That’s how many kids I have to withdraw because they are moving or going to charter schools over the winter break. Seventeen children starting over in a new school halfway through the year. I hope, anyway. At least three, I wonder if they will go to another school at all.
Let’s see. We’ve got one who hasn’t been in school in three weeks, mom says it’s too dangerous. Pointing out that he didn’t get stabbed at or near school, the boy got in a fight in her apartment parking lot, doesn’t make her send him to school. One doubts she tells him it’s too dangerous to take the garbage out.
Then there’s the fourteen-year-old transferring to the Teenage Parent Program. Yep, she’s got a bundle of joy on the way.
Several are going to charter schools. This is bad news for several reasons. One, they’re changing schools in the middle of the year. Two, the standards at most of the charters around us are much lower, so yeah, at least at first, they’re going to do better. But they’re still going to have to pass the AIMS, and they’re going to be a lot less prepared if they stay at the charter. Which leads to reason three. Maybe 80% of kids who transfer to charter schools are back within two months. Which drags OUR test scores down, because they weren’t learning anything while they were gone.
And, of course, if the charter schools have that much room at this time of year (they can turn kids down, we can’t) that means that they are getting rid of a lot of problem kids at the end of the semester, who are going to go–guess where?
Yep. I can’t turn them away.
whoohoo.