Reflections of a Teacher Dad
My family has just moved. There is a subsidized housing project directly behind us called Buckmaster Circle. I know from my previous work experience as an educational researcher that completion of high school is rare for the young people of that neighbourhood.
Now, do I send my children to the neighbourhood school where the culture of finishing school isn’t supported in the students’ homes? Or, do abandon my own community and place my children in a school where I know the parents share the same socio-cultural values as me? By sending my children to another school I rob my own, local community of an involved parent and the school of children exposed to a much broader worldview.
As some one who claims to be committed to community development I know that this issue will present an ethical dilemma for my family. This reminds me of the sentiment of British singer Billy Bragg who sings, “Do I vote Green for my children or Red for my class?”
I will have to decide whether I will invest in my own community/school.
posted by Curiosity & Joy @ 1:07 PM
1 Comments:
This is a tough one, for sure. Let me say that I don't have any experience with Buckmaster Circle beyond reputation, and my kids go to the very good neighbourhood school on Bond Street.
A few things to think about. Do you feel part of the community of Buckmaster Circle? Do you have neighbours/friends whose children go to school there? (I know you haven't been there long, but what does the prognosis look like?) Will you be comfortable with Llew being friends with the local children? What about when he's a teenager?
How much work are you willing to put into improving the BC school? Even in a school with a lot of involved parents, there's so much that needs to be done. Will you have support from teachers, administrators, any other parents at all? There may be non-negotiables such as budget or school-board policies. Will you be in active conflict with any of the above while trying to do what needs to be done? Will Llew suffer as a result?
What's Llew's life going to be like if he's one of the very few kids in his class with university-educated parents? (Is it really that bad? I don't know.) What are the teachers' attitudes like: have they given up on the students, or do they have as high expectations as you do for your child? You've got contacts in the teaching community as a prospective member: scout out local teachers' opinions, both those who have taught there and those who haven't. What opportunities might he miss due to conditions there? French Immersion is one I know of for certain, although that might not be a priority for you.
I'm sure this is just an expansion - or an echo - of the questions in your head already. I feel horribly classist (not to mention pessimistic) making assumptions like these. I hope you can find positive, confidence-building answers to all this and prove me way out of line. If that's true, tell the world - Buckmaster Circle can use all the good press it can get, and you may encourage other concerned parents to sign on. If not, though, Llew has to be your priority. He probably doesn't need luxurious surroundings, ten-to-one ratios, or classmates that go to Europe. But if you don't feel good about how Llew's school experience is going to go - and your own attitudes will colour his experience - then reconsider. You have three years and three months before kindergarten registration. Go.
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