 January/February 2000 (XXXVIII 1) |
Editor's Note: The co-clerks of PYM's Public Education Working Group requested publication of the following statement. It was provided to them by Patricia Reifsnyder of Germantown Meeting (PA), one of PYM's representatives to the National Council of Churches. The statement came from officials of the National Council of Churches and the Central Conference of Rabbis.
ublic Schools are the primary route for most children-especially the children of poverty-into full participation in our economic, political, and community life. As a consequence, all of us, Christians and non-Christians alike have a moral responsibility to support public schools. Public schools now teach about our nation's diversity and the role of religion in human life and history, and we applaud the schools' efforts to promote those virtues for good citizenship in a pluralistic democracy. We encourage schools to ensure that all religions are treated with fairness and respect, so we urge parents and others to refrain from the temptation to use public schools to advance the cause of any one religion or ethnic tradition. We repeat our conviction that parents have the right to select home schooling, private or parochial schools, but with that personal right comes the public obligation to support public schools for all children.
In the larger social context, we are convinced that, should the public further weaken its support for public schools, we would all suffer a devastating loss in the quality of public, economic and spiritual life throughout our society. At a moment when childhood poverty is shamefully widespread, when many families are under constant stress, when schools are often limited by lack of funds or resources, criticism of the public schools often ignores an essential truth: we cannot believe that we can improve schools by concentrating on schools alone. We must address with prayerful determination the issues of race and class which threaten both public education and democracy in America.
The wide disparities existing among public schools reflect the affluence and/or the political power of the communities in which they are found. No reforms can be realized without widespread support and a determined willingness to invest in children and their future.
Local churches must advocate at the state level for adequate school funding, equitable distribution of state funds and encouraging education about local funding ballot issues in order to
enhance professional development for teachers and administrators, and for policies which assign teachers to disciplines in which they are fully prepared, to classes whose size encourages individualized assistance and to schedules which give teachers time to prepare or consult with other teachers, students and parents;
encourage the development of smaller schools to provide a caring environment;
call upon Congress to pass and fund fully legislation to repair and modernize school facilities and to create new facilities as needed; and
advocate for universal, early and quality preschool education for all children.
We have said repeatedly that we care about children and schools; now we must undergird our word with actions.
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM