" cuddlebugsmommie, I disagree with your post. when I went to high school out of 400 there were about 25 that were the BAD kids, always into trouble.

today, out of 400, the BAD kids have risen to atleast 150!

did I have a 'tough' teacher or two?
of course!
but in all my years I NEVER had a teacher that didn't care!
as I went thru 4 kids already done with high school,
did my 4 kids have a 'tough' teacher,
of course!
BUT I still NEVER met a teacher that didn't care!

I am not saying that a non-caring teacher doesn't exist in a school, but the odds are slim compared to the BAD kids, with parents that are blind to their behavior! "

" the drop out rate for auburn would not be high if the teachers in the school cared so much for there students.The kids that drop out are the students were the teachers give them a hard time or never have the chance to graduate. i have always said the teachers in these schools were the drop out rates are high are teachers who are monitor and not teachers. "

" It should be alarming if a school the size of Southern Cayuga has the same number of dropouts as a school the size of Auburn; percentages are relevant. "

" Because the parents in Skaneateles are more educated and therefore more supportive/concerned about the education of their children. Where you have uneducated parents you have children growing up in an environment that usually doesn't respect education beyond "you gotta do it to get a job." Or school is treated as a sort of day care so their parents can work. In these families, like the household I grew up in myself, education stops the second the kids leave the school building. There may not be any books in the house besides what the child receives from school, and little encouragement beyond "you better do your homework." It's ignorance, but it's difficult to overcome. It's a lot of things. It's simple and complicated :) "

" People need to take into consideration the size of the school district. Southern Cayuga and Auburn could have the exact same number of dropouts but it's going to be a significantly higher percentage for Southern Cayuga than for Auburn. And also ask how many of those "dropouts" are actually students who got their GED or took longer than 4 years to graduate. The formula that the state uses to calculate dropouts is seriously flawed. "

" Quick everybody enroll at Skaneateles! Why are they so much lower than Auburn? "