FIXING OUR SCHOOLS FOR DUMMIES -IV

REALITY BASED CURRICULUM

A school's curriculum is a school's course of study and for students it is the education and training they receive. I attended a college preparatory high school in Baltimore, Loyola High School, which is a Jesuit institution. There were no shop classes or art and music classes. All classes were academic with one goal in mind and that was to prepare students for college. There were schools that were even more specialized in their course offerings, like Baltimore's Polytechnic High School which prepared its students for continuing education and careers in engineering. Eastern High School offered business and secretarial skills to its female student body and Mergenthaler Vocational and Technical High School prepared it students for immediate employment in the trades. Yes, I suppose this was a form of institutional tracking; but it was also an understanding and acceptance that one size did not fit all. The reality was that not all students were college bound. It is that narrow minded one size will fit all concept which now manifests itself in the current educational philosophy that all students will be college bound and is in fact so out of step with reality.

This country's high school student drop-out rates are alarmingly high. Over the last decade roughly 70% of all high school seniors graduated and of that number roughly 34% possess the skills and qualifications necessary to enter college. With these statistics smacking us in the face why then are so many schools modifying their curricula in deference to the college bound and at the expense of all other students? Many years ago I attended one of the few in-service/staff development training sessions that was not a mind numbing experience. The guest lecturer offered that America's schools are set up so that all students are expected to be kindergarten ready at around age 5 and ready to graduate from high school at age 18. Yet every year tens of thousands of students demonstrate that they are not ready to begin at age 5 and not ready to leave at age 18. This guest lecturer also offered that the two American institutions that are very much alike in the manner in which they operate are the educational system and the prison system. However; unlike this country's educational system the prison system is slowly changing. It seems this country's prison population fares better than its student population.
Just as the five year olds and the 18year olds continually demonstrate that readiness to begin school and readiness to exit is somewhat fluid, so does a significant part of our student population continue to demonstrate that they are not college bound and that what is currently be offered in the form of course work and career training is not relevant to their lives and their futures.

I have a friend who is a plumber by trade. After high school he joined the US Navy and specialized in being a pipefitter/steamfitter. After his tour of duty he gained employment with a bay area plumbing contractor. After several years he got his own plumbing contractor's license and now operates his own plumbing business. His earnings are excellent. He is married and owns a home and he is not a college graduate.

On a recent visit to my home the subject of schools came up and he expressed some rather strong negative opinions about his son's education. Apparently the boy would someday like to follow in his father's footsteps and become a plumber. What my friend objected to was the fact that his son's education was devoid of any exposure to the trades. Regardless of his son's interests his education is structured on the college preparatory track. My friend feels that his son is being blatantly discriminated against because the schools have decided that it is best for everyone to be educated as if they are going to college. To paraphrase my friend, some students should be learning how to read a tape measure and instead are being taught algebra. He pointed out that he doesn't use algebra as a plumber but being able to correctly read a tape measure is crucial.

If schools are to ever see a decrease in the drop-out rate and an increase in the graduation rate than schools must once again offer a reality-base curriculum. Students who plan on joining the family restaurant business, retail store, various trades and service jobs must have meaningful courses from which to choose. It is a disservice to these students and their families to force all of them into the college preparatory track when so many have plans that do not include college. Not all students are interested in Racing to the Top. Some have been Left Behind because their destination was different and just as Failure is Not an Option to the educational decision makers, college is not an option for those with other plans and interests.

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