I ' m not saying the states are identical , I ' m saying that the US is one economy with one labor pool , and trying to tailor education on a state by state basis is of limited value at best and at worst you can have entire states where children aren ' t prepared to participate in the modern US economy . Good luck getting into a university Biology program if your state chooses to teach only the biblical account of the origin of species . Are there changes that can be made ? Sure , more access to and less stigma against trade schools , hell I ' m not strictly opposed to offering some more specialized classes that relate to local businesses and industry , but you cannot pretend that each state is its own little microcosm , sealed off from the outside world . We live in a smaller , more connected world than ever and that means that the demands on subsequent generations are more similar than ever , and our educational standards should reflect that .