Comments on: A Different Commuter Crisis

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By: Does the Size of a School Matter? - Room for Debate Blog - NYTimes.com

Does the Size of a School Matter? - Room for Debate Blog - NYTimes.com — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:15:52 +0000

[...] these schools would force students to commute long distances, often resulting in lower attendance, which in turn leads to higher dropout rates. In Chicago, the closing of many neighborhood schools [...]

By: Christine Rowland

Christine Rowland — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 20:57:36 +0000

Gideon - you make an excellent point. How about using the yellow bus to help students reach schools in more affluent and integrated neighborhoods? The students (admittedly a small sample) who used the yellow bus would have averaged a commute of 40 minutes each had they taken public transport. Students with that length of commute by public transport averaged a considerably poorer attendance record than those using the yellow bus.

By: jacob

jacob — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 17:41:55 +0000

Sample fail: I developed a simple research project that began by sorting the addresses of our high-needs (self-contained) special needs students by zip code.

By: Gideon

Gideon — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:41:13 +0000

Looks like the pendulum is swinging again towards neighborhood schools. All thing being equal, of course parents would prefer a local schools, but let’s not forget how much our neighborhoods are segregated by race and class: If we promote neighborhood schools we’re going to end up with more segregated schools, many with highly concentrated poverty, which will affect learning in those schools for the worse. These schools tend to end up with least experienced teachers and have high teacher turnover, while the parents of schools in affluent neighborhoods pony up thousands of dollars for extra staff and resources.

By: Michael M.

Michael M. — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:38:20 +0000

CR,

Thanks again.

By: Christine Rowland

Christine Rowland — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:46:53 +0000

Update on the yellow bus - an in-house authority tells me that an involved parent can usually get yellow bus service with presentation of a doctors note.

By: Christine Rowland

Christine Rowland — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:45:55 +0000

Leonie - the yellow bus is reserved for those students who are considered unable to get to school alone. I have a feeling that many have one on one paraprofessionals in school. It does make you think though - would the yellow bus be helpful for more students? And I’m with you on further study - it definitely needs to be done.

Michael - I deliberately chose the most at-risk group of students for this study - while there may be a relationship for some other high need groups I doubt that it would hold for more motivated higher achieving students. These are students who have often experienced school as a frustrating place that they do not equate with learning and success. I’ve already done a lot of work on a follow up piece on the relationship between commute, attendance and progress in the form of credit accumulation. Everything is magnified there, but I’m checking several factors in more depth before I begin to write.

The 45 minute breakout was the first construct I used. It was just to apply a small test (since 198 students is a very time-consuming proposition) that would give me a sense of whether my hunch was correct or not. At the end of the day it was virtually identical to the 30 - 44 minute group. Additionally - the 10469 zip code was not the best measure of living close to the school although it was most definitely the simplest to work with for that initial test. I now have a theory about why this was (the similarity in attendance of the 30+ and 45+ groups) - there’s a special situation that applies to a sub-set of the group as a whole that leads them to higher attendance and achievement - involvement in a work-study program or internship. I’m still looking into this and will include it next time around.

By: Michael M.

Michael M. — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 02:21:27 +0000

Fantastic. This research illuminates many current topics, including the better intergration of special needs students into gen ed schools.

It also stands in contrast to the anecdotal testimony of parents willing to schlep their kids all over town to get to a school of their choice, charter or non. The simple truth is it’s easier to get to school in your own neighborhood, and it’s my belief that most parents would prefer a quality local school. All other things equal, who wouldn’t?

I’d be curious to see the 45+ minute group broken out in the table, given that group is already mentioned in the text as having 67.6% attendance, and the 30+ minute group is big.

By: leonie haimson

leonie haimson — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:23:19 +0000

This is brilliant work and I wish someone at the Gates foundation were listening. Attendance is also highly correlated with academic progress and graduation so it is critical. To force our neediest students to commute long distances to school is really undermining their chances to succeed. Question: who gets yellow buses and why?

By: Arthur Goldstein

Arthur Goldstein — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:37:43 +0000

I couldn’t agree more. I’ve often had students who didn’t show up simply because they lived so far away. It’s particularly troublesome in a school like mine that has asked kids to show up as early as 7 AM. The disappearance of the neighborhood school is short-sighted and destructive to neighborhoods. No wonder so many people against it. It’s too bad those in a position to help are so determined not to listen.