The Lack of Education in America

The problems with America as a society span from the government, to the media’s instillation of low self esteem in our youth. Every country has its problems, so the solving of each small issue is a task that is nearly impossible to accomplish, but what many American people tend to notice is that the largest of problems often fall from importance. While America’s problems spread widely across the board of categorized imperfections, the most important issue we face is the lack of education in our society; this display of disobedience and blatant laziness will only continue to escalate unless some drastic changes are made.

The biggest problem, as well as the most overlooked in American society, is the lack of education in our citizens and the youth of America’s disregard for their futures in schooling as well as careers. The issue in this lack of education in America has always been evident in that most people do the bare minimum in order to get by in life and school. Most of the blame for this new “high school dropout” phenomenon falls on those belonging to the baby boomer and x generations for raising our youth without much penalty for their actions. The only way to motivate American children and teens to succeed is by implanting a sense of need in their minds from an early age to their filling out of college applications. Education seems unimportant today because job openings at the family gym, or the McDonalds and Starbucks on every corner are always viable options. A solution to this problem is to convince the future generations of America that it is not enough to be self-sufficient; you must also be able to get by and defend yourself with a high level of intelligence. It is unfair of course to place all of the blame on the older generations for our society’s uneducated people, because in some cases structure from the parents does not change the rebellious ideas of teenagers.

Another large portion of the blame in this epidemic of stupidity can be placed in the world of reality television and untalented celebrities. Why would the youth of America strive for higher education when they have the chance to be on the Real World or be famous like Ashlee Simpson and T-Pain? The creators of this world of talentless fame are fueling the fire in the lack of education. A perfect example of the state of mind Americans have is in shows like Maury and Jerry Springer, programs that lower the standards of Americans to such an extent that it’s impossible to think that you, yourself, could need to be educated any more than you are. The invention of synthesizers in the vocals of new music is another thing we use that demonstrates the simplicity of fame. To be a famous musician today does not necessarily mean that you have training or that you have talent, so today’s average teenager does not feel the need to educate themselves, and instead, they hope to gain fame and fortune.

This problem manifests itself today in the daily lives of every American citizen whether or not they realize it. The lack of education in America is such a predominant and important problem that it is astonishing when proper attention is not given to it. My direct relation to this problem is in both my close personal life and my distant relationships. For almost a year I have been dating the exact kind of person that I love to complain about. My boyfriend, David, did not have the credits to graduate at the end of his senior year of high school, so instead he got his G.E.D. While this is better than dropping out entirely he still has yet to apply to any colleges, well after receiving a G.E.D. David comes up with a plethora of excuses as to why he is not yet enrolled in a schooling program, but none are acceptable, and I feel as though voicing that opinion to him alone is a small step to fixing America’s largest unsolved issue. David happens to be someone I care about deeply, so I let his disregard for education temporarily slide, however, there are others who I do not accept excuses from. My roommate, we’ll call her “sloth” for all extensive purposes, is a perfect example of the absence of appreciation for our educational system. She tells me that the only reason she attends the university is because of “parental force” and the fact that marriage is the alternative to higher education in her country. “Sloth” will stay up until 3am or later playing games and watching movies, then she will sleep through her morning classes, and nap all through the day. This disregard for the amazing opportunities American universities offer is obscene, as well as a problem that is important and overlooked by society. Culture today does not expect everyone to do his or her best in attaining knowledge, which is obviously a very important issue to remedy.

Onto the question of “who facilitates this problem”? There is only one group that is entirely to blame and that is the unmotivated youth of America, who are not interested in becoming graduate students or having backup plans. At least they can all rely on the fact that there is always a comfortable couch in the basement of their parents and a job at the gas station. My solution to this national problem is to simply campaign to raise awareness of the education level of our country. America as a country is ranked extremely low on the scale of educated people, and 5 out of every 100 students in American high schools drop out and do not receive a degree. Another way to solve this enormous issue is to instill in the minds of parents that their child’s future is at risk unless they set strict guidelines. Coming from the standpoint of a structured childhood I can honestly say that strict rules in the ways of education are necessary for American children. Young adults today rely on their parents more than the baby boomer generation relied on theirs.

Obviously, the lack of education in America is overlooked by the media, the news, and even by current students of universities. If we continue to allow this epidemic to occur, an entire plague of moronic behavior will ensue, and the world will continue to deplete in education. This problem is too big to be ignored and something must be done to remedy it.