Mercante: Crisis in education requires our attention
Nancy Mercante had a career in corporate communications in the financial, pharmaceutical and telecommunications industries. Two years ago, she founded Citizens for Delaware Schools, a nonpartisan nonprofit, to advocate for a better education for every student in the state.
Our moral obligation to the children is clear: We must nurture and educate them well. It’s time to apply this commitment to all children by fixing the failures of our public education system.
All children have a right to get a good education. It requires close teamwork among parents, teachers and students. Parents are solely responsible for the education and upbringing of their children in four areas: spiritual, moral, health and academic motivation. Teachers provide students with instruction in reading, writing, math and critical thinking, which enables children to achieve their full potential as productive members of society. Together, parents and educators should teach young people how to become good citizens who can think for themselves and make morally and socially wise decisions.
Too many children who attend K-12 public schools in Delaware enter adulthood unprepared to lead successful lives. For decades, Delaware public schools have failed to provide all children an adequate education in a safe, caring environment supported by involved parents.
Many factors contribute to this sad situation. The most obvious one is the crowding out of an emphasis on the basics: reading, writing and math. Leading causes are inefficient bureaucracy, ideological interference and the influence of social media, both in and out of the classroom. We rely too much on teachers to manage and resolve longstanding social issues from within the classroom, limiting their time and ability to teach core subject matter in a controlled and predictable environment.
Despite spending an average of $20,000 per student in 2023, according to the Delaware Department of Education, children are promoted through the system without achieving grade-level proficiency in the basic knowledge needed to prosper in life.
While Delaware’s spending on public schools is near the top in the nation, the National Assessment of Educational Progress ranks our students near the bottom in ability to master core subjects:
- 47th in fourth grade reading
- 48th in sixth grade reading
- 45th in eighth grade math and reading
This means that about 7 of 10 Delaware public school students graduate without the skills they need in these core subjects.
For minority students, it’s much worse. In at least 17 schools with mostly minority students, fewer than 1 in 10 students can read or do math at grade level. Research tells us that, if children can’t read at grade level by third grade, they rarely recover. Instead, they get trapped in a system where they never catch up. This gives rise to a lifetime of underperformance that often leads to poverty, crime, drugs and even prison.
In short, the decline in Delaware’s public education system is devastating for these students, our communities and our state.
Public pressure could bring more change, but our voices aren’t loud enough yet. The general apathy about this situation is shocking. Many parents may think their kids are doing well because they get passing grades at school. Some parents are too busy working two jobs to make ends meet. Many others may simply lack the motivation or knowledge to help their own children.
Many parents are unaware that public school districts actively promote ideologies that conflict with and undermine their own moral values. Parents, citizens and organizations must unite to constantly reinforce the power of faith and the principles of hard work, resilience and integrity, upon which our nation was founded.
Whatever the reason for such apathy, we must change it and recognize the moral imperative to educate all children. Nothing will get better until parents and the public at large become aware of the true state of public education in Delaware and demand better. You can contribute immensely by leading an effort to promote a campaign of awareness, as a starting point to motivate people to act. We must accept responsibility for the education of all children.
Now is the time to commit to improving education, to put all children within reach of the potential each and every one of them has been given.
Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at civiltalk@iniusa.org.
