Education Is Not Preparation For Life - 1350 Words

â€Å"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.† If one accepts the quote by John Dewey to be true, then depriving someone of their education is depriving them of their life. Throughout the centuries, human beings have sought educational freedom. The United States of America has become a symbol for all who seek life, or education rather. Millions of people come to the United States, from less privileged countries, each year in hopes for a better education that is coupled with a better life. Today, unfortunately, the U.S has lost its edge in the education department. Many studies today show this failure, â€Å"the U.S. is the clear leader in total annual spending, but ranks 9th in Science performance and 10th in Math† (Staff).†¦show more content†¦In the Special Education program, Special Ed for short, students are placed in smaller classes that give them more time with the teacher, and the contents of these classes are much easier than th e standard classes. According to an article written by Harry and Anderson â€Å"approximately 29% of the students in Special Ed programs are African Americans† (Harry, Anderson). Many politicians blame racism to be a factor for such a large percent of African Americans in Special Ed. However, a study done by the New York Times shows that the opposite is true. The study states that African Americans are actually underrepresented in Special Ed programs and there should be more of them in these programs. The study provides evidence that African Americans are more likely to develop some sort of a learning disability due to their upbringing. The study provides compelling evidence for its claim, â€Å"Thirty-six percent of inner-city black children have elevated levels of lead in their blood† (Paul, Farkas). The figure for suburban white children is only 4 percent.† Also, â€Å"black children are about twice as likely to be born prematurely and three times more likely to suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome (Paul, Farkas)†. The study provides these claims as a support to why so many African American develop learning disabilities. Assuming that all these claims are true, where should one go from here? To many proponents of the Special Ed program, the answer is