Re: Top 100 schools

["P. Liley" <pliley@TELEVAR.COM>]

At 01:10 PM 3/26/98 -0500, Palmquist, Nancy wrote:
>Well, that list of top 100 schools is all very nice.  But, as I survey
>the list I see a number of schools I recognize as being in incredibly
>wealthy districts like Indiana Hill in Cincinnati and New Trier in IL.
>Other schools are in university towns like Ann Arbor and Okemos.  I
>guess we could all be top schools if there was plenty of money,
>influence and concerned, educated parents helping our schools.
>
>In Kentucky the money for education has been reallocated, so that there
>is more equitable funding across the state.  Consequently, a school like
>mine that's in an area with incredibly wealthy families is funded on a
>formula from the state, not directly on what local property taxes bring
>in for the schools (and you can imagine how happy that makes people in
>the county).
>
>I'd be interested in others responses to the top 100 list.  I'm mainly
>familiar with schools in Cincinnati, Chicago, parts of Michigan, the
>Louisville area and Denver, so my knowledge is limited.  How do you see
>the value of such a list?  Is it a valid measure? Do others on lm_net
>see other schools listed that are from areas of wealth or
>university/school towns?  Is funding elsewhere evened out across states
>as it is in Kentucky?
>
  I question the value of such a list.  What difference does it make?  We
all try to make our own schools as good as we possibly can. Does it really
make a difference if another school has more money or more/better equipment?
Such comparisons must be very limited and restricted to only a few criteria
anyway. What does it really reveal about such schools?
  I know there are better and worse schools than mine, wealthier and poorer,
newer and older, larger and smaller. I also know my school can do a better
job educating our students than it does, or it can do worse. I don't need
another school to compare to. I need information as to what works and what
doesn't. I need to know how I can improve my school and my library within
the real guidelines and restrictions I face daily.
  Dream schools are just that (dreams) to most of us.

 Pat L.
 Librarian, Soap Lake Dist.
 Soap Lake, WA
 pliley@televar.com

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