From an urban teacher, identity withheld:
[My district] sent out letters to all parents that we are now in program improvement. Unfortunately, no one told the teachers. Oops. I had to answer parents today with, “What letter?”
With such disorganization, it’s not really a mystery why we’re in this situation.
Now I’m asked to write the bit about school choice for the letter from the school to be sent home to parents tomorrow (far too late, in my opinion). A moral dilemma for me… I know that we are improving and I know that many kids are successful at our school. I also believe that it weakens the school community when anyone decides to leave, especially to be bussed to a school where they may be overcrowding someone else’s classroom or where the teacher may not be prepared to meet their unique needs.
But if I were a parent, I would jump on the opportunity and I don’t know that I can discourage parents from doing something that may be a huge benefit for their kids. Even if the impact on the school as a whole may be negative.
Isn’t this also a microcosm of part of the Democratic dilemma on vouchers?