The following appeared in an editorial in the Bayside Sentinel Bayside citizens need to consider raising local taxes if they want to see improvements in the Bayside School District Test scores graduation and college admission rates and a number of other i

Good performance of students can be evident in test scores, number of students that graduate from a school as well as the number of the graduates that attained admission to college. The assumptions made are that Bayside School District have paucity in finance and that has contributed to the poor performance of their students. Another assumption that has been presented in the assertion is that New Harbor did well academically because they had sufficient finance and that would be the same story for Bayside if they get funds from the citizens by raising local taxes. The argument seems logical at first glance but when thought about critically, it is not cogent.

To begin with, the author believes raising local taxes is the only way to get money for the school. It will not sit well with citizens to raise taxes all of a sudden and even if it does, it will depend on the calibre of citizens in Bayside. If most of the citizens are involved in high income earning jobs, that might not be a problem but it will not be the same case if most are low income earners. There could be other alternatives to getting money for the school. It could be organizing events to raise funds or appealing to high organizations and companies that are seeking to be known to sponsor the school as a way of advertising. As a matter of fact, earning money for the school is not a sure way to see improvement in student performance as other factors could contribute to their poor performance. When this is viewed objectively, it could happen that the way of teaching is not effective or the students do not concentrate on studies as they are supposed to. For instance, they might be destructed by social media or the school tends to focus on other things such as games and talent shows which takes their focus off their books. It could also be that parents and guardians do not encourage their children nor oversee their academic work.

Also, nothing shows the authenticity of the evidence that test scores, graduation and college admission rates are bad though those are indicators of student performance. It was simply stated without any basis. When comparing results of two schools, what comes into play is the exam they took and those that scored it. There was no evidence that the exam they took was the same – neither was the scoring board mentioned. In addition to the claim, stating that the rate of students that graduated and attained admission to college was not the best in Bayside schools was not clear. The number of students in New Harbor might be far larger than in Bayside, therefore, increasing the number of students in New Harbor that graduated or attended college.

Moreover, the claim that insufficiency of money is the issue to be handled is not quite right. The thought of poor management on the part of school authority as well as improper care by the students and lack of maintenance will discourage anybody from giving money to the school. That aspect of the school should be surveyed before huge sums of money is spent. If the facilities will be destroyed in a short time, it would be a waste of time and money to consider that option. Aside that, the money spent in Bayside in comparison to New Harbor was not made clear enough. If the amount of money spent per student in Bayside was stated, the claim that twenty-seven percent more spent on students in New Harbor will be evaluated.

The argument presented seem logical but the assumptions made have a lot of quirks. An alternative to taxes can be considered as well as the authenticity of the survey should be given. Making a sound comparison between the schools, considering objectively the causes of the poor performance of the students, and finding out the effectiveness of the authority of the school in management will make the assertion more tangible.