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The economy of the future will be powered by human capital. Therefore, an investment in education is critical, from the individual to the federal level.
1. Every class should develop one, or preferably several, of the following areas: a.) reading, b.) writing, c.) math, d.) critical thinking, e.) speaking, f.) learning to be healthy and happy, and probably a few others I forgot. Therefore, electives should not be abandoned, but their curriculuum needs to involve an application of basic skills. History should be taught, but not passively. Make the students write about history, analyze it, etc. Combine physics with calculus. Combine health education with statistics and biology, etc. I don't want any student to ask, "when are we ever going to use this?" Give them enough math story problems and they'll understand. (:
2. Do not base funding upon local taxes. Somebody who grows up in a poor neighborhood should not be doomed to a marginal school. This cuts off potential before it has a chance to be cultivated. Schools can be customized by state or locality, but funding needs to be equitably distributed on a state and/or federal level.
3. More funding for education, higher teacher salaries with bonuses for outcomes.
4. Establish a vocational and real-world emphasis in secondary schools to prepare people for jobs and situations in the real world, whether those jobs actually require a college education or not. For example, accounting and microeconomics should be mandatory. These are things necessary for any small business owner, which wouldn't require a college degree, but are also things that most people should know to manage their personal finances. Perhaps such education could have prevented the credit crunch.
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