Unequal compulsion in education
Did you know that the State of Utah allows school districts to set their own graduation requirements? The state requires 24 class credits for a diploma, but it lets individual school boards require more. Alpine School District requires 28 credits. Students in that district must take additional electives.
Whatever happened to equal protection?
I just found out about this on Monday. Alpine spokeswoman Rhonda Bromley said the additional credits are required because it’s “an Alpine School District diploma,” not a mere state diploma — as if that’s a mark of prestige. Sounds more like a mark of discrimination. Some students must clear a higher bar than others. Students in ASD’s East Shore alternative program, for example, need only 24 credits.
This might not be an issue if we were talking about Harvard or Stanford. They have prestigious logos on their diplomas. But we’re talking about public schools here. Equivalent classes in a given subject should carry equal credit weight statewide, and the standard for graduation should be uniform.
To allow variability in a system of compulsory education by district is like having different standards for a driver’s license depending on what city you live in.