To the editor:
Re: "Student moms," June 22.
Was this a Vancouver School Board public relations piece posing as a heart-warming news story? It seems to be.
Similar stories inevitably appear after government cuts or auditors report that adult-and alternative-education programs are expensive to operate, have high dropout rates and divert funds from other K-12 education programs.
Here, a teen parent, with support from her parents, graduates from an alternative program. This is a heart-warming story but includes no stats on the program's overall success rate. What percentage of students in the program graduate each year? If the Minister of Education and auditors all state that such programs are not productive, should not reportage include longitudinal program data on the number of students who: stay in school, complete the programs, get jobs, and/or remain free from substance abuse?
VSB trustees repeatedly refuse to follow fiscal recommendations made by the ministry and auditors and obfuscate the facts with selective, feel-good success stories. If public education cannot demonstrate over-all success in costly adult and alternative programs it is time to let the private sector meet the need.
Joy Roberts, Vancouver
