What Are The Major Issues In Education Today?

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What Are The Major Issues In Education Today
1. Government funding for education – On any list of current issues in education, school funding ranks near the top. As you may be aware, the American public education system comprises primary and secondary schools supported by taxes. Over 90 percent of the funding for public K-12 schools comes from state and local governments.

In the wake of the Great Recession, most states made cuts to funding for schools. That was understandable, since the bulk of state funding comes from revenues generated by sales and income taxes, both of which drop in times of recession. However, many states are still giving schools less cash now than they did before the Great Recession.

A 2022 article from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) notes that K-12 education is set to receive the largest-ever one-time federal investment. However, the CBPP also predicts this historic funding might fall short due to pandemic-induced education costs.

The formulas that states use to fund schools have come under fire in recent years and have even been the subjects of lawsuits. For example, in 2017, the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the legislature’s formula for financing schools was unconstitutional because it didn’t adequately fund education. Less funding means that smaller staff, fewer programs, and diminished resources for students are common school problems.

In some cases, schools are unable to pay for essential maintenance. A 2021 report noted that close to a quarter of all U.S. public schools are in fair or poor condition and that 53 percent of schools need renovations and repairs. Plus, a 2021 survey discovered that teachers spent an average of $750 of their own money on classroom supplies.
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What is the biggest problem in the education system?

One of the most significant issues facing education is the deterioration of school facilities across the country. Over 90% of public education funding comes from state and local governments, but many states are providing less money now than they did before the Great Recession (2007-2009).
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What is the single biggest issue facing education today?

The 15 Biggest Failures of the American Public Education System Decades ago, the American formal education system was designed to meet the changing needs of the industrial revolution. What was once a time of growth has changed over the years and, with the current economic climate, that system is no longer able to meet modern needs.

But what are the biggest failures of the American public education system, and how can they be remedied? In this article, we’ll explore fifteen of the biggest failures affecting the American public education system today. We’ll also explore five of the biggest emerging trends in American education. The Top 15 Failures in American Public Education Policymakers are constantly fighting to make changes to the American public education system, and not all of them are beneficial.

Over the years, there has been a great deal of back-and-forth that has left the public education system in shambles. Some of these problems are easy to identify and have been long-standing issues while others are new, brought about by advances in technology, changes in policy, and general change that happens with time.

Every story has two sides, and for every policy or program put into place, there are going to be proponents and critics. Below you’ll find an overview of some of the biggest issues facing the American public system as well as arguments from people on both sides of the issue. This video examines the question of why public education is failing parents and students.

Here are the top 15 failures affecting the American public education system: 1. Deficits in government funding for schools. Funding is always an issue for schools and is, in fact, one of the biggest issues facing the American public education system today.

For of K-12 schools, funding comes from state and local governments, largely generated by sales and income taxes. Research shows, however, that funding has not increased with need – many states are still issuing funding that is lower than it was before the Great Recession. Lower funding means fewer teachers, fewer programs, and diminished resources.2.

Decline in school safety. There has been a string of high-profile mass shootings in American schools, resulting not only in dozens of deaths but many debates about school safety. In, over 50% of teenagers said they were worried about the possibility of gun violence in school.

  1. Teachers all across the country are faced with the problem of figuring out how to prevent attacks and protect the lives of students and personnel.
  2. Some suggest special straining for teachers and concealed weapons might make schools safer while critics argue that more guns in schools could lead to more accidents and injuries.3.

Challenges with technology in education. Today’s students have grown up using technology and have come to expect it in the classroom, but there are arguments about how large a role technology should play in education. Supporters suggest that technology creates the potential for more active student engagement and provides instant access to up-to-date resources while critics say it could be a distraction.

  1. While technology in the classroom certainly has its benefits, certain aspects of technology are challenging.
  2. For example, smartphones and easy access to technology have made it easier for students to cheat and can negatively impact learning.
  3. This video discusses the worsening school funding crisis.4.
  4. Controversy over charter schools and voucher programs.

Another hot topic in education today is school choice. Charter schools and school vouchers allow parents to choose options other than traditional public schools for their children. Charter schools are funded by a combination of private and public funds and operate outside the public school system.

School vouchers allow parents to use public funds to send their child to a school of choice, including private schools. Critics of these schools suggest that charter schools and voucher programs siphon funds away from public schools that are already struggling financially.5. Problems with the common core curriculum.

The Common Core State Standards were developed to specify exactly what students should know before graduating high school. It was developed in 2009 to promote educational equity across the country, holding all students to the same standardized testing requirements.

  1. Some see the problem as a federal intrusion into the state control of education and others say that it doesn’t allow for teacher innovation and flexibility with the learning process.
  2. Most states adopted the standards when they were introduced but more than a dozen have since repealed or revised them.6.

Decreased teacher salaries. Teacher salaries are by no means impressive and, in most states, they have decreased steadily over the past few years. In fact, that the average salary for public elementary and secondary school teachers dropped by nearly 5% between the 2009/10 school year and now.

  • States like Oklahoma and Colorado experienced a 17% and 16% decrease – these states also saw massive teacher walkouts in 2018.
  • There are, of course, some states where teacher salaries increased, and some teachers received a growth in benefits that may or may not be enough to balance out wages that are low overall.7.

Emphasis on standardized testing. Along with Common Core, there has been an increased focus on standardized testing, especially during the No Child Left Behind years. Schools and teachers are judged based on student test scores which, many argue, is not a fair or accurate measure of efficacy.

  • Many critics argue that standardized testing is one of the biggest problems in American education, suggesting that the pressure to produce high test scores leads to a teach-to-the-test approach and reduced focus on non-tested subjects like art.8.
  • Arguments about teacher tenure.
  • Tenure is designed to protect teachers from being fired for personal or political reasons – the school district must demonstrate just cause.
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In many states, tenure is granted to public school teachers who have consistently received satisfactory evaluations, though some states don’t award it at all. Supporters suggest that tenured teachers can advocate for students without having fears of reprisal while critics say that it makes it harder for school districts to dismiss ineffectual teachers.

Some also suggest that tenure may encourage complacency, allowing teachers to put forth the minimal effort.9. Bullying in schools. Violence in schools is a rising issue and bullying is a key contributor. According to the, over 20% of students in grades 6 through 12 have been bullied either in school or on their way to/from school.

This figure is actually down from 32% in 2007 but is still much too high. The challenge with these statistics is that many students who are bullied do NOT report it. Bullied students experience a wide range of physical, behavioral, and emotional problems that can impact not only their education but also their lives.10.

  • Growing problems with student poverty.
  • According to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 50% of the public-school population in the United States was made up of low-income students.
  • This is a significant increase from 38% in 2001.
  • This is a nationwide problem with 40% of public-school students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunches in 40 states.

In 18 of those states, student poverty rates were over 50%. have shown that low-income students tend to perform lower than affluent students and family income shows a strong correlation with student achievement measured by standardized tests.11. Schools are overcrowded.

In the 2011/12 school year, the average class size in American public schools was about 21 students in elementary school and almost 27 students in secondary school. Anecdotal reports, however, suggest that classrooms today have closer to 30, and in some cases, 40 students. Teachers and other proponents of smaller class sizes suggest that class size influences the quality of instruction with smaller class sizes have improved student outcomes.

Critics say that the cost of limiting class sizes is a limiting factor and that it may not be worth it. In Florida, class sizes were capped in 2002 but a 2010 study showed no significant impact on test scores for students in grades 4 through 8.12. Student mental health challenges.

  1. Mental health is a growing concern in the United States and one that even affects school students.
  2. A 2018 study showed that nearly two-thirds of college students experienced overwhelming anxiety and anxiety has been reported in younger students as well.
  3. Even schools that are trying to make a difference face challenges.

For example, the recommended ratio of students to counselors is one counselor for every 1,000 to 1,500 students but the U.S. is 1,737 to 1. Awareness of mental health issues is increasing, but there is still a stigma that prevents many students from seeking care.13.

  • Parents are not involved enough.
  • Teachers in public schools can only do so much to support their students.
  • When the students go home for the day, the state of their home life can impact their development both personally and academically.
  • In cases where parents lack higher education, they may not be able to provide the assistance students need to learn and to complete homework.

Students in low-income families face additional challenges at home, though even middle- and upper-class families aren’t off the hook. In many families, parents are too career-focused and have little time to spend supporting their child’s education.14.

  1. Too many schools are being closed.
  2. Schools all over the country are closing their doors in numbers that are quite alarming.
  3. This only leads to an increase in issues with large class sizes and poor access to resources.
  4. It is easy for parents, teachers, and communities that are affected by closures to feel targeted even when school board members provide unbiased data.

In some cases, closures cannot be prevented but they can be delayed and communities should consider other solutions or alternative uses for the school such as a community center or adult education center.15. Lack of teacher innovation and outdated teaching methods.

The teaching methods used decades ago simply do not work for the modern student. One of the biggest things holding back the American public education system is a lack of teacher innovation, partially created by the enforcement of standardized testing and the Common Core curriculum. Unfortunately, the problem really needs to be addressed at the federal level with changes to policies that will result in a change within the public education system.

America needs teachers who are better trained to meet the needs of their students and who are willing to speak up and facilitate change. Teachers are on the front lines and, without them speaking up, change is not possible. Problems abound in the American education system, but growth and change are possible.

Eep reading to learn about the top emerging trends in the nation’s public education. The Top 5 Emerging Trends in Education Though the American public education system certainly has its issues, it is by no means a lost cause. The only thing anyone can do is change with the times and there are a number of emerging trends in education that could be a step toward resolving some of the issues above.

Here is an overview of the top 5 emerging trends in American education:

Increase in maker learning initiatives.Moving away from a letter grade system.Changing classroom approaches like flipped learning.The institution of micro-credentials.Growing concern for social and emotional development.

Now, let’s take a quick look at each of these trends.1. Increase in maker learning initiatives. In many schools, teaching is the focus when education should really be focused on student learning. Maker education allows students to follow their own interests and to test their own solutions for problems in a do-it-yourself approach to education.

  1. Students learn in collaborative spaces where they identify problems, create inventions, make prototypes, and keep working until they have the final result that works.
  2. There is little hard evidence on the trend as of yet, but it is growing quickly.2.
  3. Moving away from a letter grade system.
  4. Student assessment is necessary to test the efficacy of teaching strategies and curriculum – it is also a good way to measure individual student growth and success.

For many years, letter grades have been the primary method of student assessment but that is changing. Leaders in education currently feel that the traditional letter grade model is not a sufficient measure of the skills most highly valued in the modern workforce – skills like creativity and problem-solving.

  • In 2017, the Mastery Transcript Consortium was formed and includes over 150 private high schools.
  • These schools have adopted a digital system that provides qualitative descriptions of student learning and samples of work instead of the grade-based transcript system.
  • Public schools are quickly adopting the trend as well in a nationwide shift toward mastery-based or competency-based learning.3.

Changing classroom approaches like flipped learning. The traditional model of teaching places the teacher in front of the class giving a lecture, followed by students working at home on assignments to enhance their understanding of the subject. Flipped learning involves students watching videos or relevant coursework prior to class, and using class time to expand on the material through group discussions or collaborative projects.

Flipped learning allows students to control their learning pace and encourages students to learn from each other, exploring subjects more deeply than they otherwise might.4. The institution of micro-credentials. This trend in higher education is a departure from traditional college degrees that require years of study over a multi-year span.

Micro-credentials, rather, are also known as digital badges or nano degrees that demonstrate knowledge or skill in a given area and are earned through short, targeted educational offerings. About 20% of higher education institutions offer some kind of alternative credentialing system, often partnering with third-party learning providers.5.

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Growing concern for social and emotional development. Traditional education is focused on academics but there is a movement toward nurturing the whole study called social-emotional learning (SEL). This movement is based on the growing consensus that schools have a responsibility to protect and develop students’ social and emotional development in addition to their cognitive skills.

SEL focuses on helping students manage their emotions, show empathy, set goals, identify their strengths and make responsible decisions. Research on SEL shows a reduction in anti-social behavior and an improvement in academic achievement and long-term health.

The United States is a giant country with a huge population, making it difficult to standardize education or make improvements across the board. Though there are many problems with the American public education system, there are also many people (including legislators) who are dedicated to making positive changes that could benefit the future students of this country.

Questions? Contact us on Facebook. @publicschoolreview : The 15 Biggest Failures of the American Public Education System
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What is the greatest challenge that students face today 2022?

Dedicated to raising the up-and-coming workforce while tasked with meeting the social, emotional, and physical needs of children, the U.S. educational system is in a constant state of evolution. However, there are many who would say that the system does not evolve fast enough or in a manner that is actually meeting students’ needs for the challenges of the world they are preparing to enter.

  • And since March of 2020 when Covid took the world by storm, the failings of the U.S.
  • Educational system have made headlines over and again.
  • Increasingly, parents are looking for alternative educational methods with homeschooling options on the rise.
  • According to the U.S.
  • Census Bureau, homeschooled students rose from 3% pre-pandemic to 11% in the 2021-22 school year with no sign of numbers returning to pre-pandemic levels any time soon.

Socioeconomic dynamics, inequalities for underserved communities, lack of access to technologies, too much exposure to technologies, too few teachers, lack of resources, and hybrid classrooms are just some of the challenges that drove families to re-evaluate their children’s educational setting.

Dana Bryson, Senior Vice President of Social Impact at Study.com, urban policy expert, and social investment strategist with more than 25 years of experience, and John Edelson, Founder and President at Time4Learning with nearly 20 years of experience in providing educational resources and coursework for homeschooled students weigh in on the challenges brick and mortar schools face going into the 2022-23 school year.

“You know kids are increasingly addicted to technology but they feel burnt out at the same time. And it’s really difficult for teachers to have tech in the classroom be engaging and exciting for students. I think it’s finding that balance when we’re back in the classroom of how you use technology.

  1. I know one solution is a micro-learning format, you know, seven to 10 minutes, short videos, and a way to have the kids really engage with the curriculum and use technology for the good, but not bore with it because they’ve spent a lot of time the last two years staring at the screen,” said Bryson.
  2. Edelson agreed that technology is a challenge in the traditional classroom setting because it is difficult to change once schools have invested in and implemented edtech resources.

He also noted that there is no single technology that can meet the needs of every student. Even the Time4Learning program is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Some students use it for only one or two subjects since the program may work for them in math or science for example, but the language arts program doesn’t resonate in the same way.

  • And this is a major benefit for homeschooled children – the ability to use multiple resources to meet the specific needs of each individual child.
  • Today’s students are technically proficient, “it’s 2022, everybody uses technology all the time and any job they go into and any communications you do, technology provides all sorts of activities,” Edelson said.

The extent of how much technology impacts education is probably much larger than people realize. LearnPlatform recently released its annual EdTech Top 40 report which highlights the most popular technology used in the classroom. “Teachers accessed an average of 148 unique tools over the course of the school year, while students accessed an average of 143 unique tools during the same time period.” This begs the question of whether or not the technology being used is a positive impact on student learning, or if it’s supporting the future career paths that are defining the workforce.

In fact, some of the industries facing the greatest shortages are heavily influenced by advancing technology. Careers in engineering and the trades are in desperate need of employees. With the rising costs of attending college, the potential to enter the workforce saddled with large and cumbersome debts, and the challenges of finding well-paying jobs with a good future are driving both students and parents to look more earnestly at careers in the trades.

One of the reasons for this, according to Edelson, is that “kids grow up younger, faster these days.” He continued to note that in today’s world, in comparison to generations from before the year 2000, “kids are a lot more interested and a lot more engaged when they have a choice and they’re picking their interest area.

  1. So, career pathing, picking a roadmap into careers has been pushed much younger.” This translates to a lot of homeschooled students enrolling in community college to explore career paths of interest.
  2. Or they might apprentice in different careers to see what a good fit for the future might be.
  3. This is fairly easy for home-schooled students to do due to the flexibility of schedules.

However, K12 schools are also taking note by creating more and more dual enrollment opportunities that allow students to attend alternative programs in support of individual interests and career path exploration. “When I speak with chief academic officers and curriculum directors, I’m hearing a lot of interest in this opportunity for students to have dual enrollments so that you’re in 10 th grade but you’re also taking a college-level course in a subject area you may be really interested in that may be a future career pathway,” Bryson said.

Add to this the increasing interest of schools, businesses, non-profits, and government entities in promoting trade education and addressing critical staffing shortages in essential industries. For example, Study.com started an initiative in 2021 to help address the teaching shortage with “innovative teaching pathway programs around the country to try to both get more teachers in the classroom and build a more diverse teacher pipeline,” noted Bryson.

The Biden Administration has ordered over $40 billion to be invested in the U.S. workforce to address critical shortages and help get underserved populations back into the workforce as part of the American Rescue Plan, Schools are getting involved as well.

” Wake Tech is pleased to announce that the college has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant of $520,783 to enhance Industry 4.0 training for students pursuing careers in advanced manufacturing.” With the social experiment called public education continuously evolving, the rapid pace of recent years can be directly attributed to the onset of the global Covid pandemic.

Despite the numerous challenges students, teachers, parents, and administrators faced, schools rapidly pivoted to continue providing education in a locked-down world that lasted much longer than anticipated in the early days of school closures and public lockdowns.

  1. So, the fact that the world of education continues to evolve to meet the needs of individual students and support identifying career paths that will provide stability and growth is not surprising.
  2. And as student needs and workplace concerns continue to drive change, educators will need to move beyond traditional models that no longer serve society.

“If I were to give advice to professional educators, I would encourage them to be supportive of the families that are switching back and forth between homeschooling and the formal system.20, 30 years ago, homeschooling was a completely separate system.

  • Once you were a homeschooler, you were always a homeschooler and you didn’t switch back and forth.
  • What we see at Time4Learning is there are lots of people who homeschool for three years or for five years and then they put the child back in the school system,” said Edelson.
  • In a world where unpredictability has become the new norm, educators continue to fight to overcome decades-old challenges of overcrowded classrooms, lack of funding, and inadequate resources.
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Many of these have been exasperated by the pandemic while new challenges have been added including hybrid classrooms, absentee students, virtual learning, and mastering a plethora of new technologies and protocols to keep students and staff safe and healthy.
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What do you think what is the current problem in our education system?

Major Issues and Challenges of the Education Sector: – India is known for its educational brilliance. However, the Indian education system is criticized for its failure to create required employability for its students in relation to the industrial requirements.

Hence, there are a lot of challenges being faced by the Indian education sector that requires immediate attention.1) Teacher-Student Ratio: According to the UNESCO’s State of the Education report for India 2021, there is 11.16 lakh teaching positions that are vacant in schools. It clearly shows that there is a shortage of teachers in schools.

Besides this, teachers are burdened with a lot of non-academic workloads which ultimately results in a divergence of their focus from teaching the students. According to a study done by the National Institute of Education Planning and Administration (NIEPA), teachers devote only around 19% of their time to teaching while the rest of their time is spent in non-teaching administrative work.

Apart from it, when it comes to the Government sector, the Government teachers enjoy a lifetime guarantee of job security irrespective of their performance which results in no accountability from their side.2) Allotment of Funds: Funds are provided to the schools by the Central Government to the State Government.

Every National Education Policy since 1968 has said that India needs to spend 6% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on education. The 2019-20 Economic Survey showed that in 2019-20, 52 years since that recommendation, India spent only 3.1% of its GDP on education.

  • This is the data collected from a website.
  • In addition, many corrupt mediators are there in between who keep the money aside for themselves and only a small portion of the entire fund is provided to the schools.
  • This hampers the functioning of the schools in a great way.
  • The requirements of the schools like libraries, labs, and other infrastructural facilities cannot be managed appropriately by the schools due to the lack of availability of money.3) Expensive Higher Education: According to a survey by Assocham, there has been a 169% rise in inflation in primary and secondary education from 2005 to 2011.

Specialized institutions and colleges are expensive in India. Higher education for some courses is beyond the reach of the common man. For example, IIM charges Rs.2 lakh per semester for MBA classes. Privatization of advanced education into the hands of greedy entrepreneurs resulted in high drop rates in the field of unaffordable higher education.4) Lack of Infrastructure: Lack of infrastructural facilities like poor hygiene, lack of toilets, drinking water facilities, electricity, playground, etc.

is one of the major loopholes of the education sector. A survey was conducted in 2010 whereby approximately 95.2% of schools are not still under the complete set of RTE infrastructure indicators. According to the 2016 Annual Survey of Education Report, only 68.7%schools had useable toilet facilities and around 3.5% of schools in India had no toilet facilities.5) High-Dropout Rates: In the primary and secondary levels, dropout rates are very high.

Students between the age group of 6- 14 years leave the school before completion of their education. According to the ASER report 2012, enrollment in the 6-14 years of age is over 96% in rural India but dropout rates are very high. Various factors responsible for dropout rates are as follows- poverty, lack of toilets, long distance to school, child marriages, patriarchal mindset, and cultural factors.6) Neglect of Regional Languages: In 2017-18, 14% of students who were enrolled in private schools in India’s rural areas and 19.3% in urban areas selected a private school with the English language as the medium of instruction.

  • English is the main medium of language in education.
  • Standardized publications in Indian languages are also not available.
  • As a result, students who are from rural backgrounds, Government schools, and those who are not well versed in the English language face a lot of problems in gaining knowledge and understanding the concepts.7) Old Curriculum of Study and Lack of Practical Knowledge: Old education system in India was mainly based on bookish learning but nowadays with the use of the internet and experiential learning methods, a lot has been changed.

The use of the abacus and Vedic Maths has added new dimensions to mathematics as a subject. New doors of learning and interesting methods of study came into existence.Similarly, the old curriculum of education mainly focuses on cramming up the theories and concepts.

No exposure is being provided to the students in the practical domain. Parents and teachers also focus on guiding the students for obtaining high marks in the subjects rather than practical knowledge and usability of the concepts. As a result, education has become a rat race. But, due to the introduction of the National Policy on Education 2020 things have changed.

India had three educational policies so far. The first was in the year 1968, the second was in the year 1986 and the third one is in the year 2020. The main purpose of the National Policy on Education 1986 was to include the disadvantaged groups by providing them equal opportunities in the field of education.

  • But the National Policy on Education 2020 is more holistic in nature.
  • It aims at skill-based learning and providing employability to the students.
  • All the loopholes of the previous educational policies are being catered by the New Educational Policy 2020.8) The Problem of Brain Drain: Students if they don’t get opportunities and deserving posts in the country, they travel to another country in search of employment opportunities.

This is known as brain drain. Because of it, we lose talented people of our country who could have helped in the development of the education sector or must have contributed towards the progress of our country. It was reported during 1996-2015 that more than half of the toppers of class 10th and 12th had migrated and were studying or employed overseas, mostly in the US.
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What are the problems faced by students during this pandemic?

(2020) found in their research that the lack of knowledge, skills and devices, internet connection, irrelevance and issues with system access were the problems experienced by teachers and students in the Covid-19 pandemic.
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What do you consider as the most pressing issue in Philippine education?

What is the education policy in the Philippines? – Recent education policy in the Philippines has focused on expanding access to all levels of education, The K-12 reforms of 2011-2016 were rolled out successfully, despite initial scepticism by President Rodrigo Duterte as to whether the Philippines’ teachers, schools and administration were properly equipped to implement the reform.

K-12 builds upon the reforms initiated by Duterte’s predecessor, Benigno Aquino III, whose ‘10-point plan’ sought to build more schools, expand vocational course options and improve science education in the Philippines. As a compliment to K-12, the government launched the Education for All (EFA) initiative in 2015, which aims to ensure that all Filipinos achieve what UNESCO calls “functional literacy”: the ability to read, write and do basic calculations.

EFA focuses on providing education for out-of-school adults and young people and on eliminating school drop-outs, thereby decreasing inequality within the Philippines education system.
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