So, the schools have released their newest test scores... Math and Reading scores are up 3 and 2.5 per cent respectively... so what does this mean? It means that there is still a long way to go.
The schools still have 33.5 per cent of students coming in at "below-basic." This equates to almost 62,000 children. A staggering number to be failing expectations. It seems unbelievable to me that this can be the case, but it is, so what can they do?
Who knows what the answer is?
More schools? More teachers? Who knows?
What is known is that something must be done immediately, because though they have made progress steadily over the last five years, more must be made going forward to meet standards as well as do the job of any school system... educate children.
The question is, do the kids want to learn? I know that when I was in High School, it was the last place I wanted to be. Retrospectively, I'm glad I went, but at the time, I did not want to be there, but there was a lot of pressure to go, and I went. This was in the suburbs. In a lot of the schools in Philadelphia, people don't have that pressure because they are worried about other things like staying alive, their next square meal, helping to take care of siblings and other pressures that no child should have to face.
The problems of the Philadelphia schools is greater than the schools themselves, especially if children are distracted by violent crime and their famillies are not pressuring them to attend school because they are worried about the same things.
Finally, who is ultimately responsible for answering this question? Whom do we hold accountable? Is it an unelected official like the CEO of the School District? Is it the 5 unelected members of the SRC who hired the CEO? Or can we hold the mayor and the governor accountable? It's clear that both of them, especially the mayor, need to step up and grab that responsibility, stake their whole reputation and career on it. For the long term success of the city, not much is more important.