Closing the schools

Closing the Schools
Module 3- Essay
Mr. Poineau
April 22, 2014

There are a lot of issues in the community that I live in. There are senseless killings among the youth, teen pregnancy, damaged streets, and most importantly the closing of many schools in the area. All of these issues, whether big or small, are very important and they affect my community tremendously. The community issue that is most important to me is the closing of the schools. The closing of schools is an important community issue because I have two children, ages 9 and 10, that are going to be affected by this. On February 25, 2014 ABC news reported that Gary is preparing to close down schools next fall. The closings are due to low enrollment, poor academic performance, and budget problems. The districts options are limited with families leaving the district and limited resources. The school district struggles to improve education for all students as the resources shrink. Improving the resources that we already have will help. Closing the schools will also cause teachers to lose their jobs as well. In recent years, Gary closed schools and laid off teachers. The teachers being laid off will lead to another issue, teachers losing their homes and some becoming financially unstable. I have heard that the final decision is supposed to be left up to the public, but if there are no resources, is there really an option? Parents all over Gary have been attending meetings on how the school system can be improved.
The schools closings are supposed to save the city about $15.2 million in salaries and operating costs. There would be the combining of elementary schools, and a total of two high schools. Combining elementary schools and leaving a total of two high schools left will cause the number of students in classrooms to increase. To many students in the classroom could hinder a students learning ability. The students learning ability could be affect by noise, less individualized focus, and having to many students in the class. The more people in one class, the more interruptions and distractions will be going on. In general, overcrowded classrooms will make it hard for a student to learn. Having an hard time learning could be the cause of the poor academic performances for some students.
Once the decision has been made, I hope there is a system that the district works out, so all of the schools will not be closed at once. Since parents are aware of the closings, helping the students and planning for the school closings should be taking place, so that at our children will not be affected by the closings.