Task: How can the problems in the
public education system that has led to the existence of a shadow education
system be fixed? Start your essay with a brief summary of the text.
Shadow educational establishments are a global
phenomenon. In most countries around the world, there is an educational market
that offers private tutoring in all areas for a fee. In some countries like
South Korea, this market is so big that some private tutoring academies are
among the biggest corporations and some of their teachers are among the richest
people in the country.
Unfortunately, this system creates terrible
inequalities because the children from the most affluent families have access
to the best tutors. Sending their children to these academies is a financial
burden on most parents who have to
allocate money from the family budget and may even have to look for ways to
make extra money. Students also pay a price because they have to spend their
weekends and/ or afternoons studying at a second school. This means they have
no time to relax, have fun and socialize. Teachers at these institutions also
pay a price as they work longer hours and make less than public school
teachers. They don’t have benefits like healthcare or paid holidays.
The reason why the shadow education system
exists is simple: the poor quality of public education. Unfortunately, public
school teachers lack the creativity, enthusiasm and commitment to student
success like the teachers in the shadow education system. Serious measures have
to be taken to improve the quality of education in public schools to avoid
these negative effects. There are many things public schools can learn from
shadow education establishments to improve their quality of instruction.
Regular contact with parents in the form of emails, text messages, phone calls
and face to face meetings is vital for a cooperation between schools and
parents. It is a act that the education
of a child is a team effort and requires the cooperation of the family and
teachers. Public schools, like shadow education schools, shuld carry out
routine performance reviews. They should do surveys to measure student and
parent saticfaction. This way, problems with motivation, dissatisfaction and
ineffective teaching can be solved before they get too big. This will mean more effective and positive learning for all
students.
It is also important to improve the quality of
public school teachers. Firstly, their salaries should be increased to attract
more ambitious and idealistic students to Education Faculties. Secondly, these
faculties should only accept top the highschool graduates of the country. Great
minds make the best teachers. Public school teachers’ salaries should be fixed
to their performance. Teachers whose students do better in creative thinking
skills should get higher salaries. Student satisfaction should also affect
their pay. All of these policies will mean teachers improve their teaching
skills to get financial rewards.
Education of the young generation must be the
most important issue for any country. Development, innovation and success are
only possible with young people realizing their potential and being prepared
for the challanges in life. A good education must be every young person’s right
and not only offered to the rich. For this reason, public schools must give a
high quality education. This is the only thing we need for a bright future!
Hence there will be no need for a shadow education system that is a burden on
its teachers, students and parents.
EBRU McCullum
