Chapter 4: Schools as the Workplace for Students and Teachers

"Who are schools for?"
               In most schools today, we have a basic organization and a chain of command. Each school has administrators and teachers, and they are evaluated and hiring by the Principal. The principal has final authority over everything school related. Schools also have department chairs, team teaching, self contained classrooms, etc...  In our project to Design a School, we didn't go into that much depth. We had teachers, but we didn't say if they would teach specific subjects or if there would be more than one teacher per grade level. All we said in the organization of students was that they would stay together (boys and girls) until age 10. Then they would be divided according to their career options. Boys and girls would go to separate schools. We didn't delve into how our students would be taught, or if we would have a teaching style. One thing we did talk about was that the boys would be taught by a male role model, and the girls a girl role model. Final Authority would be given by Xena, our president.
               School boards and school district relationships are key in any school today. A school board processes the values, needs, and demands of society and to set actions to establish a policy to put these processes into effect. In our school, the Sisters of Lilith stood in as a school board. They established all the rules of the schools and how it will be run based of the rules of Zailan society. Our school even has a policy guideline. One of our main points is that there will be no war or fighting in Zaila, only peace. This would be a little different for a regular school policy. All of our State Legislatures, State Boards of Education, and State Governors would be under the ruling of the Sisters of Lilith. Our society is less complex than a normal school is organized.
             The role of federal government in our society is limited. Although we have freedom of speech, it is against the law to speak blasphemy against Xena or Mother Lilith. There is to be no war, and any incompliance of these rules results in punishment. This punishment is decided by the Sisters of Lilith, and if needed the president, Xena. All of our children are taught, no one is left behind. Education is free in Zaila. We have tests to judge our students' progress, if they don't pass then they must stay longer at the level at which they are at. The schools are visited regularly by the Sisters of Lilith to make sure that progress is being made and the students are learning as intended. In regular schools across the country, the federal government provides a small amount of money to education. The U.S. Constitution is a big part of the governing of our education: freedom of speech, responsibility to the States, Due process. The president usually has a lot of interest in education, and sets new standards, like the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Which was passed by the federal government and sets expectations for levels of student performance. Schools look for very qualified teachers, the better qualified the more likely they will get the job. Progress is measured with standardized tests yearly. Students who do not meet these test standards bring consequences and improvements to their school.
              Money to sponsor schools comes from many things in the real world. In Xena world, education is free. There is no need to fund it, schools get all they need and ask for that the Sisters of Lilith deem necessary. Schools nowadays need income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, etc... Schools spend the money in the real world on food services, schools services (administration, maintenance, nurses, etc..) and instruction. Sometimes a schools budget is thin, and it must be balanced during tough times. Whereas in Xena World, this wouldn't be a problem, because school is free and all food is provided by the society.