Are we forced to attend the school that we are assigned to? My daughter is asking me everyday to transfer schools. Is this an option for public school?
It depends on where you live. In my area, you can petition the school district for a transfer under certain conditions. In middle and high school, if your child wants to participate in an extracurricular activity that isn't offered in the school your child is zoned to, you can ask that they be allowed to attend one that does (for instance, orchestra is only offered at certain campuses). Also, if your zone school falls below state standards, you can ask that your child be allowed to transfer to a higher-level school. But for elementary, you have to pull some serious strings to get into a better school. We would have to find someone we know who lives in the zone we want and have them agree to use their address for our child's registration to that school. Then, that friend/family member would have to go with us and sign a form stating that our child doesn't live within the zone for whatever school we want her to go to, and hope someone approves it. My sister-in-law found that unless the child "resides" at that address a certain percentage of time, it won't be approved. In other words, if you really want your kid to go there, you have to talk you friend into "babysitting" after school for a certain number of hours, and saying that they provided care for your child in that home in order for it to qualify as residency. And all that for a lousy school district who charges way too much in taxes, waste those tax dollars on unnecessary things, and spend too much time and attention teaching to the state test!
I am fortunate enough to be able to send my child to an affordable Christian school that I can get involved in, so I know exactly what she's learning and doing. But I feel for those who don't have that option.
So you should look into it by contacting your district's administration.
As far as your other question goes, you really should look into homeschooling if you honestly considered it. Especially if there aren't private schools nearby or affordable to you. Anyone that cares about the education of their children can teach them the basics. Maybe not every subject once they get to high school, but for elementary, it is do-able. There are even programs that assist you if you don't feel confident about certain subject areas. Look into aBeka video school. It is a complete classroom on DVD. All you do is pop it in, and the lessons are already planned out and divided. As a parent, you monitor and help you child, but the on-screen teacher is qualified and the materials that come with it are easy to read and understand. It is a bit costly as far as homeschool material go, but well worth the price for all you get, and way cheaper than private school tuition. There are also curriculums that allow your child to learn online. With a CD-Rom and internet connection, your child can get self-paced learning.
Also, you can see if your area has a charter school. These are private public schools. They are private in the sense that the school district doesn't control them, but public in the sense that they are paid by the state with tax money, so they're free for your child to attend. Sometimes, they are positive alternatives to the local public school, with low student-teacher ratios and good quality programs that allow your child to participate in activities not available in the local public school. However, sometimes they are geared for troubled students who couldn't succeed in other schools or got expelled for behavior.
Basically, as a parent, your child's education is ultimately in your hands. If you've tried everything and nobody is willing to help you, then your next step must be to remove your child from the negative environment. At the very least, that school will receive less money from the state for enrollment, and maybe they'll open their eyes to the fact that they need to change so they don't lose more students.
Good luck!
