TOK Spreads UN, Not American Values

After 2 years of planning for a cost effective High School in Bedford, those of us who had brought on board the former opposition to approve it were promised this would NOT become an elitist private school. Then the “Pied Piper” who had failed in Bow to convince taxpayers to waste money, arrived in Bedford and talked our School Board and Administrators into adopting the International Baccalaureate Program. Many of us questioned the wisdom of this and were promised that our students would definitely have equal access to both Advanced Placement and IB courses. Instead, a huge sales pitch has promoted a majority of IB courses to justify the $50,000. per year being wasted on the IB program. And the “Pied Piper” left before seeing how few college credits came from IB.

Bedford High School offers approximately 45 IB courses and exactly 5 AP courses, which do not even include those in Math, Science, or Foreign Languages. The only decent American History course is AP American History, which is not required. It is simply an elective. As for the “required” American History courses for Bedford High, they are part of a combined curriculum that leaves out the first two centuries of the United States of America. So is it any wonder that many Bedford students admit they have not read the Constitution or the Declaration of Independence? They have no clue why this country is in fact “exceptional”, or that we are a Republic, not a Democracy. This is absolutely shameful, as is the fact that West High School offers more Advanced Placement Courses to its students.

There are 33 Advanced Placement Courses offered by the College Board, and Bedford High School should be offering every one of them. We are supposed to be helping all capable students maximize their chances to earn college credit. Since AP credits are accepted at 90% of US colleges, and also in 60 foreign countries, it is by far the better program. The cost of AP to the taxpayers is zero. Meanwhile only 20% of US colleges accept our expensive unneeded IB program.

I have witnessed totally one sided testimony planned by the Administration, and I think it is time to hear from all of the parents and students and even teachers who do not think IB is any better than AP. My personal experience was that AP courses are extremely difficult, comprehensive, and require a great deal of thought, group discussion, independent work, and research. For myself and one of my children, that meant earning credits to bypass several college courses. Yes, the Advanced Placement Program is 55 years old, and rather than labeling it a dinosaur, as one rude teacher did, we should respect the longevity of a successful non-profit program.

I fail to believe that the students who spoke at the last Curriculum Committee meeting would not have done equally well taking a full schedule of AP Courses at Bedford High School. Meanwhile, many of our students have been deprived of the opportunity to take AP Courses and misled into thinking they would get college credit for one or two low level IB courses, which is untrue. Finally, if IB is a profit making venture, then it has no place in our schools.