Don't just tell us it's wrong, tell us how to fix it.

That seems to be the advice given plaintiffs Wednesday in Harrisburg over the lawsuit that challenges the fairness in Pennsylvania school funding practices.The quality of public school education in the state, it seems, is directly proportional to the value of real estate within the school district. That alleged problem spawned the legal action.For example, take the Panther Valley School District, a plaintiff in the lawsuit. That district received just $12,022 per student in local and state funding during the 2005-06 school year. And this despite the reality that the district has an equalized tax millage rate that happens to be 27th highest of some 500 districts in the state.Upscale Ardmore area-Lower Merion along the elegant Main Line of suburban Philadelphia received $26,700 per student. The equalized millage rate there is just 14.7 percent, about half of Panther Valley's. As a result, the state affords Ardmore children more resources to provide for a better education.Judge Dan Pellegrini advised plaintiffs' lawyers in a prehearing session that the Supreme Court might want advice about how to enforce any order or change in the current system.In other words, it's not enough to point out some alleged constitutional unfairness. You must also figure out how to rectify it.The lawsuit was filed Nov. 10 by a group of parents, organizations and school districts, also including Shenandoah Valley, charging that the state's education-funding system is "irrational and inequitable." The lawsuit alleges that the present system "discriminates against children based on where they live and the wealth of their communities."Last November, Panther Valley District Superintendent Dennis Kergick said it's a matter of fairness, ethics and responsibility to our children and their future."As professional educators and as advocates for our children and parents, we recognize that we have a civic duty and responsibility to act in a moral and ethical fashion," Kergick said. "We cannot wait any longer."Yet there are some who just don't get it.In January, a court brief called the issues political in nature.Nothing could be further from the truth. Our schoolchildren aren't Republicans or Democrats. They're children.Newly elected Gov. Tom Wolf might have a grasp of the situation. He already released a budget that increases funding for K-12 education by $1 billion.That's wonderful. But steps need to be taken to make distribution of that funding equitable.Here's the bottom line: Our current system penalizes a student's chances for a better education if the student lives in an unwealthy ZIP code. A child's ZIP code shouldn't make any difference in quality of education. For once, the state must acknowledge that a child's education needs to be blind to the value of the house he lives in.The lawsuit alleges the state system violates education and equal protection clauses of the state constitution. It also implores the state to rectify the problem. This is not about politics, it's about being fair to all children of the state no matter where they live.It's about giving each child an equal chance to reach his or her potential.And in a very real sense, it's about our state's future.By DONALD R. SERFASSdserfass@tnonline.com