A two-hundred year trend was overturned. In a little over 40 years Americans went from an agrarian to a service economy. The rapidity of change has not stopped. We are now and will continue to move to a high tech society. This significant economic shift in America calls for a work force that is more, not less educated.
American society needs better educated individuals now more than at any time in history.
This is good news for those seeking to be teachers. However, since education and teachers will be so important to society and since education is so expensive, increasing pressure will be placed on teachers and schools to demonstrate their competency. In other words, schools will increasingly be asked to show how they are helping students meet the challenges of an information age and a high tech economy. Pressure on teachers and schools will come from both the state and federal governments. I am not sure of the role the federal government will take, but I am certain that the state government will be a more active presence in the school districts.