The Dumbing Down of America

In recent years, the American educational system has embraced a concept often referred to as “No Child Left Behind.” This is a result of our nations enculturation into the ethos of equality. The ideology has led to the creation of laws, within American states, that ensure our schools follow through with this policies implementation. I would argue that the enforcement of such philosophies has actually created the opposite effect of that which was originally intended. Rather than furthering the education of those less fortunate, the implementation of this concept, all in the name of equality and fairness, has in essence stunted the growth of more gifted students, who have the capacity to excel in the learning environment.

Although I completely respect the idea of equality, and I understand the popular opinion that all Americans deserve the opportunity to fulfill dreams, it is clear that several factors have contributed to the failure of such well-intended means.

Foremost is the fact that, with all political correctness aside, all people are not equal from an intellectual perspective. Again, I would be the first to argue that every man, woman, and child of every class and background deserve the same opportunities and rights as any other citizen. However, all people within a culture do not have the same learning capacity, and more important, all people do not learn at the same rate. By adhering to the “No Child Left Behind” laws, the educational system creates an environment in which the most gifted students are held back in an attempt to cater to the needs of those students who don’t learn as fast. This will have a lasting and dangerous impact on our culture as a whole in its efforts to keep up with the rest of the world. In the midst of our technological era we must rethink the “No Child Left Behind” concept if we have the intention of competing in the global marketplace. Without creating environments in which our most gifted students are able to expand their horizons we will become “A Nation Left Behind.”

Higher education has suffered more that any other as a result of the ideology. In creating the idea that everyone deserves to go to college, enrollment at these facilities is as high as it has ever been. I recently attended the graduation ceremony at a local high school. During the commencement a speaker pointed out that 80% of the graduating class was going on to college. He went on to say that this was the largest number of students in school history from a particular graduating class that would be attending college. At the same time, I didn’t hear anything about the class’s cumulative grade point average being the highest in school history. Higher learning is not for everyone. It was designed for those students who desire to further their education, and those who are willing to put forth effort toward that goal. Unfortunately, for every one gifted college student, there are now ten whose parents have been pressured, by our culture, into believing that their child must attend college, or that child is a failure. Nothing could be further from the truth. Also the government has made it so easy to get the money for college through loans and grants that many go to school just to get a free meal ticket. These students don’t go to class, and when they do they are so far behind that the professor is forced to cater to their needs. Professors end up having to cheapen curriculum, and they grade accordingly to keep from flunking too many students. This really hurts the student who yearns for more and will lead us into the next generation. It leaves the student who doesn’t care with a substantial amount of debt that he or she is stuck with regardless of their performance. This is unfortunate and unnecessary, not to mention the fact that it contributes to our Nation’s financial woes.

The fact is that “opportunity” does not translate to “entitlement.” A person fulfills opportunity as a result of performance. Colleges and Universities must start rewarding the opportunity to those who perform and show a real willingness to do the work. Although all in our Country deserve the “opportunity” to attend college, none are “entitled.” I would argue that our creation of an “entitlement” mentality is leading into an uncertain and unstable future. The “No Child Left Behind” educational system is an unfortunate result. The outcome of such well intended means will be the self-imposed destruction of educational infrastructure in the United States of America. If our nation continues on its current course, college degrees will become nothing more than glorified high school diplomas, and while other nations such as China, Japan, and India will continue to compete in the global job market, America will become “A Nation Left Behind.”