Low-Achieving School

The article I read was about Vallejo High School in Solano County. The article is talks about many of the safety issues in this school. Teachers often complain about how students reek of the scent of marijuana but end up just having to be sent back to class when their sent away. This in turn also shows another issue with the school; lack of discipline. Some teachers have become very passive about the school and some have stated “I come for my paycheck”. The superintendent even implemented a district-wide disciplinary practice but that didn’t turn out well due to administrators not holding students responsible for their actions. Violence has become uproar at the school with over a hundred calls to the Vallejo Police Department for sixty assaults or thefts; four for weapons incidents, including shots fired near the campus. Seven other calls were for threats by a student to a teacher or administrator; and 36 were for other miscellaneous incidents. The faculty is trying to better the school but due to lack of funds, it proves to be a drawback to them. Though there are benefits such as more than 80% of the students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, it really says something when 80% of the teachers don’t even live in Vallejo.

One similarity from this article and the book we are currently reading in class is the concept of lack of funds for the school. Lack of funds contributes to why a school may not function as well as other schools. Without the proper funding, schools cannot provide what’s necessary for the staff and students of the school. As seen in the book, many schools have become rundown or lack the proper supplies for their school. In Vallejo High School, funds are required to implement the proper precautions for the school such as officers to help enforce the rules and take control of hostile situations. The school also lacks counselors and social workers to help the students. This in turn contributes to students lashing out and basically becoming a juvenile going nowhere fast.

Another concept found is violence. In the school, East Side High found in the book, violence is a big problem for them. Students were so violent and always lashing out that one principal took the liberty of carrying a bullhorn and a bat to help better his school. In Vallejo, the school is constantly calling police to help with all the violence and problems the come up during a school day. The school even used to have police officers on sight for such instances but due to drawbacks in funding, they couldn’t afford to continue with this solution. Violence is rampant in both the article and the book.

Lastly, another concept is the lack of discipline of the school. In many instances in the book, teachers and staff lack the discipline to punish their students when they act out. Students often become violent of rambunctious then eventually dropping out (or going to a juvenile facility) and being given up by education. Without the proper discipline, the students will never be able to better themselves or even better their education.

http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_23255194/grand-jury-report-raises-concerns-about-vallejo-high