Extra-Days of School in July! Thinking of Opting Out! Good! There is lots of education legislation to opt out of!

Anther snow or "cold" day in SE Michigan?

This is, again, for many who grew up here something quite new in public education.

There is lots new in public education.

Here is my post from just after New Year's where I tried to suggest the pattern of school closings is revelatory about public education generally:
 1) public education is an interconnected system and 2) to see BHSD's future -- both financially and and in snow days closures  -- we can look to Wayne Westland.http://bloomfield-mi.patch.com/groups/ken-jacksons-blog/p/the-snow-ball-effect-public-education-conn...

If you don't like the pattern of snow cancellations you REALLY, REALLY won't like the pattern of school closures (I mean school closures as in there is no more school -- ever). Just as Wayne Westland cancels for a snow day 8 hours before BHSD, it will close for good a proportionate amount of time before BHSD closes, having been saddled with the debt of neighboring Districts on the verge of collapse.

Did you hear the state is selling Pontiac Public Schools to Florida? (more on that to come)

This "cold" day, though, let me try to quickly turn the attention to the next pressing parental question: how many snow days do we have left before the kids have to make up days in June or July when it is sunny and 80+ and many are planning vacations, etc?

Indeed, next Monday and Tuesday look to be colder than today so you can guess what is coming.

We have 6 days total, already having used 3. We will probably use 2 more next week. For last year, the Governor signed legislation the previous year -- uncontroversial, supported fully by both parties -- that Districts could make up days in terms of minutes. In short, you could add minutes to a day, rather than days themselves, and thus avoid screwing up summer schedules (or excessive heat).

He will need to sign similar legislation this year as, I think, he was imagining most Districts gone ("unbundled") by now or fully on line when he only signed 1 year legislation on the adding minutes business.

At any rate, there is some illuminating facts here is we talk in real, not virtual, terms.

The average BHSD parent sees the arbitrary nature of the days and hours thing and says to herself or himself, "So what? I've got plane tickets. My kid is coming with me. Not sitting an extra two days for more pizza parties. What are 'they' gonna do? Flunk him?"

Even those more obedient by nature (like me:) and academically centered realize an extra day or two under those conditions aren't terribly meaningful to my child's education.

That is simply a law from Lansing I will break, driven by simple-minded political ideology ("Our kids are lazy! If they don't go to school 180 days the Chinese will eat us! In fact, they should go through the summer so the Brazilians won't eat us, too"). Arrest me. Send Andy Dillon and the state troopers to the house.

 If my Superintendent and teachers, however, convince me there really is something more meaningful to be had by making up some extra days, I will reconsider.

One imagines this is how it was done in the days of 1 room school houses where the local community decided with the teachers what did and did not make sense. Tea-party heaven, I would think.

At some point, however, we gave this authority -- and then some -- to micro-manage schools over to term limited Representatives from Ada, Michigan and elsewhere.

I would urge parents to consider the "opt-out" mentality many are now pondering in relation to extra days in July  to all non-sensical school missives from education reformers who want to eliminate local control. You have the power , as parents, to opt out of excessive standardized tests, to opt-out of punitive and silly teacher evaluation systems that force your kids' teachers to teach to the test to even be considered for a limited pay raise of any kind (unlikely), and to opt-out of defunding school systems entirely.

These are, in large part, your schools. If you opt-out of idiotic political behavior, the laws crumble or change for you. And they do so rather quickly.

So go talk to Mr. McCready at Bloomfield Library on Monday. he still impresses me as a very decent and civil guy and does try to listen. He is a parent. Ask him first if he thinks our District should continue. That needs to be said by an elected official if you want the District to continue.

But do check first if he has cancelled again, too, from Lansing because of cold weather.