11 Ways To Improve American Education Systems

These 11 factors are the ways that I believe we can help strengthen American schools and enhance children's learning and commitment to school.

1. Embrace Technology

In a more traditional profession, many teachers are reluctant to utilize technology in the classrooms. Many times their reluctancy is due to what their administrators might think...

2. Give Teachers More Decision-Making Power

Many times teachers have to go through three or four different channels before being able to make decisions. This should be more streamlined to allow more flexibility.

3. Get Rid of Standardized Testing

With too many teachers having to focus and stress over tests that barely even matter and that are outdated, we have too many teachers losing the passion that they took the job for in the first place.

4. Make The Teaching Profession More Appealing

Teachers have one of the most important jobs in the nation and yet we treat them like they have the worst. Being a teacher isn't easy, especially when you aren't getting paid well. Give our teachers the respect they deserve!

5. Embrace Organizations Helping Educators

Teach For America and Donors Choose just to name a few

6. STEM Education

This is the best way to get back in the top lists for education. We need to take more steps in this direction and it needs to start at a younger age.

7. Get Away From No Child Left Behind

We are too focused on leaving a child "behind" that we forget how many children are cruising through early years without any challenges.

8. Encourage Innovation In Teaching

This makes the classroom more fun, allows the teachers to pursue their passions and makes it easier for the children to learn important concepts!

9. Involve Students In Their Own Educations

When you get students more involved in their own learning and they get to pick ways they can learn, then they will become more interested and much more inclined to pay attention.

10. Encourage Growth Outside of The Classroom

This includes everything from volunteering in the community, to student groups, to discussion groups, to class field trips.

11. Increase the Education Budget

This is the most important and is a catalyst for every other item in this list. Our schools will struggle to get better until we can get more federal and state money into our schools. With only 2% of the Nation's budget, it is hard to fund everything that our teachers need. We are setting them and their students up for failure...