The Significance of an Education 

Have you ever considered the importance of an education? Many people would say it is very important, while others would differ. If you think about it, getting a well-paying job is almost difficult without a college education; nobody wants to be stuck working a minimum wage job. However, if we go into depth with this topic, some students can't afford to pay for a college education. So they turn to community colleges because of the low tuition and pathways of transferring to a college or university. America depends on our students to get an education because they will one day be the next teachers, doctors, and presidents of our country. To make matters worse, government often times make funding cuts to community colleges. According to the article, "We All Benefit From Well-Funded Community Colleges: Kevin J. Schreiber" Kevin states,"...we have hear a lot about the significant education funding cuts made in the recent years"(Schreiber). Education should be at the bottom of the list for budget cuts because it effects the students resources and the economy as well.

With funding being cut, this impacts students majorly. Kevin Schreiber adds in the article that with an education, communities can break the cycle of poverty and also be able to compete globally. The effect that college funding has is, it limits the resources available to these students. These resources can include having less teachers, limited or outdated technology, etc. Students need these materials to be successful. It is like a student taking a course without the required textbook. They can get by, but they won't have what they need to be successful. We need students getting an education. We can't be giving them reasons to drop out of school and start working minimum wage jobs. Believe it or not, this effects the economy significantly. If students are not getting an education, they will be left with a dead end job and eventually be living below the poverty line. Someone will eventually take their job, because without a degree you can lose your job to someone with a degree. This will then effect the unemployment rate and then the government will be paying for their welfare.
 If these students get a degree, they can land a good paying job or pursue their career. This then allows them to spend their money on desired goods and services, allowing money to flow into the economy. So all in all, having an education is extremely significant to our country.

Does the U.S. Value Our Teachers

Does the U.S. Value Our Teachers?

          We face multiple problems in our education system today. The world depends on the students of today, because they are the future and the world's next leaders. However, without the proper training or learning, how can the students become successful? How can America allow teachers to quit? In the article of, "The High Cost of Low Teacher salaries" by Dave Egger and Ninive Clements Calegri, they stated that, "Nationwide, 46 percent of teachers quit before their fifth year." If you think about it, have you ever had a teacher bring up something about their salary? Many students have most likely had at least one teacher say something about their pay. We shouldn't blame them because teachers do more than what they get paid to do. This means that they work overtime but don't get paid for those extra hours they put in grading, reading papers, etc. We need to get more teachers teaching and lower the percentage of teachers quitting by raising teachers salaries. 

          The majority of students that pursue careers in college don't pursue teaching. Lets face it, we all know that nobody wants to become a teacher due to the low paying salary. "The average starting salary is $39,000; the average ending salary... is $67,000" (Egger, Calegri). To many people that doesn't look appealing for the amount of time and work that needs to be put in. However "McKinsely polled 900 top-tier American college students and found that 68 percent would consider teaching if salaries started at $65,000 and rose to a minimum of $150,000"(Egger, Calegri). That is our solution! In order to get our teachers to stop quitting and get more students to become teachers, is by raising the salary! It is really simple! In my opinion, 68 percent is a lot of students, and with the teacher to student ratio being low, this is the perfect solution to our problem. This is a great investment in our teachers, given the fact that the students of today are the world's next leaders.