Large to Small Not Always Wise
The small school movement has meant some large New York City high schools have divided into multiple smaller schools housed within one building, but research shows this is not always the best decision. Dr. Jacqueline Ancess, co-director of the National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching, commented.
The small school movement has meant some large New York City high schools have divided into multiple smaller schools housed within one building, but research shows this is not always the best decision. Dr. Jacqueline Ancess, co-director of the National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, and Teaching said the small schools can suffer when forced to operate alongside institutions with conflicting cultures and incompatible approaches to learning.
Ancess expressed dismay that the newly formed schools must contend, for example, with metal detectors and a strong police presence. "When they're put in a building with a school that has an antithetical culture," she said, "this is a recipe for failure."
The article, entitled "Getting Smaller to Improve the Big Picture," appeared in the May 2 edition of the New York Times.
Published Wednesday, May. 11, 2005
