Don’t Judge School Moves Prematurely ; OK Rochester Referendum

Don’t judge school moves prematurely

IT IS EXTREMELY easy to take a cynical view of the reorganization that will bring sweeping changes to Springfield School District 186 next school year.

The cynical view says the district is just reacting to the federal No Child Left Behind Act; that it had to do something, and this is what it came up with.

BUT WE believe there is too much at stake here to be cynical. We believe there’s good reason to be hopeful that the administrative shakeup at District 186 – the biggest such move in recent memory and a bold move early in the tenure of Superintendent Walter Milton Jr. – is more than just a cursory reaction to No Child Left Behind. And should No Child Left Behind fall by the wayside under a new presidential administration next year, we would hope that the plans set in motion by this reorganization will continue.

There is plenty to criticize about No Child Left Behind. It’s not properly funded, for one thing. And it can be argued that its emphasis on standardized test scores has in some cases turned classrooms into crucibles for intense lessons on test-taking.

For the Springfield School District, however, those test scores have shone a powerful spotlight on the academic troubles of its minority students and those from impoverished homes. The 2007 Illinois Standards Achievement Test scores showed that while 56 percent of the district’s white high school juniors were proficient in math, only 16 percent of African-Americans and 23 percent of low- income juniors had scores sufficient for proficiency.

The district has struggled for years to close this gap with little success. When Milton first arrived as superintendent last summer, he indicated large-scale change might be necessary, especially at the high school level. This restructuring is the manifestation of Milton’s earlier statements.

WHILE WE WILL avoid cynicism toward No Child Left Behind, we reserve the right to a healthy dose of skepticism as it applies to Springfield. Urban districts like District 186 face many problems that simply can’t be solved in the classroom alone. The poverty and social troubles many kids face outside school can make classroom achievement irrelevant and/or extremely difficult for them. Any federal education program that does not take a holistic approach – addressing both problems in class and problems outside of school that interfere with learning – is doomed to fail, we believe.

An enhanced and funded No Child Left Behind could avoid that fate. Even if that never comes, District 186′s recent action is encouraging.

OK Rochester referendum

Voters in Rochester on Tuesday have a chance to ensure that their schools can meet the needs of that fast-growing community well into the future. We suggest voters there get to the polls and approve a $26 million bond referendum that would pay for a new school for fourth- to sixth-graders, improvements to Rochester Elementary School and new athletic facilities for Rochester schools.

Superintendent Tom Bertrand has estimated passage of the referendum would lead to a tax increase of $30 to $35 a year on a $100,000 home.

In 2005, Rochester voters approved an $11.2 million construction program that paid for the recently opened junior high school. Tuesday’s referendum will help anticipate growth in a district that over the last four school years has climbed from 1,877 students 2,252. There is no better investment for any community than its schools. And it is far better to address needs before they become problems than afterward.

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