Policy

Based on our research, we believe a well-rounded

education is most beneficial to students

The incorporation of collaboration, emotion, and support that a generalized education offers its students trumps the simplicity of a specialized approach to learning. Enacting such a style of learning is easier said than done, however, and it requires government intervention to support this approach.

We believe the most important step towards implementing a holistic education across a wide variety of schools is allocating more funds to schools that do not have the resources to alter their current education system. We understand that holistic education is more expensive than a specialized one as it requires devoting cost and attention to a wide variety of programs and subjects, but if the government could subsidize these schools so they could purchase equipment and instruments, it could facilitate the transition into a more holistic education.

Another way in which we can support a well-rounded education is to de-emphasize the importance of standardized testing and other equivalent forms of aptitude tests. Standardized testing has been the primary measure in judging a student's ability and ultimately determining what opportunities such as universities and jobs, a student can achieve. With schools desiring favorable scores for their attendees, it is no surprise that they teach in a manner that gives students the best chance at excelling on these exams. As a result of standardized testing, teachers are often forced to narrow the scope of what they teach and "teach to the test", so if schools gave less attention to these tests, more time could be spent on incorporating more diverse and relevant topics into the curriculum.

De-emphasizing the importance of standardized testing is also valuable in terms of college applications. If colleges removed their requirements for students to submit SAT or ACT scores, students from all different backgrounds could each individually decide whether or not they want to spend the time and effort preparing for the tests. In general, lower-income students are at a disadvantage when it comes to preparing for these tests, so making them optional can make testing more equitable.