5/26/2021 The 15 Biggest Failures of the American Public Education System

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Home > Blog > Public School Policies > Education Reform

The 15 Biggest Failures of the American Public

Education System
Updated May 28, 2019 | by Kate Barrington
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The world is in a constant state of change and those who fail to adjust fall behind. Unfortunately, the American public
education system has not kept up with the times and is currently facing a number of serious problems. Keep reading to
learn about the biggest failures affecting the modern U.S. public education system as well as some of the trends that
could spark change.

Decades ago, the American formal education system was designed to meet the changing needs of the industrial
revolution. What was once a time of growth has changed over the years and, with the current economic climate, that
system is no longer able to meet modern needs. But what are the biggest failures of the American public education
system, and how can they be remedied?

In this article, we’ll explore fifteen of the biggest failures affecting the American public education system today. We’ll
also explore five of the biggest emerging trends in American education.

The Top 15 Failures in American Public Education

Policy makers are constantly fighting to make changes to the American public education system, and not all of them are
beneficial. Over the years, there has been a great deal of back-and-forth that has left the public education system in
shambles. Some of these problems are easy to identify and have been long-standing issues while others are new, brought
about by advances in technology, changes in policy, and general change that happens with time.

Every story has two sides, and for every policy or program put into place there are going to be proponents and critics.
Below you’ll find an overview of some of the biggest issues facing the American public system as well as arguments
from people on both sides of the issue.

Here are the top 15 failures affecting the American public education system:

1. Deficits in government funding for schools.

Funding is always an issue for schools and is, in fact, one of the biggest issues facing the American public education
system today. For more than 90% of K-12 schools, funding comes from state and local governments, largely generated
by sales and income taxes. Research shows, however, that funding has not increased with need – many states are still
issuing funding that is lower than it was before the Great Recession. Lower funding means fewer teachers, fewer
programs, and diminished resources.

2. Decline in school safety.

There has been a string of high-profile mass shootings in American schools, resulting not only in dozens of deaths but
many debates about school safety. In one poll, over 50% of teenagers said they were worried about the possibility of gun
violence in school. Teachers all across the country are faced with the problem of figuring out how to prevent attacks and
protect the lives of students and personnel. Some suggest special straining for teachers and concealed weapons might
make schools safer while critics argue that more guns in schools could lead to more accidents and injuries.

3. Challenges with technology in education.

Today’s students have grown up using technology and have come to expect it in the classroom, but there are arguments
about how large a role technology should play in education. Supporters suggest that technology creates the potential for
more active student engagement and provides instant access to up-to-date resources while critics say it could be a
distraction. While technology in the class room certainly has its benefits, certain aspects of technology are challenging.

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For example, smartphones and easy access to technology have made it easier for students to cheat and can negatively
impact learning.

4. Controversy over charter schools and voucher programs.

Another hot topic in education today is school choice. Charter schools and school vouchers allow parents to choose
options other than traditional public schools for their children. Charter schools are funded by a combination of private
and public funds and operate outside the public-school system. School vouchers allow parents to use public funds to
send their child to a school of choice, including private schools. Critics of these schools suggest that charter schools and
voucher programs siphon funds away from public schools that are already struggling financially.

5. Problems with common core curriculum.

The Common Core State Standards were developed to specify exactly what students should know before graduating
high school. It was developed in 2009 to promote educational equity across the country, holding all students to the same
standardized testing requirements. Some see the problem as federal intrusion into the state control of education and
others say that it doesn’t allow for teacher innovation and flexibility with the learning process. Most states adopted the
standards when they were introduced but more than a dozen have since repealed or revised them.

6. Decreased teacher salaries.

Teacher salaries are by no means impressive and, in most states, they have decreased steadily over the past few years. In
fact, research shows that the average salary for public elementary and secondary school teachers dropped by nearly 5%
between the 2009/10 school year and now. States like Oklahoma and Colorado experienced a 17% and 16% decrease –
these states also saw massive teacher walkouts in 2018. There are, of course, some states where teacher salaries
increased, and some teachers received a growth in benefits that may or may not be enough to balanced out wages that
are low overall.

7. Emphasis on standardized testing.

Along with Common Core, there has been an increased focus on standardized testing, especially during the No Child
Left Behind years. Schools and teachers are judged based on student test scores which, many argue, is not a fair or
accurate measure of efficacy. Many critics argue that standardized testing is one of the biggest problems in American
education, suggesting that the pressure to produce high test scores leads to a teach-to-the-test approach and reduced
focus on non-tested subjects like art.

8. Arguments about teacher tenure.

Tenure is designed to protect teachers from being fired for personal or political reasons – the school district must
demonstrate just cause. In many states, tenure is granted to public school teachers who have consistently received
satisfactory evaluations, though some states don’t award it at all. Supporters suggest that tenured teachers can advocate
for students without having fears of reprisal while critics say that it makes it harder for school districts to dismiss
ineffectual teachers. Some also suggest that tenure may encourage complacency, allowing teachers to put forth minimal
effort.

9. Bullying in schools.

Violence in schools is a rising issue and bullying is a key contributor. According to the National Center for Education
Statistics, over 20% of students in grades 6 through 12 have been bullied either in school or on their way to/from school.
This figure is actually down from 32% in 2007 but is still much too high. The challenge with these statistics is that many
students who are bullied do NOT report it. Bullied students experience a wide range of physical, behavioral, and
emotional problems that can impact not only their education but also their lives.

10. Growing problems with student poverty.

According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 50% of the public-school population in
the United States was made up of low-income students. This is a significant increase from 38% in 2001. This is a
nationwide problem with 40% of public-school students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunches in 40 states. In 18
of those states, student poverty rates were over 50%. Studies have shown that low-income students tend to perform
lower than affluent students and family income shows strong correlation with student achievement measured by
standardized tests.

11. Schools are overcrowded.

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In the 2011/12 school year, the average class size in American public schools was about 21 students in elementary
school and almost 27 students in secondary school. Anecdotal reports, however, suggest that classrooms today have
closer to 30, and in some cases, 40 students. Teachers and other proponents of smaller class sizes suggest that class size
influences the quality of instruction with smaller class sizes having improved student outcomes. Critics say that the cost
of limiting class sizes is a limiting factor and that it may not be worth it. In Florida, class sizes were capped in 2002 but
a 2010 study showed no significant impact in test scores for students in grades 4 through 8.

12. Student mental health challenges.

Mental health is a growing concern in the United States and one that even affects school students. A 2018 study showed
that nearly two-thirds of college students experienced overwhelming anxiety and anxiety has been reported in younger
students as well. Even schools that are trying to make a difference face challenges. For example, the recommended ratio
of students to counsellors is one counselor for every 1,000 to 1,500 students but the U.S. college campus average is
1,737 to 1. Awareness of mental health issues is increasing, but there is still a stigma that prevents many students from
seeking care.

13. Parents are not involved enough.

Teachers in public schools can only do so much to support their students. When the students go home for the day, the
state of their home life can impact their development both personally and academically. In cases where parents lack
higher education, they may not be able to provide the assistance students need to learn and to complete homework.
Students in low-income families face additional challenges at home, though even middle- and upper-class families aren’t
off the hook. In many families, parents are too career-focused and have little time to spend supporting their child’s
education.

14. Too many schools are being closed.

Schools all over the country are closing their doors in numbers that are quite alarming. This only leads to an increase in
issues with large class sizes and poor access to resources. It is easy for parents, teachers, and communities that are
affected by closures to feel targeted even when school board members provide unbiased data. In some cases, closures
cannot be prevented but they can be delayed and communities should consider other solutions or alternative uses for the
school such as a community center or adult education center.

15. Lack of teacher innovation and outdated teaching methods.

The teaching methods used decades ago simply do not work for the modern student. One of the biggest things holding
back the American public education system is a lack of teacher innovation, partially created by enforcement of
standardized testing and Common Core curriculum. Unfortunately, the problem really needs to be addressed at the
federal level with changes to policies that will result in change within the public education system. America needs
teachers who are better trained to meet the needs of their students and who are willing to speak up and facilitate change.
Teachers are on the front lines and, without them speaking up, change is not possible.

Problems abound in the American education system, but growth and change are possible. Keep reading to learn about
the top emerging trends in the nation’s public education.

The Top 5 Emerging Trends in Education

Though the American public education system certainly has its issues, it is by no means a lost cause. The only thing
anyone can do is change with the times and there are a number of emerging trends in education that could be a step
toward resolving some of the issues above.

Here is an overview of the top 5 emerging trends in American education:

1. Increase in maker learning initiatives.

2. Moving away from a letter grade system.
3. Changing classroom approaches like flipped learning.
4. The institution of micro-credentials.
5. Growing concern for social and emotional development.

Now, let’s take a quick look at each of these trends.

1. Increase in maker learning initiatives.

In many schools, teaching is the focus when education should really be focused on student learning. Maker education
allows students to follow their own interests and to test their own solutions for problems in a do-it-yourself approach to

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education. Students learn in collaborative spaces where they identify problems, create inventions, make prototypes, and
keep working until they have the final result that works. There is little hard evidence on the trend as of yet, but it is
growing quickly.

2. Moving away from a letter grade system.

Student assessment is necessary to test the efficacy of teaching strategies and curriculum – it is also a good way to
measure individual student growth and success. For many years, letter grades have been the primary method of student
assessment but that is changing. Leaders in education currently feel that the traditional letter grade model is not a
sufficient measure of the skills most highly valued in the modern workforce – skills like creativity and problem solving.

In 2017, the Mastery Transcript Consortium was formed and includes over 150 private high schools. These schools have
adopted a digital system that provides qualitative descriptions of student learning and samples of work instead of the
grade-based transcript system. Public schools are quickly adopting the trend as well in a nationwide shift toward
mastery-based or competency-based learning.

3. Changing classroom approaches like flipped learning.

The traditional model of teaching places the teacher in front of the class giving a lecture, followed by students working
at home on assignments to enhance their understanding of the subject. Flipped learning involves students watching
videos or relevant coursework prior to class, using class time to expand on the material through group discussions or
collaborative projects. Flipped learning allows students to control their learning pace and encourages students to learn
from each other, exploring subjects more deeply than they otherwise might.

4. The institution of micro-credentials.

This trend in higher education is a departure from traditional college degrees that require years of study over a multi-
year span. Micro-credentials, rather, are also known as digital badges or nanodegrees that demonstrate knowledge or
skill in a given area and are earned through short, targeted educational offerings. About 20% of higher education
institutions offer some kind of alternative credentialing system, often partnering with third-party learning providers.

5. Growing concern for social and emotional development.

Traditional education is focused on academics but there is a movement toward nurturing the whole study called social-
emotional learning (SEL). This movement is based on the growing consensus that schools have a responsibility to
protect and develop students’ social and emotional development in addition to their cognitive skills. SEL focuses on
helping students manage their emotions, show empathy, set goals, identify their strengths, and make responsible
decisions. Research on SEL shows a reduction in anti-social behavior and an improvement in academic achievement and
long-term health.

The United States is a giant country with a huge population, making it difficult to standardize education or make
improvements across the board. Though there are many problems with the American public education system, there are
also many people (including legislators) who are dedicated to making positive changes that could benefit the future
students of this country.

Additional Resources [+]

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karlmarxsux • 10 months ago

The funding has always been the gripe, but its what they are teaching them that is the
problem.The late 70’s saw the ebonics program allowing our American blacks to speak ghetto
slang in school instead of being taught proper English Teaching . racism, oppression and sex 8n
our schools does none of them any good.Money is not the problem.
2△ ▽ 1 • Reply • Share ›

Trevor • 10 months ago

All we have to do is change one thing and it will solve ALL of our problems. Make public school
education a privilege, not a right. Suddenly a student can be expelled for the year. Create a
federally mandated and enforced list of 5 reasons a student can be expelled. On the 3rd
expulsion, public school is no longer an option for that child and he will need to be either home-
schooled or enrolled in a private school. Suddenly, parents are involved. Teachers are freed from
constant disruptive and discipline problems. A school of students are those who want to be
there. Schools are safer since dangerous kids are gone. Kids will learn more since the disruptive
kid is gone.
Schools everyday are run by a very small group of disruptive kids who, because they have a
right to be there, take a huge chunk out of teacher and administration duties. They spend most
of their day dealing with discipline because it is so disruptive and they can't remove him from
any classroom or from school. As for the rest of the problems that plague public education let's
let the professionals deal with that. Teachers know what they're doing, let give them a chance to
do it and stop undermining their authority. We leave accountants and lawyers alone. Why do we
fuck with teachers so much?? Public education isn't supposed to "keep with the times." It's
supposed to be a place where a kid can read, write, arithmetic, science, learn manners, social
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pp p , , , , ,
skills and all the basics needed to becoming a successful adult. We keep trying to step in and
control shit and it just ain't workin.
2△ ▽ 2 • Reply • Share ›

Geri L. > Trevor • 7 months ago

STAAR testing in Texas has an average pass rate at 50%. That's an abject failure of the
standardized testing. Teachers almost never go over major test scores in classes, kids
don't know why they got something wrong. Rarely, if any homework, teachings kids about
other cultures are fine but civics is no longer taught. They have largely taken "America"
out of the curriculum. They are secretive about their lesson plans for social studies type
courses. There are no textbooks either they are supposed to be online but teachers
admit they don't use them. We must push as parents to see what they are teaching. As
for discipline read Why Meadow Died. She died at Majory Stoneman Douglass in
Parkland. The father did an eye opening assessment of student discipline in schools
today. The Obama administration wanted to reduce the so called school to prison
pipeline. Over 100 social justice groups are influencing lesson plans, discipline practices
etc. The Parkland shooter was 100% preventable. I read the book completely shocked
about what's going on at our schools. we need to form parent groups to take this on. It's
no accident why we have a generation of progressives that believe in socialism, hate
America etc then they go onto college and it's much worse what they are taught.
1△ ▽ 1 • Reply • Share ›

Serious mom > Trevor • 7 months ago

Actually my plan would be on the first day of school send out notices I would get all
phone numbers of all parents I know how students are they dont give parents nothing.
Strike 1 you get detention and your getting an essay on why they think its okay to interupt
the class. Oh and 3 is expelled... Now We can all solve this just make a vocational school
for children who have behavior problems and make the parents pay for it that will teach
them they can buy expensive sneakers for their kids for the beginning of school and
christmas make them pay. And this vocational school will be taught by military teachers.
1△ ▽ 2 • Reply • Share ›

Erydan • a month ago

I love just how many people can read a well made piece like this, and then conclude the most
absolutely crazy nonsense. No wonder we can't solve the problem when people adamantly
refuse to acknowledge the actual problem.
Social justice initiatives? America being taken out of the classroom? Bad kids? Do you all think
America just has fundamentally different people in their country than the rest of the world? It will
work there, but it will never work here?
We've all got our heads screwed on backwards. Got our priorities all mixed up. Everyone's so
upset over the prospect of spending their precious money to educate other people's children that
they'll let a problem like this continue to exist.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Susan Dupree Keller • a month ago

The biggest problem....social engineering instead of teaching academics.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

Whineta Jones • 3 months ago

Even so my child entered kindergarten using online learning and they sent me a box that would
bring an elephant to his knees. Is this the way we teach children now days? This is a major
problem with traditional education. Children have to grow and learn and this is not in the
curriculum. In order to give my child the best education possible I had to pull him from school
and homeschool him. I am very disappointed in the education systems in America. While my
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and homeschool him. I am very disappointed in the education systems in America. While my
child is allowed to dream and express himself and do as he wants my reward is a child that gets
on the computer can dissect a 3d image in blender and rebuild it in another 3d graphics
program. He is a master at reading and communications. He would totally blow your mind at
what he is able to accomplish on his own with out being overburdened with the overwhelming
pile of useless repetitive information the school wishes to impose on him. And BTW a lot of it is
just wrong. No Cristopher Columbus did not discover America there were many here way before
he ever got here. And he didn't even land in America he landed in Haiti and the Dominican
republic. He made slaves out the people known as the Taino and within 60 years the whole
population was killed off. These people no longer exist because the were strong and kind,
Columbus a man we named a holiday after was a slave trader and mass murderer who
committed gynecide against a whole race of people. He did land in America eventually, but there
were already settlements there. Most of what I and maybe you learned is school is completely
wrong. Don't believe me? This is the information age people google it.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

IceTheMan • 3 months ago • edited

Even so my child entered kindergarten using online learning and they sent me a box that would
bring an elephant to his knees. Is this the way we teach children now days? This is a major
problem with traditional education. Children have to grow and learn and this is not in the
curriculum. In order to give my child the best education possible I had to pull him from school
and homeschool him. I am very disappointed in the education systems in America. While my
child is allowed to dream and express himself and do as he wants my reward is a child that gets
on the computer can dissect a 3d image in blender and rebuild it in another 3d graphics
program. He is a master at reading and communications. He would totally blow your mind at
what he is able to accomplish on his own with out being overburdened with the overwhelming
pile of useless repetitive information the school wishes to impose on him. And BTW a lot of it is
just wrong. No Cristopher Columbus did not discover America there were many here way before
he ever got here. And he didn't even land in America he landed in Haiti and the Dominican
republic. He made slaves out the people known as the Taino and within 60 years the whole
population was killed off. These people no longer exist because the were strong and kind,
Columbus a man we named a holiday after was a slave trader and mass murderer who
committed gynecide against a whole race of people. He did land in America eventually, but there
were already settlements there. Most of what I and maybe you learned is school is completely
wrong. Don't believe me? This is the information age people google it.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

John A Penney • 5 months ago

"State and local funding for public education from sales and income taxes is insufficient."
One of the funniest and most irresponsible (blame-shifting) things I have ever heard.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

GuyWithGuitars • 8 months ago

Add to the list that our kids are still taught an archaic, irrational and obsolete (don't call it a)
"system" of weights and measures completely abandoned by the rest of the globe as the primary
method of quantifying their world. The ye olde imperial "system" the US loves so much is
irrelevant in the sciences, technology and industry. A metric America would definitely make a
difference to the future success of our nation. GO METRIC, AMERICA. We need this.
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›

John A Penney > GuyWithGuitars • 5 months ago

Go metric?" I graduated high school in 1984 as the US education system was attempting

161

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