Closing schools and getting rid of "bad" teachers

I read yet another article about school reform that was about closing schools and getting rid of "bad" teachers.  This seems to be a trend and mantra in the current wave of education "reform."  Both of these strategies seem very flawed to me.  I'll address "closing schools" in this post.


Why are we closing schools?  Doesn't that mean kids will have to travel farther from home to go to school?  I doubt they are closing the wealthy, high-performing schools, so most of the kids affected are probably from neighborhoods with "poorly performing" schools, ie poor neighborhoods.  There seem to me many reasons to put our resources toward ensuring all kids have a quality school within walking distance of their house. 

1) Family Time
With family time dwindling, shouldn't we be finding ways to give families more time together?  Increasing a child's commute to school does not do this.  Kids must get up earlier (which makes them even more sleep deprived than they already are) and endure long bus rides to and from school (up to 3 hours a day, I've heard!).  The school already chips away at family time by filling evenings with homework.  When is a family supposed to just hang out together?  To have that "quality" family time, you must first have some "quantity."  If kids lived within a short walk to school, they could even go home for lunch--like they used to in the past (and like they still do in some European countries).

2) The Environment
Aren't we trying to decrease greenhouse gases?  Why are we increasing the need for buses and cars to get kids to school?  I have personally witnessed long lines of idling cars on a cold day waiting 15-30 minutes to pick up kids from school.

3) The Cost
That gas isn't cheap and running the extensive system of school buses isn't either. 

4) Neighborhood Cohesion
With no school in the neighborhood, or most kids "choicing out," kids don't go to school with their neighbors.  This means families in the same neighborhood might be less likely to know and interact with each other (playing after school, attending school functions, etc.).  Neighborhood cohesion can affect all sorts of "indicators" for a health community:  crime and safety, neighbors helping neighbors, goods and services in the neighborhood, etc.

5) Parental Involvement in Schools
"Parental involvement" is always mentioned as an indicator for school success.  It seems to me that the farther a school is from a family's home, the more difficult it would be to get the parents "involved."


6) Children's Health
This seems like a no-brainer to me.  Isn't it healthier for kids to walk 10-30 minutes to school instead of riding a bus for 1 1/2 hours?  Please, First Lady Obama, see the connection and work for strong neighborhood schools to combat childhood obesity!

7) The Next Step
Hopefully, the next step is changing the way school is "done."  Keeping kids in the neighborhood, I believe, is a good first step.  Allowing principals, teachers and parents to work together to create the school that is right for their neighborhood is what, I hope, will follow.

I'll talk about those "bad" teachers later.