Here’s why we have problems in America

[Voice of Reason 10,298]

This post from a school teacher.  Very enlightening.  And revealing.  And sad, just sad...

https://www.facebook.com/amiediprimabrown/posts/10216030293659434

[Dashinka 24,765]

Telling.

[JimandChristy 1,689]

It's very sad, I'm a teacher myself and every year it is getting more and more difficult to motivate students in doing their work. An increasing number of parents are no longer taking an active role in their child's education. They cede all responsibility on the teacher so they can blame you if the child doesn't pass your class. Teachers are then forced to pass the child when clearly they are not ready for the next grade level. Which in turn increasingly churns out an under educated population. Gaining knowledge is no longer a priority for these kids, it's just not as important as to what is on their cell phones. Cell phones are a massive hinderance.

[bcking 3,157]

Sadly I think many parents today wouldn't fill it out because they likely just don't know very much about their children. They are too busy with work, and once their child is school aged they just don't do enough with them.

 

If parents aren't motivated to help their children, you can't expect the children to be motivated to help themselves.

[Steeleballz 7,550]

 

  As for having parents write an essay to describe kids, probably a bit much. I spent 16 years of my life in school. I don't like when teachers give me homework now. My real job and the rest of my life takes up most of my free time. It's not that hard for teachers to get to know your kids by talking to them. IIRC, my teachers in school talked to my parents twice a year unless I was doing something that required attention.

 

  I'm actually surprised how much homework grade school kids get nowadays. I recall when my daughter started getting homework in kindergarten I asked the teacher about it. Supposedly they start early so when they are in high school they will be used to doing it. If you are preparing kids in kindergarten for high school, I think you are maybe skipping a few steps along the way. 

 

   The issue to me is this though. When I was in school, I was expected to get my assignments done. If not, I caught it first from the teacher and then from my dad. Nobody was looking over my shoulder to see that it was done. That was my job. If you didn't turn stuff in you got a zero, and if you did that enough, you were going back to the same grade the next year. Something changed with 'No Child Left Behind' and I think what it was is no child gets ahead either. Hopefully we will recover from that in time. 

[bcking 3,157]

If our dog daycare asked us to write about our dog, I'm pretty sure I could come up with at least a couple pages.

 

It's really not that much work and I'd say it's quite telling that parents can't be bothered.

[Steeleballz 7,550]

3 minutes ago, bcking said:

If our dog daycare asked us to write about our dog, I'm pretty sure I could come up with at least a couple pages.

 

It's really not that much work and I'd say it's quite telling that parents can't be bothered.

 

    If you had 4 dogs and they wanted 4 essays and 4 different shopping lists of supplies that you had to scrounge through with every other dog owner in town trying to get the same supplies and had to go to multiple pet stores to get all those supplies and then had to meet individually for 1/2 hour with 4 different dog keepers you might not be so happy about it.

 

    Not sure if you have kids in school or not. I have been heavily involved with my kids schooling since day 1 and that was a long time ago now.  I try not to be disrespectful of a teacher's time and I expect the same.  At the beginning of every school year I have gone to the meet the teacher with my kids. The start of a school year is a very hectic time even if you have just one kid, and especially with more than one. There is absolutely no reason a teacher needs an essay about your kids. It's more telling to me that a teacher can't take 5 minutes to get to know your kids herself. 

[bcking 3,157]

Two pages would take me about 5-10 minutes one night before bed.

 

Yes with four kids that might be a lot...but still that point literally everything is a lot of work. Price you pay to have four kids.

 

With one or two, I wouldn't have a problem. It's not like the information should be hard to come up with. It should flow out if your mind quickly.

[Steeleballz 7,550]

1 minute ago, bcking said:

Two pages would take me about 5-10 minutes one night before bed.

 

Yes with four kids that might be a lot...but still that point literally everything is a lot of work. Price you pay to have four kids.

 

With one or two, I wouldn't have a problem. It's not like the information should be hard to come up with. It should flow out if your mind quickly.

 

     Perhaps we can follow up in a few years and see if you feel the same way .  

 

    For several years I worked night shift. I recall when my son was in kindergarten, I would get home at ~7:30 AM, take my daughter to school and then stayed up with my son until I dropped him off to school at 11:45 . Then I would sleep for maybe 2 hours until it was time to pick them both up. My wife would get home at ~4:30 and then I would get (hopefully) another 3 hours of sleep before doing it all over again.  I'm sure people who made demands on my time that year, even 10 minute ones, didn't get a favorable response. 

 

   It's not that I can't write an essay. My point is more that I don't think I should. It should be optional and meeting with the teacher should be another option. If I spend half an hour with my child to meet the teacher at the start of the year, as I have always done, they shouldn't need an essay. That way I get to know the teacher as well. It would be just as unreasonable IMO if I asked the teacher to write me an essay about herself.

   

   

[OriZ 3,157]

Yes, parents these days are definitely an issue(and not only where what this teacher wrote about is concerned). But I think another major problem with schools is they simply don't teach in a way that encourages and fosters learning. They do the opposite actually, often hindering your will and ability to learn. Pretty much anything I'm good at today I sucked at in school, and I know I'm not the only one.

[spookyturtle 9,466]

3 minutes ago, OriZ said:

Yes, parents these days are definitely an issue(and not only where what this teacher wrote about is concerned). But I think another major problem with schools is they simply don't teach in a way that encourages and fosters learning. They do the opposite actually, often hindering your will and ability to learn. Pretty much anything I'm good at today I sucked at in school, and I know I'm not the only one.

It’s called experience. 

[Steeleballz 7,550]

11 minutes ago, OriZ said:

Yes, parents these days are definitely an issue(and not only where what this teacher wrote about is concerned). But I think another major problem with schools is they simply don't teach in a way that encourages and fosters learning. They do the opposite actually, often hindering your will and ability to learn. Pretty much anything I'm good at today I sucked at in school, and I know I'm not the only one.

 

    Several things, standardized testing for example, have been issues for a long time. The curriculum is skewed at times towards prioritizing test results and conformity over critical thinking and problem solving skills. The results are what you would expect. It's not interesting or relevant and many kids are aware of that, and at the same time they are not really developing the skills that are necessary for the rest of their lives. 

[OriZ 3,157]

1 hour ago, spookyturtle said:

It’s called experience. 

Has nothing to do with experience, and everything to do with schools not knowing how to tackle subjects correctly or create the proper environment.

[OriZ 3,157]

1 hour ago, Steeleballz said:

 

    Several things, standardized testing for example, have been issues for a long time. The curriculum is skewed at times towards prioritizing test results and conformity over critical thinking and problem solving skills. The results are what you would expect. It's not interesting or relevant and many kids are aware of that, and at the same time they are not really developing the skills that are necessary for the rest of their lives. 

This ^

[spookyturtle 9,466]

5 hours ago, OriZ said:

Has nothing to do with experience, and everything to do with schools not knowing how to tackle subjects correctly or create the proper environment.

I’m better at just about everything than I was when I was in school. Experience.