Six Challenges Facing Public Schools, Part 1

Introduction

Before discussing the problems plaguing our nation’s education system, it’s extremely important to note that Focus on the Family is not opposed to public schools. In fact, we strongly support and applaud the efforts of public educators and administrators. These professionals are among the most unfairly maligned and unappreciated members of society today. And we firmly disagree with critics who accuse them of deliberately failing children—because we realize that there would still be problems in public schools, even if all professionals did everything perfectly.

The stark reality is that children’s performance in schools cannot be separated from the problems occurring in society at large. As Dr. James C. Dobson wrote in his book, The New Dare to Discipline, “when the culture begins to crumble from massive social problems that defy solutions, the schools will also look bad. That’s why even though I disagree with many of the trends in modern education, I sympathize with the dedicated teachers and principals out there who are trying to do the impossible on behalf of our youngsters. They are discouraged today, and they need our support.”

In short, you could say that Focus on the Family has a “tough love” for public schools. We want to fully support them. But we also want to have the courage—for the sake of our nation’s children—to confront real problems where they exist.

And this report attempts to do just that.

1. Unsafe environments

While Columbine-style school shootings are rare, other dangerous activities, including gang violence, fights with weapons, bullying and drug abuse continue to occur at an alarming rates.

• From 1999 to 2000, 20 percent of all public schools experienced at least one violent crime such as rape, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault.1
• Middle school students bear the brunt of this violence: One study of nearly 900 schools revealed that 21 percent of middle schools had one or more incidents of physical attack or fight with a weapon, compared to 11 percent of high schools.2 And Dr. Dobson’s book Bringing Up Boys also cites a study by psychologist Dorothy Espelage revealing that 15 percent of seventh and eighth graders say they bully someone regularly.
• Drug and alcohol abuse is also a serious concern. Fifty one percent of teens will have tried an illegal drug by the end of high school and 30 percent will have tried drugs by the eighth grade, according to research compiled by Focus on the Family’s Drug Proof Your Kids program.3

“Guns, drugs, and adolescence make a deadly cocktail,” says Dr. Dobson’s book, Complete Marriage and Family Home Reference Guide. “No wonder some kids can't think about their studies. Their lives are in danger! Yes, we can reduce the violence if we're committed to the task.” Focus believes a good, long-term remedy for unsafe schools would be the presence of loving, no-nonsense school administrators who can restore a healthy respect for authority, as well as more structure and control in the classroom established at younger grade levels.

2. Teachers’ union with skewed priorities

You would think these problems could be alleviated with the help of one of the most powerful forces in the American education system—the 2.8 million member National Education Association (NEA). But during the last decade, the NEA has drastically shifted its priorities—focusing less on what happens in the classroom and more on liberal political agendas and perpetuating its own bureaucracy.

• On Jan. 3, 2006, The Wall Street Journal revealed that the NEA has a $58 million payroll for just over 600 employees—more than half of whom have six-figure salaries.
• The NEA has allocated millions of dollars to advocacy organizations such as the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation—as well as liberal political candidates. “It’s well understood that the NEA is an arm of the Democratic National Committee,” concluded the Journal.4
• At this year’s annual NEA convention in Orlando, Florida, a speech was made by an NEA member on the convention floor opposing an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to protect man-woman marriage. “The religious right is so homophobic that they blame global warming on the AIDS quilt,” said the speaker.5

3. Increasing federal spending with minimal results

Those skewed priorities are reflected in the fact that our nation has doubled the amount it spends on public education during the last 30 years, without substantially increasing student performance. Taxpayers now spend about $10,000 per pupil per year on K-12 public education. With a total of about 50 million students, that’s approximately $500 billion a year.6 But there’s little to show for it:

• Between 50 to 60 percent of students in some of the nation’s largest school districts—including those in Los Angeles, Detroit and New York — fail to graduate from high school.7 And on June 21, 2006, the New York Times reported a D.C. study showing that more than a third of U.S. high school dropouts leave school without ever going beyond the ninth grade.8
• The U.S. Department of Education reported in June 2006 that U.S. high school students are outperformed by Asian and European students on assessment tests.9
• Millions of children are stuck in schools that are persistently failing to meet national math and reading standards.1011

That is why Focus on the Family firmly supports putting power in the hands of the parents by giving them educational options—including scholarship vouchers that can be used for private schools.

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