05-27-2013, 04:43 AM
Because Hawaii got a waiver for NCLB the whole option of transferring from a school that didn't make AYP to one that is making AYP is now off the table. Existing school choice transfers will be honored for students through the highest grade offered at their current school but no new ones are being awarded. No one knows exactly what the other impacts of the waiver are going to be, but all the schools with extended school days and afternoon tutoring to pull HSA scores up will no longer offer those services. AYP was based on only one measurement, HSA test scores, so it isn't a very good way to measure the quality of education offered at a given school.
I teach in the middle school at Connections in Hilo, and we have students from as far as Lapahoehoe, Waimea, Ka'u and Kalapana. There are students at other Charter schools who travel as far, most Charters have buses the run from centralized pick up points, Connections has one in Kea'au, and I see the Kua O Ka La bus in HPP, HAAS draws mostly from lower Puna. Some parents who live in Puna and work in Hilo find it easier to have their kids go to a DOE or Charter school in Hilo, than in Puna. Connections is still in session for two more weeks although we are winding down, we always end up with a few kids whose parents go ahead and transfer them in the last few weeks to ensure their place for next year. They join us for the fun part of the end of the year, but do get to know their future classmates before summer.
Each Public Charter school is different and has a different feel, we are all drastically underfunded compared to DOE schools (-$6000 per pupil next year compared to +$14,000 for DOE) but also don't have a bloated administrative machine to feed either. Next year we don't have a bloated anything, but I am really proud of the teaching and learning that goes on in our school. The Charter movement in Hawaii is in large part a reaction to the large scale of the DOE schools. Some kids just do better in a middle school with 88 students compared to 2000, so if small class size and personal attention is important to you, then check out the Charters.
Like all rural schools, sports is a big deal at both Pahoa and Keaau, if your child is good at sports and will thrive in a large school with lots of different activities and options, then Keaau would probably be a good choice. Pahoa gets a bad rap often, but I have a friend whose blond haired/blue eyed daughter went all through Pahoa schools and graduated top of her class and got a free ride academic scholarship to the University of Oregon where she graduated with honors and a 4.0 GPA, so motivated students can get a good education at Pahoa too. What kind of experience students from the mainland have in Hawaii schools seems to be highly individual, and has more to do with the background and personality of each child than the school they go to. Some kids fit in right away and make an easy transition, and others have a tougher time in the same school. You know your child best, now you just have to figure out the lay of the land so to speak and figure out which school is the best fit for your child.
Best of luck to you.
Carol
I teach in the middle school at Connections in Hilo, and we have students from as far as Lapahoehoe, Waimea, Ka'u and Kalapana. There are students at other Charter schools who travel as far, most Charters have buses the run from centralized pick up points, Connections has one in Kea'au, and I see the Kua O Ka La bus in HPP, HAAS draws mostly from lower Puna. Some parents who live in Puna and work in Hilo find it easier to have their kids go to a DOE or Charter school in Hilo, than in Puna. Connections is still in session for two more weeks although we are winding down, we always end up with a few kids whose parents go ahead and transfer them in the last few weeks to ensure their place for next year. They join us for the fun part of the end of the year, but do get to know their future classmates before summer.
Each Public Charter school is different and has a different feel, we are all drastically underfunded compared to DOE schools (-$6000 per pupil next year compared to +$14,000 for DOE) but also don't have a bloated administrative machine to feed either. Next year we don't have a bloated anything, but I am really proud of the teaching and learning that goes on in our school. The Charter movement in Hawaii is in large part a reaction to the large scale of the DOE schools. Some kids just do better in a middle school with 88 students compared to 2000, so if small class size and personal attention is important to you, then check out the Charters.
Like all rural schools, sports is a big deal at both Pahoa and Keaau, if your child is good at sports and will thrive in a large school with lots of different activities and options, then Keaau would probably be a good choice. Pahoa gets a bad rap often, but I have a friend whose blond haired/blue eyed daughter went all through Pahoa schools and graduated top of her class and got a free ride academic scholarship to the University of Oregon where she graduated with honors and a 4.0 GPA, so motivated students can get a good education at Pahoa too. What kind of experience students from the mainland have in Hawaii schools seems to be highly individual, and has more to do with the background and personality of each child than the school they go to. Some kids fit in right away and make an easy transition, and others have a tougher time in the same school. You know your child best, now you just have to figure out the lay of the land so to speak and figure out which school is the best fit for your child.
Best of luck to you.
Carol
Carol
Every time you feel yourself getting pulled into other people's nonsense, repeat these words: Not my circus, not my monkeys.
Polish Proverb
Every time you feel yourself getting pulled into other people's nonsense, repeat these words: Not my circus, not my monkeys.
Polish Proverb