Posted on 01/29/2011 7:21:33 AM PST by kindred
I used to have a neighbor who was a principal at one the the Grand Rapids Public Schools. She told me (in a hostile tone) that parents like me, who want to know what is going on and voice their opinion; who get involved with the class and thereofor see things from the inside, are the problem. They don’t want us around.
To her way of thinking the involved parents are a problem. So when I see articles or hear the school administrators or teachers complain that lack of parent involvement is the main problem, I am skeptical. I agree to a certain extent, but parents are used as a scapegoat, just as “not enough funds” is the reason for every failing in the school system.
I, too, work in the public school system. I can attest that I have seen the very same things. I have also voiced the need for the very changes this teacher asks for.
I am also a sincere believer in the Lord Jesus Christ and wholeheartedly agree with every one of her statements regarding God our Father, our present, and our future.
I thank God for giving her the courage to write this article.
The education system in this country is just another government minority jobs program. Kids will learn more about life sitting in the lobby of the DoT for a week. They will learn more about civics and liberal arts sitting at a township board meeting. They will learn more about self esteem playing a sport and learning how to win and lose.
Schools in the US should teach 5 things. Reading, Math, Science, the Constitution and the use of proper English.
Interesting discussion.
Magnet schools vs ‘neighbourhood schools’.
I disagree with her. Magnet schools are parents taking responsibility for their children. Yeah, it’s an insult to the system to take children out of it, but it’s also a good sign. Neighbourhood schools can be tight knit, but that’s not necessarily the best thing for education, if they are tightly knitted to reject education altogether.
Inclusion vs Exclusion.
As a former special needs student, I vehemently disagree with her opinion. Every case must be assessed individually. The goal should be inclusion if at all possible, unless it’s shown that it simply cannot and will not work. Under her system, yeah it would be easier for teachers, but it also means that students like me would never enter the public school system, because we’d never get a chance to show that we actually can do the work. Prejudice is a powerful thing to overcome.
Other than that, I pretty much agree wholeheartedly. I agree with her about ‘teaching to the test’, because a correct education ought to account for what the test teaches anyway, and should be seen as a ‘minimum’, not as an end goal in and of itself. Assessment if it were tied to promotion (I’m old enough to remember this), really does work in motivating students.
The unions are totally corrupt and the worst of them all is the school teachers union, a collection of godless secular humanist liberals of the worst ethical standards who teach gulliable children.
It is an outrage and only the parents of school children can reverse the evil of the democrat and rino run public school systems that brainwash young children.
Before the government destroyed the public school systems, the education of children was handled by the states and conservative Christian parents sent their children to such schools and America was the number 1 educational system of the world.
Now, All the money in the world will not repair the damage the evil school systems have done since godless secular humanist liberals have taken control and ruined public school education.
Thanks for your story. I’ve been keenly watching the local system here in Stamford with my 7 year old. We are currently in a magnet school here starting last year, but the same, cold vibe is felt. The principal with the fancy degree stays in the office most of the time with the new, young assistant principal out in the halls doing the grunt work. There are so many ‘assistants’ in the school, I think there are more than the students.
Just to puncture the cold, pc atmosphere, my wife and I had our kid talk about Jesus and the meaning of Christmas last month during his presentation day. He could pick any subject, but we wanted to go for it.
Let me tell you, the kids LOVED it. However, the teacher, when presented with the topic from my wife, was a scared puppy. She said in a hushed voice how she could get fired. But, she later consented and you could tell how she wanted us to just do it and get it over with. Yes, the kids loved the presentation with handouts on the manger scene.
Anyway, I just wanted to finish by saying my kid came home and ‘remembered’ to mention that he escorted out of lunch with the other boys by Dr. So and So and taken to a room where the Dr. let them play a bit and asked them questions. We found out about this after a few weeks with no mention from the school. What, my kid’s a lab rat for evaluation? If it’s to check for something, send home a note in the famous nightly folder. We get fund raising notes every other day, we can’t get something like that pointed out? Anyway, we’ll be calling our school next week for more info so there are no further ‘microscope’ examinations w/out our knowing.
Thanks again for your story, down here in Fairfield County, I sense a coldness in this system here. Open house at the local Catholic school is next wk, we’ll be there ....
GipperCT
Excellent, but I would argue for the teaching of history in general, with an emphasis on US history, especially the Constitution. I think people need to know the context of the United States and the origin of its most important document.
Good for you. My daughter teaches also.
She teaches in a fairly upscale suburb here in Indiana.
42% of her class comes from an intact family (mom and dad married and both living in the home).
Of course as you go down the economic scale this number gets worse. 75% of black children today are born illegitimate.
The schools have their problems but expecting them to fix a fundamental breakdown of the family is unrealistic.
We have a very large ELL (English Language Learner) population.
We talk of going to college as a natural occurrence from kindergarten on. All of our classrooms are represented by a college and the students in that room learn the college chant. Twice a month, we gather as a school for "Friday Flag" in which the entire school says the flag salute and some kids perform those college chants.
The teachers collaborate from grade level to grade level to make sure the (example) 2nd grade teachers are teaching what the kids need to know for 3rd grade.
As a whole, our school theme is "No Excuses" so if Johnny didn't do his homework because he got home late, he still sits out at recess and does that homework. We have consequences.
We are compassionate to a point (our staff can be generous if a student needs a new backpack or a coat for winter) but our students are expected to act in a proper manner and, for the most part, they do.
No Excuses is a great concept!
The Unions want power and control.
The socialists want to destroy our culture and our county.
Erasing any sense of consequence under the guise of “separation of church and state”, ensures NO VALUES will be taught.
Satan is well equipped to fill this vacuum.
This for me was one of the best money quotes from the article laced with them:
“Additional money for education is not needed. Too much of it is already being squandered on worthless programs that will never work or help the students. Much of it goes to the creation of mediocre jobs that are totally unnecessary. These newly created jobs are usually of the administrative variety found downtown. One example of wasteful spending is the computers owned by the schools. For instance, computers are not even being repaired with spare parts available from other computers. These non-working computers are just put aside and eventually thrown away. There is not even an attempt to repair them. There is no appreciation at all found for teaching resources, the taxpayer and the taxpayers’ money. How can the educational system be effective when it takes everyone and everything for granted?”
Well, I’d substitute “US History with an emphasis on the Founding Fathers and the US Constitution” for “US Constitution” but that IS about what I was taught in school - public school between 1966 and 1978.
It did get a bit “fuzzier” in some areas, in later years, though. The college prep stuff remained rigorous, though.
I have met and worked with a few recent graduates of our local university which is considered to be very well rated. Amazingly I found that those who graduated in recent years with a BA in history don’t know the history that I learned in GRADE SCHOOL! If they don’t really know anything about their MAJOR what do they know about other subjects ?Not one that I have met would have even the slightest chance at passing the high school final exam to receive a high school diploma in 1962, the year I graduated. Countless numbers are spending years of their lives and a fortune in borrowed money to obtain a worthless “sheepskin” to hang on the wall so that they can qualify for the kind of job that used to be done by a high school dropout and they don’t have what used to be an eighth grade education. I am sure there are exceptions but this is the case for many young people now.
It's near impossible to get rid of a bad teacher. Most of them just get shuffled to other schools and the admin. hopes they quit on their own.
>>As a whole, our school theme is “No Excuses” so if Johnny didn’t do his homework because he got home late, he still sits out at recess and does that homework. We have consequences.<<
When my daughter was in school, if she didn’t finish her work, it was sent home for me to get her to finish. Yet, she got “playtime” and recess.
We started homeschooling not long after. She starts the Community College next year. She is 13.
>>>The Discipline Disaster . The decline in discipline is a tremendous problem. With the disintegration of the family unit, children already have their backs against the wall. The majority of them lack the guidance of a father and mother to give them discipline and direction. The school superintendents choose to ignore this grievous problem. Administrators like to pass the buck onto the teaching staff. Many of these administrators do not have the respect of the students. Because of this situation, teaching staffs are totally frustrated and demoralized. The student’s attitude is: “Since there is no accountability why should we bother to do right?”
Ain’t it the truth. I had a student threaten me in my classroom and MY ADMINISTRATORS argued against expulsion in the kids hearing.
I had a kid who was flunking draw a penis on my window with one of those paint sticks that you write on cars with and the kid was not EVEN expelled.
Instead, the administrators come to me and ask, “Why aren’t you more relaxed?” Because you don’t do your job. 90% of the students actually LIKE my class, but I can’t teach if the 10% of the troublemakers have no consequences.
>>>The Discipline Disaster . The decline in discipline is a tremendous problem. With the disintegration of the family unit, children already have their backs against the wall. The majority of them lack the guidance of a father and mother to give them discipline and direction. The school superintendents choose to ignore this grievous problem. Administrators like to pass the buck onto the teaching staff. Many of these administrators do not have the respect of the students. Because of this situation, teaching staffs are totally frustrated and demoralized. The student’s attitude is: “Since there is no accountability why should we bother to do right?”
Ain’t it the truth. I had a student threaten me in my classroom and MY ADMINISTRATORS argued against expulsion in the kids hearing.
I had a kid who was flunking draw a penis on my window with one of those paint sticks that you write on cars with and the kid was not EVEN suspended. It has yet to be cleaned off!
Instead, the administrators come to me and ask, “Why aren’t you more relaxed?” Because you don’t do your job. 90% of the students actually LIKE my class, but I can’t teach if the 10% of the troublemakers have no consequences.
I have never understood how anyone in society would want their kids to fail at school. You would think someone that is poor would want their kids to learn more than any other group?
Why would they allow the education system to turn them (the kids)into a liability for all, when they could be beneficial to the parents later in life?
If you search the web you may find a documentary called THE LOTTERY...its about poor parents trying to get their kids into a charter school, and out of the public one...It will both break your heart, and infuriate you. The smugness of the teachers and their supporters is disgusting. Our friends from ACORN even make a appearance.
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