Fixing the state’s roads and bridges – and how to pay for it – has been at the forefront of debate at the State House for much of this year.
Now, as the budget process for the coming fiscal …
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Fixing the state’s roads and bridges – and how to pay for it – has been at the forefront of debate at the State House for much of this year.
Now, as the budget process for the coming fiscal year plays out, addressing educational choice – where students are able to go to school, and who pays for it – is poised to become a new focus.
Gov. Gina Raimondo, through Education Commissioner Ken Wagner’s address to the General Assembly, was this week set to unveil a proposed school choice program modeled on the system that has been in place in neighboring Massachusetts since the 1990s. The governor had hinted at the initiative in her State of the State address.
The choice program would give local school districts the option of opening up spots for students from other communities, with tuition traveling along with a student from their hometown to their new district. It will be outlined in an amendment offered to the governor’s $8.9-billion state budget plan released earlier this year, which includes changes meant to lessen the fiscal impact traditional districts face when students transfer to charter schools.
Raimondo earlier this month pointed to the school choice experience in Massachusetts and Michigan, saying that while a very small number of students ultimately change districts, those who do often find new options and pathways to success.
“But what these programs really work best for are kids who want to move for a particular reason – like maybe that town has an amazing English language learner program or an amazing robotics program,” the governor told the Providence Journal.
It remains to be seen whether the school choice plan will be palatable to lawmakers, many of whom are likely to oppose any measure they believe would further drain resources from traditional public schools. As the charter school funding debate continues, for example, the House of Representatives has by a wide margin approved a measure that would strengthen the say cities and towns have over the opening or expansion of charter schools.
Also worthy of further consideration is whether the school choice plan would hit some communities and districts particularly hard, exacerbating existing enrollment or budgetary woes while benefiting their better-off neighbors. Fostering a degree of competition is clearly an essential part of the school choice approach, but the possibility of deepening disparity must be acknowledged. Perhaps the full plan, once unveiled, will address this concern.
Expanding the opportunities available to all students is a worthy objective, and at first blush, the school choice plan would seem a proven, feasible way to further that goal.
However, we await full details of the governor’s proposal. As is the case in the ongoing charter debate, concerns over the funding and future of traditional public schools are real and valid. Like all Rhode Islanders, we hope for an inclusive, balanced approach that best prepares our children – and our state – for the future.
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Justanidiot
Let's spend more on education. We spend more now per capita and per student and we get poorer results. Time to re-think education completely and get rid of overpaid, underworked administrators, teachers, and staff.
Tuesday, March 29, 2016 Report this
JohnStark
Former US Secretary of Education Bill Bennett coined the term "The Blob" when referring to the alliance that is the teachers' unions and democrat pols. He often said that it was virtually impossible to gain meaningful reform due to the The Blob. The Blob is clearly at work in resisting any semblance of school choice. The Blob wishes only to spend more money on a failing system of government-run schools. Low income, frequently minority children are most impacted by this system, and could benefit most from a school choice plan. However, The Blob resists educational freedom at every turn, much like plantation owners who believed that removing the shackles would embolden slaves to think for themselves. The Blob's answer to failing schools is similar to plantation owners' response to the Emancipation Proclamation: Don't upset the apple cart. And spend a little more money to make them a little more comfortable. Genuine freedom, however, is out of the question!
Wednesday, March 30, 2016 Report this
Ken B
Private school and charter school administrators and teachers are successful because they control what happens in their classrooms. To save public schools, the “School-Within-a-School-Concept” should be employed in each public school with more than 350 students. If a school has 600 students, it would be divided up into two separate schools with 300 students each. In each school, administrators, faculty members, parents, non-instructional staff and students would have an opportunity get to know and trust one another. In a short period of time, almost everyone would begin acting like a family where most members care about and want to help each other. A social commitment would develop where most members would begin working together to make each school a successful community. Because these schools would be small, curriculums designed to meet the cultural diverse needs of at risk student populations could be developed. Administrators, teachers and students, in these small schools, could use the team approach to successfully implement curriculum goals and create group portfolios to represent their achievements. In a team, every member works very hard to make sure the team achieves its goals. These small schools would be successful because administrators, teachers and students would control what happens in their classrooms. Implementing this plan will make charter schools unnecessary. Every public school will be the equivalent of a well run charter school.
Friday, April 1, 2016 Report this
Ken B
Private school and charter school administrators and teachers are successful because they control what happens in their classrooms. To save public schools, the “School-Within-a-School-Concept” should be employed in each public school with more than 350 students. If a school has 600 students, it would be divided up into two separate schools with 300 students each. In each school, administrators, faculty members, parents, non-instructional staff and students would have an opportunity get to know and trust one another. In a short period of time, almost everyone would begin acting like a family where most members care about and want to help each other. A social commitment would develop where most members would begin working together to make each school a successful community. Because these schools would be small, curriculums designed to meet the cultural diverse needs of at risk student populations could be developed. Administrators, teachers and students, in these small schools, could use the team approach to successfully implement curriculum goals and create group portfolios to represent their achievements. In a team, every member works very hard to make sure the team achieves its goals. These small schools would be successful because administrators, teachers and students would control what happens in their classrooms. Implementing this plan will make charter schools unnecessary. Every public school will be the equivalent of a well run charter school.
Friday, April 1, 2016 Report this
Justanidiot
And what do you do with the kids that would get kicked out of a private school or a charter school and sent back to public school?
Maybe it is time to bring back child labor.
Monday, April 4, 2016 Report this