On Monday, March 25, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Windham County's independent schools will open their doors to welcome the public and showcase their unique programs.
Independent schools are an important complement to our public schools. While Vermont boasts some of the best educational statistics in the U.S., almost 10 percent of our students do not graduate from high school.
Why?
Our public schools do a tremendous, commendable job working to serve all children, but not every child is best served by his or her assigned public school.
We need to prepare our students to thrive and become strong leaders in a rapidly changing world, one that demands new skills and new ways of thinking.
Freed from the restrictive state and federal mandates that often force public school teachers to “teach to the test,” independent schools are able to develop unique programs tailored to a specific mission and to the interests and needs of individual students.
Each independent school acts as a lab for a different approach to learning and, in doing so, it provides ideas and innovations that can encourage other teachers and schools to work more effectively or to pursue new programs. A wealth of research demonstrates that the school environment has a strong influence on student success.
We all want every child to find success in school and in life, and we all want to do so in a cost-effective way. But there is no one-size-fits-all program that can adequately work for every child.
Our public schools work hard to meet their directive to serve all students, often at great expense of both time and money - our per-pupil spending in Vermont is among the highest in the U.S., averaging well over $16,000 per child annually.
Asking our public schools to try to serve every child well can be a drain on resources and result in disgruntled parents, unhappy children, and educators pulled in too many directions.
Public schools have an important role in offering a uniform program that can work for many students. Independent schools can offer a more diverse curriculum with more varied and personalized learning experiences.
We invite parents, students, educators, and others to see their classrooms in action and to learn more about the important role these schools play for our children and community.