CHILDREN IN AMERICA'S SCHOOLS WITH BILL MOYERS (TV)

Summary

This documentary and public affairs program, based on Jonathan Kozol's book, "Savage Inequalities," examines the unjust disparity between public schools in wealthy and impoverished districts in Ohio, representing "a microcosm of the United States." The program begins with the one-hour documentary, "Children in America's Schools," which exposes the collapsed ceilings, crumbling walls, and water-damaged structures in Ohio's poorer school districts, contrasting them with huge pools, pristine cafeterias, and manicured landscaping in the wealthier districts' public schools. Kozol explains the disparity: many schools are financed primarily by local property taxes. Problems in Ohio's underfunded schools include insufficient computers, perpetual leaks, holes in ceilings, buildings without bathrooms, and the outmoded use of coal-burning furnaces. William Phillis of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding says state funds must end the disparity. In wealthier schools, students have ample computers and robotics labs, but at Withrow High, 1800 students share twelve computers, and many still have never used one. Other problems include elementary schools without paste or crayons; defaced books; an encyclopedia that reads, "someday we will send a man to the moon"; a raincloud inside a library; and a lack of ovens or dishwashers. Vinton County High has no cafeteria, so 600 students eat in the town's only lunch spots -- gas stations and bars. Teacher Jack Kennevan of Withrow High notes the impact on students' self-esteem, and the futility of national test standards when no tools exist to help those who perform poorly.

Other topics include: the slashing of funding for the arts; the way a nuclear power plant brought high tax revenues to one district, thus elevating test scores to the highest in the state; students' remarks on the lack of school pride, sports, or any activities besides "making babies"; the way kids without activities often wind up in prison; and the amount of money spent on prisons compared to schools. The program includes comments by teacher James Crawford of Withrow High; Principal Jo Adkins and librarian Carol Fullen of Wilton Elementary School; Superintendent Dan Mumma of Union Local Schools; Communications Director Lynda Sirk and Superintendent Stephen Anderson of Dublin Schools; Tom Mooney, president of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers; Principal John Simmons of Vinton County High; teacher Julie Silcox of Winton Place Elementary; Paul Houston, former director of the American Association of School Administrators; teacher Steven Vance of Vinton County; teacher Michael Kulcsar of Audubon Middle School; and administrator Eugenia Strauss and teachers Toni Starinsky and Dianna Richardson of the Cleveland School of the Arts. In the second segment, Bill Moyers moderates a panel discussion in Dublin, Ohio, before an audience of Ohio residents. As the segment begins, Rep. Michael Fox of the Ohio State Legislature praises scholarships and vouchers, while a teacher criticizes policies that only help a handful of students.

Topics discussed include: money spent for each district should reflect the wealth of the state as a whole; the way school vouchers divert funds to private schools at the expense of the poor; the injustice of local-district funding that favors the rich; the ethical necessity of redistribution; and whether school bureaucracy is financially efficient. Members of the audience comment on Ohio's tax abatements for hotel and stadium construction, which kill revenues that would have gone toward schools. Topics also discussed include: various billion-dollar estimates for helping schools in the state and nation; the interlinking of education and other social problems; a defense of tax abatements as inducements for jobs; interest-free loans that corporations receive and educational bodies do not; whether the courts can change the situation; and comparisons between the quality of public versus private schools. Panelists include Jonathan Kozol; Michael Fox; Stephen Anderson; William Phillis; Paul Houston; Sen. Carol Moseley-Braun (D-Ill.); Michael Casserly, executive director, Great City Schools; Rep. Randall Gardner, Ohio State Legisature; Sen. Ben Espy, Ohio State Senate; David Gergen, editor-at-large, U.S. News and World Report; and Joan Dykstra, president, National PTA. This program is closed-captioned.

Cataloging of this program was made possible by The Marc Haas and Helen Hotze Haas Foundation, 1997.

Details

• NETWORK: PBS
• DATE: September 13, 1996 Friday 9:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 1:56:20
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: T:49659
• GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries; Talk/Interviews
• SUBJECT HEADING: Education; Ohio - Politics and government; Public institutions; Poverty; School facilities; Schools; Upper classes - U S; Youth
• SERIES RUN: PBS - TV, 1996
• COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

• Kelley Cauthen … Producer
• Eva Marie Saint … Producer
• Jeffrey Hayden … Producer, Director, Writer
• Patrick Baker … Co-Producer
• Chris Pilaro … Associate Producer
• Mindy Dacus … Associate Producer
• Don Godish … Director
• Jonathan Kozol … Writer, Based on the book "Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools"
• Nick Rivera … Composer
• Bill Moyers … Host
• Stephen Anderson … Guest
• Michael Casserly … Guest
• Joan Dykstra … Guest
• Ben Espy … Guest
• Michael Fox … Guest
• Randall Gardner … Guest
• David Gergen … Guest
• Paul Houston … Guest
• Jonathan Kozol … Guest
• Carol Moseley-Braun … Guest
• William Phillis … Guest
• Jo Adkins
• James Crawford
• Carol Fullen
• Paul Houston
• Jack Kennevan
• Michael Kulcsar
• Arthur Lawson
• Tom Mooney
• Dan Mumma
• Dianna Richardson
• Julie Silcox
• John Simmons
• Lynda Sirk
• Toni Starinsky
• Eugenia Strauss
• Steven Vance