To the Editor:

Re “In San Francisco, a Hard Lesson on Integration” (front page, April 26):

The problem in San Francisco and other large cities is a paucity of good schools. As a result, no matter how hard districts try to engineer equity, there will continue to be winners and losers.

Controlled-choice policies that allow parents to rank their school preferences and then use a computer algorithm to achieve a diverse mix of students in each school were originally thought to be the solution. But the evidence is decidedly mixed, with both sides cherry-picking data.

In an ideal world, all neighborhood schools would be so good that parents would be spared from having to shop around. Until that day, however, parents have a special obligation to their children to get them the education that best meets their needs and interests.

Walt Gardner
Los Angeles
The writer, a retired teacher, blogs about education at theedhed.com.

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