Zounds!

Friday, February 5, 2010

Is it possible that 100 seniors at Bedford High School are failing some of their courses? One hundred out of 248?

Interim Principal Bob Jozokos says that number, sent to The Journal in an anonymous e-mail is exaggerated. Yes, he told our Kelly McGrath, some seniors are failing some courses but the school is on top of the situation and has ways for the kids to make up the credits and get their diplomas. That, of course, is as it should be.

One of the interesting things in this story was a breakdown in the required courses. Some are obvious, like English, math, science and social studies, but at least one sends, we think, a strong message that the high school understands that kids need a little real-world training.

One requirement is a half unit of personal finance. Fantastic. With everyone on the planet being offered credit cards, kids can get themselves into a mess if they don’t understand how our financial system works on a down-to-them basis. We’ve all heard the stories about teenagers deep in debt, so this course has got to help.

Also among the requirements for graduation is a Real World Learning Requirement which includes school activities and career exploration. That, too, is a great idea. Sometimes even kids with good grades lose sight of the fact that there’s more to high school that studying, so requiring them to get involved gives them greater perspective. And requiring them to begin thinking about careers before they go off to college is also a positive step. They can always change their minds, but it’s good to at least have an idea of what interests you before you declare a major.

Now it’s possible that some readers are disturbed by the fact that The Journal learned of this story through an anonymous e-mail. The truth is, though, that newspapers often get tips that way and there is every reason for us, and you, to appreciate them. The important thing to note is that we don’t take them as gospel, but we do treat them as something worthy of checking. That is what we did when we called Jozokos.

You should understand that most of the time, people who contact us anonymously have their heads in the right place: They either believe something to be true, or think that it might be true, and look to us to check it out. Some people, of course, use anonymity to savage those with whom they disagree and it is important that that chaff be separated from the wheat. A newspaper can, and must, do that.

But as you can see from last week’s story on the kids failing courses, lots of good information can come out of a story that starts out as potentially negative. People who aren’t familiar with the school’s course list now know of some interesting requirements for graduation. And they know that school officials have plans to ensure that everyone has a shot at graduating.

There’s nothing wrong with that.

So by all means continue to send us news tips. We can’t always promise that they’ll turn into a story, but one never knows.

But don’t leave it all up to us. If you really believe that there’s a problem in your community, bring it to the attention of your elected officials. Believe it or not, most of them want to hear your concerns.