Overview:
What does the Department of Education actually do? In this article, the intricacies of this department is delved in.
…With only days left until Americans determine the next leader of the free world, it is incumbent upon educators to have serious talks with the people in their communities to ensure they understand the importance of the Department of Education and what the country stands to lose in its absence.
As we continue to hear rumblings around the possible dismantling of the Department of Education, it is imperative that voters are aware of the tremendous effect the closure will have on America’s students. Let’s be clear! The Department of Education is not without flaws. For decades, many educators and citizens alike have grappled with the decisions made by the office regarding testing, dissemination of funds, ensuring equitable educational standards and measures, and the list goes on and on. However, what informed voters understand is that the Department of Education has also been the champion for many great initiatives and programming.
Without this entity, the educational system in America dies.
Without this organization creating and executing laws around educational practices in America, millions of students who hail from disenfranchised communities will become more vulnerable to the vices of their neighborhoods, as the guardrails around their current educational experiences will disappear, and there will no longer live a force to protect their civil right of access to equitable education.
What does the Department of Education Do?
Many Americans don’t know that the Department of Education governs all levels of education, from early childhood to college. The metrics that the entity establishes allow all Americans to recognize the growth learners are experiencing in America’s schools, as well as the learning challenges students face that need to be addressed. Understanding the scope of the Department of Education will help voters realize the disruption of the organization will be a huge detriment to society.
Free and Reduced Lunch, Early Childhood Education, Financial Aid and Dual Credit
Programs such as free and reduced school lunches, early childhood education, financial aid, and dual credit can all become extinct with the closing of the Department of Education. Implementing these four programs alone has ensured the success of millions of America’s most disenfranchised students. The deletion of these initiatives will prevent millions of students from accessing meals they are unable to receive at home, beginning quality school programs at an early age in an attempt to eradicate the 30-million-word gap of impoverished students, applying for the funding necessary to pursue college and career pathways and the opportunity to activate free college, while in high school.
Federal Guidelines for Testing, Student Achievement and Credentialing
Additionally, the Department of Education establishes federal guidelines for testing, student achievement, and credentialing for those who want to become teachers and school leaders. In its dissolution, we will lose the opportunity to use assessment data to identify learning and teaching priorities. We will forfeit the analytics that provides great insight regarding student performance in critical subjects like reading, math, and science. Lastly, we will lose control over the standards prospective educators must attain to be worthy of teaching America’s children.
To many Americans, the deconstruction of the Department of Education doesn’t seem like an insurmountable loss. Since the educational system is not as high-performing as most of us would like, it is hard to fathom how its erasure could negatively impact the country and its economic mobility.
Americans must delve more into the organization’s intricacies to fully understand its mechanics and the irrevocable damage the removal of such a transformative body will cause.