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DR. LAWRENCE A. BAINES
The article
Public School as Wasteland said
Over the past decade, some demographic and sociological trends have
become apparent that could significantly exacerbate the problems of the
already overburdened, underfunded public schools — changes that
could
transform them into holding tanks for the academically suspect, the
socially outcast, or for students whose parents cannot afford to enroll
them anywhere else.
Among the most damaging developments are these:
1) the increasing costs of running a public institution that attempts to
remediate social disadvantage while simultaneously providing children
with access to emerging technologies,
2) the shrinking corporate tax base,
3) an aging population dependent on fixed incomes,
4) the proliferation of litigation against schools,
5) the changing nature of the neighborhood school,
6) the dismal view of schools held by much of the public, and 7) current
educational reforms that emphasize minimal competencies.
At the same time that these trends have undermined the ability of the
public school to serve its constituencies well, private schools (often
under the guise of charter schools, vouchers, and other initiatives)
have become increasingly viable and attractive. Already, about one-half
(Golay 1997) to two-thirds (Stutz 1997) of parents would send their
children to private schools if they could afford to do so. Although
private school enrollments have hovered between 10-15% of the student
population for the past thirty-five years (Archer 1996), the flight from
public schools over the next decade may likely expand their numbers to
unprecedented heights. The danger is that if nothing is done to
counteract the downward spiral of the public schools, these most
democratic of institutions may eventually become obsolete.
Lawrence A. Baines, Ph.D. was coauthor of this paper and
is Associate Dean for Graduate Studies,
Judith Herb College of Education,
University of Toledo. He is a member of
The Author's Guild, the
International Reading Association (IRA),
National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE),
National Conference on Research in Language and Literacy (NCRLL), and
the World Future Society.
Lawrence coedited
How to Get a Life, Vol. 1: Empowering Wisdom for the Heart and
Soul,
How to Get a Life, Vol. 2: Empowering Wisdom from Thinkers and
Writers,
Going Bohemian: Activities That Engage Adolescents in the Art of
Writing
Well, and
Language Study in Middle School, High School, and Beyond: Views on
Enhancing the Study of Language,
and coauthored
Teaching Adolescents to Write: The Unsubtle Art of Naked
Teaching and
the innovative Amazon downloads
"We Want to See The Teacher" - Constructivism and the Rage Against
Expertise and
Celebrating mediocrity? How schools shortchange gifted
students.
Read the
full list of his publications!
He earned his B.S. in English Education at the University of Texas
at Austin in 1978, his Masters Degree in Computer Information Systems at
the University of North Texas in 1984, and his Ph.D. in English
Education at the University of Texas at Austin in 1993.
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