LatinaLista — The nation’s public school system, and its teachers, have long been under assault – some of it deserved and most not.
What is clear is that enrollment, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, is only going to rise.
Total public school enrollment reached 49.5 million in 2010-11. From 2010-11 to 2021-22, total public school enrollment is projected to increase by 7 percent to 53.1 million (2021-22 is the last year for which projected data are available).
With this many children in our public school system, educating them, and educating them well, has to be a constant challenge for our educators.
It’s a challenge that is the focus every year during American Education Week, happening this week from November 18-22.
In honor of this week, people are asked to sign the Raise Your Hand pledge to support such goals as:
- Every child in America to have access to quality public education, regardless of family income or where they live.
- All educators to be respected and treated as professionals and participate in key education policy discussions.
- Public schools to have smaller class sizes, up-to-date textbooks, and safe and clean environments.
- Parents, families, communities, and educators to come together and create partnerships to foster environments that are conducive for student learning.
- Elected officials to do their part to ensure adequate tools and resources for all schools, include educators in key policy discussions, and make sure that students have access to a world class education-from pre-k and beyond.
Signing the pledge doesn’t just mean we agree with these goals but that we agree to be advocates for public schools – something that is needed to start a change so that all children are prepared for a future that may be the most demanding yet.
