In a January 11, 2016 interview with The Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump said he would do “tremendous cutting” of the federal government. Education policy, he said, should be returned to the states, and he said he would end the Common Core education standards, which conservatives view as federal overreach. “Education should be local and locally managed”, cited Trump. When asked about the Common Core, during a radio interview with Hugh Hewitt in February 2015, Trump said, “I think that education should be local, absolutely. I think that for people in Washington to be setting curriculum and to be setting all sorts of standards for people living in Iowa and other places is ridiculous.” Trump said, in a speech at the South Carolina Tea Party Convention in January 2015, that the Department of Education could be “cut…way, way, way down”In his 2000 book, The America We Deserve, Trump advocated for school choice, charter schools and vouchers. He argued that together they create a competitive system that improves education and offers an alternative to a public education model which “would set off every antitrust alarm bell at the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission” if it were a traditional business.” Many educational issues which affect our students have been raised by the candidates. “It takes a village to raise and teach a child”. Aside from the parent, the public-school system has been the most influential and important institution in making and molding the child and formulating the building blocks for the future.
Every child has the right to a high quality education in America, from pre-school through college. When you educate a person, you liberate that person. Therefore, we need to find a way to either lower the cost of private schooling, such a as college, or make Community College free and Debt-Free College to all. I’m not endorsing that we have free college for all. I do feel that the tuition for college needs to be restructured and more affordable to all. Additionally, I believe that there are too many four-year colleges. Not every student graduates from high-school with the intention of continuing on to colleges. Some students should have the choice to attend to attend a cost effective way to acquire skills in a vocational skills.
In reference to the No Child Left Behind Act, I believe that we need more effective models and tools to efficiently carry out this program, in order for every student to get the educational support that they need, so that they do not fall behind. More programs and supports are needed carry out this program in the schools and classrooms to assist and train teachers. Without proper initiation and follow through, I feel that students that are not prepared to be moved ahead, will be inadequately prepared for the next grade level. This would be an injustice to our students.Is it really the federal governments position to be in the business of dictating educational studies? Education is far too important of an issue to be undertaken by bureaucrats in legislation. I feel it should be handled at the state level, or at the local level. We need to empower our parents, teachers, administrators, students, and local communities. As to how and where our students are to be educated. It should be at the local level for many reasons. One main reason is that if a person has an issue, they can take it up with their local school board or state legislator or governor in order to get it changed. Education is a major issue in today’s political race. It affects the future of our world tomorrow. Without effective educational policy and practices our students will not receive the education that they truly deserve. Our future depends on it.