Posted on 11/27/2006 7:04:44 AM PST by meandog
Schools With Good Teachers Are Best-Suited to Shape Young Minds
There's nothing like having the right person with the right experience, skills and tools to accomplish a specific task. Certain jobs are best left to the pros, such as, formal education.
There are few homeowners who can tackle every aspect of home repair. A few of us might know carpentry, plumbing and, let’s say, cementing. Others may know about electrical work, tiling and roofing. But hardly anyone can do it all.
Same goes for cars. Not many people have the skills and knowledge to perform all repairs on the family car. Even if they do, they probably don’t own the proper tools. Heck, some people have their hands full just knowing how to drive.
So, why would some parents assume they know enough about every academic subject to home-school their children? You would think that they might leave this -- the shaping of their children’s minds, careers, and futures -- to trained professionals. That is, to those who have worked steadily at their profession for 10, 20, 30 years! Teachers!
Experienced Pros
There’s nothing like having the right person with the right experience, skills and tools to accomplish a specific task. Whether it is window-washing, bricklaying or designing a space station. Certain jobs are best left to the pros. Formal education is one of those jobs.
Of course there are circumstances that might make it necessary for parents to teach their children at home. For example, if the child is severely handicapped and cannot be transported safely to a school, or is bedridden with a serious disease, or lives in such a remote area that attending a public school is near impossible.
Well-Meaning Amateurs
The number of parents who could easily send their children to public school but opt for home-schooling instead is on the increase. Several organizations have popped up on the Web to serve these wannabe teachers. These organizations are even running ads on prime time television. After viewing one advertisement, I searched a home school Web site. This site contains some statements that REALLY irritate me!
“It’s not as difficult as it looks.”
The “it” is meant to be “teaching.” Let’s face it, teaching children is difficult even for experienced professionals. Wannabes have no idea.
“What about socialization? Forget about it!”
Forget about interacting with others? Are they nuts? Socialization is an important component of getting along in life. You cannot teach it. Children should have the opportunity to interact with others their own age. Without allowing their children to mingle, trade ideas and thoughts with others, these parents are creating social misfits.
If this Web site encouraged home-schooled children to join after-school clubs at the local school, or participate in sports or other community activities, then I might feel different. Maine state laws, for example, require local school districts to allow home-schooled students to participate in their athletic programs. For this Web site to declare, “forget about it,” is bad advice.
When I worked for Wal-Mart more than 20 years ago, Sam Walton once told me: “I can teach Wal-Mart associates how to use a computer, calculator, and how to operate like retailers. But I can’t teach them how to be a teammate when they have never been part of any team.”
“Visit our online bookstore.”
Buying a history, science or math book does not mean an adult can automatically instruct others about the book’s content.
Gullible Parents
Another Web site asks for donations and posts newspaper articles pertaining to problems occurring in public schools.
It’s obvious to me that these organizations are in it for the money. They are involved in the education of children mostly in the hope of profiting at the hands of well-meaning but gullible parents.
This includes parents who home-school their children for reasons that may be linked to religious convictions. One Web site that I visited stated that the best way to combat our nation’s “ungodly” public schools was to remove students from them and teach them at home or at a Christian school.
I’m certainly not opposed to religious schools, or to anyone standing up for what they believe in. I admire anyone who has the strength to stand up against the majority. But in this case, pulling children out of a school is not the best way to fight the laws that govern our education system. No battle has ever been won by retreating!
No Training
Don’t most parents have a tough enough job teaching their children social, disciplinary and behavioral skills? They would be wise to help their children and themselves by leaving the responsibility of teaching math, science, art, writing, history, geography and other subjects to those who are knowledgeable, trained and motivated to do the best job possible.
(Dave Arnold, a member of the Illinois Education Association, is head custodian at Brownstown Elementary School in Southern Illinois.)
There are also lots of kids that have speech problems like my daughter that are diagnosed (wrongly) that they are autistic.
These kids are shy and don't have great social skills because they can't talk.
When I went to schools it was nothing but clicks. You were in or you were out. If you were out you were suppose to realize that you were a nobody. Many kids who were different at all were made fun of, some horribly. Not one teacher ever stood up for a child that was being tormented, not even if it went on right in front of them. In fact teachers seemed to pander to the popular. Not one teacher addressed the need to get along and respect each other. They either didn't notice what was going on or didn't care.
I remember that in 6th grade we all began to hear about which "hot" kid was "going all the way". I know that among quite a few, even in junior high, lots of drinking was going on. Some friends were already talking about they couldn't wait for the weekend so that they could get drunk. Also, there were the drugs. Many kids were taking them. I was amazed that some of the kids in school that were suppose to be smart and popular were doing drugs. I remember one of my sister's friends who could not get enough sexual interaction with almost everyone or anyone. She was considered a goody two shoes by the teachers. She loved playing both roles. Many got pregnant. Lots in my junior class were already getting married. Some were dating a teacher and going to bed with him. More bad social interactin went on in school than I can possible remember or write about.
Some of the kids who were actually intelligent and good. They stuck to themselves and not much was heard about them.
I went between different clicks of kids so I pretty much knew what went on. Most of the "socialization" that went on in my school I am sure I could have done without.
:)
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Exactly. I'm very skeptical about this sudden increase.
From the education experts:
VISION OF A HAWAII PIBLIC SCHOOL GRADUATEAll Hawaii public school graduates will:
Realize their individual goals and aspirations.
Possess the attitudes, knowledge and skills necessary to contribute positively and compete in a global society.
Exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.
Pursue post-secondary education and/or careers without the need for remediation.
With goals like that...
Realize their individual goals and aspirations.
They're all gonna be rich ... and President.
Clarity received and appreciated. Day-um, how many kids you got? Busy lady...
I have eight kids, five boys and three girls. I have four boys (what a surprise!) that I could have "labelled," and one of the girls.
Now, it's possible that there's been an increase in genuine autism cases. Vaccines might be an issue; I don't find the evidence for or against that possibility to be sufficient.
Additionally, television and video games, institutional child care, and other factors may contribute to some symptoms.
However, when you read the criteria used for "diagnosing" autism and ADD, you find that any male over the age of one could be "diagnosed" with one or the other. Doesn't want to sit silently in a chair for six hours? ADD! Learns some subjects more easily than others? Autistic!
Believable and depressing.
All his stuff is like that.
Lots of factors going on here other than vaccines (the only control studies out there show no connection - apparently the onset of the first symptoms of autism often coincides with the age when vaccines are customarily given - post hoc proper hoc strikes again.) A few that come to mind:
The definition of "autism" has expanded dramatically. When I was a preteen/teenager I knew a couple of families who had autistic children. In those days, it wasn't a question of "poor social skills" or being a little geeky - one of those boys is 40 and still living with his parents, and when they die he'll have to be institutionalized. Nonverbal, no interaction with anyone (even his parents), spends his time being hyperfocussed on shadows on the wall or cracks in the sidewalk . . . it's just a dreadful situation and there doesn't seem to be anything anybody can do for him. But there is absolutely no question that he's autistic . . . now you see kids labelled "autistic" who are just, as you say, a little on the weird side of normal. Shoot, if that's the criterion you might as well go ahead and declare my entire family autistic . . . we used to be known as "eccentric."
Of course, in those days there was also a stigma attached to autism because it was thought to be a psychiatric problem caused by a cold, unemotional mother. Which tended to hold down the number of cases, nobody wants to be blamed for such a catastrophic problem. Now, the schools get money and parents can get SSI for children with the diagnosis. Which tends to increase the number of diagnoses.
Good summary. I think there is both an increase (over the last 30 years) in the diagnosis of genuine autism cases that might not made it into the statistics in the past. However, there's also an increase in autism diagnoses for "any kid who's a bit different."
I'm worried about sending Pat to Sunday School next year, because he talks to space ships on his pocket calculator and thinks he's invisible!
Fortunately we live in the South, we cherish our eccentrics, not as much as the English do, but more than other parts of the country.
I just try to keep out of the way, unless someone is bleeding.
Sleeping on the closet shelf is a little different ...
I used to sleep in the 'chester' drawers.
I don't think my parents minded, other than that they were afraid I might fall off and break my neck . . .
Lots of babies started life in a dresser drawer . . . handy bassinet.
Unbelievable....
If you think teaching YOUR OWN CHILD requires tons of professional training, I sure don't want you teaching my kid, or anyone elses for that matter.
I won't argue that school teachers can be professionals, and most are. However, parents should be teaching their children every day anyway... its what being a Parent is. Also, it is a far cry to teach 30 students a day all with diverse backgrounds and behaviors vs teaching 1 child one on one.... I don't think most that can successfully home school could successfully teach a class of 30 full time... but to extrapolate from that that they can't teach their own child or handful of their OWN children is ludicrous.
Socialization??? What cop out argument is that... that's the lefts immediate cop out whenever you dis the public school system.... Oh I want them to be socialized, or to be exposed to many cultures.... REALLY??? I want my child exposed to SUCCESS! And success knows no cultural boundaries, but it does know HUGE behavioral ones.. and I see absolutely no benefit to exposing my child to a complete failure of a person just because their skin is a different color or they practice a different religion.
Sorry, but the pro-public school crouds are comical. Socialization is going to happen, period, the idea that I need to have my kid in a school where 5%-10% of the kids in it are doped up or already in trouble with law enforcement or have absolutely no respect for authority of the other 90-95% of the student body is somehow beneficial to him is crazy.
Public School should be the schooling of absolute LAST resort... if you have the means to educate your child any other way and choose not to, that's abuse and neglect as far as I'm concerned.
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