Private schools vs. public schools

I will start with what I understand from the readings, the definition of public schools and what Hess’ perspective is on public schools. According to Hess, “public schools have a commitment to prepare students to be productive member of a social order, aware of society responsibilities, and prove an appropriate placement for each student.” Okay, so this is a pretty broad definition. I did like what Hess said a public school is not……“not accountable to the government, there is no voting public and as for vouchers, that raised a whole other issue.” Another purpose of the public school (Hess) is provide the academic learning for students to serve the needs of the individual and the state. Ah - here comes the government. Then it said on page 158 that “the citizens who lack in education don’t contribute to society and drain the public resources.” This to me meant that if we do not educate our students to become working citizen of our communities then they will be on welfare and food stamps.
Now the “who” on providing this wonderful public service. Public service is defined as a service performed for the benefit of the public. (dictionary.com) I would love to think that all of our schools and teachers have the benefit of the public (students) in their best interest. I believe that most teachers start off this way. They are right our of college and they can’t wait to make a difference in a child’s life. Then they start that first job and after a couple of years there is more and more restrictions in their teaching, students are not prepared to learn (no breakfast, home life is bad, etc.) and then the teacher’s are held accountable for that year end test so they make sure that the students know everything on that test by the end of year. Whew! Sometimes I think we are being picky on the “who” and should be asking, “Are they making a difference?” You hear about these wonderful schools that are helping children read and writing but they don’t have the money to succeed so they go under. We should be focusing on whomever is calling themselves a public school and are they providing the service that the students deserve and are coming there for. This is why charter schools open in areas where the public school systems are not doing very well, for example, Lorain and Cleveland. Then the public schools say that the charter schools are stealing their students and their money. Well, provide the great education and the students would not leave. We all know there is much more to this…..if the school system had the money, resources, etc. then maybe they would not be in this predicament. I can’t help going back to the teachers. If the Lorain and Cleveland School Systems (not personal - just all I know) had all great teachers that wanted to truly make a difference in the children’s lives that they are providing the service to, would we have all of these problems still? Sometimes I think that some of the teachers are trying 100% and some are floating through. Does this make a difference? I am not sure.
Mary’s presentation about Catholic schools hit home for me. I have been asking the question of what has happened in the last ten to fifteen years to families, homes, schools, and children that has made our society so different as it was when I went to school. I realized one aspect (yes, I realize that there are numerous) that I feel the general public has participated less in is religion. Mary mentioned that in 1965 85% attended a Catholic School and currently 49% attend. I know we discuss money issues in sending a child to a Catholic School but I think that is just recently with the economic times. I believe that our religious beliefs have dwindled and it is not as important that your children receive this in addition to education. I believe that Mary called this a “crisis of faith”.