Epic fail.

No, seriously. AFP just put out a story that states that one out of every two high school students in major U.S. city districts do not make it to commencement. This follows the Washington Post article late last year reporting that students in 23 out of 30 countries had higher average scores in the 2006 PISA Math exam than those in the States.

In turn, these stories support the facts from EDin08:

• 70% of 8th graders are not proficient in reading—and most will never catch up.
• More than 1.2 million students drop out of high school annually.
• 30% of college freshmen repeat high school classes.
  

This is an issue close to my heart. I remember learning that my campus had only allocated $100 for the AP Biology course I took in high school. Much of what we used had to be funded out-of-pocket by the instructor. I found the entire situation ridiculous, which led me to make and distribute flyers supporting the Measure "L" Parcel Tax to sustain core academic classes.

I don't know if my efforts made much of a difference, but I do know that the measure narrowly passed. I believe every bit helps, and I'm glad to have done what I could.

Of course, I had the fortune of attending one of the best districts in the country. My school simply had funding issues. The problems that plague other districts are far more substantial.

As we speak, students in our public education system are being taught to a curriculum of test-taking and memorization. Grades and test scores carry more weight than ever, even though coursework has been bastardized to the point of irrelevancy. The push to pursue a college degree has led to an increasingly reckless policy to pass more students by lowering the standards.

The result? Students today not only receive a substandard education, but many end up failing anyway.

We need to stop this race to the bottom.