Missouri Schools are not Making the Ranks

Education is the foundation for every person's success in life. The lessons and education a child receives are the stepping stones for life. Without a decent education in the early years, one is not given a fair chance at success. According to U.S. News, Missouri did not have any public schools that rank in the top 100. We strive to excel in many ways, but education is not one that we are succeeding in. The schools were ranked based on how well each school's students did on state tests, how well the disadvantaged students scored, and if the school was successful in providing college level work. Newsweek developed a list of the top 1,300 high schools. The Metro Academic and Classical School in St. Louis was the first Missouri school to reach the ranks, and it was ranked number 147. There were 9 other schools in Missouri listed, but they were ranked number 265 up to 1,300.

With this in mind, all Missourians need to step up to the plate and challenge ourselves to make our schools compete with the best. For starters, we need excellent teachers. They are the people that can make the children learn the most and live up to their potential. We have great teachers and we have mediocre teachers. We need to change the way we pay our teachers, thereby recruiting the best of the best. Teachers should be rewarded on how well they teach, not how many years they have been teaching. Merit pay would bring the best teachers to the field and keep the best ones around. This would also encourage the second-rate teachers to find jobs more suited for them. Once we increase the number of excellent teachers in Missouri, the students will undoubtedly increase their performance.