School Choice Week - Should Canada Have One?

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Permalink Reply by Glenn Burton on December 17, 2010 at 9:33am

It really is a taboo issue.
Just think about it. A choice. A choice about the best school to maximize your child's potential!
If you're in the public school stream, then your choices are limited to the side of the street you live on in a particular community. Most of the time, parents are buying homes based on here-say and anecdotal evidence of what they've heard about a particular elementary school or secondary school.
What if? What if a school had to publish its own report card? How well is it really doing when comparing apples to apples. And, I don't mean simply academic standards either. (I had to reference "apples" somewhere.....)
California actually has a Parent Trigger law that allows parents to take action if their school falls below established bench mark standards. Can you imagine what would happen if you used the California criteria in each province? What would the results look like?

What if? What if schools could be developed by areas of specialty? Academic, sports, dance, music, industrial, design, research, environmental, instructional, theater arts, visual arts,......what if?
Instead of shoving everyone into the same mold and expecting the same results, you could actually expose a child and develop her based on areas of interest, skill level and opportunity.

Smaller schools and rural schools may have a chance to specialize and thus increase enrollment and growth. Larger schools can offer more options but still have a couple of specialty channels. We're already seeing this type of differentiation at the secondary school level. Some schools are more "artsy", "sports", "tech" and so on.

One size really does not fit all. There are so many specialists, EA's, teacher assistants and off-site training today....just to keep up with the one size strategy. What if (like Sir Ken Robinson might say) you based a school system on creativity? As a parent, you could actually choose a school that best matched your child's creativity! Now...that's taboo.

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Permalink Reply by Aliya Naveed on December 18, 2010 at 3:40pm

OKay, when we moved in here, being a common parents, i thought kids have to go to the school that is within the boundry....then i realise that there are people who send their kids to french immersion schools, which are costly, so again i made myself believe that boundry system is ok if all schools have same style of learning cos curriculum, is same, concept building is important everywhere, learning material is provided by the Gov't and above all, becoming a teacher is itself not a an easy job so teachers are qualified for different levels as per their qualifications. This actually reminded me that i wanted  to know where  to find the ratings of public schools? anyway, I know few families who say that schools are different depending on the locality.... some especially send their kids to Catholic schools, saying that they are the best. Others whos kids go to public school in the West of Mississauga, seems more satisfied with their kids' teachers and the way the school get parents involved in school activities. Some one told me about Charter school, where they do some evaluation!? i don't know about Gifted schools? so we would like to know about all these points please:). Thanks for starting this very interesting topic.

 

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Permalink Reply by Paul W. Bennett on December 18, 2010 at 4:40pm

Thank you for joining the discussion, Aliya.  You seem to be wrestling with a common problem. Over two decades in senior school administration, the most common question I was asked was "What's the best school in my district?"  That was true in Toronto, Montreal, and Halifax.  Parents tended to seek me out after getting a shrug from local public education officialdom. They also sensed that I would level with them.

 

Why do public school educators tend to shrug?  I've concluded it's because they have been programmed to say "all schools are equal" or simply do not know. Try to be sympathetic. Most public school educators are quite sincere, but somewhat blinkered. Fortunately for you, the Ontario-based Society for Quality Education exists. It's there where you will find a few straight shooters who tell it like it is. You may also find Our Kids (www.ourkidsmedia) of some help, simply because their annual directory opens your eyes to the available choices. It's sad that most of those private and independent schools are beyond the reach of many Ontario families.

 

If you are, like me, a product of public education, you long for the day when school choice becomes a reality for most parents and their kids. Why do you have to pay rather exorbitant fees to have that choice?  Do I sense that you might favour joining the movement?

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Permalink Reply by Aliya Naveed on December 18, 2010 at 5:09pm

Yes count me in! There is no harm in having options and not limiting our kids to boundries. I support public eductaion and want public schools to be equally good! And thanks for the advice on school rating...i will just check them out.

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Permalink Reply by Marion on December 19, 2010 at 12:23pm

your comments about the prinicipal being an advisor, you should check the legislation.  School councils are "advisory" bodies to the prinicipal, according to the Education Act.  I find it interesting that your comments state you've seen school council overturn a principal's decision.  It sounds like you've ovbserved some very "powerful" councils.  Just my humble opinion, but I'm not sure I would want my children attending a school where it would appear to be a batlle of the wills andI  would seriously question the board's process of administrative selection processes.  If a school board has a lot of poor administrators, that speaks the to overall ineffectiveness of a school board and its director.   Public education has to meet the needs of all students; I'm shocked at the types of programs that are available in some of the toronto schools when schools in other parts of the province can't get enough money to run up to date computers in their classrooms.   At some point, the Ministry of Education has to take a serious look at the inqualities.     I realize that the expectations for the public education system has risen substantially over the last 50-75 years, but when public education first immerged, it was intended to get those "poor kids" educated.  The rich would take care of their own.  Now, the vast majority of people educate their kids in publically funded schools with the expectations that the public purse match the programs in what some may argue are beyond the expectations/realitity of the taxpayers ability.  Programs that rely on lots of parents supplementing gives the rich kids an unfair advantage.    Your final comment seems to support the philosophy of charter schools, not an area that I'm  very familiar with.   

However, given the trouble most school boards have simply delivering the basic additional programs like special education programs, I'm not sure many school boards have the resources and expertise to expand programs to satisfy all parents.  

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Permalink Reply by Paul W. Bennett on December 20, 2010 at 9:29pm

School Choice in public education is the topic in a brand new feature story in the U of T Magazine (Winter 2011). Entitled "Different but Equal" and written by Cynthia Macdonald, it focuses on School Board Director Chris Spence and his valiant effort to bring greater choice and alternative schools to the Toronto system.

Here's the link:

http://www.magazine.utoronto.ca/feature/chris-spence-toronto-board-...

Is greater choice in alternative education good for Toronto's schools?  The article makes a compelling case on behalf of Dr. Spence and his "Vision of Hope."  It's great fodder for this online discussion because it supports my proposition that Toronto may well be ahead of the curve!

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Permalink Reply by Sheila Stewart on December 19, 2010 at 1:01pm

Good day you busy people here!

My quick 2 cents for now:  I don't think school choice in itself necessarily ensures choice for all.  What if what I want in a school cannot be offered because more want X?  In my small neck of the woods I have seen school choice impact a community in a negative way.  Sometimes it can affect those who need the supports the most.  It is easy to want choice...it can empower and engage and satisfy, but I am not sure if open choice can be equally accessed.  Maybe "choice" can be exercised in another way without if falling on individual schools to meet that need.  "Competition" is not always a good thing.....

Maybe I will elaborate more another day.  Should really be wrapping.....

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Permalink Reply by Sheila Stewart on December 19, 2010 at 2:24pm

Hi Cathy,

I hope folks will keep chatting and posting though.  I think some might have more time and clarity of thought in a relaxed holiday mode.  Myself included!  My best thoughts will often come when I am pulled away a bit.....:)

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Permalink Reply by Sheila Stewart on December 31, 2010 at 11:11am

I never did elaborate to my previous post, but this link came to me in a "tweet".  It conveys some of my concerns, so here it is for now:

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-school-choice-2...

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Permalink Reply by Paul W. Bennett on December 31, 2010 at 4:01pm

Judging from your most recent post, can I assume that you think "parental choice" is bad for public education? That's the thrust of the Baltimore Sun op ed, published December 29, 2010.

 

Why did you post an opinion column from Baltimore when the topic was whether Canada needs a "School Choice Week.?"  That city, as you probably know, remains among the most racially segregated in the United States. Surely, we can find a better comparator.

 

We need not look too far afield to find good articles on this topic. Indeed, the current issue of the U of T Magazine features a story on Dr. Chris Spence's courageous efforts to challenge the status quo in your fair city. Here's the link: http://www.magazine.utoronto.ca/feature/chris-spence-toronto-board-...

 

School choice in public education is not to be feared. It's just another way of looking at the current system. Some parents, let's face it, expect more than mediocrity masquerading as "excellence for all." Perhaps you too have seen evidence of this phenomenon.

 

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Permalink Reply by Sheila Stewart on January 1, 2011 at 7:05pm

Hi Paul,

I had mentioned that the article conveyed some of my concerns about school choice.  I did not intend to take away from the original question of your discussion.  I thought the initiative was originally from the states?  I am not sure how to answer the question in regards to Canada as a whole.  Will think some more about the Ontario education context for now.

 

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Permalink Reply by Paul W. Bennett on January 1, 2011 at 1:52pm

Edspresso, the American daily Education Reform e-newsletter, rang in the New Year with a call to action. After expressing disappointment in the faltering national “Race to the Top” agenda, today’s post ( January
1, 2011) contains this ringing declaration:

“Beginning next Monday, a new Congress just might leave substantive education policy decisions in the hands of those who have been getting the job done all along – Governors and state legislators.

And so, we end 2010 as many began, hopeful that substantive changes will come to our schools in the form of greater choice for parents, real rewards for our best teachers and accountability for those who steer
the ship.

To help this process along, we offer up these 10 Education Reform New Year’s Resolutions for state lawmakers:

1. Increase the ability of higher education, mayors and other independent entities to authorize charter schools so more children have access to quality public school options.

2. Eliminate arbitrary and unnecessary caps on the number of charter schools that can operate in a state and on the number of students who can attend charter schools.

3. Close the gap between the funding for traditional public schools and public charter schools.

4. Allow charter schools to operate with operational autonomy and teacher freedom-freeing these schools to innovate and develop new best practices that serve our children.

5. Develop a school voucher program or a scholarship tax credit program to provide private school choice for children with special needs.

6. Begin the process of creating data systems that allow teachers, principals, district officials and state officials to link student achievement to teacher performance.

7. Protect teacher’s paychecks by prohibiting automatic deductions of union expenses that aren’t related to collective bargaining.

8. Create a teacher merit pay pilot program that allows great teachers-ones who improve student achievement-to receive extra pay in recognition of their hard work.

9. Increase pay for teachers willing to teach high-needs subject areas and in high-needs schools.

10. Develop meaningful alternative routes to teacher certification for talented mid-career changers who want to become teachers.”

Comment:

The American school system may be in an absolute mess, but school choice advocates remain undaunted by those challenges.  It's fascinating to me how creative Americans are when it comes to seeking solutions to deep-seated systemic problems.

 

 

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