High School Diplomas Devalued

If you were reading a similar headline in the financial section of the newspaper regarding the US dollar, there would be a great deal of panic and anxiety. Why isn’t there similar concern about the declining value of a high school diploma and what America’s high school graduates are capable of? As most of us were enjoying the recent holiday season, a disturbing article appeared in the Sunday, December 27^th New York Times. On the surface the news sounded upbeat- a rise in high school graduation rates. But dig a little bit deeper and concerns arise about whether students are ready for college or even the work force for that matter. According to a report issued by the United States Department of Education indicated that the national graduation rate for 2013-14 leapt to 82%, which was the highest rate on record. But the results of a readiness test of twelfth graders exposed the fact that fewer than 40% of the test takers were prepared for college level work. The article went on to point out that colleges still have to offer remediation classes for incoming freshmen and that dropout rates,particularly in community colleges, are still high.

Business leaders in the state of South Carolina home to assembly plants for companies like Boeing, Volvo and, BMW have expressed concern about workforce preparedness for high school graduates.

A further investigation of this phenomenon revealed that a number of states have watered down their graduation requirements.  According to the NYT article, 32 states no longer require that their students complete four years of English and mathematics through Algebra II. Similar shortcuts are popping up in schools around the country.

It is imperative that our nation’s educators as well as business leader get together to develop a meaningful but rigorous curriculum to produce the high school graduates we need to sustain our country. It should be noted that public education in America is not stipulated in the US Constitution. It is up to US to make sure our students succeed and that a high school diploma has value.

C.2016 J. Margolis

A Tale of Two Schools

New Jersey had long been considered the state with one of the top 5 public school systems  in the United States. In the over 600 independent school districts, the successes of schools like those in Princeton or Rumson-Fairhaven, tend to overshadow the urban districts like Trenton or Camden.

Recently, David Kirp, a professor of public policy at University of California at Berkeley published a book, Improbable Scholars, that focuses on one of New Jersey’s school districts- Union City. Kirp compares the successes in Union City with the progress made in the Newark Public school system, which has been the beneficiary of a $100 million gift from Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook.

Professor Kirp goes on to point out that the high school graduation rate in Union City was 81% in 2014 compared to 69% in Newark. What accounts for the difference?

Faced with a possible state takeover due to poor performance, district administrators teamed up with teachers, and yes, parents to develop a program that has led to success. They tried to focus on how their students learned the best, on what the most effective teaching methods were, but more importantly, how to get the parents engaged. They accomplished this by gradually easing the students into English by teaching them initially in Spanish. The district went on to hire more ESL teachers. Parent meetings were also held in Spanish initially to help make the parents feel welcome in the school rather than intimidated. Knowing the importance of an early start to education, the school took advantage of state grants and initiated a pre-school program for all 3 and 4 year olds. Stable leadership at the helm of the district also helped to maintain stability whereas in other districts, most administrators stayed for about three years.

The takeaway from this comparison is that throwing huge sums of money at urban education’s problems does not always solve them. Money going directly to benefit students rather than to consultants or charter school fees are more wisely spent.

Educators throughout the country need to take a long look as to what can be done to save traditional public schools. The time for that is now.

c.2016 J. Margolis

Remembering Space Shuttle Challenger

On January 28,1986 the unthinkable happened. The Space Shuttle Challenger with America’s first Teacher in Space aboard exploded 73 seconds after takeoff.  Millions  of school children across the country were watching the event on TV in their classrooms when the tragedy occurred. Teachers and administrators were speechless and an entire nation horrified. How do you explain that space explorers are pioneers and subject to this high risks of space exploration? How do you  encourage would-be future astronauts to not give up their dream?

Now, thirty years later, the US space program is practically non-existent but we should not hesitate to use this teachable moment to talk about the importance of space travel, the dangers of being a pioneer and the adventurous spirit that has made America into a great nation.

For those of you in the Central Florida area, I highly encourage you and your students to visit the Kennedy Space Center in Cocoa Beach. This museum boasts fabulous hands on programs for school students, unbelievable I-Max and three-D films and sometimes the opportunity to have lunch with an astronaut. This interactive museum traces the history of America’s space program and pays fitting tribute to the victims of the Challenger disaster. Be sure to also visit the Astronaut Hall of Fame while you are there. (https://www.kennedyspacecenter.com)

c.2016  J. Margolis