But they remain a long way from figuring out how to do that. At a committee meeting with eight of nine members participating, they talked about expanding magnets and exploring other ways to create economic diversity without driving families out of public schools.
Eric Davis, one of several members who said current poverty levels at many schools are unacceptable, summarized the challenge of changing those patterns: “How will we decide which students to move out of the schools, and to where? Which students will we decide to move into the schools, and from where?”
“That’s the question,” committee chair Tom Tate responded wryly. And the rest of the group burst into laughter at the understatement. MORE.....
http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/education/article31029576.html Also, read Tom Tate's ramblings about "diversity and poverty" and how to errr.... well read it:
Some Thoughts/Assumptions Regarding a Student Assignment Plan
Prepared by Tom Tate for Discussion by the Policy Committee
on August 13, 2015
1. I think the Board wants every school to be one that the parents of children
assigned to it want their child/children to attend.
a. We do not presently have that reality across CMS.
b. I do not see how we can come up with a feasible Student Assignment Plan
as long as geography plays the primary role.
c. For the long-term we will need to work with the City and Town Councils
regarding zoning for mixed income/affordable housing throughout the
county.
d. Housing patterns are part of the long-term solution. For the short-term I
think the Board needs to hire an outside consultant who specializes in
these matters to help us see what mechanisms or demographics we can use
in the short-term to accomplish as much as we can toward our Board
Vision (to provide all students the best education available anywhere,
preparing every child to lead a rich and productive life) and Mission (to
maximize academic achievement by every student in every school).
2. I think a majority of the Board wants to see every school – as fully as possible –
reflect the diversity of our district overall so every student will receive the
education we want for him or her based on our Vision, Mission, Core Beliefs and
Commitments.
a. Unfortunately, we have too many hyper-segregated geographical areas and
thus too many hyper-segregated schools, whether by race and ethnicity or
poverty and wealth, or a combination.
b. To deal with this we probably need an outside consultant.
c. From what I have read diversity in individual schools helps all students
rise to their level of success academically and will provide students with
skills they will need to live and work in our diverse world.
3. I think a majority of the Board wants to change a system that currently privileges
those who have the time, the resources, the knowledge, and/or the experience to
find the best education for their individual child. Every parent wants this, but not
every parent has the capacity to make it happen. This phenomenon has resulted in
pockets throughout CMS where parents have found ways to opt out of their Home
Schools in large numbers.
a. I don’t see how we can relieve this except through a Student Assignment
Plan.
b. To deal with this issue we may need an outside consultant.
4. I think a majority of the Board wants us to talk with a consultant who may be able
to demonstrate how a Student Assignment Plan (given our demographics and
realities) could be designed that will make a difference in student achievement
and prepare every child to lead a rich and productive life.
5. I think some (maybe a minority) of the Board are concerned with the cost of
continuing to use programs, projects, and initiatives (which basically means more
resources) as the primary way for increasing student achievement in certain
schools. And are concerned because it costs so much and, in the long run, has not
worked.
6. At least three Board members have said that we need to take a critical/intentional
look at every school, or do a root cause analysis of every school, to understand
what needs to be done to make them more successful in educating every child. I
wonder how that plays into the development of a Student Assignment Plan.
7. We also have at least one member who wants us to offer at least two school
options to every student, another member who wants more data on how
concentrated-poverty in schools affects student achievement. I wonder if we need
to look more carefully at this before we move forward.
8. Another Board member wants us to look at JROTC at every school that has it, and
Marie G. Davis to see why so many students in those programs graduate. Is this
something we do before we move forward with student assignment?
9. We also have at least one member who says that predictive links cannot be cured
on a school bus, that six or seven hours a day is not enough to make the changes
we want, that without the whole community involved in the fix (town, city,
county, neighborhoods, etc.) all we will be doing is covering up the wounds.
10. And maybe we need to wait until we have more information from Project L.I.F.T.
and the Beacon Initiative.
11. And there is the concern about what constitutes a “bad” school (in part because of
the State’s school grading system) and how we deal with that reality no matter
where kids are assigned.
12. A couple of members think we should look at different grade level configurations
(K-2, 4-6, for example) along with student assignment.
13. I also recall someone talking about assigning students to schools based on
“expected student outcomes.” I don’t know how that works, especially beginning
with preK or Kindergarten, but maybe we should consider it.
14. What is missing?
