In case you missed this editorial http://newsok.com/why-are-oklahoma-public-schools-in-busing-business/article/3540809, it was in the Oklahoman earlier this week. The gist of the piece is that we should just eliminate buses as a means to get our kids to school.
I recognize things are vastly different than when my dad lived five miles from his school and he walked to and from school in the snow every day and the walk was uphill both ways.
The Oklahoman tries to say that we have moved past the time our schools need to provide transportation for our kids to get to and from school. I'm not sure I buy their argument. Actually I find their argument somewhat elitist and condescending.
There was a time when kids went to school hours after sun-up so they could help with morning chores. They got out of school in time to help with evening chores. We used fall and spring breaks as a time to help harvest or plant crops. My point is that things are different than they used to be.
In my dad's day, a family was lucky to have a single car or truck for transportation and you can bet the family member who was working away from the home almost always used that vehicle to get to and from work. Today, most families have more than one car. But not only are we more likely to have two cars, we are also more likely to have both parents working outside the home. Or for kids to be living in a single parent home.
Today, kids can ride the bus. Parents can drive their kids. Some day care centers provide rides to and from school. I recognize the needs for busing kids to and from school may not be the same as they were just 30 years ago. That doesn't mean we are ready to move away from busing entirely. It seems to me there are still very good reasons for kids to able to ride to the bus.
If you're a single parent who has to be at work at 8 a.m., how do you get your children to school on time? If you work past 3 p.m., how do your kids get home from school? Most schools don't start classes until after 8 and they get out long before 5 p.m. While schools are not babysitters or daycare centers, in a society that almost demands we work away from the home and on a given time schedule that is really not compatible with the school schedule, what are we supposed to do to get our kids to and from school?
When my dad walked to school, even when I rode my bike to school 30 years ago, you didn't worry as much about someone picking up a kid from the side of the road. Granted I grew up in Cordell and we knew everyone in town - not to mention anyone who tried to kidnap me would have returned me very quickly. But the fact remains these are different times and our kids aren't as safe as we were.
For many families, it may not be the best option, but riding the bus may be the only option they have to get their kids to and from school.
So, back to the editorial, if we eliminate busing of kids just to save money, what do we do about getting all our kids to school safely?
It's easy to identify perceived problems and to suggest that someone should do something to address the perceived problem. It becomes much harder to suggest a solution and this editorial stops way short of offering solutions.
If the only reason the editorial is proposing to drop busing is to save money, maybe we need to take a broader look at the issue. If we are going to get rid of busing because it is outdated, wouldn't we be better served to consider many more significant changes to our educational model that actually improve education as opposed to just saving money?
This editorial just reeks of someone who believes every home in the state has at least one parent who isn't working when school starts and ends or has the financial resources to have someone else pickup their kids at school. It certainly looks like the writers have clearly forgotten what it is like to be a young couple who's struggling with just paying their bills, to get to work on time and get their kids to school.
Forget let them eat cake. Is this let them walk to school?
