School Performance

Every month my local school district superintendent puts out a report about how well our schools are doing. She extolls the virtues of making our students feel good, feel safe, fee welcomed, growing emotionally, declaring any gender, etc. She also extolls the wonderful virtues of the teachers; how caring, how devoted, how warm, etc.

50% of my property taxes go to that school district. 50%. That is almost $5,000 (my state has no income tax) each year. One house. Not even a mansion. Normal house.

Now, I don’t know about others but I hated going to school. I dreaded it. The teachers were not warm and welcoming. They even gave out homework!! And we had tests!! And you had to work and pass. My emotional and social well-being took a back seat. Fail and your report card reflected it – and your parents got called. Want help? Ask for it. But it was after school. And get ready to work more. And in high school history teachers had degrees in history, math teachers degrees in math, science teachers degrees in a science, etc. I did not like Mrs. Troxel, Mr. Hart, Mrs. O’Shea, Sister Linus, Mr. Bartlett, Mother Filomena, and a host of others (but I love them all today). They were tough. Old Guy – do your nines!! 9×1 is 9; 9×2 is 18, etc.

So this tax year, as I wrote out the check for property taxes, I decided to do a little research in how my school district was doing. My state , and the federal government, put out rankings in school performance. First, my state ranks “weak” by the federal government. Right in the middle. My liberal state. Then I looked at my local district. We are paying over $17,000 per year per student!!! Hence my property taxes. But our scores? How are the kids doing? 57% reading at grade level; 38% doing math at grade level; 44% doing science at grade level. But that’s OK because I am sure those failing kids feel welcomed and feel secure.

In my day that would be an F in reading, F in Math, F in science. And my parents would be on the phone, kicking my buttocks (can’t say butt) and sending me to after-school help. No TV. No Playing. No friends. No radio. No sports. More homework.

In context, property taxes are putting into a single class of 20 students ( we used to call them kids) $340,000!!! A school of 10 classes would be $3,400,000!! For failures!! I worked in the private sector. If I got F’s – I got fired. And this district keeps floating school levies and wondering why voters deny them.

I’m old. I don’t understand all this teacher union stuff. But it appears to me it is not working. Current teachers can’t do it – they can’t teach. “Janey are you feeling good today? Are you feeling like a girl or boy?”

It is time to stop the feel good crap and get back to the basics. But then again I’m and Old Guy and I don’t get it.