It should come as no surprise that the school system in the United States is failing. In the 1980′s the Reagan Administration released their report, “A Nation At Risk.” Contained within the report where a variety of statistics and recommendation aimed at stemming what President Reagan termed the “rising tide of mediocrity.”As we move forward into the next generation of school reforms, we should take time to reflect on the original five recommendations made by the National Commission on Excellence in Education.

1.Content: It is no secret that our nations schools are seriously lagging behind other schools on a global level. Reagan’s team recommended changing the content for students with the aim of better preparing our students for college.
2.Standards and Expectations: Somewhere along the line, teaching to the lowest common denominator became accepted. Reagan’s committee urged schools and administrators to focus on higher expectations and standards.
3.Time: Simply put, our students need more education”face time” in order to be competitive. The committee urged schools to lengthen not only the school day but also the school year.
4.Teaching: In order for our students to be truly successful, our teachers must be more adequately prepared.
5.Leadership: Leadership isn’t just found at the government level. Involving parents and community groups in the effort to hold our schools, our teachers and our government responsible for improving the education system for our students is critical.

When these recommendations were written our K- 12 systems was in serious need of reform. Some of the recommendations were implemented while others were virtually ignored.

Maybe it is time to revisit Reagan’s recommendations and see if we cannot stem the tide of mediocrity in the K – 12 education system in The United States. Our schools and our students must be better prepared so we can be successful on a global level.