I am now going to do something I have never done before on this blog - I am going to post an entire article from another author.
Today's edition of The Daily Tar Heel includes an editorial that perfectly communicates what the Orange County Board of Education appears not to have heard even after three "community listening sessions."
The DTH piece is so totally relevant that I do not feel the need to comment further:
Two is greater than one
Merger of elementary schools is not the county's best bet
by Editorial Board
The Orange County Board of Education is faced with a dilemma: It has two schools in close proximity with vastly different academic performances.
After the second question-and-answer session Thursday night about a proposed merger of Hillsborough and Central elementary schools, the county's next step is still up in the air.
Merging the elementary schools is unnecessary and potentially detrimental to both; instead, Orange County should focus its resources on improving Central. [Bold added by me.]
A big motivating factor behind the merger has been Central's failure to meet Adequate Yearly Progress requirements the past two years.
But there's also a socioeconomic divide, typically measured by the number of students receiving free and reduced lunch.
At Hillsborough, only 14 percent of students receive free and reduced lunch, significantly lower than the district average of 38 percent. At Central, though, about 70 percent of students are in the program.
[My note: These are old numbers. Last February the numbers were 14% and 61% respectively. With so many students opting out of CES this Fall, the current FRL numbers are unclear.]
The merger would send kindergarten through second grade to Central, while third through fifth grades would be at Hillsborough.
Merging the schools would do nothing more than bring both schools closer to the middle of the pack academically. Teachers would teach toward the median performance range, leaving the lower aptitude students struggling with the work level while the higher-aptitude children are twiddling their thumbs.
The BOE should focus on improving Central while maintaining the same high quality that already exists at Hillsborough.
This option best serves the needs of every student in the school district.
In addition, merging the schools would not be an easy transition for the students, parents or faculty at either school, and the overhead costs associated with switching schools are funds that would be better used put into improving Central.
It also won't be as simple as switching Central to a year-round schedule like Hillsborough; too many other factors affect a school's performance.
The county needs to look into the allocation of funds between the two schools, the level of teaching at each elementary school and perhaps even the stigma associated with attending the so-called "lower" of the two schools.
Orange County shouldn't move the Central students when it would be less costly and more effective just to help them where they are.
Leave it to a truly disinterested third party to see things so clearly. Thank you DTH.
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5 comments:
Has that not been said all along?
Gee, wouldn't it be great to have such objective reporting from our little paper The News of Orange? Too bad Casey is so in bed with Central Office and certain members of the BOE to print anything constructive.
Instead of wasting time ramming merger down everyone's throats, the BOE could have spent time developing a PLAN that could be help all students of the district.
Get a clue BOE and look at the district as a whole.
Casey has no professional integrity. He thinks that HES parents are white racists, and he thinks CES parents are ignorant fools.
BAN THE NEWS OF ORANGE. ITS A HORRIBLE NEWSPAPER!!!
Anon @9/17 1:24 wrote:
Has that not been said all along?
Is this not what one school board member got called a "racist" for advocating?
Is Brad Davis going to call the DTH a racist newspaper?
Anon @9/18 2:39 wrote:
Casey has no professional integrity. He thinks that HES parents are white racists, and he thinks CES parents are ignorant fools.
Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by laziness. The previous editors and reporters were successful and moved their careers forward because they took the time to discern the truthful form the liars and then wrote about it. The truth never goes out of style.
OB the truth: Let's play a new game called "How many inaccuracies can you find in Pisitelli's "length limit waived" 2/3 page infomercial?" Thanks Casey for letting another agenda-laden OCBoE member expose herself.
Casey is lazy--no doubt about it.
Casey, however, is not stupid. He knew exactly what he was doing when he took the side of the Board. He thinks that HES parents are white racists, and that CEs parents are ignorant fools. He has played it over and over in his hayseed newspaper.
Concerning attibuting Casey with malice, I think that word is a bit too strong. What I attribute Casey with is no professional integrity, and race baiting. I also accuse him of kissing up to authority. He's a loser.
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