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 was a girl in my daughters class last year in 3rd grade. She had been homeschooled until that time. She was in the top reading group out of 5, and she was good at math. She became one of my daughters' favorite friends.
Another one of our friends homeschooled her daughter for 4th & 5th grade. When she went to a private middle school, she became an honor student.
Our minister's daughter was also homeschooled, and she has been at UC Berkeley for several years.
I'm sure there are some kids who do not do well in homeschooling. Most of the homeschooled kids that we know have all done well academically. I know a greater percentage of kids in public school who are failing. Only 33% of the third graders at my daughters' public school last year were reading at the basic or above reading levels. That is pathetic.
I rest my case.
I would not send a dog I liked into a situation like that, let alone a young child.
And why would you advocate that anyone voluntarily send a gently nurtured child into such a situation? You at least have some authority, and are an adult. A child from a typical middle class home would be a lamb among wolves.
I do consider it invalid to characterize all of homeschooling according to these failures. If you shared my experience with homeschooled children, you might also share my perspective.
How about some balance about public schools:
http://www.newswithviews.com/Turtel/joel4.htm
or
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1571/is_11_15/ai_54176116
or
http://www.ontariohomeschool.org/comparison.shtml
or
http://www.ericdigests.org/2000-3/home.htm
Then we can get into the obvious negatives about public schools - school shootings and knifings, school riots a la Chester Upland school district in PA, students molested by public school teachers, kids bullied and preyed upon by other students, and so on. And that doesn't even touch the brain-dead curriculum used by most schools, or the fact that 66% of MA public schoolteachers could not pass their competency test.
You must be glad I'm not in your class. You just can't find a good argument to prove your point of view :)
I might as well choose one example of a teacher raping his (or her) students as "typical". Although that happens far more often than people think.
When you allow individuals freedom, some individuals fail. But individual freedom is the core principle that this country is built upon.
When you put all the power in the hands of the State, minions of the State who are in positions of power -- and fail -- have FAR more potential to abuse a greater number of children than individual parents do.
Think about it.
If you read all of meandog's posts, you'll see he learns nothing from what anyone says. In fact, I've been wondering if he's the janitor who wrote the article. Several hundred posts ago I asked what his educational background was, what are his teaching credentials, and what he teaches. I got no response, even when I asked again. This dog's posts exemplify what we dislike about public school educators: arrogance, uncaring, vindictive, unresponsive, and unfounded.
Dear AnAmericanMother,
"I might as well choose one example of a teacher raping his (or her) students as 'typical.' Although that happens far more often than people think."
Indeed, that's hardly atypical. From the reports that I've seen, it happens at least hundreds of thousands of times each and every year in the public schools.
sitetest
Wow. I think meandog has some mental instability going on here. First, he/she demands we entrust our children to his/her professional care, versus our amateur attempts, and then spouts out this vile dialogue. Yeah, not only did I not want my kids in the public school because they are educational and moral failures, but I definitely wanted to keep them safe from predators like him/her.
It is really unfortunate, as an employer through my taxes, I cannot assure that this hideous creature won't get at anyone else's children by firing it. Therein lies another discussed problem with public schools.
Dear ican'tbelieveit,
"Yeah, not only did I not want my kids in the public school because they are educational and moral failures, but I definitely wanted to keep them safe from predators like him/her."
I think you've nailed it.
Just looking for more victims.
sitetest
"American teaching is the hardest, most underpaid, profession in the world."
Actually, I find full time motherhood significantly more challenging than my teaching career. And the earthly pay is way less.
"If you don't believe me, try it--I'm willing to bet a meager teacher's paycheck against your week's windfall profit salary that you'll find it's not for whimps (especially the homeschooled parental ones!)."
If we are going to accuratly compare salaries, it should be done on at least a monthly basis, most properly an hourly basis. School teachers worked way fewer hours than any other salaried employee I knew. My whole school cleared out by 3:30 pm, school let out at 2:30. And boy did you hear the complaining if they stayed any later. Furthermore, most employees don't get the summer off. It's patently unfair to streach a,at best,ten month salary across twelve months and complain about how little you are paid. And don't forget the awesome benfits packages that superceed any other healthcare and retirement package I have ever seen.
Then look at the parents who forego an entire salary in order to provide what their tax dollars can't or won't provide. Home schooling is not for wimps, it's for those who truly care about their children's education. My kids won't set foot in a public school classroom because they deserve better than what the public school puts out. They deserve to be truly educated and to live a life of spiritual safety. And I am willing to forego an excellent salary in order to give it to them. I am willing to sacrifice what society thinks are necessities in order to afford the best educational opprotunities for them.But I am a wimp in your book.
What ARE your academic qualifications? You needn't specify your years of graduation or certification if you don't want to. But what degrees and certifications DO you hold, and what do you teach?
I already told you my academic qualifications, at least twice. I'll tell you again if you like, but turn about is fair play.
So far, with your "war stories," you sound kinda like those Kerryesque "Vietnam Special Forces" guys who turn out to have done nothing but push papers in St. Louis.
He didn't come here to learn, he came to teach. We're being bad students because we're challenging his curriculum. =]
Oh boy, pass the popcorn and pull up a seat!
What do you think we're doing at 3:30 when you go home? Twiddle thumbs? No, we're busy grading papers, making lesson plans or attending faculty meetings on how to handle disciplinary problems like you probably were.
In the summer we're required to keep up with certification--which means college classes (at our own expense). And a lot of us even TEACH summer school for dummies who wouldn't try during the regular school year....and, ohhh, that state benefits package is SOOOOooo fine compared to the 401K plans you guys get. BTW, the only reason I'm able to be on FR now is because I'm currently NOT teaching but I see a whole lot of you $100K and above salaried homeschooling-backing "professionals" have plenty of time to talk. And you speak about how little we work!
Please give a free translation, and comment on the cultural and literary context:
alla ta mwra tou kosmou exelexato o qeoV ina kataiscunh touV sofouV, kai ta asqenh tou kosmou exelexato o qeoV ina kataiscunh ta iscura.
Yeah, my ethical responsibility towards meeting the needs of kids makes me a REAL predator, all right. Considering your attitude, I would recommend you keep your kids homeschooled...I can just imagine what kind of manners and respect for authority they'd have in a classroom. Good luck on their future citizenship!
Dude! You're really not doing a lot for the "teachers are good people who TRULY want to help children" camp. Your attitude is **** poor.
Please go to the board and write "I will not be nasty and rude to homeschoolers. I will stop looking down my nose at homeschoolers. I will try to find 1/100 the caring and fire for education the homeschool parents posses."
How long were you a teacher?
I have no idea what Sarge is trying to say to Beetle Bailey...La langue que j'ai rentré l'université était Français, non grec!
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