2/3 of Grand Rapids Public School freshmen failing

WOODTV ^ | Kristi Anderson

[TitanicMan2003]

Superintendent of Grand Rapids Public Schools Bernard Taylor is looking for ways to improve after an instructional audit showed high rates of failure in high schools.

The audit shows more than 50 percent of students at all four high shools did not meet district standards on writing assessments. Also, more than 65 percent of freshmen are failing classes.

(snip)

Other numbers in the audit indicate the number of freshmen with a grade point average below 2.0 increased and more than 40 percent of high school students missed more than 10 days of school in core classes.

Taylor said he won't blame anyone, adding the purpose of making these findings public is to be transparent and solicit community help.

"I'm going to put it out there," Taylor said. "People will respond or they won't. My purpose was not to point fingers or assign blame, (but to) look at what we need to do and figure out how we're going to get there."

Parents want to know how the situations will be fixed.

[Chances Are]

Maybe they need to bring back the King James Version of English, and the King's Bible.

How about the McGuffy Reader?

CA....

[digger48]

but I doubt that 40% of students have medical situation that keep them from school


My kids school allowed no such thing as an unexcused absense, and more than 3 days missed a semester, better have some Dr. excuses, to avoid suspension

[ryan125]

oh no i don't even have a medical condition i got bit by the spiders that crawled from the ceiling in my math class.

[ryan125]

and my point was that some of these schools are SO bad that you can't blame the children for not wanting to attend, and can't blame the parents for not wanting their kid to go into the torment that a public school brings.

[Goldie Lurks]

In the days of yore, the CA public school system was a model for other states to follow. That was until the liberals took over the reigns of leadership and the illegal population began to over-run the public school system.

Money is flooded into the public school system for teacher development, and interventions for the ELL population and little progress has been gained.

Superindents/adminstrators/teachers run at the first sign of conflict. They are afraid of lawsuits not only from each other, but from parents of students.

The lack of "zero tolerance policies" for poor behavior is missing in some of the schools. Suspensions/expulsions are a matter of public record (school accountability report cards). Therefore, adminstrators do not suspend/expel students because they do not want their schools to be viewed by the public in a poor light.

Some districts..there is the view social promotion is acceptable. Must not damage a student's self esteem by retaining them.

There is a lack of parent accountability as well as student accountability especially in low income schools (SES schools).

Taylor is being transparent..attempting to get ahead of the game because his job is on the line...Plenty of superintendents, across the nation, do not want to lose their high paying jobs.

[digger48]

Well,......I guess that having to do battle with Arachnids in Academia COULD affect ones studies

got to admit.....that's a bit out of the ordinary there

[RSmithOpt]

Exactly!!

Stupid, ignorant, indifferent, irresponsible parents, 90% of the time, wind up creating stupid, ignorant, indifferent, irresponsible kids.

[ryan125]

How about raise the standards and fire the teachers?

[cinives]

Fixing this problem requires starting in K or 1st grade. By the time these kids are 14 or 15 it is way too late.

If the public schools used and taught a solid curriculum consisting of math facts, arithmetic and phonics thru the 3rd grade, these kids would at least have a good base.

[Apple Blossom]

My sister lives in Grand Rapids and she and I have had a long discussions about the problems with their school system.

Let me start by saying that she sends her children to private Christian school as does most of the white poplulation in Grand Rapids that can afford it. There are so many Christian schools that they even have sport teams to compete with each other.

Why is this a bad thing you ask? The main reason my sister gave for pulling their kids out of public school was the racial (and gang) conflicts and associated violence. I explained that they have created their own racial tension since what they have left in school are mostly black and hispanic students. If the white kids were still in public school they might act as a "buffer" rather than having 2 groups go at it head to head. It is possible that friendships or associations would overlap the racial boundary that exists now, either with sports, clubs, after school activities (yearbook, newspaper, etc).

Residents of Grand Rapids pay some of the highest property taxes for these public schools, but they pay AGAIN the tuition to the Christian schools their children actually attend. While many would think this absurd (I know I do), she explains that they just can't put their kids at risk for getting beat up, etc. and that the private schools are better academically. I have told her that they have created their own problem by taking most of the white kids out...that's why the racial trouble exists. What really makes me nuts is that there is a special offering at her church to help families with tuition costs who can't afford to send their kids to Christian school.

They have made this bed, now it's time to un-make it or lie in it.

[rintense]

Not surprised at all. I graduated from there in 1987. My freshman class was 1300. My graduating class... 233.

[rintense]

Be proud you managed. I am. I got a good education, but I was also educated (and advanced in knowledge, etc.) by my grandparents before I even started kindergarten.

[TitanicMan2003]

I went to City High, about the only high school in the whole district without all these problems (at least it didn't 4 years ago), so of course that's always the one they talk about cutting the budget for.

What I find for a lot of the area Christan schools (a generalization, I know, I've had good friends who have gone to these schools) is that the kids tend to be very cliquish they've gone to school with each other since they were small, then to the same high school, then probably to to the same college and end up working with/for each other and never venture out past their own groups. I know that my brother, sister and I all asked our parents at some time or another if they would have sent us to Christian High if they had the money, and each time they said no.

In any case, my brother and sister never put up with GRPS. My parents got them into East Kentwood High through schools of choice. They decided that after I graduated, they wanted nothing more to do with GRPS (don't get me started on all the boneheaded things that district did, I'll never shut up).

MGY

[em2ss]

I'm having a bit of a hard time understanding what you're saying. Racial tension is caused by white people (and others that can afford it) moving their kids to better schools? Did I get that right?

And summing up by saying that the people who simply want their children educated and safe at school are the ones to blame. Did I somehow take what you said wrong?

[Snoopers-868th]

This looks to me like the problem is not with the Christian schools it is with the public schools who primarily have the unmotivated left and parents who don't much care about the condition of the public school system. I don't blame your sister--as I would have done the same thing.

[Apple Blossom]

You completely misunderstood what I was trying to say.

Racial tension exists because there are primarily two races of people left in the school once you remove a large white majority. The gangs keep things stirred up and yes, there is violence from time to time.

Those who want their children educated and safe at school are somewhat responsible and should demand more from those who are spending their money on a system that is clearly broken. I would say that the Christian schools were created not for the purpose of including religious classes, but to remove their kids from the sometimes violent setting found in the public schools. They should hold those with the purse strings accountable or vote in new leadership.

[SunkenCiv]

Taylor is new. The fault lies with the parents (or more often, parent) for letting their larvae run wild, and for scraping up money for cable TV with all its music (alleged music) video role models.

[blu]

I missed more than 10 days of school and i have an excellent mother(many high school kids miss a lot of school these days), and my mom also like these parents complained to the school. But she may of complained because they kicked me out when she sent them my medical bill in the mail. Once they saw that I may of filed a law suit for countless upon countless things they did to me, they figured that my test scores where not worth it...This school district seems pretty good compared to mine, where do i sign up?

Oh, gad, please tell me your post was a joke!!! Please!!!

[Clemenza]

What I find for a lot of the area Christan schools (a generalization, I know, I've had good friends who have gone to these schools) is that the kids tend to be very cliquish they've gone to school with each other since they were small, then to the same high school, then probably to to the same college and end up working with/for each other and never venture out past their own groups.

Uh, its called "community" and "networking", which is how it is in the real world. I work for a multinational financial firm and its not surprising that a disproportionate percentage of folks that I work with went to private (especially Catholic) high schools.

Of course, you can value "diversity" and want your kid to be the same as the unwashed masses, but that's your perogative.

[MarkL]

I guess you are not familiar with Baltimore City schools. I read the article and yawn. Baltimore City schools have a 19% truancy rate, and that is its strong point.

The KCMO public school district lost its state accreditation more than 5 years ago, and has been functioning on a "provisional" accreditation... I believe that things have gotten so bad there that the school district is about to even lose their "provisional" accreditation. And they're talking about closing some more schools. I guess it's because less than 50% of incoming highschool freshmen eventually graduate.

Mark