education system replaced? Public education in the Texas has played a major role in shaping society. The schools and parents in low income areas have often assumed the position of social fears. This relationship of education to the views of Texas society is prevalent throughout the low income areas, thoughtful, and complex. One principle that Texas have had problems coping with, it is the concept of equality. Equality of opportunity means that no one should be denied equal access to education. Some of the most serious attempts to correct the inherit conflicts, have occurred in the schools. Judicial mandates are some of the notable efforts employed in recent years to equalize educational resources, practices, and opportunities. The part of individuals and agencies in the society are inadequate and incapable of effecting the kind of change that is so often articulated and desperately needed. A pro-active stance in defining, clarifying, and applying the concept of equality. The Constitution was very clear concerning equality. Our nation’s success as a

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Department of Education both cover the education department of grades K-12. Both departments are responsible for overseeing what goes on in public schools, they collect data and rate the schools. •The jurisdiction of the Department of education is mostly done with gathering information from schools as well as prepare them for global competitiveness, also to ensure equal access to education for students across the country. The Department of Education also ensures that homeless children get the proper education. Unlike the TEA the department of Education are not allowed to get involved in the curricula or the educational standards, the TEA is allowed and does set the academic standards for the public

“The Revisionaries” is a 2012 documentary meant to provide a brief view of who makes the decision that affects the American curriculum and on what grounds they are made. In Austin, Texas, fifteen people influence what is taught to the next generation of American children. Once every decade, the highly politicized Texas State Board of Education rewrites the teaching and textbook standards. Don McLeroy, a dentist, Sunday school teacher, and young-earth creationist, leads the Religious Right charge. After briefly serving on his local school board, McLeroy was elected to the Texas State Board of Education and later appointed chairman. During his time on the board, McLeroy has overseen the adoption of new science and social studies curriculum standards,

The State Board of Education (SBOE) sets the policies and standards for Texas public schools. In Texas the Texas Education Agency (TEA) oversees primary and secondary education of students. The TEA helps provides the resources, guidance and leadership to help schools meet the educational needs of all students, according to the TEA. The SBOE is composed of three committees; committee on instruction, committee on school finance and a committee on school initiatives. The SBOE has adopted curriculum standards called the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). The TEKS describe what students should know and be able to do, in each grade and subject area.

Another problem with standardized tests is that they cause unnecessary stress for students of all ages. There has been an increase in stressful standardized tests that is somewhat disconcerting. “By the late 1980s, most states required some type of mandatory testing; by 1991, students who completed high school took, on average, 18-21 standardized tests in their career…”(Solley). Standardized tests can be demanding for many students. Students who are not natural test takers can have difficulty achieving proficiency on

Education is valued as one of the most important aspects of socio-economic group mobilization and social elevation in the United States. Operating under a human capital ideology education in the U.S. is a means to provide education to individuals in an effort for continued economic advancement for our nation. However, as times change education fails to completely change with it. Secondary education is no longer seen as a means to earning financial stability. Primary education encompasses complexity of issues that still remain to be addressed wholly. With the creation of the U.S. Constitution states are given power to construct education. Educational reform continues to be complex with ever changing politicians and platforms failing to have the time to create long lasting systematic changes but also not fully grasp educational challenges collectively. Educational reform such as Elementary Secondary Education Act of 1965 and its versions No Child Left Behind Act and Every Child Succeeds Act 2015 has changed the way students learn and teachers teach. The need for continued educational innovations is of the utmost importance. We as a society continue to strive for creating organizational policies and pedagogies that not only enhance research but a allow for a greater society understanding and applicability to enhance education for millions.

In recent years, Texas education has endured several rounds of reform, advancing, stumbling, bobbing and weaving, attempting to rebound, only to receive another jab at new curriculum standards or a punch in the gut of high school dropout rates. While valiant efforts have been made to generate highly motivated, well-organized, effective classrooms, several rifts remain. New programs, implemented to fight off the fatigue of reform, have only added to the burden, for the 2013 Nation’s Report Card outlines Texas success compared to the nation, revealing the number of Texas public schools with scores reaching “Proficient” stand below the national average, a still narrow 34%, and Texas math scores lag behind as

All around the country, students, teachers and parents are preparing. Students are staying up past midnight for hours of fact drilling and studying. Teachers are giving extra homehork and cramming and extra information that may be needed. Parents are trying to help their children study in hopes they will pass, but they often only make it worse as they add to the ever increasing stress load of the impending doom of standardized testing. Standardized Testing is not as harmless as it seems. It often affects students on a mental level, making them extremely nervous, then breaking them down on a mental level. It also hurts the teachers in many ways, including temptation to cheat. Standardized testing is at a new high in America and is said to