julia.villasboa: "Education in Crisis". Discuss

Normal 4 Primary School - 6th Form - Gym class

By definition a crisis is a condition of instability or danger, as in social, economic, political, or international affairs, leading to a decisive action. Besides these crises now I will focus our attention on one that Argentina is suffering: crisis in education. To my way of thinking, there are three main reasons for this: the infrastructure problem, low salaries and the fact that for political leaders education is not a priority.

Firstly, schools do no meet the minimum standards of insfrastructure. Old buildings are in need of urgent repair. There is no water in the toilets, no gas for heating purposes; blackboards are so cracked that no type of chalk will write on them. Window panes are non-existent so students freeze in the colder months and boil in the hotter ones as no fans or any other form of cooling system is available. The poor condition of buildings is a clear reflectin of the lack of interest in education on the part of the authorities.

Secondly, teachers in Argentina receive very low salaries when compared with their European counterparts. The job teachers do is fundamental because without them our country would not have a chance to progress. Therefore, they ought to be paid according to their value. In many cases teachers' poor incomes result in their lack of motivation, so their lessons are unprepared or extremely boring. The effect on students is their denial to learn or show interest in the subjects they are taught. Besides, such low salaries mean that teachers need to work long hours to make ends meet, which only worsens the whole situation.

Thirdly, the crisis can only end provided education becomes a priority for the government. Politicians' attitude has put our nation into a hole that no quick fix or miracle pill will get us out of. Sporadic initiatives to improve the system of education have attempted to solve the difficulty but a more comprehensive plan is definitely required. Objectives have to be changed and the right steps need to be taken, for instance, the government should make the best use of resources and complete budget for education.

To sum up, the crisis education is undergoing is due mainly to the appalling state of the buildings assigned as teaching institutions, low salaries and the lack of interest on the part of the authorities. Argentina has the tools to improve the educational system; it just needs to use them properly so as to give a solution for today's emergency