OPINION: Student Speaks Out Against 'Secret Flaws' Of Summit Public Schools

Hello fellow concerned residents of Summit,

I am a student currently enrolled in the Summit public school system, and I just wanted to call some attention to some issues in the system, as well as some possible solutions. Now, as some of you may remember, a Summit high school student once wrote on this forum a mean-spirited, snarky column, where he pointed out all the flaws in the education system and bashed all of our educators. I am not here to do that. I am here to address some issues I have noticed in the system and provide plausible solutions. Hopefully, others in the community will voice their ideas and solutions as well.

Okay—

So I just want to start by addressing the curriculum for a few of our major courses, specifically at Summit High School. For starters, the History and English curriculums have one major flaw…the Holocaust. Granted, the Holocaust is a very important event from the past that we need to remember and learn from. However, it is not the only genocide in existence. I think I speak for all of my fellow students when I say, I understood the morality (or lack of morality), logistics and details of the Holocaust after learning about it in 8th grade and Freshman year English.

 The recap of it for the next three years proved to be incredibly redundant. Perhaps it would behoove everyone, teachers and students, if new genocides were written into the curriculum. For instance, we could learn about other past genocides such as: Darfur, Rwanda in the early 90’s, Bosnia in the early 90’s, not to mention the atrocities committed by Stalin against his own people (Somehow Hitler seemed to overshadow this even though Stalin killed just as many, if not more people). 

We could even learn about current genocides such as the one in the Central African Republic. Plus, it doesn’t have to stop there; we could also include modern-day non-genocidal atrocities such as organ trafficking and sex slave trafficking (which, by the way, is going on right here in the states). Now, some teachers and administrators might rebuttal and say that re-writing an entire curriculum is too time consuming and intricate. Fortunately, teachers have certain days set aside (where students have half days) to participate in professional workshops. Not to mention, the entire summer off (I know nobody likes to work on their break, but if you put in just a little bit every day, the course would be revised by September). 

On a separate note, in the Science department, there is a serious problem with the sequential order of courses and the curriculum of each of these courses. My two main points, that I believe many students also agree with are: 

#1. We shouldn’t be taking physics as freshmen and Environmental Science as seniors, it should be the other way around. 

#2. The courses, in all subdivisions of science, are too broad like a shotgun effect. They should be more specific and there should be more of an emphasis on real world application in the learning process. 

I could go on about the science department, but I’m going to leave it at that. Now, of course, none if this is the fault of the teachers. They get bullied enough as it is by the board and the governor. Someone just needs to make a change. Whether that change starts with the administration or the subject department heads, I don’t know.

Another problem with the Summit Public Schools is the management of the budget. Recently, multiple expensive televisions have popped up in the SHS hallways and cafeteria. These TV’s are expensive pieces of equipment usually used for broadcasting media; this excited me because I thought the morning announcements would now be done via broadcast. 

Unfortunately, the majority of these TV’s are used for is displaying a slideshow on the Summit Public Schools website. To be fair, these were probably obtained through a grant rather than purchased by the school with our budget. However, when I go to lunch and find that there is barely any decent food left in 3rd lunch or that there aren’t enough seats at the lunch table, I have to wonder where all of our money is going. 

When my teacher gets a brand new smart board and only uses it twice in a semester, but my textbook is falling apart and there isn’t a pencil sharpener in sight, yet again I wonder where all of this money is going. This question is probably better fit for our superintendent Dr.Parker, because I have no clue.

Back to the topic of education itself, I find the lack of information that I learn at SHS rather disappointing. You’d think with such wonderful teachers, such high taxes and such a passionate, intelligent student body that we’d learn something useful. In my personal opinion, education should be based around two things: interest and practicality. Ideally, the material should be both interesting and practical, but it’s usually only one of those things. However, I have found that at Summit High School it is neither of those things. 

I asked one of my teachers the other day, “How is this relevant to a career path or our lives?” the teacher responded, “It isn’t. Honestly, the only people who really need to know this are teachers who teach it”. Which begs the question why we wasted all that time learning it. It’s actually very sad that we’re graduating high school not knowing: How to balance a check book, write a proper resume, deliver a proper job interview, express our thoughts in a clear and concise manor or even utilize soft skills like working in teams or being proactive rather than reactive. But what we do graduate with is: A very thorough understanding of the Holocaust, how to solve math problems that aren’t applicable to the real world, the absolute basics of physics and a thorough understanding of texts from ‘the cannon’. 

I for one can’t wait to apply for a job as a Holocaust expert, amateur physicist, math junkie who also happens to be able to recite Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. As I said before, this is no fault of the teachers, there just needs to be a change. Everybody recognizes it, but nobody will do anything about it. Every student thinks, “I just have to get through all this, then I’m done”. But it doesn’t have to be this way. It can be made better for future students at SHS.

As if this madness wasn’t enough, there’s also the elephant in the room that is college. We are fortunate enough to have a guidance department at SHS who understands the college process. My only criticism would be that students be given all the information about the application process much sooner, but besides that, they are quite skilled. Which makes me wonder why we needed to put a college specialist on the payroll too. She is a very organized, informed woman but we simply don’t need more people. I just don’t get it, what’s wrong with the guidance counselors that we already have, isn’t that their job? This even goes back to what I was saying about budget. I read somewhere that we had to cut our budget this year, but somehow it feels like we’re spending way more money than last year. Anyway, I digress, the college process. 

To all the parents reading this, college is nothing like what it was when you were younger. None of you truly know the pressure that rests on the shoulders of your kid. This is not meant to insult any of you, it’s simply a fact. How could you know anyway? Unless you walked around in their shoes for a day, you wouldn’t. But I am glad to see parents, including mine, taking such an active role in helping their kids with the college application process, and for that I thank you. 

The pressure though is just unfathomable. Colleges want to see outstanding grades, a killer personality, participation in many extracurricular activities, an active social life, interest in their school, something that makes you stand out and so much more. Then your kid gets to college and they don’t know what they want to do. But don’t get mad at them, it’s not their fault. Maybe if the high school implemented some kind of career choice/soft skills class, this wouldn’t be an issue. Then after spending a quarter of a million dollars on an education, your kid can’t find a job, can’t utilize any soft skills and can’t understand where it all went wrong. Of course, this is the worst-case scenario.

 I don’t mean to scare you, I’m sure your kids will be just fine. But my point is, wouldn’t you rather your kid be taught these skills and discover a few potential majors in high school rather than in college, not to mention a quarter of a million dollars later. Think on it, and if you agree, act on it. Because change starts with you! Not the Board of Education, who mysteriously ousted one of the most beloved administrators. Nor does it start with the teachers, who just want to keep their jobs and do them well in a time when Gov. Christie is treating them so poorly. It starts with you! So do something to change the curriculum, to change the budget, to change the school, to change your kid’s future.

To change our future. Because we’re bright, we’re passionate, we’re skilled, we’re ambitious and we just want to succeed in a world where employment and education have never been more competitive. We want to accomplish great things, and we can... all it takes is a few small changes.

Thank you for taking the time to hear my message about education and I hope it has helped you formulate your own opinion as well. Some of you may agree with me, and others (the crazy summit moms, you know who I’m talking about…) may blatantly oppose everything I say, but it doesn’t matter…this is my personal opinion and I hope you walk away from this more informed and with your own stance on the matter.

All the best, 

A Concerned Student