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Health & Fitness

Moral Imperative Requires We Help Schools

Half of the factors that influence student learning are outside the control of schools.  Those factors impact minority and low-income students far more than they do other students.  Schools can’t be expected to resolve those problems alone.  Society has a moral imperative to help.  Those factors are:

• Changing schools frequently;

• Low birth weight;

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• Suffering from environmental damage from hazardous materials;

• Suffering from hunger and poor nutrition;

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• Not being talked to or read to as infants;

• Watching too much TV;

• Not having two parents at home;

• Suffering losses in achievement during the summer.

 

This is not just a matter of underfunding our most needy schools, which we have already proven is being done.  This is a matter of ignoring a moral imperative to help others who can’t help themselves, yet.  Many critics of American education cite the superior successes of European schools, while forgetting that those countries have addressed the moral imperative and set out to help their most vulnerable populations.  We need to do the same.

 

Again, may I be so bold as to suggest some courses of action that will require all sides to be willing to change. 

• Legislators, educators, and citizens needs to address the health, nutritional, and environmental needs of vulnerable populations, if we expect them to be able to perform better in school.  Those of us with resources need to be willing to share more of those resources with the state, to address these problems.  It is in the best interest of all parties to have well nourished, well educated, fully employed general populations. 

• Legislators & educators need to develop and fund programs that target vulnerable student & parent populations; such as the Student Improvement Grant Schools or SIG Schools, that have been so successful in Washington state.  Allocate and target reliable funding streams to insure that these targeted services can be delivered to all vulnerable populations.  It has worked at Rogers H. S. in Spokane, at Sunnyside H. S. & Grandview Middle School & Wapato Middle School, at Soap Lake Middle School and High School, at Washington Middle School & Adams Elem (Yakima) and other places around the state.  We have proven it can be done.  We must now make it part of basic education. 

 

It will take more money than we are willing to spend right now.  But, it’s a moral imperative that it be done.  

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