Growing up, I did not know that we had a choice as to what school we attended. In the mornings, I would get dressed, walk to the bus stop, get on the bus, and go to the school that the bus took me to. I never questioned that there were other options. By the time i realized that there were other options, including private school, I was already adjusted to public school. I had my friends and my dress routine down and did not want to change it. Looking back, I wish that I had gone to private school, specifically Catholic High School. Don't get me wrong, I loved my high school, my education, and my friends. I just wish that I got the experience of attending a private school. Had I known about school choice earlier, my educational background may have been different. I think the first step to a better educational system is getting information out there and knowledge about school choices to both parents and students known
When you think of choices, one has to wonder about those students who cannot afford to go to private school. It wouldn't be fair if we gave choices but they were unable to use them. One thing that states are doing is called vouchers. These give children of low-income families the opportunity to attend the school of their choice by giving them money to pay for their tuition. This gives children who attend schoolsthat are not providing the best educational opportunities. Although this sounds like a good idea, there is one down fall. I believe that this can lead to segregation as opposed to desegregation. The reason for this is because students will have a choice to what school they go to. Most people would choose to attend a school where they feel comfortable and are people who resemble them or have the same interested. Many people are afraid of change and think that they can only be happy where they currently are. I think that we should give vouchers but it should be regulated. We should come up with some sort of system to minimize students from choosing schools based on their previous understanding of the way people interact.
This website explains vouchers in greater detail:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/vouchers/choice/
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I absolutely agree with you. The biggest problem stems from the fact that nobody knows that there are other available options for students. Most of the time you follow along with what is expected of you and go to a high school with the rest of the people from your neighborhood. You do not question it because it has become so engrained within us NOT to think outside of the box. By giving children options, and maybe by specifically going into classrooms and showing that there are other types of schools they can attend, might be most beneficial before they are forced to make a choice.
What do you think about the readings and what was discussed in class?
I agree with both you and Ali that information is one of the biggest obstables our children face in receiving an equal education. Often parents and children alike have no idea what other options are available to them. I thought you made an interesting point that I hadn't thought about. Sometimes we are so accostumed to our school and friends that even if we could attend a "better" school we wouldn't want to. Personally I attended a private school for a few years when I was younger. When my twin brothers were born we could no longer afford the private school so I was forced to switch schools, which I was less than thrilled about. I would love to see information about the different types of schools made more easily accessible, because I wonder how different someone students' educational experiences would have been if they had known the choices available to them.
Post a Comment