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Schoolyard Fight: What Can Parents Do About Failing Schools?
March 4, 2012
Legislation that would give parents more ability to determine how to make over a failing school was rammed through a Senate committee on Saturday, a likely preview of a contentious floor fight over charter schools, unions and parental support.
By a 13-7 vote, the Senate Budget Committee on Saturday approved SB 1718, the so called “parent trigger” bill. The most controversial element would allow parents of a failing school to dictate recovery strategies, including the use of for-profit charters, if a majority of them sign petitions to do so.
Backers say the measure is a response to a recalcitrant school system that is slow to change and deaf to the needs of communities. The bill is being championed by former Gov. Jeb Bush and Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island.
‘
What is to be afraid of having parents involved in their children’s education?,” asked Senate sponsor Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers. “Why? Why do we fight so hard against parents standing up to say I would like you to consider this?”
Critics say the measure represents yet another nail driven at public education and the teacher unions by backers of for-profit charter school companies that lack the same accountability standards of traditional public schools.
“I have four children who graduated from public schools. They all have master’s degrees,” said Sen. Gwen Margolis, D-Miami. “…I don’t know what problem you have.”
The proposal ramps up accountability standards on a number of fronts, but the most controversial measure, by far, deals with failing schools.
The provision says once a school earns an “F,” if improvement doesn’t happen within a year, parents could dictate what will happen, if 51 percent of them agree.
They still would be limited to certain options laid out in federal law, and the plan would be subject to Department of Education approval.
Among their options, parents could force the school district to transfer students to other schools; close the school and re-open it as a charter school with a new governing board running it; or contract with an outside management group to run it – essentially privatize it.
Evident Saturday was that the measure is a top priority of Haridopolos and other Senate leaders. Not normally a member of the committee, Senate Majority Leader and incoming Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, took a high profile role Saturday, as did prospective future presidents Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, and Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine.
Forced to vote on the bill before the meeting adjourned at 10 a.m., some committee members said the haste by which such a controversial measure was being considered was inappropriate and unnecessary.
“We are playing around with the lives of children in our schools,” said Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach. “And it’s time to stop.”
The idea for the parent trigger comes from California, where two years ago that state’s legislature passed a similar bill giving parents in failing schools a majority vote on whether to turn it into a charter school.
“When you have parents involved in their child’s education, it inures to the success of the child,” said Mike Trujillo, a representative of Parent Revolution, which spearheaded California efforts. “What this is, is a vehicle by which parents can be involved in their local school community.”
Union representatives say it’s too early to tell if the California effort has made any long-term gain. What is apparent is that it has been controversial and litigious, pitting families against each other.
“There has been so much animosity that it does more damage in the long run than the improvement they thought they were trying to create,” said Jeff Wright, public advocacy director for the Florida Education Association.
Improvement in a failing school requires the cooperation of parents, the local business community and local government to put forth a matrix of surrounding services from after-school programs to nutritional support and mentoring. Wright said. The bill, as it stands, does none of that.
“This simply allows a private management company to own your school for a time period,” Wright said. “Once they get whatever they get out of it , like profits maybe, then they leave and the public school is held accountable.”
But Budget Committee chairman JD Alexander, R-Lake Wales, said the underlying impetus behind the charter school movement has been the perception by parents that school officials have not addressed their needs.
In his area, Alexander said charters schools have thrived while the traditional public school has plenty of empty space.
“I’ve been involved in charter conversion efforts and seen firsthand how districts really don’t listen to parents,” Alexander said. “In many districts, they do a very miserable job of reforming schools.”
The bill now travels to the Senate floor. The House bill, HB 1191, passed that chamber earlier this week on an 80-34 vote.
By The News Service of Florida
Comments
10 Responses to “Schoolyard Fight: What Can Parents Do About Failing Schools?”
REGARDING:
“In my school days, the teachers spent more time on nonsense about who is chewing gum, or passing notes than actually teaching.”
Let us not forget what a good job they did with you before we totally reject them.
I was thinking about your disagreement with teachers spending class time on the practice of passing notes rather than teaching.
If the note pertained to the subject at hand, it might POSSIBLY be part of the teaching. Even then, the one writing the note isn’t really listening to the teacher while writing it. The one receiving the note isn’t actually listening to the teacher while reading it. The ones relaying the notes back and forth are distracted from the point the teacher is trying to cover. The ones watching the note being passed back and forth are wondering if the note is about them and what they are saying behind their backs.
The ones passing notes are to some degree wasting teaching/learning time even if the teacher ignores the practice.
And that’s even assuming the note’s related to the subject at hand rather than some totally unrelated matter which an honest person would admit is more likely. The student’s often accustomed to television programs which are background noise to watch if they’re interesting or ignored if they’re ever the least bit boring.
So maybe the old meanie was actually trying to teach the subject at hand as well as the unwelcome idea that there’s a time and a place for all things and that distracting others from learning is stealing from their educations. (Many employers favor workers who do their jobs.)
Just consider the possibility that the teacher really DID want to teach and could teach if given a chance. [Maybe not.]
David for listening
BarrineauParkDad: You hit the nail exactly on the head. Why don’t you run for school board?
The best schools are the ones who that don’t put up with ridiculousness. They make education a privilege, not a right. Speaking as a teacher, if you have one student that won’t behave, that makes it difficult to teach. If you have you have five, teaching is miserable. If you have more than that, it’s time to clean house because no learning will be happening.
Behavior starts in the home.
In the United States, we should be putting our top salaries & talent toward TEACHING…because the children are the future of the nation. I also agree with the person @ teaching everyday skills like household budgeting, job skills, etiquette, & even social skills, with all the technology the younger generation has grown up with, I think that the ability to socialize & communicate in “REAL LIFE” has been neglected.
@huh
Currently a student in high school, and I just thought you should know we have electives that cover pretty much all of those things.
Failing Schools start at home!! No discipline at home! No accountablity at home! With this left out of the home, it carries over into the schools. There for you get failing schools. You can have the best teachers, but without the best student you get the failing. High proverty should not be an excuse for child not to learn. The mind is a wonderful thing!!!!
In my school days, the teachers spent more time on nonsense about who is chewing gum, or passing notes then actually teaching .
So each class all we got to hear was the teacher being crazy on some students over something dumb.
Half of the teachers were coaches who used class time to focus on sports instead of teaching
In the 1990s we had heath class that used text books from the 1960s!!
We had teachers that over looked topics or judged based on religion or who they knew in the community. Or about how a student was dressed
The schools are obsessed with the childs personal life rather than teaching anymore. Teachers need to be tested, cameras with audio and video recording in every class
Parents should be involved but they never are , most households both parents work and when they are home, they are cooking/cleaning . Having someone at home full time to help a kid study is an extreme luxury that most people dont have.
I think the solution is more wide rage of real world classes. Schools now days dont teach about how to get credit, maintain credit, pay bills, vote, wash clothes, iron clothes, cook foods, use computers , type resumes , child care and more. We need a greater focus on these types of skills
David,
Yes student count should play into the funding, but teachers are forced to play warden, to the trouble makers, because the administration doesn’t want to loose the funding. It seems maintaining head count is more important than maintaining a quality education. The schools with better behaved students are the schools with the better test grades.
REGARDING:
“End school funding on student count. ”
I can imagine, “You have 3,000 students, but your total funding is only this amount. Make do.” as well as, “You only have 30 students at your school but your total funding is still this amount. Enjoy.”
It just looks like the number of students attending a school should be a factor in deciding how much money that school needs.
Maybe I’m missing something, though.
David for the perfect balance and perfect education
Parents should be involved in their child’s education, not necessarily the management of the school.
In the lower performing schools, the children don’t care about their education, because the parents don’t care about their education. The teachers can’t teach for all the disruptions and distractions, by those who don’t care. When the children get home they see those returning home from prison getting more respect then those returning from college. In that environment, the ability to whip someone’s tail is more respected than a good education and a real job.
End school funding on student count. Give the teachers the ability to get trouble makers out of the class room. Give the administration the ability to get the chronic trouble makers out of the school. Then let the parent have the responsibility of educating them.
Don’t allow trouble makers hold up the education of others.
The more parents are involved with their children and their educational process, the less likely schools would be failing. Most, if not all, of the ‘F’ schools are in high poverty/high crime areas. This bill would not change that.