"In its push to close comprehensive high schools in particular, and replace them with campuses of multiple, smaller, “themed” high schools, the Education Department is closing down the very “choice” that helps keep many students going to school through their teenage years: the option to pursue an array of courses and after-school activities in line with their interests and abilities. If some of those interests wane, then something of more interest might be right down the hall."
http://www.nytimes.com/schoolbook/2012/02/28/the-case-for-large-high-schools/
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Also from the article- sound familiar?
""To parents, the very profusion of high school “choices” has actually narrowed curricular options for their children, eliminating classes from Advanced Placement courses, to art and music, to shop and other “voc-ed” classes.
For students, the proliferation of choices means that many of the schools they prefer are now too small — or too over-crowded — to take them.
....
These are just some of many concerns that by now call for a time-out, a moratorium on school closings until all affected parties — administrators, teachers, parents and students — can be a party to decisions for school placements and configurations."
What PPS has lost is comprehensive middle schools- the entire concept that the rest of America embraces- urban schools reject. K-8 offer none of the opportunities that middle schools offer-- choices, languages, higher level math classes, exploratory CTE curriculums, full sports programs causing excitement for hs-- think of what we HAD when we went from k-8 to comprehensive middle schools.
Why? general feeling from teachers is that by separating kids-- a small number in each old elementary school, they are easier to control. Kinda like contained classrooms are easier than departmentalized elementary schools. Great-- that is saying all the other distridcts can figure it out but poor Pgh cant find a way to provide quality education for these students. Look around PGH and remember-- when middle schools had plays, bands, sports teams, science fairs, art exhibits,CTE,- the list goes on and on... Oh yeah, this way is cheaper...
It's strange how the emphasis is on choice of a middle school program (for a select group of students, anyway) with little attention to the kinds of choice available within those programs or the remaining comprehensive schools.
6:52: You are exactly right! And cheaper? Why? So that Central Office can continue to hire more administrators who must hire more consultants to do their jobs___and extend their own pay scales and raises. They have forgotten (or never knew) that schools are for students, for teaching, for learning, for preparing for a better life.
All of the best research supports Middle School concept and yes middle schools were extremely successful in Pittsburgh. Milliones Middle School was highly successful when it had strong, intelligent leadership and committed, caring, creative teachers who chose to teach there. There was a time not too long ago when PPS was a leader among PA districts and despite any PR to the contrary, it is in sad decline evidenced by the continual closing of schools rather than building new schools.
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