Education

     Our country's education is behind compared to other schools. In 2007, we were ranked number 9 in math and number 11 in science out of 18 countries. Since other countries have higher math and science scores, they get excepted into our colleges over us. This leaves people without the opportunity to go to college, get a degree, and get a job. Some of the foreigners who have gone to our colleges have gone back to their own country, applying what they learned there.
     To help our country's education, the government is using a program called Race To The Top. Race To The Top is a grant that gives money to a state that they use to improve their school systems. 12 states have been awarded money: Delaware, District of Colombia, Florida Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Tenessee. Ohio was awarded $400 million; the states that were awarded the most money Florida and New York, who were awarded $700 million.
     No Child Left Behind is another program that was created to help public school eductaion. Congress has given massive funds to elementary and secondary schools that have improved test scores, quality of education, the improvement of standards, and has given attention to minority groups. In 2010 Barack Obama made the reauthorization process of No Child Left Behind on of his top priorities. He is working now to get Congress to initiate reform bills, but Congress wants him to amend the bill because they feel that changes need to be made in order for the bill to work for our country's educational system.
     This relates to class because in class we discussed Obama's speech and this was one of the topics in his speech and one of the topics that we discussed.
     Links:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Child_Left_Behind_Act
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_to_the_Top
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trends_in_International_Mathematics_and_Science_Study