Mar 4, 2011

 Last evening, the lovely Mrs. Sneed and I attended a school musical starring the 2nd grade classes at our Aiden's school.  Aiden was quite spectacular as a member of the chorus.  Many in the audience thought the kid in the light green costume and cheetah mask carried things.

Aiden attends a public school on Hooterville's far southeast side.   It is a district made up of young, upwardly mobile families.  In education, family dynamics and family income drives student performance.

Of the sixteen schools that make up the district, twelve are labeled "excelling" by the state.  That is the highest ranking on the state scale.  No school in the district is below state standards for performance.

On the other hand, the woeful Hooterville Unified School District (HUSD) , ten times the size, has just three highly performing schools.  Two in affluent parts of the district and one, the "special smart kid" magnet high school.  The latter is only available through admissions testing.

HUSD is the district of last resort for the families of poor, the mobile and the dysfunctional.

In education money spent in the classroom cannot overcome the burden of being poor.





Things in this blog represented to be fact, may or may not actually be true. The writer is frequently wrong, sometimes just full of it, but always judgmental and cranky

6 comments:

tut-tut said...

Our county commissioners and school board are fighting over PILOT monies, the taxes stipulated for schools that corporations must pay after they get their tax exemption lures to locate here. Commission wants the money to build new schools; school board wants the money to take care of the schools we already have. Sigh

Kurt said...

The #1 factor in children's success in school (so they told me over and over) is "mother's attitude toward education."

The Bug said...

That may be right Kurt - I know that MY mother was very interested in me doing well in school. On the other hand, in a poor school district that might not be enough.

Megan said...

My mom didn't pay much attention. My DAD, on the other hand...

Barbara said...

Following up on your last point, I will be curious to see how Newark spends the $100 million donated by Facebook's creator, Mark Zuckerberg. I've always thought parental interest and encouragement was far more important than the money spent on education.

Anonymous said...

Megan, mom would have paid attention if we didn't do well. Dontcha think?