Letter: Wake up! We are failing our children

By: John Aulgur | Morganton News Herald
Published: July 28, 2009

Nebo, NC --

Whether you like the present school board members or not, the facts that were quoted at their June 8 board meeting are astounding. Did you know that in 2007-08 the SAT scores (math and critical reading) from two of Burke County's high schools averaged below 1000? Last year, the state of North Carolina as a whole had an average SAT score of 1017 (math and critical reading).
If we want our children to compete in this country and succeed, the average SAT score must be higher. Whether you believe in standardized testing or not, these tools provide insight into how competitive our children will be with others throughout the country.
Are you aware that out of the 28 schools (excluding Middle College and Charter) in Burke County, 15 did not make adequate yearly progress (AYP)? AYP is the federal government's standard method of judging the progress of how we are educating the children and how well our school system is doing, generally. Several schools within our system have not made AYP for years. This is unacceptable!
Now, many of the readers will point out that when asked about the AYP during my interview for the position of school board member, I answered incorrectly. They are correct, I did misspeak and I do make mistakes. Regardless of what we call the standards, it doesn't change the fact that over half of our schools did not meet the requirement. Retesting until the students do meet the requirement is not the answer.
When using some measurements, why does the dropout rate within the Burke County school system range between 30 and 40 percent? We must find a way to engage our children in their education, by becoming active participants with them. Burke County Schools should be graduating 100 percent of the students. There is no reason that we should not expect this from our children, they are capable!
With 1,000 certified teachers and approximately 14,000 students within our system, the results should be better.
Certainly, the American family has changed over the past 30 to 40 years. We have more single parent households, requiring these parents to maintain a full-time job to support their families. We have more two parent households where each parent must work to keep what they have and pay taxes. Instead of adapting our education system to these changes, we have become static in our approach to our children's education.
Of course, many in the community will say that I am blasting the teachers of Burke County, which I most certainly am not. All of us have a stake in the failure that is taking place within the Burke County Schools, and all of us should share the blame. Our teachers need tools that work.
I encourage all of you to come up with your own ideas and let the school board hear them, something has to change … let's start with ourselves.
That's right; it begins with all of us.

Letter: Wake up! We are failing our children

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