Reading about the school board meeting where some applauded the decision to split our four most struggling schools into two smaller theme schools each, I couldn’t help but think those in the room were suffering from an extreme case of cognitive dissonance. In case you are wondering cognitive dissonance is a psychological term describing the tension that results from having two conflicting thoughts or engaging in behavior that conflicts with one's beliefs. In simple terms, it means you ignore information that conflicts with what you already believe, in an effort to reinforce your beliefs. Sounds crazy right? Well that’s what the school board meeting was.
On one hand we had the school board and I will give them the benefit of the doubt that none are meeting in back rooms with the likes of Jeb Bush, Rick Scott, Gary Chartrand, Eli Broad and a few others discussing how they can destroy public education. No where I think several are filled with hubris, a few are using the position of school board member as a stepping stone up or down in a political career and most are out of their depth, I believe they took the job because helping kids was at least semi-important to them. There they were gathered to help kids but at the same time agreeing to support perhaps the wildest, left field idea to come out of 1701 Prudential Drive in quite some time that has almost no chance of helping kids.
Think about it, if the schools were split into two theme schools occupying the same campus (even if they had one principal overseeing both) they would still need two different administrations, bands, sports teams (The Raines Vikings and the Raines Scandinavians anyone) a doubling up on practically everything but the janitorial staff (are the two schools going to eat together too). Is Eric Smith who I disagree with quite frequently, not a dumb fellow, supposed to go okay with that. Does the school board think he is going to pat them on the back and sat, that’s some real changes you are proposing? To me it sounds like how they have divided my school up into four houses each with its own set of administrators and its own way of doing things or what some of the staff at my school like to call unmitigated disaster 2011. We’re still one school, just now we are headed in four different directions
Even worse however is the fact that if the students at these schools aren’t being successful with the regular academic program, then how are they going to be successful specialized in specialized programs (magic wands, fairy dust and unicorn horns perhaps)? Friends, the problem is not the academic program at the schools, the problem is the kids are not prepared for it.
But despite these blaring, four alarm holes the school board went ahead and voted and seven love I might add, for it. Not one said um, hmm, you know I don’t think we are addressing the real problem here. Not one!
Then there were the community leaders like Mia Jones, Audrey Moran and the NAACP who have either played lips service to the problems facing those schools or embraced one quick fix after another for years. They must have seen the same holes in the plan too. They aren’t very well disguised and they must have known that without addressing the root of the problem the problem will continue (when you have a hole in your roof you don’t try and fix it by giving your car an oil change) but they supported the plan as well.
Their cognitive dissonance came in the form of them drooling at the opportunity to sit on a community board that will have over site of the schools, as if anything they have done up to this point has made a meaningful change, regardless if it helped kids, the reason they were there or not. Furthermore I would not be surprised if some back room deals, you support this and your spot on the board is assured, haven’t already been done, after all this is Jacksonville isn’t it?
Then there was the superintendant whose office came up with the plan. He cannot want to be the guy who was in charge when the state came-a-calling and took the keys to the schools. It’s a good thing he has such a huge paycheck to cushion the blow. He has to know if kids can’t read or do math at grade level, if they don’t have the skills they need to be successful, which includes both a work ethic and discipline, splitting the schools apart has no chance of working. Despite all that and with a straight face I might add went off the menu of choices and suggested the farce outlined above.
Here are these three groups all supposedly interested in the welfare are of children ignoring what’s best for children and that my friends, is text book cognitive dissonance.
I hope Eric Smith doesn’t have a case of cognitive dissonance. That instead he has clarity of purpose and doesn’t give the school system a reprieve with this pie in the sky idea. Not that he hasn’t already tried his best by rewriting the way the state grades schools and giving the district a two year grace period before the tough measures kick in. I can imagine it now; he must have slapped his forehead when he saw that the schools didn’t make enough gains this year and screamed, what do I have to do!
You also have to know the state doesn’t want to take over the schools. They have had their drone roaming the hallways for years attempting to justify their positions and the word walls, data notebooks and complicated lesson plans haven’t made much of a difference. In fact where we say the schools are in danger of being taken over by the state that really isn’t one of the options. Instead it’s either close them or pay somebody else to take them over.
I hate to say it but if these schools don’t improve I hope they are closed (and there is a little cognitive dissonance on my part because I believe the states ranking system to be laughable). It’s painfully obvious that our leaders don’t know what they are doing and the citizens who continue to elect the same group of names over and over don’t too. Let’s stop pretending like we do. Let’s end our collective cognitive dissonance.
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