By Varan Satchithanandan ’12, Staff Writer

Newark Academy is often lauded for its academic rigor. With advanced, honors, AP, and IB courses and exemplary college entry numbers, the Academy is prestigious to say the least. However, NA is among a minority of American schools that fall into this category. The United States has fallen significantly behind in educational rankings and now trails other developed countries, especially those in Asia where education standards are much higher. However, a remedy can be created in modeling a reformed system after schools like Newark Academy as well as successful public school systems abroad. In order to improve education, we need experienced teachers, greater parental involvement, and a national final exam for graduation from high school.

It’s time to face the facts: the average American teacher is mediocre at best. According to a recent study conducted by Stanford University, American middle school math teachers on average know as much as their colleagues in Oman and Thailand (which are countries in the developing world). Their students suffer because of this. Variation exists however. In Massachusetts for example, students are on par with those in Taipei and Japan (not Singapore, though, where standards are very high) in terms of math and science. In the 1990s the Bay state lagged behind other states in the US, so to what can this sudden surge be attributed?

To understand why Massachusetts is ranked as the number one state in the nation for education, one need not look further than its teachers. They are required to pass a literacy test prior to teaching. The first year the test was instituted, one-third of these teachers failed, thus sparing the students subpar teaching.

Newark Academy similarly recognizes the importance of carefully selecting its teachers based on competence and merit. Educators at NA have graduated from prestigious universities and have an average of twenty-two years of teaching experience. Additionally, a mentorship program for teachers should be added in public schools to supervise and assess new teachers, both to keep them in check and to help them grow. NA already employs this method with new teachers.

Finally, some incentive has to be offered in order to get bright people into the field of teaching. I believe that the American government should follow a plan similar to Singapore’s. The Singapore Ministry of Education targets the top 30 percent of high school students and offers money to them should they choose to pursue a teaching career. This would further secure talent into our teaching positions.

Beyond good teachers, parental involvement is often overlooked, but is crucial. Experts encourage parent-student interaction and suggest that parents be partners in their children’s school process. Discussion of academic progress and school happenings and reviewing expectations are the basics. NA, for example, has the Parents Association.  Through the NAPA Book Club, parents are able to read and discuss the books that we read in our English classes. As NA students, we are encouraged to discuss world issues with our parents, allowing us to learn while keeping them informed of what we are doing. By adding parents into the equation, students will have teachers to guide them at school and parents to do the same at home.

When one examines successful countries’ educational systems, one cannot help but notice a trend — they have national educational standards. This is, however, a controversial idea. Dave Driscoll, the Massachusetts school superintendent, was burned in effigy for introducing educational standards, but the results speak for themselves. Finland is a country that consistently ranks at the top of numerous educational scales. Its system is not dramatically different from US public schools, except for the key fact that it requires all high school students to pass a national exam to graduate. By adopting common national standards we as Americans also would be able to assess which students will not be capable of succeeding educationally post-high school.

It will not be easy to institute measures as drastic as these. Certainly, teachers unions will oppose them. However, in a case as important as the educational system of the United States and the education of American residents, the ends do justify the means. In order to maintain global leadership and competitiveness in our economy we need to have an educated work force. Obviously, the entire public school system is not going to be exactly like Newark Academy, but small changes will surely benefit the nation.