The problem that I have with Dr. Baum's argument is that he takes school choice to the extreme to show that it's flawed. School choice as a way to self segregate seems to be his big argument. Given the realities of Baltimore's schools, if you want a majority affluent or white school, you're going to have to go to a private school, so I think he's way off base.

The reality is that all schools are not the same and schools will have different programs or offerings. Given that reality, isn't it simple justice to allow students with an interest and/or aptitude to select the school of their choice? Must all schools offer an IB program or can't interested students select a school with an IB program? The same argument can be made for arts programs, football teams, STEM labs etc. Not all programs are important to all students, so why should all schools supply them.

Certainly there are some things that must exist in a school - safe learning environment, functioning facilities, excellent teachers, caring and supporting administration come to mind. These things must be pushed in ALL schools; otherwise school choice just becomes a way for some students to get out of an unacceptable situation.

Dr. Baum's assertion has to considered in the historical context as an outcome of the Brown decision when the reaction was exactly as he stated. Whether you agree or not is not germane, this is based on the history of this country.
Choice in Baltimore is a farce and is being used to mask the creation of a multi-tiered system using the let them eat cake philosophy. We can all agree that not all schools are equal and we can also agree that not all families are created equal. What we have happening here is the segregation along social lines where stronger nuclear families are coalescing at the same selected school. It is strictly neither racial nor economic but more so that those that are willing and able to speak out are increasingly advocating for just certain schools. What comes with that is an increased demand on finite resources at the select schools, sometimes to the determent of the others. Some would say that is fair and a natural outcome in this environment of me first – "Choice".
The engaged parents applaud Choice because they can and will visit the school, research the schools performance and solicit the advice of other engaged parents before making their Choice. Their Choice is a real Choice based on fact. For others it is a hope and a prayer. By making Choice seemingly open to all (it is not), it gives a false sense of security to those who do not have the time or resources to do research and school visits and must therefore depend on glossy brochures and 5 minutes interviews at a cattle call Choice Fair to determine the fate of their children.

For Choice to be effective there must be real choices for all and not just reinforcing the notion that the grass is always greener on another playground. That is the real danger of "Choice" as it is being executed in Baltimore schools.

And @ AP – Having this many thematic schools are just a play on the emotions of the undereducated and panders to the business community's need for drones to staff their modern day assembly lines. Real schools create thinkers first and this ability is then honed into doing. We have fifth grade students concerned about getting jobs instead of learning to read, think and apply knowledge. We have eight grade students picking career paths that they know absolutely nothing about OR gravitating to what is "hot" at that particular time. Visit one of the large high schools in any of the surrounding counties, schools that have it all and it will leave you to wonder what the heck is going on in Baltimore.

The reality is that school choice is causing an even more segregated system. The narrow minded look only at race, in a city with such a high % of AA it is about much more. Students are being segregated by academic ability (you can argue good or bad), class, parent involvement (a big factor), attendance, and IEP status. If you doubt my assertion please review the glorious data that the system tries to fudge.

While I oppose it, I also know it's the situation we face from years of this game. That said, why don't they differentiate for those high need schools. Funding (the formulas are a joke), support, partners, ect ect (Please don't say they do, because you would obviously not be working in one of those places)

OTT you are right on....

@OTT -
I'd come up with a witty retort, but being a mindless STEM drone for industry, product of City Schools, I guess I don't have the ammunition required. Before you slam me – that’s a tongue-in-cheek statement.

But honestly, thinking about a job in 5th grade seems typical to me. Weren't you always asked what do you want to do when you grow up? An a theme that sparks the passion of teachers and administrators should improve all education. I was passionate about music from 4th grade on. and it did play into the school selections that I make. But I'm not making a living as a musician. I am pretty darn good at math for the experience, though.

@in the trenches -
I'll say it one more time, if it weren't for school choice, my heavily IEP'd child would be getting a non-public placement (at a much higher cost to the city's education budget) instead of a very affordable charter school education. We tried the so-called special ed experts in traditional schools and were not happy, to say the least.

@AP- If we all stuck with what we dreamed about in elementary school, there would be a whole lot more doctors, lawyers, policemen, firemen, dancers, singers and of course teachers. But we would still be riding horses on dirt roads, living in tents and growing our own food.

So let’s say you were a student today and in the fifth grade picked an art themed middle school like Booker T Washington, then picked an art themed high school like Cab Calloway @ Douglass. Then after all that discovered you really aren’t a great musician. In the current environment you have been isolated from other career paths by your choice of schools.

The new high school choice process comes down to academic ability, bottom line. No surpise that schools with entrance criteria have less classroom disruptions, more advanced classes and more resources to help students succeed!They are also safer as compared to the other schools by far! The only way your child can attend a City, Poly, Dunbar or Western is if they have an advanced or proficient score on a standardized test and excellent grades from the previous school year. What about the student who is very bright, articulate, is "average in academics", but is studious, respectful and has a lot more to offer than just being the above-average academically gifted student? This student's name would be blocked from "choosing" any of these schools because he didn't perform great on a standardized test. Thank God my undergrad and grad schools didn't take my SAT scores too seriously or I would never have been given the opportunity to earn either degree, which I did, respectfully. In the old days, a parent, middle school teacher or student, could advocate for a deserving child to attend one of the elite schools if they could show that the kid is serious and well-rounded. Not now. The Student Placement office does not even consider the child's interest or other abilities (only composite score) if they don't make the grade. All they concern themselves with is who has the highest test scores and then they pick from the "best and brightest" to attend these schools. Everyone else is left to fend for themselves. Is this truly "school choice" or business as usual? Besides, is this not how the "real world works" and we know the real world isn't "fair" so let's stop trying to pretend that this new school choice process is!

Middle school choice also means that the best and brightest get the opportunity to attend one of three academically enhanced middle schools, none of which are located in "black neighborhoods" although Baltimore's population is overwhelmingly black. So if you are among the working poor and cannot afford your own transportation, you are left with the possible choice of having your 12 year old 7th grade daughter standing on an MTA bus stop in crime ridden Baltimore City at 6:00 in the morning so that she can get to Francis Scott Key Middle or Roland Park (which is far from her west Baltimore home) by 7:45, because she is constantly threatened by the school principal that she will be "put out" and have to go back to her "bad" school in her "bad" neighborhood, if she is late. Imagine that. You see, I know a little something about this from experience. So how fair is school choice, really? My solution? We moved to Baltimore County where we found the "neighborhood zoned schools" still offered a decent education in addition to the entrance criteria schools who, like the real world, you still needed great test scores to get in...but we were ok with that because the zoned schools compared fairly to Baltimore's elite schools. It's sad because we know that everybody can't just pick up and move.God Bless the children of Baltimore City who strive to survive in the city school system everyday.