[AMSS]

Originally Posted by NewJeffCT

I agree that the state should help the poorer communities - I noticed when I moved from Avon (upper middle class) to East Lyme (middle class0 a few years back, Avon got about $1 million from the state, while East Lyme received $7 to $8 million, even though the town populations were pretty close. For about 3,100 students in East Lyme, that's about $1,900/student additional for East Lyme.

That said, how much is too much and when do you start throwing bad money after good?

Also, there was an extensive study I posted on here a while back that said parental involvement is not the key to student success - Asian parents and Hispanic parents are often very similarly heavily involved with their children in school, but Asian students often succeed, while Hispanic students often struggle.

What else would you do? I don't see the issue in spending on at risk kids...even before they get to school. Yes, it sucks when a sixteen year old gets pregnant, but is it "spending bad money" to try and prevent it or assist a kid (and baby) into a better situation? And how bad is bad? My city educated kid is going to college along with several other kids in his class. But many of those kids are poor and their parents wouldn't be able to afford calculators, AP exam fees, athletic uniforms and gear and extracurricular fees (which benefit all when you're keeping teenagers busy), etc. If a fraction of the kids use those opportunities, then I think it's worth it.

I'm not clear on what you mean regarding Asian and Hispanic students. I disagree with this study but if it is true that Asians have some inherent superiority over Hispanics even though they put in the same effort, should be just abandon the Hispanics? This is crazy. Of course I can only do my anecdotal thing, but in my experience the Asian kids were drilled and killed by their parents which has plenty of undesirable consequences.