This commentary is by Ryan Csizmesia, the principal of Canaan Memorial Schools.
In response to VTDigger’s recent article on Vermont’s declining proficiency rates, I write not as a partisan voice, but as a principal who is in school every day.
We are told by state leaders that transformation is essential and consolidation is overdue, and by union officials that data is being politicized. Perhaps all of that is true. But while leaders debate educational structure, something far more impactful to learning outcomes has been happening in our schools.
Teachers haven’t forgotten how to teach. What has changed is what they’re expected to manage while doing it. Desks being kicked, objects being thrown and adults being hit or sworn at. Classrooms are cleared for safety. Learning time is lost.
As a principal, I act when those lines are crossed. Students are removed and receive consequences such as detention, in-school suspension or out-of-school suspension.
But consequences that aren’t part of a larger accountability system aren’t effective. When suspension is treated as an institutional failure rather than a clear boundary for crossing an unacceptable behavioral line, when chronic absenteeism carries little academic weight and when students get promoted regardless of whether they’ve demonstrated mastery, the purpose of schools has been lost.
It tells our students that advancement is automatic. It’s the “everyone gets a trophy” culture. A diploma no longer shows some level of educational achievement; it just means a student sat in a classroom for the required number of hours.
In nearly every other profession, physical or verbal aggression would result in serious consequences for the offender. In schools, we are increasingly expected to deal with it and continue as though the instructional time isn’t constantly being disrupted.
Trauma. So often, that’s the excuse given by some people with whom I’ve worked for why behaviors are out of control. Many students indeed carry heavy burdens. They deserve compassion. But compassion can’t mean neglecting standards. Trauma may explain problematic behavior, but it doesn’t erase its impact on classmates or teachers.
Teaching accountability isn’t cruelty; it’s preparing students to be responsible adults and good citizens. The most compassionate thing we can do for a young person is teach them that hardship doesn’t eliminate responsibility. If we fail to do that, we aren’t protecting them, we’re postponing a lesson the world will eventually deliver.
We speak of equity. Equity doesn’t mean diminishing the education of twenty students to shield one from responsibility. There is little fairness in narrowing an educator’s authority while broadening their responsibility. Equity means equal opportunity. Schools are responsible for providing that opportunity, but students are the ones who have to engage with it. Lowering standards in the name of equity doesn’t help anyone.
Meanwhile, the political debate continues. Should we consolidate or shouldn’t we? Do these statistics mean something, or are they politicized? How should we fund our education system? These debates won’t restore classroom order or build a strong academic culture.
If Vermont truly wants better academic outcomes, we’re searching in the wrong places for answers. The solution isn’t hard or abstract. Attendance, conduct and content mastery are all connected, and they all have to carry weight.
Discipline must connect to attendance, attendance must connect to promotion, and promotion must connect to demonstrated learning. These pillars are all linked to a larger, overall accountability system.
At the same time, we have to stop pretending that one narrow academic pathway serves every student well. Not every disengaged student lacks ability; they just aren’t in the right type of environment.
Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs can accommodate some of these students, and should receive more investment. But CTE programs can be limited by seats available, program offerings, geographical logistics for rural students, and the fact that some programs can’t be accessed until a student’s sophomore or junior year.
More community partnerships that provide earlier access to apprenticeships, skilled trades, and applied learning opportunities would offer greater equity for those whose strengths and interests lie in those areas, while also developing a pipeline of young, skilled labour in the state.
It’s unreasonable to demand higher test scores while tolerating the current state of reality in our schools. If we’re unwilling to defend what schools are meant to be, places of learning, then don’t expect better results. Graduation isn’t the goal, readiness is.
The path forward isn’t complicated. It requires the will to restore schools to their academic purpose and the resolve to uphold expectations without apology or hesitation.
