Shut them down until parents learn that they have a roll in the children's lives and prepare them for school. Today it is just give them the grade to let them pass. Basic education must begin at home. This unfortunately is not happening. I believe most teachers could do their job if the children came in knowing the basic ABC's and MANNERS.
Teachers must have a point to start and it cannot be a battlefield. To many people think education begins on the first day of school.

The Principal who served Lake Taylor MS prior to the current Principal was ousted because the school failed to meet accreditation. So, instead of providing that Principal with the resources he/ she needed to get the Math scores up, they brought in what Dr. Jones said was "an experienced Administrative team" to lead Lake Taylor MS. Neither the Principal nor the new Assistant had served in those capacities before being placed at Lake Taylor MS. It would have been much smarter to place a team who had proven success elsewhere, and had experience in the role of Principal and Asst. Principal, respectively. Many site visits are done at Lake Taylor MS. How many times do the NPS Administrators come into the building and just walk around without the benefit of a guided tour, aka the "dog and pony show". As a teacher, I prefer my students to "show me" rather than "tell me" how much they know. If I am there to observe, I am there to see it all. All means all. Remember that one?

I question what outside help could do for these schools, but I don't think they should be closed down either, and it's obvious these schools will have a hard time turning themselves around on their own. So, what can the city do except to try it? It's time to stop beating around the bush, stop being PC, and just get the dang thing done! Closing these schools down will create problems for other schools in the district that would end up having to take those students, accommodate and acclimate them, etc. The schools are a reflection of the community at large and of the civil leadership (or lack thereof). The last thing you should do is depend on the gov't to fix the problem, because we know the government is in the habit of breaking things, or making them go from bad to worse. The community needs to take back these schools, shake it up, and stand guard to ensure there is no backsliding. He may not be very popular with the liberals, but Glenn Beck had some interesting ideas on the country's education matters. If nothing else, they're worth hearing and debating...

A organization that sticks out among peers as under-performing usually has a culture problem. I've worked for some offices that were brought to their knees by infighting and turf wars. The fix for it is to get rid of management and start over. The new management then needs the power to get rid of all the other problem people.

Schools are a reflection of the surrounding communites. If we really want to see schools perform better we must clean up the communties that serve struggling schools. Change should start in our own backyards before we begin to place blame on schools as a seperate entity.