American Schools Are Failing For Minority Students

The idea that American schools are failing is not a new one, but it is an idea that is extremely widespread. There are constant news reports claiming that our schools are worse than ever and Congress has passed extensive legislation such as No Child Left behind in an attempt to fix the American educational system. Some people believe that American schools are not completely failing, but only failing for minority students. Reforms like mandatory busing, vouchers, charter schools, accountability, and high-stakes testing have been proposed to address these social inequalities. Despite the intentions of these policies, they have not always helped close the social inequality gap. Mandatory busing was a reform started in the 1970s to desegregate†¦show more content†¦Mandatory busing helped push out students that were more likely to succeed from public schools leaving behind the students that struggled the most. A more recent educational reform program is the concept of school choice. Instead of being forced to attend the school chosen by the local district students would receive vouchers. Students would be able to take their voucher and apply the funds normally allocated to them at any school. Parents would be able to decide which school is the best for their children and students that would normally be trapped in a low-performing school could instead attend a different school. A problem with vouchers is that private schools are allowed to approve if a student can attend. The students that could benefit the most from moving to a private school could be refused admittance. Another issue is that higher income families would be more likely to use this program than lower income families that do not have the same values in education. Finally school vouchers would be taking money away from the public school system which would reduce the quality of education that the public schools could provide. Charter schools are another approaching in allow parents and students to have a choice in where their children go to school. Charter schools are approved by a