The A+ Activist

Now let me ask you this… Can we afford to let them down?

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), by the time 2010 comes around (two short years away as we are half way through this one), there will be 50 million kids in public elementary and secondary schools.

It’s a landmark number for our nation.

It should be a wakeup call for our federal and state governments to get on the ball and make sure every student has the tools it needs to succeed.

I am not holding my breath are you?

I’ve read so much this week in terms of funding education and budget cuts and teacher layoffs that it’s enough to make you sick, or at least seriously nauseated. I have a son who is almost two and a half; guess where he will be in three short years? Yup, you guessed it.

School districts have a lot to get prepared for in two years if they want to make sure that every child has what they need. If today’s layoffs and news of budget cuts and funding issues are a sign of things to come then I fear for the children who are not only in the public school systems right now but also on their way there. The money that has been spent on preschool programs and early learning programs will all be for nothing if the schools can’t keep up what those programs started.

Let me just throw some points I’ve already touched on here at The A+ Activist:

1. We lose quality teachers every year because of budget cuts.

2.Schools are closing or being being crammed together because of the lack of funding.

3. Our children already fall behind greatly in the areas of Math, Reading and Science compared to other nations.

Oh and did I forget to mention that those numbers? The 50 million? It will continue to climb to at least 54 million by 2017… That’s when my eight year old daughter graduates.

Anyone ready to be sick now?