'Choice' Hurts Students

The idea of people having a 'choice' of where to send their children should a school be 'failing' under the guidelines of No Child Left Behind may sound appealing on the surface but upon closer examination 'choice' really doesn't address core problems and in many cases it creates new ones.

When a school, and its students, receive a 'failing' grade, sending them off to another school doesn't necessarily rectify the real problems. A student who is having difficulty in learning won't necessarily do better because he or she is in a new or different building. Likewise, a poor performing student won't necessarily perform better in a different school with a different system of management. Managerial structure doesn't equate to a richer curriculum, caring teachers, high standards (this is idea is radically different than standardized testing), and parental support.

Allowing parents to have a 'choice' of where to send their children creates a whole new set of problems. In turn, these new concerns hurt learning and the learning community. For one, allowing children to attend any area school means that there is a greater need for costly busing. Along with the cost issue comes the fact that students may travel many miles to a school of their 'choice' which is an hour away from home. This is huge waste of time. If students find themselves in this situation they are certainly less likely to be involved in after-school activities.

Families with multiple students may find that their children are split up under the 'choice' scenario, not exactly what one wants when trying to create a sense of family unity. How would you like to be a parent going to two or three Open Houses or picking up your students from two or three different schools? Not me!!

Here's another huge problem with the idea of 'choice.' In a district where 'choice' is widely practiced where is the sense of community that is created by attending neighborhood schools? I'll tell you where it is...it's lost! Allegiance and loyalty are qualities we all want our children to develop and taking students from their neighborhood school will likely result in lessening the chances of children developing these qualities.

'Choice' isn't the answer. Quality neigborhood schools with a rich curriculum, high standards, bright and caring teachers, and supportive parents will go much further than sending students to a different location.

Dick Flesher