Re: [Phys-L] Private schools

[Hugh Haskell <haskellh@verizon.net>]

At 2:21 AM +0000 7/11/12, LaMontagne, Bob wrote:
> There appears to be an assumption here that more money sent to 
> schools from taxes equates to better results. I think you would find 
> it hard to discover anyone except those whose livelihood depends on 
> the schools who would accept that assertion. We have students from 
> Nepal who attend out college (because of our 3-2 program that leads 
> to a transfer to Columbia U). They are all from families who cannot 
> afford to enter Columbia directly. Uniformly, they are far better 
> educated than our US students. Obviously, money spent in the school 
> system is not the answer.
No, it's not the entire answer, but it's at least a large part of it. 
Why do you suppose that the private schools that Anthony Lapinski 
wrote about see fit to charge tuitions twice and more than the 
typical public school spends per student? Presumably, it is because 
providing the type of education that they offer (and I hope that it 
is a very good one, at that price) is an expensive proposition.

But the quality of education depends on a lot of things that aren't 
necessarily included in the economics of education.

The working conditions of the teachers and staff at public schools is 
a major one.

Other intangibles include the parental involvement (and that is a 
mixed bag--there is good parental involvement and bad parental 
involvement--I would hope that we could expect the good kind but 
that's not guaranteed and the bad kind can have terrible effects on 
the quality of a school).

The management of the school and of the district are also important 
factors. Most schools are run by top-down management, in which the 
teachers have little or nothing to say about how the educational 
process is carried out, and they are expected to simply accept 
whatever the leaders say to do without question. Having spent nearly 
20 years in the teaching industry and more than 20 as a military 
officer, my impression is that the K-12 education system is far more 
top-down oriented than is the military system.

Class size is highly important, especially if we are going to use 
anything other than "direct" instruction (i.e., lecture), and 
particularly so in science. Trying to supervise a lab exercise for 
upwards of 30 students by a single teacher is perilously close to 
mission impossible, and at the very best will leave some students out 
of the game completely, as the teacher concentrates attention on 
those who demand it more loudly.

Family conditions are important as well, students who come to work 
tired, underfed or stoned are not going to do well in school, and 
there is precious little that the teacher can do to correct such a 
situation.

Overall student load can be devastating. student loads of 125 upwards 
to over 200 are common, and leave the teachers with almost no time to 
deal with students on an individual basis. Tests and assignments have 
to be structured to allow very quick grading so the all-important 
feedback to the students can be timely. Expecting a teacher to put in 
a long day at school and then have hours of grading and preparation 
to do after they get home is totally unreasonable. Lighter class-load 
and fewer student, along with a private office to be able to do 
grading and preparation are crucial.

The state of repair and the proper design of the school are also 
important. Just as with private sector jobs, productivity ends to be 
higher when the surroundings are well-kept and inviting. Teachers 
need to be able to expect not less.

Some of these things will cost more money, but some of them won't, so 
money isn't everything, but it is a factor, and all of the above 
considerations are important. As long as the public schools are 
required to take every student who shows up at the door, it is 
important that we provide a comfortable and inviting environment for 
both students and teachers, if we want the students to have a 
productive school career.

I'll leave the issue of teacher preparation, and the 
too-often-required teaching-out-of-competency-field for another 
discussion.

Hugh

--
Hugh Haskell
mailto:hugh@ieer.org
mailto:haskellh@verizon.net

I have been wondering for a long time why some of our own defense 
officials do not
put more emphasis on finding a good substitute for oil and worry less 
about where
more oil is to come from.  Our people are ingenious. New discoveries 
are all around
us, and when we have to make them, we nearly always do.

						Eleanor Roosevelt
						February 13, 1948