Where is the focus on true education? Or is it based on the fact that the schools are more interested in getting money for new facilities and sports teams? Why isn't the school board focusing on correcting the educational issues of the day rather than socially promoting those children who have not kept up with the standards?Why is it that the local schools despite all of the money that is poured into those schools, not really improved. I can recall a day when one taking the SAT actually had to know something. After that time period, the powers that be turned around and watered down the SAT and also made lower scores more acceptable. Isn't the county school system failing the kids of this county, state and nation when many of them get out of school and are not able to be sufficiently employed at something above low wage employment.
Where is the focus on true education? Or is it based on the fact that the schools are more interested in getting money for new facilities and sports teams? Why isn't the school board focusing on correcting the educational issues of the day rather than socially promoting those children who have not kept up with the standards?
Let's ask another question? Why is it that Bradie Shrum Elementary in Salem, Indiana over the last ten years has ranked as a B or C level grade school by the State of Indiana all the while being a relatively decent funded school. Same goes for the other two Salem schools. Yet we've never seen a state ranking in the A ranking in many years out of the Bradie Shrum Elementary school.
Yet this school took federal money to build a safe room for the kids all the while not having computer systems and educational supplies up to standards. Not to mention the systemic nonsense of telling the public that they don't have proper computer equipment that works for the ISTEP tests. All the while the Salem schools continue to be well funded spending just below 10k per student.
While having a glut of administrators making quality salaries along all kinds of administrative personnel whose main job seems to be inefficient and uncaring about doing their job.
Unfortunately, incompetence seems these days to be a desired quality in America as well as right here at home in Salem, Indiana. Used to be that incompetence would get you fired from a job or employment with most companies but in the public sphere in Salem, Indiana and Washington County you end up getting promoted to being involved in administration or governmental bodies.
The performance of the Salem Community Schools according to state standards has been on the downfall for many years as the rankings that the school system achieves include a couple of D grades at Salem Middle School and Salem High School. Add in the managerial and bureaucratic incompetence of the top personnel in the school system and its no wonder why the quality of living and life in Salem, Indiana has been so low for so long and its become perfectly acceptable.
All the while a school principal looks at a group of parents and says that its more important that kids get along and relate with their world than getting quality grades and learning experiences. What? What kind of principal says that sort of thing when the state sits there and grades schools on an A-F basis and he's not worried about the kids lacking the proper educational tools for success. Rather being socially promoted or having everyone getting along having toga parties and singing Kumbaya?
Is that the type of educational environment that is being promoted at the Salem Community Schools? Where we're more worried that kids all get along and its a social experiment rather than teaching them to be intelligent and productive future citizens in a grown up world with a myriad of challenges and problems that will need to be solved in the future.
What kind of community and school system tells parents at a ceremony that the principal is more worried about social issues or socialization issues rather than pure knowledge and grades that need to be achieved as well as skills that need to be mastered for future success.
What kind of school system devalues education and skill learning to the children to the point that they will be automatically at a disadvantage when they enter the workforce, post secondary education/training or any 4 year college? Instead of spending time on making sure everyone gets along rather than skills and development the Salem schools are failing at doing their primary job which is education and the development of the next generation.
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