Now here's a topic that will get some blood percolating. I totally agree with jemaz, public schools are our greatest resource. We need the public school system to succeed.
There are so many different factors involved in measuring school success, and without seeing them all it's hard to get the big picture. Now I'm not saying I have the answers, but I have looked at this from the inside and out. I'm going to leave the parenting issues aside for others to dissect, as I have been known to get the red-a** when talking to my peers about this. Let me just say that I'm all in favor of boarding schools.
For starters, when you start looking at numbers like graduation rates, the formula used by this school district may not include factors such as transfers to private or out of district schools. I'm not saying there isn't a problem at JCM, but the numbers may not be telling the whole story. If there's a phenomenon such as white flight occurring then you're probably not going to a true picture of the success rate at any given school. What do the SAT scores say? The state HS competency scores? Or the other standardized test scores say about achievement in core curriculum subjects? Not always as bad as it looks. And how do you measure the quality of social preparedness that students are receiving?
Here's an interesting read that examines the recent historical perspective of American schools. As the author points out, we seem to go through cycles where panic sets in and TPTB decide that we must re-invent the school system.
The Myth of America's Failing Schools I believe in the old adage that in order to learn kids have to feel safe. Racial tension doesn't help much with a kid's sense of security. I graduated from a HS in which mandatory bussing was enforced, and I can tell you that scenario can be problematic for sure. Kids with a forced bus ride to a distant school are more than likely to get off that bus with a chip on their shoulder, and the kids watching them depart the bus are leas than likely to be rolling out any red carpets. Not an ideal situation, but it can work. In the end you have to find a balance, while a diverse student population is a model for the real world, a kid should be able to go to the school in their community. Bottom line is that we all have our work cut out for us in learning how to ease racial tension. The world isn't going to get any whiter, browner, or blacker. It already is what it is, and our kids need to 'get that' sooner than later.
Special Ed is probably for another topic, but it has relevance here. I should note that around 15% of the general pop in the USA has some form of print related disability- dyslexia if you will. That issue alone has a huge impact on testing and retention rates. While private schools generally do a great job educating lesser challenged students, they don't usually provide the kind of support needed to teach kids with learning differences. That's why most special ed students have no place to transfer to, and publics end up dealing with a much higher population density of challenging students. It doesn't help the numbers look any better.
I currently work at a public high school with around 2200 students enrolled. The diversity of the student pop is rich, because the diversity in the community is rich. The quality of teachers is also pretty diverse. But one of the big problems is that people aren't exactly lining up for teaching jobs around here. Finding a way to make the teaching profession more attractive to new graduates is one of the many big challenges facing our country. BTW, you're going to find some real duds teaching at private schools too. I would encourage just about anyone who feels that they have a stake in our childrens' future to consider spending some time in the classroom. No it doesn't pay much, but the real rewards are huge.
