Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, July 13, 1990                   TAG: 9007130683
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

TOTA SEEMS TO LINK INCOME WITH PUPIL GRADES

Mr. Tota seems to associate the amount of money a family has with how the students in that family do in school. I have worked with the very wealthy and the very poor children in Roanoke. Their intelligence has nothing to do with the family's yearly income. It has to do with the individual child and the attitude of the teachers and the school system.

My son attended Fairview Elementary in Roanoke from kindergarten through the fourth grade. His grades were always above average and it was suggested that he enter the "gifted program." Because of employment and child-care arrangements, we decided to enter him in the fifth grade in Mountain View Elementary, in Roanoke County.

Knowing how well he had done in school, we were very upset to learn that after he began school in the county, he was very unprepared for fifth-grade work. In talking with other parents who chose to transfer their children to the county system and also some teachers in the county and city school systems, we found that this was not uncommon.

Our son will tell you that going to the county schools is completely different from city schools. He went into the county schools not understanding the importance of study or how to apply what he was learning. You tell me how he could have the grades he did in the city and be so unprepared.

We are not a poor family; we are middle-income and have a very stable home life. What is the reason for the difference in my son's scores? If we had left him in the city system, I have no doubt that he would be passed along with good grades and graduated from high school with little or no education.

I realize that every child cannot attend Salem or Roanoke County schools, but we can try to change the Roanoke city system. If Tota would care to share his salary of around $91,000 per year with the poor families of Roanoke, just think of how many more intelligent children we would have! We need to try to build the esteem of all children, not make them feel stupid if they are not fortunate enough to come from South Roanoke and have a professional for a parent.

SHARON A. WALKER\ ROANOKE