Is caring deeply about the quality of school a new construct?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Granted, as a kid, I may not have been privy to adult conversations about this but when I see myself and all my friends agonizing over where to buy a house and the feeder schools associated with different neighborhoods and the pros and cons of each, I just can't remember parents of kids in my generation doing this. I swear back then people just bought a house they could afford and reasonably liked and the kids just went to the school closest by and that was about it. What created all this angst over schools and their performance and restructuring whole family lives (geographically, financially) based on schools?

My mom did. In 1968. She couldn't afford to live in Prince George's County at the time, so they bought across the river in Howard County. She thought she may have to use her mom's address to enroll me in school in Laurel (PG County). At that time PG County schools had a better reputation than Howard. That changed over time, but yes, school quality was important to her.

[Anonymous]

No, not at all.

By the way, does anyone remember the book A Tree Grows in Brooklyn about the tenements in the early 1900s in NYC? The family steals another person's address so the little girl can go to a better school.

[Anonymous]

I know my parents bought their homes in good school boundaries, and it wasn't by accident. This was in the late 70's-80's.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in NOVA in the 70/80s when a lot of subdivisions were new. They attracted white, middle income families so people didn't worry about the school quality because they assumed that white, middle income families would all have wonderfully behaved, smart kids.

I think my parents assumed this as well. As far as I know - they didn't agonize over where to live.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do think that standing up at the new parent meeting and inquiring about gifted programs and assuming that your kindergartener will get in is a new thing peculiar to this area. By the time we went to the one for our third child, my husband and I were laughing when the questions started up. No one ever asks "What will you do if my child is delayed? If he has problems with reading? Math?" No, everybody assumes their kid will need high end, super advanced academic services because the kid is a genius. Thirteen years later, the situation for those same kids may look a little different.

This.

[Anonymous]

My parents were hands off parents to the point, at times, of near neglectfulness, but even they made choices about which schools were best. They were highly educated, but very wrapped up in their own issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do think that standing up at the new parent meeting and inquiring about gifted programs and assuming that your kindergartener will get in is a new thing peculiar to this area. By the time we went to the one for our third child, my husband and I were laughing when the questions started up. No one ever asks "What will you do if my child is delayed? If he has problems with reading? Math?" No, everybody assumes their kid will need high end, super advanced academic services because the kid is a genius. Thirteen years later, the situation for those same kids may look a little different.

This.

No, that also is not new in all places. I went to private school in the 80s and the parents were like that then. To answer OP, like almost all the other posters, no - this is not a new construct. I assume you did not grow up in this area? Maybe in more rural areas farther from a major city this is less of an issue? But I remember this being just as much an issue in the 80's as now (and the reason I ended up in private then).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do think that standing up at the new parent meeting and inquiring about gifted programs and assuming that your kindergartener will get in is a new thing peculiar to this area. By the time we went to the one for our third child, my husband and I were laughing when the questions started up. No one ever asks "What will you do if my child is delayed? If he has problems with reading? Math?" No, everybody assumes their kid will need high end, super advanced academic services because the kid is a genius. Thirteen years later, the situation for those same kids may look a little different.

This.

No, that also is not new in all places. I went to private school in the 80s and the parents were like that then. To answer OP, like almost all the other posters, no - this is not a new construct. I assume you did not grow up in this area? Maybe in more rural areas farther from a major city this is less of an issue? But I remember this being just as much an issue in the 80's as now (and the reason I ended up in private then).

I lived here in the 70s... It's the same old stuff. Really. Seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Racism, classism, bigotry, resale value, the desire to further bubble-ize snowflakes ....

I'm AA. And a third generation public school teacher. My grandmother and mother fought racism to get their kids into the best schools possible. I do the same for my kids. As do all the AA moms that I know regardless of SES. Caring deeply about school quality isn't "a white thing" and never has been.

[Anonymous]

Nothing new. We moved when I was a kid in the 60's for a better school.