The great poet Wendell Berry once said, "“You never know what is enough unless you know what is more than enough" (Berry's poem "Damage"). As parents it is easy to wonder--especially when looking at schools--will this school have what my child needs? You want what's best, but how can we know if our son or daughter will struggle with reading or with Algebra or with science or with writing?Sadly, some places in our culture have tried to find the right answer by slowing down. Fewer children will struggle if we just lower our standards and expectations. Eventually, no child will be left behind. (All but one, however, are going to be bored stiff!) This minimalist approach compromises a child's long-term needs for their short-term feelings. Thoughtful parents want to avoid environments where learning becomes tedium and where minimal standards are the preimmenant concern.
How do you know if a school has the academic support that your child needs? You need to know your child, know the standards of the school, and know what the school will do to help your child meet those standards.
First, you have to know your child. But, wait, didn't we just admit that we don't know what our child will need? That's true for most children, but not for some. If your child has a severe leraning issue like blindness, you must find a school that can support children who have those specific needs. Real excellence in those settings can be critical for helping children with tremendous needs thrive.
Outside of obvious needs it is hard to know exactly where your child might struggle. You can, however, know the standards of the school. Choose a school that will stretch your child and prepare them to reach their highest potential. The rest of world is working hard to learn. Be sure to place your child in a school with high standards and excellent teachers that is committed to preparing them for life, encouraging them to love learning (becasue we can not learn all that we need in school), and that can tell you how they plan on doing it.
Finally, you need to ask this important question: "What happens when my child is struggling to meet the school's standards?" The school should help you understand what they will do in the classroom, with normal needs, and with exceptional needs.
Classroom size can be an important factor. If a school plans on giving your child support in the classroom, but has 35 - 40 children in the class, where will that support be coming from? Teachers with 15 - 20 students can give double the amount of individual attention to a student in their class compared to teacher with twice as many students. A great teacher can make up for some classroom size issues. Can they make up for twice as many students? That is hard to believe.
Next, see if the school has a plan if the classroom teacher can not handle the need. Do they have learning support at their school. What is the purpose of this support. Often, "learning support" can be a term used for very demanding needs only. What happens if your child does not have some severe need but instead just needs a little reading help to thrive. These children, ones that have minor normal needs are often ones who are worst served in our schools. They don't have a need big enough for the major help and they have to struggle without help. They never end up thriving! Make sure that the school you choose has that next level of academic support to help student meet high standards even if they are a little slower in a particular subject.
One note of caution here: beware of schools whose first step is to simply accomodate a student with a minor academic struggle. It is hard work to help a student thrive. It is easy to alter the standards. Changing standards can make a child feel good in the short-term; it can cripple them in the long-term.
Finally, see what the school does if there is a larger need, a need that outstrips their regular academic support. Wise schools look for internal support first, but they recognize when they can't help a student thrive. Humility at that point, recommends getting special help which might involve testing, outside tutoring, or even a change to a special school in some cases.
