Absolutely. These are the exact misconceptions about St. Louis schools that I hope get dispelled as more people talk about it. Thanks for bringing it up. The only place where a student's family income comes up is for private schools where tuition assistance comes into play.Ebsy wrote:Do any charter schools take in mid-low level students?
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On the chance that Ebsy was referring to "non-gifted", I don't know of any Charter schools that discriminate on anything except for address, but I am open to being corrected on that one. There are Magnets that you need to test into, but the majority of the schools are open to anyone.Mark Groth wrote:Absolutely. These are the exact misconceptions about St. Louis schools that I hope get dispelled as more people talk about it. Thanks for bringing it up. The only place where a student's family income comes up is for private schools where tuition assistance comes into play.Ebsy wrote:Do any charter schools take in mid-low level students?
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^sure, if you want to get into a STEM, you have to be good as sci and math. If you want to get into gifted, you have to test gifted. If you want to play basketball, you have to make the team. None of this has anything to do with class or income levels of the parents.
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Now that there is more scrutiny and accountability of charters, I am more comfortable with them.... in the early days they were largely a way to funnel public $$ for personal and/or corporate gain.
But the big challenge remains how do we achieve more economic and racial diversity in the classroom... some progress is being made with both charters and SLPS but there is such a long way to go.
But the big challenge remains how do we achieve more economic and racial diversity in the classroom... some progress is being made with both charters and SLPS but there is such a long way to go.
My major concern with charter schools stem from Philadelphia, where instead of a lottery, some charter schools had lines that you had to stand in several days in advance in order to enroll your child, and the people primarily able to do that are white middle class residents who can afford to take days off, while black residents were SOL. I believe this year, one of the schools changed to a more equitable lottery system, but still, charter schools are by no means perfect, and in some cases, engage in highly unethical practices.
I also am greatly concerned over the situation in Louisiana, where supposed school choice has had almost no impact on student performance, while public money going to Catholic and other Christian schools seems to have been largely squandered. This recent school transfer mass almost led to public funds going to Catholic schools, and though I went to parochial school for elementary school and middle school, I would not want public money going to institutions that spent considerable time on religious subjects.
I also am greatly concerned over the situation in Louisiana, where supposed school choice has had almost no impact on student performance, while public money going to Catholic and other Christian schools seems to have been largely squandered. This recent school transfer mass almost led to public funds going to Catholic schools, and though I went to parochial school for elementary school and middle school, I would not want public money going to institutions that spent considerable time on religious subjects.
Ebsy, I share your concerns. However, I think the important question that always gets overlooked in these education debates is the impact of school options on neighborhoods. Under the traditional education model, if your neighborhood school sucked, you were forced to move away in search of better opportunities.
The focus should be on family retention in order to promote diverse neighborhoods. Some charters and voucher-receiving private schools may not do much better than their predecessor public schools. But if other charters and private schools are doing well, and they are succeeding at keeping residents in the area, then the entire region is much better off.
I said this in another thread, but the better problem to solve is to improve these low performing schools instead of sticking with the traditional, location based system of public education which is a primary driver of sprawl and flight.
The focus should be on family retention in order to promote diverse neighborhoods. Some charters and voucher-receiving private schools may not do much better than their predecessor public schools. But if other charters and private schools are doing well, and they are succeeding at keeping residents in the area, then the entire region is much better off.
I said this in another thread, but the better problem to solve is to improve these low performing schools instead of sticking with the traditional, location based system of public education which is a primary driver of sprawl and flight.
"if your neighborhood school sucked,"
If the people in your neighborhood don't suck, why would the school suck, unless they aren't using their neighborhood school, and therefore actively causing it to suck through non-participation?
If the people in your neighborhood don't suck, why would the school suck, unless they aren't using their neighborhood school, and therefore actively causing it to suck through non-participation?
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SLPS and Riverview made significant gains in latest state assessments:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... eb71f.html
Normandy did not,
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... eb71f.html
Normandy did not,
Remarkable turnaround in Jennings and Bayless. And the gains in the City and Riverview Gardens are good signs.roger wyoming II wrote:SLPS and Riverview made significant gains in latest state assessments:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... eb71f.html
Normandy did not,
Edit: I found St. Public Radio's interactive map helpful. They always seem to have the neatest gadgets.
http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/fiv ... ss-reports
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I noticed that Kipp's scores declined slightly after seeing big gains last year. St. Louis Language Immersion Schools saw solid gains this year.
I am SOO all-in with onecity on this one, although I don't have any real experience in the matter as I've yet to have children.
But the best way to have good schools is for "good" families to use the schools. It's not really a funding issue (though that matters), it's truly a TLC issue. Parents that have the time and desire to be involved in their children's education are what make for good schools. Because those parents have good students, and where there's good students, there are good schools.
It's shocking how many people seem to think it works the other way around.
But the best way to have good schools is for "good" families to use the schools. It's not really a funding issue (though that matters), it's truly a TLC issue. Parents that have the time and desire to be involved in their children's education are what make for good schools. Because those parents have good students, and where there's good students, there are good schools.
It's shocking how many people seem to think it works the other way around.
I've said it before - take the student body from LHW, and put it in the worst facility with the worst staff in SLPS, and they will still do fine. Take a 92% free-and-reduced-lunch student body and put those kids into LHW, and they will continue to do badly despite having some of the best teachers and facilities. It's mostly about the culture of education in the home and neighborhood, and only slightly about funding and facilities.
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For the record lunch is free to all this year.Take a 92% free-and-reduced-lunch student body and put those kids into LHW
I agree that if good families stay, we will prosper. If good families leave, we'll struggle. Critical mass is what it's all about.
In social dynamics, critical mass is a sufficient number of adopters of an innovation in a social system so that the rate of adoption becomes self-sustaining and creates further growth. It is an aspect of the theory of diffusion of innovations, written extensively on by Everett Rogers in his book Diffusion of Innovations.[1] The term is borrowed from nuclear physics and in that field it refers to the amount of a substance needed to start a chain reaction.
Social factors influencing critical mass may involve the size, interrelatedness and level of communication in a society or one of its subcultures. Another is social stigma, or the possibility of public advocacy due to such a factor.
Critical mass may be closer to majority consensus in political circles, where the most effective position is more often that held by the majority of people in society. In this sense, small changes in public consensus can bring about swift changes in political consensus, due to the majority-dependent effectiveness of certain ideas as tools of political debate.[citation needed]
jstriebel wrote:I am SOO all-in with onecity on this one, although I don't have any real experience in the matter as I've yet to have children.
But the best way to have good schools is for "good" families to use the schools. It's not really a funding issue (though that matters), it's truly a TLC issue. Parents that have the time and desire to be involved in their children's education are what make for good schools. Because those parents have good students, and where there's good students, there are good schools.
It's shocking how many people seem to think it works the other way around.
Great points. Don't sell yourself short on the kid thing...you don't have to have kids to care about this issue and if you are educated and engaged in the discussion now, you may be more inclined to do your research and due diligence if you do end up with kids in the future. Crime and schools are the top 2 things we need to fix. And, if you live in St. Louis, you are paying taxes here that help the schools in a very meaningful way.
There is no convincing evidence suggesting that parental involvement in schools has any impact on student achievement. Being in the PTA or helping coach baseball doesn't actually help kids do better in math. Parents should help their kids with their homework, read to them, and expose them to our cultural institutions, but our current definition of "involved" does not translate to better outcomes.
Parental involvement assumes the parents are educated and that there is consequently a strong culture of education in the home. Without that, "parental involvement" is a crapshoot. In the vicinity of Tower Grove, there's really no excuse for poor performing schools given the number of degreed householders. It's baby bjorn and stroller central. The non-magnet public neighborhood schools should kick ass.
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It is hard for parents to help their kids with school work if they also don't know how to do the subject them selfs. My mom and dad were very involved in my education but I struggled really bad in middle school because my parents could not also do the work. What STL public schools should do is make sure the middle schools have after schools help for the kids and parents that need it. To make a long argument short your school district is only as good as your middle school. The middles school age is the most impotent time in a child's educational development. That is when a kid starts to become who they are.
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Stix Magnet is now Accredited with Distinction. It also started a gifted Kindergarten class this year.
just fyi for parents with younglings....
The application period for 2015-2016 SLPS Magnet Schools begins in a bit more than a week on Oct. 1:
http://slpsmagnetschools.org/site.php
Also, the excellent website on schools in the city created by parents that Mark mentioned is now online and is a great resource:
stlcityschools.org
The application period for 2015-2016 SLPS Magnet Schools begins in a bit more than a week on Oct. 1:
http://slpsmagnetschools.org/site.php
Also, the excellent website on schools in the city created by parents that Mark mentioned is now online and is a great resource:
stlcityschools.org
Very nice article on the progress of SLPS schools with a focused on selective admission schools like the Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... EM.twitter
Too many regular schools suck but as a whole things are getting better.
And I'll also add a reminder that the easy online Magnet School application process in now open (through Nov. 15th I think) for the first round.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... EM.twitter
Too many regular schools suck but as a whole things are getting better.
And I'll also add a reminder that the easy online Magnet School application process in now open (through Nov. 15th I think) for the first round.
Damning article on STL (county) school segregation and the Normandy transfer fiasco in NYT from Sunday:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/sunda ... gated.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/sunda ... gated.html
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Good news if you like the Ittner designed schools: $6M renovation of the former Wyman school (1900) to house the Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience. The former building on Des Peres is a plain jane.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... 6026f.html
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/educ ... 6026f.html
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^ CSMB is a really nice addition to the growing roster of high quality public schools. Here is a KMOV look at the school:
http://www.schooltube.com/video/c30b980 ... Bioscience
http://www.schooltube.com/video/c30b980 ... Bioscience