Schools in crisis? Not really

OK, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Former Mayor, assorted pundits, talk-radio hosts and editorial boards: You've all made your point that Seattle schools stink.

But before we subject ourselves to any more of this Seattle self-flagellation, please first indulge me a little quiz. Among our state's 10 largest cities, where do you suppose Seattle ranks for academic achievement?

A recent column in The Seattle Times by James Vesely, editorial editor, compared Seattle to the "failing school systems of blighted East Coast cities." Former Mayor Norm Rice, who wants to be superintendent, says the city's schools are so iffy he can't recommend a friend enroll in them.

It's a crisis, we're told. And told and told again. Rare are the days I don't hear some leader imply that I've consigned my kid to a collapsing institution run by dysfunctional boobs.

I'm sick of it. But is it true? Surely Seattle must rank near the bottom for school systems around here. At least below average?

Well, no. Take reading. Seattle high-schoolers score higher on the state reading test than kids in seven of this state's 10 largest cities. Only Bellevue and Federal Way have higher reading scores. Seattle bests Everett to the north, Tacoma to the south, Kent in the suburbs, as well as more far-flung cities like Spokane and Vancouver.

OK, how about math? We've all heard that's a calamity. Seattle must be screwing that up more than most, right?

Hmm. I see here that Seattle high-schoolers actually score five points above the state average on the math test.

Who can believe it? Seattle does better than Federal Way, Renton and Auburn in the south suburbs. Better than Enumclaw. Better than Mukilteo and Lake Stevens to the north.

A whopping 22 points better than Tacoma. That's out of 100. If we're in crisis, Tacoma's schools must have cracked off and fallen into the sea.

The other point I hear from our leaders is: Why can't we be more like Bellevue?

It's true the Eastside suburbs have great schools. Unless you're poor, that is. And then it turns out you might be better off in lousy old Seattle.

Math and reading scores for low-income elementary kids in Seattle have doubled since 1998, and now are higher than scores for low-income kids in Bellevue — even though this at-risk group makes up 40 percent of the student body in Seattle, and 20 percent in Bellevue.

Yet I haven't seen any stories proclaiming a school crisis in Bellevue. Or heard Norm Rice mulling whether he'd recommend going to them.

I'm not in denial about Seattle's troubles. We are closing schools, after all. But I'm pleading: Can we have a little perspective here? The schools themselves simply aren't "blighted" or in "crisis." Some are great and some aren't, which isn't good enough. But what they need is constructive help, not broad-brush insults.

The mayor and the former mayor and the editorial board for this newspaper ought to back off. My kid goes to a Seattle public school, and from where I sit you all are starting to do more harm than good.

Danny Westneat's column appears Thursday and Sunday. Reach him at 206-464-2086 or dwestneat@seattletimes.com.