What do you think?
Rate this book
A Fine Line: How Most American Kids Are Kept Out of the Best Public Schools
What side of the line do you live on? The bestseller that started a movement.
In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled that little Linda Brown couldn't be excluded from a public school because of her race. In that landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, the court famously declared that public education must be available to all on equal terms, but sixty-six years later, many of the best public schools remain closed to all but the most privileged families. Empowered by little-known state laws, school districts draw attendance zones around their best schools, indicating who is, and who isn't, allowed to enroll. In many American cities, this means that living on one side of the street or the other will determine whether you leave eighth grade on a track for future success or barely able to read.
In A Fine Line, bestselling author Tim DeRoche takes a close look at the laws and policies that dictate which kids are allowed to go to which schools. And he finds surprising parallels between current education policies and the redlining practices of the New Deal era in which minority families were often denied mortgages and government housing assistance because they didn't live within certain desirable zones of the city. It is an extraordinary story of American democracy gone wrong that will make you question everything you think you know about our public education system.
In 1954 the Supreme Court ruled that little Linda Brown couldn't be excluded from a public school because of her race. In that landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, the court famously declared that public education must be available to all on equal terms, but sixty-six years later, many of the best public schools remain closed to all but the most privileged families. Empowered by little-known state laws, school districts draw attendance zones around their best schools, indicating who is, and who isn't, allowed to enroll. In many American cities, this means that living on one side of the street or the other will determine whether you leave eighth grade on a track for future success or barely able to read.
In A Fine Line, bestselling author Tim DeRoche takes a close look at the laws and policies that dictate which kids are allowed to go to which schools. And he finds surprising parallels between current education policies and the redlining practices of the New Deal era in which minority families were often denied mortgages and government housing assistance because they didn't live within certain desirable zones of the city. It is an extraordinary story of American democracy gone wrong that will make you question everything you think you know about our public education system.
280 pages, Hardcover
First published May 17, 2020
7 people are currently reading
6951 people want to read
About the author
Tim DeRoche
4 books126 followersBorn and raised in Milwaukee, Tim DeRoche emigrated to California to attend Pomona College, where he studied English literature. He is the author of three books, one published in 2018 and two to be released in 2019.
Tim has optioned horror screenplays to Maverick Films (Twilight trilogy) and Haxan Films (Blair Witch). He has served as executive producer and writer of the children’s science series Grandpa’s Garage, produced by Turner. He has also written and directed short films appearing in film festivals in California, Kentucky, and Connecticut. A graduate of the PBS Producers Academy at WGBH in Boston, he also holds a certificate in feature-film screenwriting from UCLA.
As a consultant, Tim provides strategy, finance, and operations help to clients including Fortune 500 companies, small start-ups, and leading non-profits in K12 education reform. He is the chairman of the California Center for Parent Empowerment (CCPE) which was founded by former California State Senator Gloria Romero and which aims to open public schools to all comers. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and an alumnus of the global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
Tim lives with his wife Simone and two young kids in the Mount Washington neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Tim has optioned horror screenplays to Maverick Films (Twilight trilogy) and Haxan Films (Blair Witch). He has served as executive producer and writer of the children’s science series Grandpa’s Garage, produced by Turner. He has also written and directed short films appearing in film festivals in California, Kentucky, and Connecticut. A graduate of the PBS Producers Academy at WGBH in Boston, he also holds a certificate in feature-film screenwriting from UCLA.
As a consultant, Tim provides strategy, finance, and operations help to clients including Fortune 500 companies, small start-ups, and leading non-profits in K12 education reform. He is the chairman of the California Center for Parent Empowerment (CCPE) which was founded by former California State Senator Gloria Romero and which aims to open public schools to all comers. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and an alumnus of the global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
Tim lives with his wife Simone and two young kids in the Mount Washington neighborhood of Los Angeles.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
June 22, 2020
This was book was equal parts interesting, infuriating, and puzzling. It makes a very convincing argument that both district boundaries and within-district school boundaries serve to keep poor children out of elite schools, distort housing markets (by $100s of thousands of dollars for houses in "good" school areas), fall afoul of equal protection under the law, and lead to outrages like school districts hiring investigators to spy on families and verify addresses and parent being charged with felonies for wanting to send their kids to a goo school. By taking examples from numerous cities it shows that many (most?) of these boundaries are based on redline housing boundaries created to prevent minority communities from receiving home loans! And often kids from poor communities are prevented from going to successful schools that are actually closer to their homes.
The last third of the book was a discussion of the types of legal arguments and counterarguments that might be successful in State and Federal courts. This might be interesting if you're a policy or constitutional law junkie but was less compelling for me.
The author clearly convinced me this was a major issue, so I was surprised that he spent little time on solutions. He only briefly discussed the idea of district-wide lotteries as have been used for places in charter schools. The other interesting thing was that this was continuously framed as an issue of poor and minority students being unfairly excluded from high performing schools and relegated to low performing schools. But he spent no time at all exploring how to improve low performing schools, which seems like it would make the districts issue moot. Admittedly, I don't know anything about the science or politics or complexity of school performance, but it was a curious omission.
An interesting read about a troubling US injustice.
**Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
The last third of the book was a discussion of the types of legal arguments and counterarguments that might be successful in State and Federal courts. This might be interesting if you're a policy or constitutional law junkie but was less compelling for me.
The author clearly convinced me this was a major issue, so I was surprised that he spent little time on solutions. He only briefly discussed the idea of district-wide lotteries as have been used for places in charter schools. The other interesting thing was that this was continuously framed as an issue of poor and minority students being unfairly excluded from high performing schools and relegated to low performing schools. But he spent no time at all exploring how to improve low performing schools, which seems like it would make the districts issue moot. Admittedly, I don't know anything about the science or politics or complexity of school performance, but it was a curious omission.
An interesting read about a troubling US injustice.
**Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
February 29, 2020
When I began my student teaching experience in 2016, I started at a charter school in a Boston neighborhood. In discussions with the teachers about the unique issues they faced in their school community, many commented on the chronic tardiness and absenteeism due to the long commutes many of their students had. Many students chose to commute daily through the insanity that is downtown Boston transportation, by bus, by train, by car, by foot. Some students I talked to said their ride into school was usually more than an hour. All of these kids, and their families, made the conscious decision to add onto the daily stress that is high school mainly because they didn’t want to attend their neighborhood school, and wanted to pursue opportunities in the charter school system. I always found it depressing that they were not confident they could get a high-quality education in their own communities.
DeRoche helped me put a name to this practice: Controlled Choice. While not perfect, it’s still better than the alternative, DeRoche claims: attendance-zones drawn arbitrarily by school officials, often excluding people of color or those who are in the lower class. While I was aware of the level of segregation occurring nationally in our cities, DeRoche clearly articulated and visualized these issues in a digestible and logical way. Utilizing the term “educational redlining,” DeRoche compares how today’s practice of drawing street-level boundaries for school attendance zones essentially recreates maps that are eerily similar to those that were used 60+ years ago to discriminate against minorities when it came to home mortgages. Many often share similar shapes to counties affected by gerrymandering! These archaic practices are some of the main contributing factors to the inequality in public education in our country’s largest cities, an inequality based largely on race and social class.
DeRoche writing style is clear and digestible through, and I was easily able to access this content throughout the text. Usually I get lost in the statistics, numbers, and legal issues surrounding topics such as this, but I found the entire book approachable and understandable. The strongest aspect of this work is that rather than simply outlining all of the elements that are wrong with the current system, DeRoche addresses what can be done to approach solutions. He acknowledges that his recommendations will not fix the system overnight, but will start to move the cogs in the bureaucratic machine.
After reading this book, I’ve found myself thankful that in my current district, we utilize a lottery system rather than these discriminatory attendance-zone doodles. Like many cities across America, the disparity between neighborhoods, even streets, as DeRoche proves, can be alarming. While this issue is not immediately relevant to my community of students or my district (at the moment), I have been excited to find ways to integrate what I’ve learned into my curriculum. I plan on using this when I teach A Raisin in the Sun -- since we already discuss redlining, this is the perfect way to make students more knowledgeable about what is happening in other cities close by in 2020. I have already suggested this book to two of my colleagues in two separate departments, and will continue to do so.
DeRoche helped me put a name to this practice: Controlled Choice. While not perfect, it’s still better than the alternative, DeRoche claims: attendance-zones drawn arbitrarily by school officials, often excluding people of color or those who are in the lower class. While I was aware of the level of segregation occurring nationally in our cities, DeRoche clearly articulated and visualized these issues in a digestible and logical way. Utilizing the term “educational redlining,” DeRoche compares how today’s practice of drawing street-level boundaries for school attendance zones essentially recreates maps that are eerily similar to those that were used 60+ years ago to discriminate against minorities when it came to home mortgages. Many often share similar shapes to counties affected by gerrymandering! These archaic practices are some of the main contributing factors to the inequality in public education in our country’s largest cities, an inequality based largely on race and social class.
DeRoche writing style is clear and digestible through, and I was easily able to access this content throughout the text. Usually I get lost in the statistics, numbers, and legal issues surrounding topics such as this, but I found the entire book approachable and understandable. The strongest aspect of this work is that rather than simply outlining all of the elements that are wrong with the current system, DeRoche addresses what can be done to approach solutions. He acknowledges that his recommendations will not fix the system overnight, but will start to move the cogs in the bureaucratic machine.
After reading this book, I’ve found myself thankful that in my current district, we utilize a lottery system rather than these discriminatory attendance-zone doodles. Like many cities across America, the disparity between neighborhoods, even streets, as DeRoche proves, can be alarming. While this issue is not immediately relevant to my community of students or my district (at the moment), I have been excited to find ways to integrate what I’ve learned into my curriculum. I plan on using this when I teach A Raisin in the Sun -- since we already discuss redlining, this is the perfect way to make students more knowledgeable about what is happening in other cities close by in 2020. I have already suggested this book to two of my colleagues in two separate departments, and will continue to do so.
Read
May 14, 2020Although I teach toddlers in an early childcare center, and not children at a public school, I was intrigued by the topic of this book, especially in light of last year's college admission's scandal. You may have seen news stories about parents arrested for enrolling their child in a public school with a 'fraudulent' address. DeRoche addresses this - how public schools and neighborhoods are zoned, state and city laws and policies on public education and school enrollment, and why the current system isn't working.
Right now in the United States of America, states provide public schools for all children. This is not established in the Constitution by the way. It's a state-established right, via state constitutions. All 50 states do provide public education but the actual requirements and expectations vary by state. DeRoche gives examples from specific state constitutions so we can see exactly the wording and the promises givenre publicly provided education . Then he looks at specific schools in certain cities and which local families are allowed to send their children to the neighborhood school and which families and children are denied. Yes, children are allowed to be denied attending the school closest to their home while students who live further away are allowed, even encouraged, to attend that same school. Typically, white (usually) middle upper class families are zoned for the good schools while everyone else is zoned for the school that are falling apart or performing poorly. Some of the zoning rivals the gerrymandering seen for electoral purposes in their absurdity and inherent inequality.
Using specific examples, (though the names of some families have been changed), official records, and state laws as well local laws and policies, DeRoche looks at how and why this happens and the legalities, or lack thereof, of these actions. He examines the impact of racism, redlining, politics, and money. He questions why schooling is based on our neighborhood. We are allowed to choose our place of worship, our doctor, our grocery store, and even our work, regardless of where we live so why are public schools the exception? He examines how this approach benefits some schools while harming others, and looks at the games that schools and parents engage in in order to attract the 'right' students and attend the 'right' schools. Most parents want what is best for their children and sometimes that leads to outrageous behavior such as paying an extra $100,000 or more for a house in a good school district only to find out, too late, that they live on the wrong side of the street. No, that's not hyperbole or exaggeration. Some towns and cities get that specific about school zones and boundaries. say I live on the east of Main Street; my kids go to the high-performing school a mile away while my friend across the street has to send their child to the poor-performing school down the block. What sense does that make? And this is why families game the system to get their children into a desirable public school. And this results in some schools vigorously policing family addresses and residences. Hell, some even hire private investigators to follow children and make sure they go home to the address on record. Some schools even will make impromptu visits to a child's home to verify they really live there, even checking to see they have a toothbrush there. Yeah, this book raised my blood pressure quite a bit.
DeRoche's writing is occasionally dry but that's due more to the subject matter than his ability to write. He did extensive research and every chapter has footnotes; some have graphs or maps. At the back of the book are several indexes and a bibliography. He cites court cases and rulings, interviews, articles, etc. I admit, my brain fried a little reading it all. I found that I needed to read a chapter or two then take a break; Sometimes the break was days long and at other times it was shorter, an hour or so. I can't deny that the book was an eye-opener and it certainly gave context to the news stories concerning parents who are arrested for 'fraudulently' enrolling their child. DeRoche offers possible legal and legislative solutions for changing how schools determine who attends. He acknowledges that fixing the zoning won't fix other existing problems with out school systems. Then again, those other problems weren't his focus.
I recommend this book to anyone with a concern for our educational system, fairness, or equality of access to public education. It's well worth reading, regardless of whether or not you have children.
Right now in the United States of America, states provide public schools for all children. This is not established in the Constitution by the way. It's a state-established right, via state constitutions. All 50 states do provide public education but the actual requirements and expectations vary by state. DeRoche gives examples from specific state constitutions so we can see exactly the wording and the promises givenre publicly provided education . Then he looks at specific schools in certain cities and which local families are allowed to send their children to the neighborhood school and which families and children are denied. Yes, children are allowed to be denied attending the school closest to their home while students who live further away are allowed, even encouraged, to attend that same school. Typically, white (usually) middle upper class families are zoned for the good schools while everyone else is zoned for the school that are falling apart or performing poorly. Some of the zoning rivals the gerrymandering seen for electoral purposes in their absurdity and inherent inequality.
Using specific examples, (though the names of some families have been changed), official records, and state laws as well local laws and policies, DeRoche looks at how and why this happens and the legalities, or lack thereof, of these actions. He examines the impact of racism, redlining, politics, and money. He questions why schooling is based on our neighborhood. We are allowed to choose our place of worship, our doctor, our grocery store, and even our work, regardless of where we live so why are public schools the exception? He examines how this approach benefits some schools while harming others, and looks at the games that schools and parents engage in in order to attract the 'right' students and attend the 'right' schools. Most parents want what is best for their children and sometimes that leads to outrageous behavior such as paying an extra $100,000 or more for a house in a good school district only to find out, too late, that they live on the wrong side of the street. No, that's not hyperbole or exaggeration. Some towns and cities get that specific about school zones and boundaries. say I live on the east of Main Street; my kids go to the high-performing school a mile away while my friend across the street has to send their child to the poor-performing school down the block. What sense does that make? And this is why families game the system to get their children into a desirable public school. And this results in some schools vigorously policing family addresses and residences. Hell, some even hire private investigators to follow children and make sure they go home to the address on record. Some schools even will make impromptu visits to a child's home to verify they really live there, even checking to see they have a toothbrush there. Yeah, this book raised my blood pressure quite a bit.
DeRoche's writing is occasionally dry but that's due more to the subject matter than his ability to write. He did extensive research and every chapter has footnotes; some have graphs or maps. At the back of the book are several indexes and a bibliography. He cites court cases and rulings, interviews, articles, etc. I admit, my brain fried a little reading it all. I found that I needed to read a chapter or two then take a break; Sometimes the break was days long and at other times it was shorter, an hour or so. I can't deny that the book was an eye-opener and it certainly gave context to the news stories concerning parents who are arrested for 'fraudulently' enrolling their child. DeRoche offers possible legal and legislative solutions for changing how schools determine who attends. He acknowledges that fixing the zoning won't fix other existing problems with out school systems. Then again, those other problems weren't his focus.
I recommend this book to anyone with a concern for our educational system, fairness, or equality of access to public education. It's well worth reading, regardless of whether or not you have children.
April 22, 2020
I have read several books about why schools are failing and what we can do about it, but this is the first time I've read about the lines that keep families from making choices about what public school their child is able to attend. DeRoche includes maps that highlight how attendance boundaries within districts still reflect the lines that were used decades before to discriminate against minority groups attempting to get mortgage financing. Today the students who live on the "wrong" side of the boundary are largely minorities. In many cases these attendance boundaries do not even mean that students go to the school closest to their homes, though many state laws say that students are supposed to be assigned to the closest school. In fact DeRoche even outlines how families could push back against these boundaries by looking closely at the laws. While he spends most of the book discussing attendance boundaries within large districts he does devote a chapter to boundaries between districts. His solution to the boundary problem is controlled choice for families, which could be the ability to apply for any school in the district, which is not a perfect solution but if done correctly could be fairer. The ideal solution would be system where every school could deliver a quality education.
DeRoche was occasionally repetitive in his writing, as he reinforced the issues boundaries create. The book is thoroughly researched, and he includes examples from large districts across the nation.
This book brought to mind a documentary I recently watched that highlighted this equity gap: Our Kids: Narrowing the Opportunity Gap - Episode 2: Four Cities Tackle The Child Equity Gap https://mediapolicycenter.myshopify.c...
This is an important look at an educational issue that seems to only be getting worse. I received a digital galley from NetGalley.
DeRoche was occasionally repetitive in his writing, as he reinforced the issues boundaries create. The book is thoroughly researched, and he includes examples from large districts across the nation.
This book brought to mind a documentary I recently watched that highlighted this equity gap: Our Kids: Narrowing the Opportunity Gap - Episode 2: Four Cities Tackle The Child Equity Gap https://mediapolicycenter.myshopify.c...
This is an important look at an educational issue that seems to only be getting worse. I received a digital galley from NetGalley.
May 4, 2020
DeRoche has a clear passion for educational equality and has done a great deal of research for this book. Inspired by the anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education, he demonstrates the many ways education is still separatist and how that leads to implicit biases and inequality of opportunity. DeRoche has complied state laws that control educational zoning, highlighting many loopholes used to give the appearance of any real reforms. Also included is a wealth of knowledge about Supreme Court cases that have effected school districting policy over time. The ending of the book compiles specific district maps, showing the extreme disparity between schools in neighboring areas across the country.
While I was aware of the disparity in schools based on district, this book was truly eye opening. I was both fascinated and enraged by the content. This is an underreported topic, but the education of our nation’s children is of the utmost importance for our future. If all children are not given the same opportunities, not only will they be more likely to become involved in crime, poverty, etc., but we will miss out on the untapped potential of so many individuals. I was shocked that even many schools considered to be the preferred options in the area still only have reading proficiency rates of 70%-80% in reading and math. As a nation, we have to do better.
I received an advanced copy of the ebook of this title from the publisher via Netgalley; all opinions are my own.
While I was aware of the disparity in schools based on district, this book was truly eye opening. I was both fascinated and enraged by the content. This is an underreported topic, but the education of our nation’s children is of the utmost importance for our future. If all children are not given the same opportunities, not only will they be more likely to become involved in crime, poverty, etc., but we will miss out on the untapped potential of so many individuals. I was shocked that even many schools considered to be the preferred options in the area still only have reading proficiency rates of 70%-80% in reading and math. As a nation, we have to do better.
I received an advanced copy of the ebook of this title from the publisher via Netgalley; all opinions are my own.
May 7, 2020
A very in-depth look at the legality of school attendance zones within school districts that prevent some students from accessing higher performing schools and being forced to attend low-performing schools. Should a person’s address keep them from receiving a quality education and the opportunities that come from it? Full of examples of educational discrepancies in public schools around the country and potential solutions which involve legislative changes.
April 15, 2020
I had an advanced copy of this book. The material is fascinating and eye opening. I live in a part of the country where this is a big problem. I think this book highlights something not everyone understands. It has gives some good analogies to the unfair practice by replacing schools with something else, that helps drive home how ridiculous the rebuttals and arguments against it are.
June 2, 2020
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Interesting, but dry, read about state and district school attendance zone policies and how they conspire to keep poor and minority students out of the best public schools. DeRoche shows how New Deal-era redlining helped contribute to these policies. What's missing is any discussion of the part played by inequitable state and district funding formulae, which is at least as much of a problem in the public school systems.
Interesting, but dry, read about state and district school attendance zone policies and how they conspire to keep poor and minority students out of the best public schools. DeRoche shows how New Deal-era redlining helped contribute to these policies. What's missing is any discussion of the part played by inequitable state and district funding formulae, which is at least as much of a problem in the public school systems.
January 19, 2020
I’ve worked in K12 urban education for 20 years, but I had no idea how state law coupled with district practices underpin the inequities I’ve seen. This is a must-read for all parents, educators and policy makers. DeRoche breaks down the problem with stark side by side examples and offers a new take on how educational inequity might be addressed.
February 5, 2020
I'm a mom with two small kids, and this really resonates with me. I know several families -- friends, family, neighbors -- who have lied about where they live in order to get their kids into a public school. It seems like a crazy way to do it.
November 16, 2020
This book is infuriating, yet very informative. A must read for anyone remotely interested in understanding public school districts and how they operate.
January 19, 2020
A very quick read. Extremely compelling. I hadn't thought about our education system in this way before.
May 9, 2020
One part of Tim DeRoche's "A Fine Line" is a book that discusses the laws that have and continue to shape access to quality public schools, primarily within large urban districts. The other part of the book is DeRoche's ideas for how to increase access to "elite" public schools to those who are historically and currently placed in failing schools. As a resident of Philadelphia, I am very familiar with how parents with means purchase houses in specific neighborhoods to give their children access to higher quality public schools. I did learn a lot though from the information about the connection between redlining, attendance zones, and the overall quality of schools. It was also interesting to read about how this dynamic plays out in other large cities. While I do agree that DeRoche presents a strong argument for how we can attempt to legally enforce more open access to the select high quality public schools, it seems like he is really focused on opening access to the few greats schools vs. making all of the schools in a district great. Absent from this book was a thorough discussion about how different school funding formulas cause inequality among neighboring districts. Also absent from DeRoche's argument are ways to address many of the issues that plague students in failing schools in urban districts - high ACE scores, low teacher retention, homelessness & food insecurity, neighborhood violence, and centuries of oppression. What really drew the line as far as a rating is concerned is how the afterward for this book ended with an argument pushing for charter schools, which are often equally segregated, mismanaged, and also underperforming.
July 27, 2020
As someone who doesn't get to divulge in nonfiction often these days, winning this book by Tim DeRoche was really a wonderful experience. I am a person who's been in the American public school system, seeing this first hand, and I'm so glad to have found a book that addresses the issues that face public schools so often. Before reading this, I honestly thought it would talk more about curriculum; as many critiques of the public school system do just that. However, it really didn't and I'm all the more glad for it.
A Fine Line is an eye opening experience of a book. It clearly illustrates the still common issues of racial injustice and discrimination against those less privileged through facts, figures, and extremely persuasive arguments detailing the disparities between neighboring schools. Personally, I saw this first hand, as my parents moved into a home that was just barely in the borders for the better school. I lived closer to the less successful school (I think it is a 6/10 vs a 9/10?), however due to zoning I still was able to go to the 9/10 schools. When I was younger, I thought this was right, even if it made my mother have to work 2+ jobs just to keep us afloat. I thought it was normal that districts would make arbitrary lines, and pricing of houses would be based off of that.
Now I realize how silly that is.
However, I still do have some suggestions which I believe would make the book even better. Although it's a wonderful book, the author seems to have some struggles with how to pace the book and its chapters. To me it felt like the chapters were a bit too random in how they were divided, and the actual organization made the author have to keep referencing back to other chapters a lot. It became common to read a paragraph that said "more of this in chapter 10", or "as mentioned in chapter 2...", and it got slightly annoying. I feel like tweaking some of the wording, concepts brought up, and general divisions of chapters will help out.
As well, the spacing of many words would either be double, orsingle, which made it quite hard to read some sections (especially the introduction, where this would be the worst). Some proofreading would easily fix this.
And finally, I think that chapter 10 is a chapter which one: held too much importance to be so late in the book, and two: was at the same time is not concise with its writing. It held the strongest points in the book, easily. It was the culmination, the climax, of all of the issues brought up, and in that sense it serves its function very well. However, it was, at the same time, weak structurally. It was disappointing to see such a conceptually integral chapter bogged down by issues of format.
And this is why I give the book a 4/5 instead of a 5/5. I love this book and what it stands for, but the amount of technical errors really weakens the immense strength it has.
A Fine Line is an eye opening experience of a book. It clearly illustrates the still common issues of racial injustice and discrimination against those less privileged through facts, figures, and extremely persuasive arguments detailing the disparities between neighboring schools. Personally, I saw this first hand, as my parents moved into a home that was just barely in the borders for the better school. I lived closer to the less successful school (I think it is a 6/10 vs a 9/10?), however due to zoning I still was able to go to the 9/10 schools. When I was younger, I thought this was right, even if it made my mother have to work 2+ jobs just to keep us afloat. I thought it was normal that districts would make arbitrary lines, and pricing of houses would be based off of that.
Now I realize how silly that is.
However, I still do have some suggestions which I believe would make the book even better. Although it's a wonderful book, the author seems to have some struggles with how to pace the book and its chapters. To me it felt like the chapters were a bit too random in how they were divided, and the actual organization made the author have to keep referencing back to other chapters a lot. It became common to read a paragraph that said "more of this in chapter 10", or "as mentioned in chapter 2...", and it got slightly annoying. I feel like tweaking some of the wording, concepts brought up, and general divisions of chapters will help out.
As well, the spacing of many words would either be double, orsingle, which made it quite hard to read some sections (especially the introduction, where this would be the worst). Some proofreading would easily fix this.
And finally, I think that chapter 10 is a chapter which one: held too much importance to be so late in the book, and two: was at the same time is not concise with its writing. It held the strongest points in the book, easily. It was the culmination, the climax, of all of the issues brought up, and in that sense it serves its function very well. However, it was, at the same time, weak structurally. It was disappointing to see such a conceptually integral chapter bogged down by issues of format.
And this is why I give the book a 4/5 instead of a 5/5. I love this book and what it stands for, but the amount of technical errors really weakens the immense strength it has.
October 26, 2020
This is a timely nonfiction book that reviews the distracting of the public schools in America. Despite the passage of laws to require an equality and desegregation in our schools, so many systems are based on the tax base in the area that the children live. This is a frank discussion of the factors that still enable discriminatory policies to occur and even be defended. Some schools have strict lines based on where people live, other schools are more by “choice”. The unfortunate outcome of so-called choice that we have seen locally is that our families can choose between schools within a system or even the opposite system. So, for instance, there is one system that is smaller and city based, where the choice is at the elementary school level and then all the schools filtering into the same middle and high schools. The other system is a county based system where there are single schools divided by grade so the kids are part of the same system throughout and all exposed to the same schools.
The issue is that the choice may not truly reflect a choice if the reason to choose a less successful school is proximity to home so the child can walk to school versus the best elementary school or the county alternative. This process that is presented as a choice makes the elementary levels much more segregated with all the kids being together after the 5th grade.
Finding a quality education that balances integration with a solid curriculum and great teaching is incredibly difficult. I found this book to be one of several books about education in America that I’ve come across recently and this one did not disappoint. Highly recommend if you are interested in the bias inherent in our public schools right now.
#AFineLine #Netgalley #RedtailPress
The issue is that the choice may not truly reflect a choice if the reason to choose a less successful school is proximity to home so the child can walk to school versus the best elementary school or the county alternative. This process that is presented as a choice makes the elementary levels much more segregated with all the kids being together after the 5th grade.
Finding a quality education that balances integration with a solid curriculum and great teaching is incredibly difficult. I found this book to be one of several books about education in America that I’ve come across recently and this one did not disappoint. Highly recommend if you are interested in the bias inherent in our public schools right now.
#AFineLine #Netgalley #RedtailPress
May 25, 2020
How Communities Bias School Availability
It’s no secret that most parents want the best education possible for their children. The excellence of the school in a community can influence the parents’ choice of where to purchase a house. If they have the means they will opt for the community with the best schools.
DeRoche points out that lines are drawn in communities indicating which areas are serviced by which schools. He believes this is unfair and points out some ideas such as lotteries that could function to give all students a chance to attend the best schools. This is possibly one solution to the problem. However, it doesn’t address other issues about under-performing schools. One problem is often the lack of parental involvement, another is that teachers often prefer the better schools and hence the better students.
At one point forced busing was touted as a solution to the problem. However, it was unpopular with many parents who wanted their children to remain in the neighborhood as well as expensive.
This is an interesting book, well-written and easy to follow. His solution has been tried in some areas and can be made to work. However, I think the book misses the big picture focusing on one aspect of the problem.
I received this book from Net Galley for this review.
It’s no secret that most parents want the best education possible for their children. The excellence of the school in a community can influence the parents’ choice of where to purchase a house. If they have the means they will opt for the community with the best schools.
DeRoche points out that lines are drawn in communities indicating which areas are serviced by which schools. He believes this is unfair and points out some ideas such as lotteries that could function to give all students a chance to attend the best schools. This is possibly one solution to the problem. However, it doesn’t address other issues about under-performing schools. One problem is often the lack of parental involvement, another is that teachers often prefer the better schools and hence the better students.
At one point forced busing was touted as a solution to the problem. However, it was unpopular with many parents who wanted their children to remain in the neighborhood as well as expensive.
This is an interesting book, well-written and easy to follow. His solution has been tried in some areas and can be made to work. However, I think the book misses the big picture focusing on one aspect of the problem.
I received this book from Net Galley for this review.
September 8, 2020
The author discusses about how attendance lines are one cause of American schools are resegregated due to race and class. He goes into some possible ways to remedy the achievement gap in American schools and how to give every child who lives in an area with some great schools and horrible schools an equal chance to go to a great school. He also talks about how some families actually buy into a neighborhood that has excellent public schools, even paying a premium in order to send their child to a particular school. I have experienced this first hand with the school district that I grew up in had a reputation for excellent schools, making it harder to find affordable housing in that area. Some of the former public housing apartment communities were converted into market rate homes making it harder for a lower income person to find a home in that area. My parents were lower middle class and if they had moved into that area today they may not be able to afford a home in that area. I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review from NetGalley.
October 2, 2022
This is an important read, but I didn’t like his focus. His argument that attendance zones would make education more equitable seemed to ignore so many other challenges in schools today. Also, it ends with a highlight on charter schools, which don’t have attendance boundaries. I have so many other issues with charter schools… I have so many issues with education- my own district has work to do. I would rather focus on how do we improve all schools, while acknowledging the systemic racism that schools need to address and interrupt. Changing boundary lines will not disrupt this racism nor will it address the deficit view of students who are not being served by their school.
June 2, 2020
Thank you netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is a very eye opening social political book on the segregated public school systems that utilize location to keep lower income students from attending. The author reveals how public school administraters in conjunction wealthy families force families from lower incomes to select schools of lower caliber just because they live on the wrong side of the street. This reveals the cracks in the system and the desperate need for reform. Children should have equal access to education regardless of where they live.
Overall well written and illuminating.
This is a very eye opening social political book on the segregated public school systems that utilize location to keep lower income students from attending. The author reveals how public school administraters in conjunction wealthy families force families from lower incomes to select schools of lower caliber just because they live on the wrong side of the street. This reveals the cracks in the system and the desperate need for reform. Children should have equal access to education regardless of where they live.
Overall well written and illuminating.
September 2, 2020
A Fine Line by Tim DeRoche is a nonfiction work full of case studies across the country. It tells the sad but true story of public education and how low income zip codes cannot get access to the same level of education. This book is eye opening and it is an important read. I was not surprised at all by any of it, having taught at a public school in both the lowest income area and the highest income area of the same city. The differences are astronomical. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.
July 16, 2020
This book was a very well thought out and well-researched look at attendance zones and their effect on segregation and the ability of students to attend high-performing schools. This book also looked at laws that would allow for a challenge to these kinds of districts. As a teacher, I don't agree with all of the author's remedies but do believe that all students should have access to a high-quality school.
July 10, 2020
Very good book and one that parents and educators alike need to read and digest. DeRoche lays it out in plain language what is happening to our educational system as far as the have’s and have nots. It is disheartening to see this happening in our neighborhoods. All children deserve a chance to excel.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return of an honest review.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return of an honest review.
May 26, 2020
Any parent will understand this. The book provides the background on these laws that impact our lives and the difficult decisions we need to make in order to get the best education for our kids.
It's outrageous.
It's outrageous.
June 15, 2020
Wow, it's a little eerie that this book would come out at such a time as this. I stumbled on this information shortly before finding this book. It feels like it was something that's always been intuitively known, but it's a very different thing to see the historical reasons why.
April 21, 2020
In A Fine Line, bestselling author Tim DeRoche takes a close look at the laws and policies that dictate which kids are allowed to go to which schools. And he finds surprising parallels between current education policies and the redlining practices of the New Deal era in which minority families were often denied mortgages and government housing assistance because they didn't live within certain desirable zones of the city.
I REALLY wanted to like this book. And if all you are looking for is an indictment of redlining (with a serious pro-charter school bent), then this book is for you. DeRoche does an excellent job laying out the history of redlining, how it has impacted school attendance boundaries, and how there is the potential for lawsuits to make changes. However, if you are looking for concrete solutions to fix our public schools, this is not the book for you. DeRoche presents his arguments as if moving children from failing schools would fix all the problems. Here's the thing - schools are made up of PEOPLE not just BUILDINGS. And I'm sure DeRoche is not arguing (because he does not) that teachers and administrators at failing schools are terrible. By eliminating the attendance zones and equally distributing children across a district, of course you would start to equalize test scores and proficiency in math and reading. But that's just distributing scores. To actually help the failing children improve, you need to address a lot more than the building in which they attend school.
I'm not a proponent of charter schools. Yes, they have lottery systems for admission, without geographical boundaries, but families in extreme poverty do not have the time or resources to transport their children long distances for school. In addition, charter schools have strict rules and they can kick out any child they deem not adhering to the rules = better success rate for those left. Meanwhile, even with geographical boundaries, public schools have to take, AND keep, every student (even if the students are moved to specialized programs elsewhere in the district) = can exacerbate failing scores.
I fully agree with DeRoche that school attendance zone boundaries perpetuate disparate schools. But he argues as if this is the SOLE or MAJOR reason. It is well documented that one of strongest indicators of how a child will perform in school, and especially on standardized tests, is the WEALTH (and education) of their parents. And his appendices bear out that income is a major factor in test scores. Children at low performing schools are OVERWHELMINGLY from low income families. They are more concerned about having more than one meal per day or keeping a roof over their heads than being able to study and learn. Their parents would like to be more involved, but they are struggling to keep the family afloat. This does not set up the children to have productive days at school. Until we start addressing the socio-economic issues that plague the families at our underperforming public schools, we are never going to fix the major problems. And eliminating geographical boundaries to schools is not going to solve the problem because poor families won't be able to transport their children to better schools. And wealthy families will pull their children and send them to private schools (DeRoche admits in an early chapter that he and his wife have the means to do this because they are not zoned for a good school - very off-putting).
Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I REALLY wanted to like this book. And if all you are looking for is an indictment of redlining (with a serious pro-charter school bent), then this book is for you. DeRoche does an excellent job laying out the history of redlining, how it has impacted school attendance boundaries, and how there is the potential for lawsuits to make changes. However, if you are looking for concrete solutions to fix our public schools, this is not the book for you. DeRoche presents his arguments as if moving children from failing schools would fix all the problems. Here's the thing - schools are made up of PEOPLE not just BUILDINGS. And I'm sure DeRoche is not arguing (because he does not) that teachers and administrators at failing schools are terrible. By eliminating the attendance zones and equally distributing children across a district, of course you would start to equalize test scores and proficiency in math and reading. But that's just distributing scores. To actually help the failing children improve, you need to address a lot more than the building in which they attend school.
I'm not a proponent of charter schools. Yes, they have lottery systems for admission, without geographical boundaries, but families in extreme poverty do not have the time or resources to transport their children long distances for school. In addition, charter schools have strict rules and they can kick out any child they deem not adhering to the rules = better success rate for those left. Meanwhile, even with geographical boundaries, public schools have to take, AND keep, every student (even if the students are moved to specialized programs elsewhere in the district) = can exacerbate failing scores.
I fully agree with DeRoche that school attendance zone boundaries perpetuate disparate schools. But he argues as if this is the SOLE or MAJOR reason. It is well documented that one of strongest indicators of how a child will perform in school, and especially on standardized tests, is the WEALTH (and education) of their parents. And his appendices bear out that income is a major factor in test scores. Children at low performing schools are OVERWHELMINGLY from low income families. They are more concerned about having more than one meal per day or keeping a roof over their heads than being able to study and learn. Their parents would like to be more involved, but they are struggling to keep the family afloat. This does not set up the children to have productive days at school. Until we start addressing the socio-economic issues that plague the families at our underperforming public schools, we are never going to fix the major problems. And eliminating geographical boundaries to schools is not going to solve the problem because poor families won't be able to transport their children to better schools. And wealthy families will pull their children and send them to private schools (DeRoche admits in an early chapter that he and his wife have the means to do this because they are not zoned for a good school - very off-putting).
Thanks to NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.
May 23, 2020
This book is a total fraud! Long story short: A privileged white man is extremely angry that his kids aren't zoned for the "good" elementary school in his neighborhood. Instead of sending his kids to their zoned elementary school where DeRoche could have used his privilege and resources to help the school, DeRoche uses his privilege to send his kids to private school. But DeRoche is still salty, so he writes a book encouraging citizens to challenge all attendance zones and school boundaries in court. DeRoche pretends that he is promoting equality for all, but, in reality, the driving force behind his agenda is that he is mad that his kids (who to reiterate are white) weren't allowed into the "white" school in his neighborhood. For an explanation of how DeRoche's argument will actually create an even more inequitable school system read below.
DeRoche fails to realize that-
1) It is our school funding formula (heavily reliant on property taxes) that continues to exacerbate discriminatory redlining practices. Since school district funding relies heavily on property taxes, impoverished school districts oftentimes receive LESS funding per pupil than wealthier districts due to low property values. DeRoche does not address fair funding formulas at all in his book. DeRoche should be focusing on truly rectifying years of discriminatory practices by giving increased and fair funding to districts that serve residents who have been impacts by racist redlining policies.
2) There are a wide variety of school systems in the country (not just the few large urban systems that DeRoche highlights). Transportation costs would go through the roof if students were randomly placed in schools through a lottery system all over a larger district/county. For many rural counties, the elimination of attendance lines would most likely bankrupt the district.
3) The charter system is nearly bankrupting many school districts already. It is especially problematic when students attend a charter school that is outside of their district due to their home district being on the hook for the per pupil cost. DeRoche's suggestion is essentially that all schools act like charter schools. Let's say there is a 1,000 student impoverished high school in a large urban district. Under DeRoche's plan 100 students enroll in a neighboring district that is "better." The impoverished school district would now owe the wealthier district a per pupil cost (we will say the national average of 12,000) for 100 students. The impoverished school district would lose over a 1,000,000 dollars and their remaining students would now attend a school that is even more severely underfunded.
The net result of DeRoche's plan is that many impoverished school districts will lose a significant amount of funding. This will leave the remaining students in an even worse situation. DeRoche favors helping a few students at the expense of the majority of students instead of exploring the true source of systematic inequality (basing school funding on property taxes).
Don't fall for DeRoche's trap! He does not care about truly fulfilling the promises of Brown v. Board. He is just salty about his own situation, and decided to apply it to the whole country without considering the ramifications.
DeRoche fails to realize that-
1) It is our school funding formula (heavily reliant on property taxes) that continues to exacerbate discriminatory redlining practices. Since school district funding relies heavily on property taxes, impoverished school districts oftentimes receive LESS funding per pupil than wealthier districts due to low property values. DeRoche does not address fair funding formulas at all in his book. DeRoche should be focusing on truly rectifying years of discriminatory practices by giving increased and fair funding to districts that serve residents who have been impacts by racist redlining policies.
2) There are a wide variety of school systems in the country (not just the few large urban systems that DeRoche highlights). Transportation costs would go through the roof if students were randomly placed in schools through a lottery system all over a larger district/county. For many rural counties, the elimination of attendance lines would most likely bankrupt the district.
3) The charter system is nearly bankrupting many school districts already. It is especially problematic when students attend a charter school that is outside of their district due to their home district being on the hook for the per pupil cost. DeRoche's suggestion is essentially that all schools act like charter schools. Let's say there is a 1,000 student impoverished high school in a large urban district. Under DeRoche's plan 100 students enroll in a neighboring district that is "better." The impoverished school district would now owe the wealthier district a per pupil cost (we will say the national average of 12,000) for 100 students. The impoverished school district would lose over a 1,000,000 dollars and their remaining students would now attend a school that is even more severely underfunded.
The net result of DeRoche's plan is that many impoverished school districts will lose a significant amount of funding. This will leave the remaining students in an even worse situation. DeRoche favors helping a few students at the expense of the majority of students instead of exploring the true source of systematic inequality (basing school funding on property taxes).
Don't fall for DeRoche's trap! He does not care about truly fulfilling the promises of Brown v. Board. He is just salty about his own situation, and decided to apply it to the whole country without considering the ramifications.
April 30, 2020
The author does a fantastic job outlining what redlining is, why it is appalling, and how it has persisted in this country for decades. The author then takes this data and applies it to current attendance zones and school systems across the country. The data is eyeopening, and widespread. But as I was reading, I kept waiting for solutions to the problem and how we could improve our education system. Sadly, very little beyond modeling our school system after the charter school system and bringing lawsuits against the school districts was offered.
I wanted more on why successful schools succeed and why failing schools fail. I wanted an exploration of what the author's school system lottery would look like in practice. Would the lottery even out school performance, or would it just shuffle who was fortunate enough to attend the successful school? Would the lottery account for siblings or school employees? What if every student in a district applied for the same school? Once you "win" the lottery, are you in for the duration or is it a year to year function? Is there a feeder school or once you finish the preferred elementary school, you enter a new lottery for middle school, and the same for high school? When students leave the school midyear, do you draft the next available student to the preferred school?
I would have loved more exploration of the concept of address swapping and more evidence of political corruption creating disparate attendance zones. More information on how districts and local governments fund schools would have strengthen the arguments within this book as well. Could a correlation between the successful schools, race, and government funding be established? Or is there proof of parental influence? Are there any public schools that currently use a true open enrollment model and how does this policy influence performance?
While I felt that this book ultimately falls short in this conversation, it is a strong starting point in the discussion, the information throughout gives the reader plenty to think about, and offers some good resources for further research/discussion moving forward.
I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
I wanted more on why successful schools succeed and why failing schools fail. I wanted an exploration of what the author's school system lottery would look like in practice. Would the lottery even out school performance, or would it just shuffle who was fortunate enough to attend the successful school? Would the lottery account for siblings or school employees? What if every student in a district applied for the same school? Once you "win" the lottery, are you in for the duration or is it a year to year function? Is there a feeder school or once you finish the preferred elementary school, you enter a new lottery for middle school, and the same for high school? When students leave the school midyear, do you draft the next available student to the preferred school?
I would have loved more exploration of the concept of address swapping and more evidence of political corruption creating disparate attendance zones. More information on how districts and local governments fund schools would have strengthen the arguments within this book as well. Could a correlation between the successful schools, race, and government funding be established? Or is there proof of parental influence? Are there any public schools that currently use a true open enrollment model and how does this policy influence performance?
While I felt that this book ultimately falls short in this conversation, it is a strong starting point in the discussion, the information throughout gives the reader plenty to think about, and offers some good resources for further research/discussion moving forward.
I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
May 6, 2020
A FINE LINE:How most American Kids are kept
out of the best public schools
Tim DeRoche
I received this on my Kindle for the purpose of review from Net Galley. As I started the book I was
thinking the man is just attacking public schools and education models in U.S. While he has the documentation to prove what he says I was disturbed by the truths he shared. It is in transparency that I share, we homeschooled five children who have families, hold jobs and are outstanding citizens.
Zip codes matter as school assignments are made and no doubt where our children attend school can make a difference. However, I believe more than zip codes and neighborhoods the home is the biggest difference maker. There are always a few that despite the challenges, make big differences in their sphere positively.
All that said, too long and too many details which seem to come from New York. A great school can be had but the most important thing is for the home life to be top notch.
Pointing out challenges with no true solutions helps no-one.
out of the best public schools
Tim DeRoche
I received this on my Kindle for the purpose of review from Net Galley. As I started the book I was
thinking the man is just attacking public schools and education models in U.S. While he has the documentation to prove what he says I was disturbed by the truths he shared. It is in transparency that I share, we homeschooled five children who have families, hold jobs and are outstanding citizens.
Zip codes matter as school assignments are made and no doubt where our children attend school can make a difference. However, I believe more than zip codes and neighborhoods the home is the biggest difference maker. There are always a few that despite the challenges, make big differences in their sphere positively.
All that said, too long and too many details which seem to come from New York. A great school can be had but the most important thing is for the home life to be top notch.
Pointing out challenges with no true solutions helps no-one.
October 27, 2024
This book was recived as part of a giveaway from Goodreads this contains spoilers.
The base premise of this work is that there are good schools and bad schools and mostly serves to complain about it and its only actionable take away is to allow school choice or move to a nicer neighborhood. Never is it mentioned that we can actually make the worse schools better. I kept waiting for the part about how we could change how funds are allocated to schools or how parents in worse schools districts can make their situations better but it never happened.
DeRoche proposes a lottery system for assigning kids to schools instead of location based assigning. I think that would be too cumbersome for an already exasterbated administration but I could see it working well enough but then he talks about busing based on that. I can see already the havoc of buses going to individual pickups and children mixing up their buses because their neighbors are on a whole other matrix.
I did find it informative in giving details on how school systems work and laws pertaining to them. I may run this past some teachers I know for their opinions.
The base premise of this work is that there are good schools and bad schools and mostly serves to complain about it and its only actionable take away is to allow school choice or move to a nicer neighborhood. Never is it mentioned that we can actually make the worse schools better. I kept waiting for the part about how we could change how funds are allocated to schools or how parents in worse schools districts can make their situations better but it never happened.
DeRoche proposes a lottery system for assigning kids to schools instead of location based assigning. I think that would be too cumbersome for an already exasterbated administration but I could see it working well enough but then he talks about busing based on that. I can see already the havoc of buses going to individual pickups and children mixing up their buses because their neighbors are on a whole other matrix.
I did find it informative in giving details on how school systems work and laws pertaining to them. I may run this past some teachers I know for their opinions.
December 24, 2024
This has illuminating material on an important topic, and I learned some concrete examples of phenomena I already knew (but others newer to this issue might not!), but it was somewhat poorly written and could have been half the length. He seemed to have about 3-5 points and reiterated them throughout the book, rather than filling gaps, like expounding on current school funding formulae or giving feasible solutions.
(Many reviewers complained he didn't address how to improve individual public schools to make them more desirable, but I'd argue that's a topic for a different book; this one was about aftershocks of redlining and how current policies exacerbate regional inequalities, not about how to educate kids.)
It reads like a Government paper by a cagey freshman in college, and not the work of a published author. It's like he's been interested in this topic for long enough to have some strong dinner table counterarguments, but taking this matter to state or federal court is still far beyond his sphere of influence, so he wrote a paper in a casual tone to share what he's learned with us.
It's instructive but I thought it droned and I wanted to like it more.
(Many reviewers complained he didn't address how to improve individual public schools to make them more desirable, but I'd argue that's a topic for a different book; this one was about aftershocks of redlining and how current policies exacerbate regional inequalities, not about how to educate kids.)
It reads like a Government paper by a cagey freshman in college, and not the work of a published author. It's like he's been interested in this topic for long enough to have some strong dinner table counterarguments, but taking this matter to state or federal court is still far beyond his sphere of influence, so he wrote a paper in a casual tone to share what he's learned with us.
It's instructive but I thought it droned and I wanted to like it more.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews