...if we could sell our house that is. Since I announced my intention to move, I've received several interesting comments. The one by Shadow6 is very insightful,and I wanted to give it it's own post. I've bolded the parts I thought were particularly good.
Your situation is why I was so frustrated about the Bunche situation(link added my me), and the whole "choice" and "magnet" culture in Tulsa Public Schools. A bunch of Power Parents liked Bunche, and had no intention of letting their kids go to a neighborhood center. So instead of working to make every Pre K program like Bunche, they just exerted political pressure to keep Bunche.
Now, in your case, Mayo is on the East Side. You are not really going so much out of sector since you live in the Disney district. What, a mile and a half? But you cannot get what you want and so you are leaving the school district.
There is a mindset in Tulsa that if your child does not get into Mayo or Eisenhower, they will have a poor education. Sadly, this situation is deserved to some extent, but I think it is because of policies that have been building for over 30 years.
Further, there is an additional mindset that is is absolutely essential to get your kids into Carver Middle School, because if you are a Carver student and have a pulse, you are guaranteed a slot by district policy into Booker T. Washington, and THAT is the only Tulsa high school worth attending. This has changed somewhat as Edison makes inroads, but there is still a perception that Edison and Washington are good, and everything else is bad.
Keep in mind that Washington has 300 slots every year, and the first 220 or so go to the Carver kids and then a small group at Wilson that get in before any other Tulsa Public Schools 8th grader is considered. That leaves 80 precious slots for the other 12 middle schools, and the coaches will make sure to recruit the folks that can play ball first.
The screening criteria for Carver and Wilson Language Magnet students is standardized test scores on the 35th (!) percentile and a GPA of 2.5. That's it. Three years of mediocrity at Carver or Wilson gets you a free ride to Washington.
They have instituted an area quota, but that does not change things so much. They still get most of the best and the brightest, by district, but the Carver and Wilson kids in each district get 1st chop in those districts.
That keeps test scores high at Carver and Washington. Smart and well-behaved kids learn enough to pass the state test, even with average teachers.
Here is the problem for Tulsa Public Schools, and the neighborhoods, with this situation. The best and the brightest kids, and the best parents either get into the schools they want, or they leave. Those kids would be the leaders, socially and academically, in their schools. The parents would be active and interested in their kids education, and they would not hesitate to complain if there were a problem. The good kids and parents who are left are insufficient to the task of making a difference.
These people would also be the neighborhood leaders, and their absence diminishes the neighborhood in the same way.
I understand your situation. Although good people are willing to fight and sacrifice much for themselves, they are not willing to do the same when their kids are concerned.
It's easier and safer to leave for greener pastures than to stay and fight for a good education at the local school, especially if it looks like an uphill fight. But Tulsa Public Schools, and the neighborhoods, pay a great price when parents can't get satisfaction at their neighborhood schools.
Wow, I cant say that I disagree with what Shadow6 said, especially the part about neighborhoods and schools suffering when good people leave instead of staying and making a difference. It kinda makes me feel bad about moving...but not enough not to do it. However, I will say that if things work out, I'll be able to stay in District 6. I've found a housing development close to 51st and 193rd in the Broken Arrow school district, which looks promising.
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7 comments:
It is a shame when parents have to 'fight' for a good education. That should be a given. It's what we are paying for with our taxes. I know one thing, there are way too many site principals, building principals, and assistant principals and too much money is being wasted on sports programs. They could cut way back in some of those areas.
It's all (yet another) GREAT apologetic for homeschooling. :)
"It's all (yet another) GREAT apologetic for homeschooling. :)"
Kathi,
OK, so what do the people that want their kids to have a good education but cannot homeschool, or afford Christian or private schools, or afford to move, for that matter? Are those parents and those kids just chopped liver?
Let me give you an example of something that could be done if the Eastside community wanted to take action.
Many days after school very close to Disney or Cooper there are fights. Groups of kids walk down 121st East Avenue headed to the Disney/McCollough Park area, and there is trouble at the park, along the way, or adjoining streets. Sometimes it happens at the park next to Cooper. Kids walk in folks yards and generally cause a disturbance. Usally some innocent is the victim, or sometimes it a silly fight over nothing. Some of it is gang related.
Why is this sort of stuff tolerated? Why do the people that live there not call the police, city council, Mayor, Superintendent of school, principal, and Department of Homeland Security each and every day this sort of stuff happens? Who not take pictures and videos of the perps and post them on the Internet, so that there would be proof of the little snots who are not where they are supposed to be?
In other words, make life embarrassing for the leaders and protectors of the city and schools, and hold the parents of the kids that behave badly accountable. Heck, pictures could even be e-mailed to probation officers, as another lever.
We cannot all homeschool. We cannot all afford non-public solutions. We cannot all afford to move. There must be a way to make the schools better so that people are satisfied.
¿Cuánto dinero estás preguntando tu casa?
Esperanzadamente venderá para bastante para comprar una casa nueva.
es reír. Tienes demasiado orgullo del lado del este en tu casa.
But good luck!
while i appreciate very much what Shadow6 has to say, he himself has likened the school districting to a battle, and he is expecting you to send your kids to that battlefront to fight his fight. in a sense, this seems similar to people who are questioning whether or not the u.s. should be in iraq, asking questions like "are gas prices worth war?" etc. some say yes, some say no. so my question is, are you--better yet, is Shadow6--willing to send your very own children to a "war" for the betterment of the *tulsa educational system*? is that really a cause for which you would be willing sacrifice everything? i highly doubt that Shadow6 has kids in this district, but even if so, it's his right (kind of) to use his own children to fulfill his political agenda, but it's not his right to use YOUR children to fulfill his agenda.
there are many causes for which i personally am willing to fight yet would not force my children to foot the bill. SOME causes are so very dire that one SHOULD send young men to war, but is this truly one? i am glad you are moving. you are free in this country to move as you see fit for what reasons you see fit, so be free! enjoy your new house and school district without the guilt, condemnation, and judgment of others who would so quickly lay YOUR children's future on the line.
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