I wish that there were more ways to hold everybody accountable. I am a teacher, and I wish that there were more ways to hold teachers accountable too. For example, I like the idea of due process, but I do not think there should be a twelve step system to get the really bad teachers out of the classroom. Many people also say that teachers should get merit pay, based upon standardized test scores. The problem with that scenario is that the students then dictate how their teacher should get paid. This past month the schools in the state completed the standardized testing. If we label the answers from left to right, 1-4, I caught a girl bubble 4, 3, 2, 1, 4, 3, 2, 1, etc. I asked her if she honestly believes that those were the answers and she replied, "No." There is no accountability for the students here and would not be fair to base anyone's pay off of this.

It is also a sticky situation for the parents. I maintained a 4.16 GPA in high school, perfect attendance, participated in sports, and had a cookie and soda for breakfast every morning. Should my parents get in trouble because I had an "unhealthy breakfast" despite being what many would consider a model student?

I would like to point out that many districts (especially at their high schools) have a tardy/truancy system in place where the students are held accountable for tardies/truancies. If we are able to put the CAHSEE in place and make it stick, this is another way to make students accountable for their actions.

One last thing, the reward consequence situation is difficult to do if looked at from this perspective: If a school is not doing well academically, shouldn't they be getting more special funding to help the low achieving students? Otherwise, it seems like a case of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.

No plan will be more effective than having the parents actually pay for education.

Some kids and some parents take education seriously, but I found it to be a relatively small number. And the parental involvement falls off dramatically by high school. Ask your local school how many parents showed up for Back-to-School night and Open House. The numbers are small. So that’s where the biggest problem is.

As long as public school is free, I doubt that anyone will be able to change the statistics. At private schools, parents are shelling out several hundred dollars every month, and they want to make sure that they are getting value for their investment. It’s not that the kids at private school are any smarter. Their parents are just more involved. Parents are paying for high standards and a teaching corps that is cohesive and focused. Rules are stated clearly, parents and students affirm that they will follow the rules, and those that don’t are punished and/or released. Parents are more likely to stand by the teachers and administrators at a private school. That is what makes private school effective.

I find it very sad that Mr. Reimers believes that the only way for parents to care about their child's education is if they pay for it. Many of us have children who have done very well in high school, despite it being a public education. My daughter and her friends are attending such schools as UCLA, UCSB, UC Irvine, UCSD, Chico State, etc. We are as invested in our childrens' education as those parents who pay for private school. And let's not forget those parents who "invest" in their childrens' education in order to be sure they get to play the sport of their choice, whether or not they qualify academically. Two former Royal High School football players couldn't pass any classes at Royal, and had terrible citzenship. They were subsequently removed from the football team. Both of those football "stars" ended up playing at a well-known private Christian school, the next three years. Amazing isn't it?

It's also not realistic to think that people can pack their kids off to private school when:

Costs may be out of their reach...

Private schools may not have the room...

California guarantees a public education...

The real question isn't with the parents that are involved or that can send their kids to private school. The issue is with the parents who aren't involved, wouldn't recognize back to school night if it bit them and whose kids aren't learning.

Shouldn't these parents pay a price for not paying?

Tim

I have offered one solution -- $$ -- that really gets to parental involvement. Exception was taken to my solution. But no one has yet offered another solution. Is it legislation or is it something else? With the parental involvement to date, it has pushed the California public school system to somewhere between 46th and 49th, depending on the subject. It was reported today in the Oakland Tribune that 4th graders are in 49th place. Thank God for Mississippi! “Were it not for that Southern state, California would rank dead last nationally in science test scores — with 50 percent of its fourth-graders falling below basic achievement levels, according to national scores released Wednesday.
In eighth-grade, California tied with Hawaii for second-to-last place, with Mississippi again pulling up the rear on what federal officials call the nation's report card.”

I personally don’t think parental involvement can be legislated. Parents have to want to be involved. What can be done to encourage parents to be involved?

Jere-

I think there is a compromise between your position and Tim's position. Tim is correct in stating that most people can't afford the tuition costs to pack their kids off to private school. But I also believe that there are a lot of parents that want to be more involved but are discouraged by the public school system and give up because of the bureaucracy and other interests that control public education. I know first hand how school districts can wear down a parent due to arcane rules and indifference. I hear a lot of educators complain about lack of parental involvement, but in many cases I also see parents that want to get involved but are discouraged by their treatment from school district officials and sometimes even teachers.

That is not to say that the problem lies exclusively with schools, teachers and administrators. Parents themselves are often to blame. But school districts should not be ignoring and pushing away parents who actually want to be involved and want to make a difference in their children's lives, and sadly that is too often part of the problem.

The middle ground solution is to allow school choice. And the only way to have real school choice is to create a voucher system (gasp!). Choice is what empowers parents and gives them the ability to influence a school district. Today the only people with real choice are those with a high enough income to send their kids to a private school. The real crime here is denying the same choice to middle and low income families, thereby comdemning most of their children to an inferior education.

If a parent can remove their child from a poor performing school and take those dollars elsewhere then school will need to be more responsive to their needs or they will lose funding. There is no faster way to get the attention of a school district than to take away the funding for your child. Then every school, whether public or private, will need to meet the needs of parents and students, otherwise parents will take their money elsewhere. But, alas, those interested in the status quo will do everything in their power to never let that happen.