Educational Philosophy

Lately may school boards are setting up special scholastic schools (A.K.A. charter schools or magnet schools) for the students in their districts who are gifted and talented. What the school boards that establish these schools do not realize that in doing so, they are putting a crack in the wall of justice that was created when segregation was outlawed. They are chipping away at Brown v. Board of Education.

One knows this to be true because they are creating separate facilities for those students who excel from the facilities of those students who are average or who do not excel. The schools they are setting up are separate but equal to those schools for students who excel (most of whom are from white, affluent families) from the schools of those students who do not excel (most of whom are from the poor and minorities).

They claim that all schools will get equal resources and equal treatment. But any special school that is separate but equal to a regular school will not remain that way. It is only a matter of time before these special scolastic schools get the state-of-the-art technology, the new textbooks and workbooks and other necessary school supplies and the regular schools end up with all the hand-me-downs, the used textbooks and workbooks and the second hand school supplies.

Those who do not believe this are not looking at reality. This is how school supplies were distributed to segregated schools before Brown v. Board of Education. The schools for white children got all the new supplies while the schools for black children got all the hand-me-down materials.

One must also consider the fact that most of the students who attend these special scholastic schools are the children of the affluent, the children of those who have some kind of political influence and the children who are advantaged in numerous ways to the children of the economically disadvantaged, the children of those without political influence and the children of those who are disadvantaged in numerous ways.

Thus, scholastic schools, charter schools, magnet schools and other such schools are nothing more than separate schools for the rich and the influential – usually white students – and the regular schools are for all the poor – usually black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American and other minorities.

It is ludicrous to have separate schools for special students! We do not need special schools for the gifted and talented student. First of all, that is what gifted and talented special education is all about! Secondly, such schools only makes those children who are “not special” and who are not going to the special school feel even more inferior than they already do.

There should be no private schools or special schools of any kind. All children should attend public school and no child should be home schooled except those who for some medical reason cannot attend a regular school. These latter students could get all their assignments from their teacher(s) through the Internet.

Those who propagate the creation of scholastic schools, charter schools, magnet schools and other such schools do so under the pretext of giving gifted students an atmosphere where their special talents can excel. But scholastic schools are nothing more than political carrots offered to the voting public to further the political desires and goals of school board members, elected officials and others who will gain financially from them.

These principals, politicians and school board members care more about getting their paper work properly filled out and appearing to look good in the public eye than they do about educating children. They care more about their political careers than they do the children they are supposed to serve.

I answer their rhetoric with the fact that if we allow politicians to control our schools then we will end up with second rate schools and our children will end up with a second rate education.

We must have educators in charge of our schools. For what is a politician’s goal? What is an educator’s goal? The politician’s goal is to get re-elected and an educator’s goal is to educate children.

Someone who is trained to teach has a much better idea of what schools and the students of those schools need than someone whose goal is to get re-elected. Someone who works daily with the students has a much better idea of what they need than someone who works in an office in another city.

It would be far better to just put those students who are gifted and talented in a gifted and talented special education curriculum in those subjects in which they excel and regular classes in those subjects in which they do not excel – all at a regular school.

This would allow them to blend in with other students and no one would feel inferior and no one would receive an inferior education. There would be no separate but equal schools.

Many colleges today offer courses on line through the Internet. Although I could be wrong – I’m not infallible – it is my belief that this should not be done for K-12 schools. Children need to interact with their peers in order to get a well rounded, high quality education. This cannot be done if they get their education through the Internet at home. Children need to attend school if it is at all possible to do so.

Scholastic Schools