February 7, 2007

The debate rages on as to how a school district should fund its activities. Each side feels their activity is the most important part of a child’s education and is not receiving the necessary funds.

• Does Deer Creek adequately fund all programs offered to the students?
• Are all of activities necessary for the student education?
• Why are some extra-curricular activities such as sports include in the daily class schedule but others are not?

Todays article will address the funding of the curriculum by the administration and school board. It is important to know that the school's budget is developed by the Superintendent and approved by the school board.

So What is the Problem?
It is not the funding of the curriculum that is the problem. The problem lies in the funding for the materials to teach the current curriculum.

Why has another school year started without enough books for every child to have their own?
Can we put a plan in place that ensures the school year will start with enough textbooks for every child? The school district’s enrollment increases every year so it should not be that hard to track growth trends and order textbooks accordingly. Relying on the Internet should not be an option since it is a succinct possibility that not every child in the district has access to the Internet at home.

Why are students required to buy books that are mandatory for their class?
This question has always perplexed me. The district is offering classes to student but not supplying the books. Why should a student in band be required to buy their textbook? I certainly can understand the student providing their own instrument but why the textbook? Isn’t band a class and part of the curriculum?

Why do we not have enough teachers for the classes being offered to the students?
When offering electives for students to choose from, shouldn’t there be enough teachers for every student to take the class they want? This is a tough question since there is no easy answer.

The Middle School staff does a wonderful job of accommodating every student as best they can. But since they can’t, students are forced to take classes they have no desire to be in. How can this be a positive situation for the students?

We applaud Principal Riggs for instituting policies that encourage the students to view learning as a positive experience. But how does that carry as the children move forward from school to school? Shouldn’t this be the standard at every school?

If the district can’t provide the funding to allow every student to take the class they want, should they be offering the class? Or should they be focusing on supporting the current curriculum as as funds allow looking toward expanding to other areas?

It is scary that Bryan McPhail was suggested alternative teaching method since we are not funding the ones currently in place today.

Who decides what curriculum will each school use?
The next question should be the cost effectiveness of having different curriculums at different schools. This especially applies at the elementary school level. If each school uses a different textbook for the same subject what is the affect on the budget? How much time is being spent on remedial training to get the students on the same level? A true test on our curriculum may lay in what comes next. Why are so many Deer Creek students required to take remedial math when starting college?

Every one of the candidates agreed that it is not the school board’s function to decide on what curriculum each school uses. They all felt that the administration was better suited to make that decision then they were.

Greg Biggs and Gerald Buckles were the only to candidates that said they would hold the administration accountable if the curriculum wasn’t working. I have to agree with Greg and Gerald.

It is the school board’s function to oversee that the curriculum is properly educating the students. It is the school board’s job to hold the administration accountable for the curriculum that they choose. It is the school board’s responsibility to oversee the funding of the district.

If the school board is not willing to do these then why even have a school board?

Summary
As you comb through the budget, there is plenty of money to fund the curriculum. Most of the shortfalls or issues mentioned above are the result of poor planning or no oversight by the administration. This includes the school board not doing their job as well.

It is a shame that the students suffer because of a school’s administration and board inability to correct a wrong. The next time somebody tells you about our test scores, ask them about the number of students who weren’t prepared for college.

One last thought to ponder. Why are we so excited about being one of the best schools in one of the worst states for education? Is not it time we start looking at how we compare with the best schools in the best states for education? That would be a better indicator to how we are really doing as a district.

It is hard to fight for the funding of extra-curricular activities when the district isn’t properly funding the curriculum. Until the district fixes the problem, it would be hypocritical of me to suggest they increase funding for other activities. That should not keep us from examining the current funding for sports and the fine arts. Tomorrow I will go into sports funding.