Look at what's right with our public schools

The great thing about opinions is that everyone has one. But not everyone's perspective is the same on any given issue. We all have a unique view on life, events, and yes, the public school system it seems. My letter is in response to Jolene Norcini's guest opinion in the Coeur d'Alene Press on Nov. 16.

Our views are based on personal experience. One is no better or worse than the other, just different. She had one point in her letter with which I do agree. More parent involvement is needed in the schools. As for the rest, she made general statements. No real substance as to why she feels the public school system is failing, other than low test scores.

She referenced an AP article written about test scores among Idaho's eighth-graders (published in this newspaper on Nov. 8) and used it as a jumping off point for her letter. Her opinions are her own and she is entitled to them. However, I feel she has done a great disservice to the public school districts in our area, the teachers, and all staff members. She did so by using too broad a stroke in labeling them a failure. As true as it seems to be for her, it is simply her opinion. It more than likely is not for the majority.

She compares the private school her children now attend against the entire state's public school eighth grade test scores - 80 percent proficiency (private) versus 38 percent (public). I'm assuming this was just for eighth graders at her children's school. I say it's apples to oranges. However, do test scores really tell the whole story? In my opinion, they do not. And here's why. They are merely a snapshot. Used mainly to continue funding levels. A measurement which does not tell the real or complete story of a student's daily achievements. Can you compare a small private school to a large government-run school system? I'm not sure, maybe, maybe not.

Her letter was disheartening. It's easy to read opinion printed in the paper and say "There, you see? It's as I suspected all along. The sky is falling." Well it's not, and I challenge Ms. Norcini and all members of our North Idaho community to take a moment and think what our public schools have achieved, what they've helped individual students achieve.

Our schools are a microcosm of society's challenges, its successes and its failures. Parent involvement, unfortunately, cannot be mandated. It is not the public schools' responsibility to parent and increasingly this is a role they are forced into on a daily basis. (I do not have statistics, simply first-hand observations, conversations with fellow parents, etc.)

It is pure folly to put the majority of the blame on the public schools and in turn their teachers for all real and perceived problems. Perhaps, just perhaps, a majority of the problems she thinks our public schools have, and bury their heads in the sand over, are beyond their control? Something to think about.

While it is not practical for each member of the public to tour classrooms to obtain a real-time experience of what happens daily, perhaps a quick virtual tour may help? How about we start with a classroom where there are 28+ students to one teacher? Better yet, let's visit more than one classroom.

The next one is where one or more students have behavioral issues, officially diagnosed or not, and are a consistent disruption to the learning process for all students in the class; not just the one causing a disruption. In yet another classroom there are students who struggle to concentrate because they have spent the night in a home where domestic violence is the norm or there is no heat because they live in poverty and they never get enough sleep. And let's not forget about a classroom where many students only eat when they attend a public school. Just a handful of daily challenges our public school systems face over which they have no control.

So what is a better place to point one's finger at than the entirety of a public school system? In a word, money or more accurately, funding. An issue she glossed over by making a statement which, in my opinion, has no real substance. She stated public schools "throw more money at it (the problem) in hoping that will do the trick." She has an interesting theory. Perhaps we should poll all teachers in the three local districts and see how much of their personal funds they spend on classroom items? I'm sure they have some strong opinions on the subject. Especially if money is just being thrown around at their schools. How funds are used within a school is not a responsibility I would want to have. Have you ever heard the old saying which ends "you can't please all of the people all of the time?" I would suspect that those decisions are based on the greater good and are made by much smarter and better informed people than I.

I believe there is plenty to celebrate in our public school system. I have two sons attending a Hayden elementary school. One is in ALP classes and the other has an IEP. He has autism and is mainstreamed. They both have had vastly different experiences in the same school which have been equally positive and successful, much to the credit of dynamic and dedicated teachers, administration and staff.

Lastly, wouldn't all of our time and energy be better spent lifting up the school system rather than putting it down? Instead of complaining, how about offering up real solutions and advocating for concrete methods to complement and improve the system already in place if you're of the opinion it's broken?

Thank you for your time. I hope my opinions have provided some food for thought.

P.S. - Were you able to think of some achievements made by one of the local school districts or by a student? If so, I believe the editor of this newspaper would welcome any and all letters on the subject.

Debra Stewart is a Hayden resident.