Saddleback Valley District elementary schools going downhill? (Vista, Lake Forest: home, school districts)

[aliciapeet]

Three more elementary schools closed this past week in Saddleback District...what is the future of our elementary schools here..will there be upward of 35kids/teacher? How can our children possibly get a decent education in a public school in middle/upper class neighbhorhoods compared to those kids now going to private schools? I used to think public schools were very good but now am reconsidering for my daughter as California is already low in education and now our district is making so many changes...I don't want my child paying the price for it. Does anyone else feel like public schools are just looking worse and worse--even the so called 9-10 rated ones?

[CAVA1990]

Wow, back to the future. Now you know what it was like going to school around there in the 60s and 70s.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by aliciapeet

Does anyone else feel like public schools are just looking worse and worse--even the so called 9-10 rated ones?

Yes, of course but that is the reality of today's economics and like what was mentioned above, the days of 20-22 kids per class were an anomaly. Look at your own class pictures from the 60s, 70, and 80s - 30+ kids. Plus there is less money for extracurricular stuff like clubs and sports.

Also, even though there may be 30 kids in a 9 or 10 school, your kids are attending school with peers of a 9 or 10 academic caliber. That's why those schools are good, not because the teachers are better but because those kids' parents are educated and smart (and pass those genes on to their kids) and those kids speak English as a first language.

How bad would it have to get a 9 or 10 government (public) school to make going to a private school worth it?

[Fontucky]

Was one of them Trabuco Canyon?

[aliciapeet]

Yes the three that closed are Aliso elementary, Linda Vista, and Trabuco Canyon. There were definitely larger class sizes when I was growing up BUT there were more resources available to deal with the disparities a class may have had..for example non english speakers were taken out of the classroom during instructional time to a different class with a specialized teacher and then were allowed back in during group activites etc...everyone is just lumped all in one class with ONE teacher to deal with all the disparities. With that you have kids who can fall through the cracks..and the reason why a school may have a high rating is b/c just what was said..educated parents who are basically finding that they need to teach their child at home what they probably lacked learning in school--this I know first hand from MANY parents who have told me that even in other top rated school districts their kids are really not learning/being challenged because the teacher focuses on the kids with the most needs and so it falls on the parents to teach the children on their own. THAT is a huge concern for me. I realize that I have to stay heavily involved in my child's education regardless of public or private...however, I would hope that it would be supplemental to what she is learning in school vs. most of her learning coming from home.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by aliciapeet

Three more elementary schools closed this past week in Saddleback District...what is the future of our elementary schools here..will there be upward of 35kids/teacher? How can our children possibly get a decent education in a public school in middle/upper class neighbhorhoods compared to those kids now going to private schools? I used to think public schools were very good but now am reconsidering for my daughter as California is already low in education and now our district is making so many changes...I don't want my child paying the price for it. Does anyone else feel like public schools are just looking worse and worse--even the so called 9-10 rated ones?

Where are you going with this? Do you need to make a decision as to move to CA or not? Or a decision as to Saddleback or another district? Public vs private?

[aliciapeet]

Unfortunately, I am not in the position to move out of CA, otherwise I might look into it, but I have considered moving to other school districts only to be told that the same issues are arising within their schools as well, and now I am looking at private schools..which is very new territory for me as I've just assumed public schools were the way to go my whole life...I'm dealing with very mixed emotions as a result of all these changes and just never assumed I would be in this position. One thing my husband mentioned is that it seems to him that the students of today are no longer in need of keeping up with their peers in the US...but rather globally as he seems to think that education abroad is surpassing the public schooling currently available in the US...all things which I am just pondering.

[Fontucky]

As of 6 May all three schools were still under consideration, according to this article:
Aliso, Trabuco and Linda Vista Elementary Schools Deemed

[aliciapeet]

I personally know a parent of a child attending one of the closing schools who has been in tears over hearing the news at the board/town meeting on Wednesday:
Adios, Aliso Elementary - Lake Forest, CA Patch
I was told that Trabuco Canyon was closing by the parent but have not seen it in writing like Aliso...

[aliciapeet]

Also nothing about Linda Vista has been written up yet either...on the SVSUD website they have addresses for reassigning schools according to addresses for the Aliso students.