It seems like just a few days ago I was at Newton County Elementary School taking photos young students cheering on their graduating seniors. Now, they tell me summer is over, and the kids are already heading back to start a new school year. Summer break always seemed to fly by when I was in school, but this year seems to be going even faster than I remember. Did July get cancelled?
While it seems early, I do dearly love the start of a new school year. I love seeing the excitement and wonder on some students’ faces and the resigned defeat on the faces of others. I could spend hours pouring over the new bulletin boards, painstakingly designed and cut from construction paper, a physical manifestation of teachers’ passion for their craft.
As much as I geek out over education, it might surprise some to know I was not a good student. I acted out and rebelled in just about any way I could, spending more time in my school’s in-house suspension room than I did in my regular classroom, if I showed up at all.
I didn’t have a problem with the education part of school. That made sense to me. The point of conflict, for me, stemmed from an incident in 4th grade that impressed upon me how ineffective bureaucracy had made my school’s punitive resources.
One day in November, I simply didn’t want to go be at school. So, with home being only a mile away, I simply got up, left the building and walked home. I made it about halfway before our local police chief, Chief Waller, picked me up and returned me to the school building.
I’ll be honest, I tuned out the hour or so of the principal discussing the reasons we obey adults or whatever, but the end result was me being sent home on a 3-day suspension. I wanted a day off, and they gave me three. Correct me if I’m wrong, but punishment isn’t supposed to be giving someone what they wanted, right?
I tell that story not to encourage acting up in school, but to point out the handicap our teachers and administrators deal with on a daily basis. Covering schools for the paper here, in Greenville and Alabama, I’ve learned a lot about just how limited our schools are in what they can do, and more importantly, how hard teachers and school staff fight to give their students the best education possible.
For instance, teacher pay in Mississippi is one of the lowest in the nation. While teaching requires at least 4-year degree, the salary for a new teacher is not enough to cover the student loan debt that comes with the education;
School funding is a joke. The Mississippi legislature adopted the Mississippi Adequate Education Program in the late 90’s as a formula to calculate how much money to appropriate for public schools. Since then, they’ve only appropriated the full amount once or twice. Schools work with approximately 80-percent of the money they need, missing out on over $2 billion that state politicians decided they didn’t need;
Tests are everything. Students and parents may get upset about getting a B instead of an A, but for teachers and school administrators, a bad grade on a state test carries more extreme consequences. Low performing schools tend to miss out on additional funding opportunities, resource allocations and can even be taken over by the state, which is notorious for its slash-and-burn tactics that take years to recover from.
I don’t know where the summer went. If I find it, I’ll let you know. But, in the meantime, try not to do what I did in school. Be nice to your teachers, study hard and buy in to that dream of reaching the impossible. Remember, your teachers are there because they want to help you succeed. Use that and make them, your families and your community proud.
Welcome back, students! Have a great year!
Thomas is the managing editor of the Newton County Appeal. He can be reached at thoward@newtoncountyappeal.com
