There needs to be a standard on grading.
The department of education will likely need to be restructured.
I know this is going to sound asinine, but hear me out. Public schools are given too much freedom. They're treated more like companies rather than public areas, despite them being considered public schools. For example, public schools are allowed to censor and prohibit speech in the same manner as a company, this is ridiculous. I understand why employees should be forced to remain neutral, but students are basically people in a public space being compressed and conformed. I do understand restricting all speech in class room settings, given time restrictions and the necessity to teach, but students should be allowed to present themselves however they please, so long as they do not incite violence or if you really wish to keep it, vulgar. But that's really far from the worst sins of public school.
Arrogance and Ignorance of market. Schools have to compete with smart phones and the tech boom of the early 2000s, yet even after 20 years, most schools seem to be stuck in the 80s-90s. And I'm not talking text books or lack of tech integration, I mean teachers and schools have been unwilling to evolve. Instead of attempting to dual-integrate smartphone use and student's technology into the schools, they only see them as a distraction, not a tool. Many schools ban these outright, even in free time like lunch. I understand in elementary or even middle schools, but in high schools they should be accepted as a common occurrence. Why? Well it's almost like the Napster piracy and Music, or the modern streaming piracy vs the Super Smash Bros Ultimate roster of streaming sites that offer a handful of shows that seems to constantly be stacking up. It doesn't matter if it's banned, prohibited or illegal, it will gain popularity of the alternative is inferior. The only way to really defeat it, is to bite the bullet and try to integrate it instead of ignoring it or persecuting it. It won't end well.
180 days/ 8 hour days is ridiculous. In my experience, I've spent countless ours and sometimes whole school days, doing ridiculous Bullstuff that has no meaning or purpose beyond being busy to shut up the superintendent/principal if he/she were to pop in. Why? Because of some arbitrary day count and summer break? They've constantly been adding holidays into the year to break it up over the years, but that's not solving the problem. The problem is this makes no sense. These dedicated hours are not being used efficiently, and are basically empty hours. In the middle of the school year it works, but before holidays, summer break or even weekends, most teachers lose the will to go over stuff for a full day. Kids and teens may think they're winning a treat when they do this, but in reality it's pointless wasted time. Either the days need be used more efficiently, or they need to be cut down to give teachers a sense of urgency so that there aren't days upon days of bullstuff nonsense.
Ah, the elephant in the room, Grades. Any starfish with an undeserved ego can call up about their child's grades and get them changed because they're too stupid to understand that changing the outcome of the grades doesn't suddenly make their child a genius. Effectively you're strongarming the school into lying about your child, which contributes to the need for tests like the SAT and ACT. If you do this, you're part of the problem. Schools have no backbone because theyre afraid of the dreaded lawsuit. And honestly, why shouldn't they? Frivilous lawsuits end up passing through courts all the time. Stupid people seem to be winning smart prizes for avoidable circumstances all the time. That is definetly a subject to be discussed, but it's far too vague to go into detail here, but I thought I'd note it.
By regulating grades and education you change the duty of grade assignment and verification from just each and every school to the state/federal government. And I know that's a risky decision, and in most situations this would be a no-no. However, this isn't like most situations. With this change of duty, schools can lean back on the government for protection from aggressive Karen's who think their brother-son, who never shows up to school, deserves all A's and the honor roll.
This will then create a consistency for grades across schools, so colleges don't have to force people's hands into a stuffty test, that determines your score based on a mix arbitrary attributes and questions answered correctly. Pushing kids out of the pathline of college who don't fit that future.
College isn't for everyone. And there are other options. Trade schools are great alternatives. But forcing people into college who shouldn't be there is bad for the college, the student and whoever has to pay back the debt the misplaced student will inevitably end up not being able to pay back.
