Reply to Is Nottingham going to be the new option school in Arlington or its still being decided?

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Reply to "Is Nottingham going to be the new option school in Arlington or its still being decided?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]People in Arlington who refuse to acknowledge how our socio-economically segregated schools lower educational outcomes spout two defenses:

(1) all APS schools are great, and
(2) I did it, so can anyone (the "outlier")

I consistently hear both from Talento, NVD and former SB Lander. [/quote]

Sort of. I think Talento's point is more along the lines of not forcing kids to be bused around the county to achieve this goal, because it's places an undue burden on the families that already have a lot of obstacles in their way. And I think she is sort of bristling at the coarse way some people have spoken about kids from economically disadvantaged families. Further, I think she hears a lot from disadvantaged and immigrant communities that they are afraid to be moved around to unfamiliar and unwelcoming schools. That's not an unreasonable fear give the current climate.

I think she's more receptive to conversations that revolve around choices and speak about providing equitable access to opportunities rather than framing the issue as too many ED/ELL kids drag schools down. I think the same is true of NVD. Its important to remember that every child matters and brings something to the table. There are wealthy schools that are missing out because they have too few children with varied life experiences and points of view to offer. Homogeneity in education is not a positive when preparing students to enter a diverse work force within a global economy.[/quote]

I would never want to force disadvantaged communities to be bussed, but I do wish that we could give at least some communities in S. Arl the option.  Not everyone would take the option, but some would.  There is no reasonable boundary or development that is going to make schools in locations such as Jamestown or Discovery's reflect the diversity of APS.  Bussing is the only option.  I'd never force bussing, but just making it an option would help.[/quote]

The problem with offering busing elsewhere is that it tends to backfire for the struggling schools themselves. Because of the extra hurdles involved (applying, managing logistics, social/language/cultural barriers, etc.), when busing is made available it tends to be the relatively more affluent families who take advantage and leave, and the school population that remains is even more disadvantaged for it.[/quote]

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