• It went from a good idea to a monster It went from a good idea to a monster A concerned parent has challenged a state Department of Education mandate and brought about a change. Her story is on the
• It went from a good idea to a monster
It went from a good idea to a monster
A concerned parent has challenged a state Department of Education mandate and brought about a change. Her story is on the front page of The Garden Island today.
The Elementary School Attendance Program had strict penalties for parents or guardians of public elementary school students once the students tally a certain number of absences. The program, which has now been changed from a mandatory one to a “highly recommended” one, required parents to take their children to a doctor or dentist for a note should their child be ill and out of school. Other benchmarks meant parents would have to undergo counseling, and possibly face a Family Court judge if the absences were extensive.
“It went from a good idea to a monster,” the parent is quote as saying.
The idea behind the mandate was a good one, for it aimed at curtailing negligent parents who keep their children home without good reason, or who have children who play hooky and stay out of school without their parents’ knowledge.
However, the implementation of what is known in the public school bureaucracy as ESAP was not well thought out, and stepped on the legal rights of parents.
The parent quoted in today’s article said the policy was put in place without passing the state Board of Education nor facing any public testimony, it was just announced to Kaua‘i parents who were left little or no recourse until this parent challenged the project. Fortunately she has a legal background and a lawyer for a family friend.
This issue is problematic of the top-heavy, Honolulu-focused statewide public school system. This program probably wouldn’t have been implemented here if a local Kaua‘i school board had dealt with the issue and held a public hearing on it. It was implemented last August without a BOE vote and without the direct consent of parents, as shown by the reaction of the parent on today’s front page.
While the state Department of Education is mandated with bringing school attendance in line with certain standards has to be another way to do this, and one that honors the rights of parents, rather than treats them as part of a huge bureaucracy.
