Archives for September 2008

The United States Department of Education data indicate that 16.6% of high school seniors leave school before graduation.  The Gates Foundation report, The Silent Epidemic indicates that the major reason for their leaving is boredom.

Many high school seniors have completed all or most of their core subjects and their staying in high school is simply “treading water.”  High schools need to provide reasons for students to stick around.

I suggest that many of these students should be encouraged to take courses that they would need in college.  High schools should link to colleges so that students can get “dual credit” for courses that they take in high school but need for colleges.

Co-op programs where students take courses in the morning and work in the afternoon provide opportunities for learning as well as opportunities to provide some income.

This is also the perfect time for students to gain skills in subjects that they would ordinarily not take like keyboarding or swimming.  A driver’s education course might be given only to high school seniors.  Advanced placement courses are another alternative for students.  Schools might also set up service learning programs so that seniors might connect the working world with the world of school.  Community assistance programs like “senior citizen escort programs” provide another possibility.  Having seniors read to hospital bound children or seniors in nursing homes provide both a intergenerational contact along with an opportunity for personal growth.

The town of Harrold, Texas made headlines when the district decided to allow some teachers bring concealed weapons to school.  This tiny town 180 miles from Dallas educates 100 students.  There are two dozen teachers.  But a lane highway runs through the town and the police did shut down a drug-producing laboratory near school property according to an article in USA Today.  The county sheriff’s office is 17 miles away and the district cannot afford to hire police officers.

Texas gun laws ban weapons on school property but the State Legislature allows school board to permit people with concealed handgun licenses to carry weapons.  Texas Governor Rick Perry supports the decision.

Exactly how dangerous are schools?  According to www.schoolsecurity.org there have been 2 shooting deaths in the 2008-2009 school year.  In the past 10 years there have been 117 shooting deaths – that averages 11 per year.  But the number has decreased in the past 3 years.

Do you think teachers should be allowed to carry guns on campus?  Do you feel that even though they have undergone training, they pose a threat to school safety?  Would you want to work in a school district that permitted teachers to carry guns?  Send your responses to [email protected]

Till next time.

There are a number of high profile School Chancellors/CEOs/Superintendents.  To name a few, there is Rudy Crew in Miami/Dade, Joel Klein in New York City, Paul Vallus in New Orleans and Michelle Rhee in Washington DC.  All of these individuals are responsible for dealing with school systems which are faced with enormous difficulties.

The Washington Post recently (8/25/2008) published a story on Ms. Rhee (www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2008/25) entitled, Better or Worse, It’s Rhee’s School System Now.

Ms. Rhee was hired by the mayor of Washington, Adrian M. Fenty and is directly responsible to him.  He has gone on record as staking his political future on fixing the schools in the District of Columbia.  A number of mayors have taken on the direct responsibility of fixing the schools in their cities with the belief that schools create jobs.  Mrs. Rhee has established as a goal for her administration to establish D.C. schools as “a world-class system.”  This will be a daunting task because of the following:

• According to a Manhattan Institute Report, November 2001, High School Graduation Rates in the United States, Washington DC schools graduated 59% of its high school class.
• USA Today reported on April, 1, 2008, that there were 2,364 dropouts in the 2007 graduating class or 58.2% of the class graduated.
• The 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAED) reported that the Washington DC 4th and 8th grade scores were lower than any other students in the United States.
• Washington DC schools spend $14,400 per pupil.  That is more than any of the 50 states.

In order to improve the DC schools, Ms. Rhee “has closed 23 under-enrolled schools, overhauled 26 academically ailing schools and fired 150 people she considered poor performers including nearly 50 principals and assistant principals, most of them black women over the age of 40.” (Washington Post)

She has run into opposition from the teachers union, parent groups, the DC Council, and education activists.  Rhee, who is of Korean ancestry, has faced racial discrimination charges over the firings.  In addition, she has been criticized for not being responsive to the demands of parents and community representatives.  But according to the Washington Post article, she attended 370 community meetings.

Principals, work on year-to-year contracts, and according to Rhee were not rehired based on comments from parents, teachers and from reviews from her staff.

All heads of school systems, face enormous challenges, but if schools are not serving students, there needs to be some sort of immediate action taken.

Children in Washington, DC deserve to have their schools improve.