This really isn't meant to 'bash' ps, just wondering if anyone else had noticed this? I remember when the 'no child' thing was first enacted, before my kids were in school, I wondered how the heck kids were ever going to make it all the way through graduation before they decided they just were done with it. I think it's happening way younger than that though. Thoughts?
hmmm thats a good question. I think it depends on the student just like anything. Yes it might burn out some but not others.
I have the same question as northernmomma, lol is it just a USA thing or what? But I remember I was pretty stressed in PS, I hated it, but my parents both worked, and didn't want to pay for a private HS teacher. The stress, pressure, etc. is why I've chosen to HS. But yea, it depends on the kid, and the kid's school, their teachers, peers, etc.
I think she's referring to the No Child Left Behind legislation. I, too, have serious concerns about how, rather than focus on working with a child's developmental stage and readiness, concepts and skills are just introduced earlier and earlier, and physical activities are decreased (so we can "get the work" done).
Hmm sounds like how it is here. I mean kids are now taking french in Kindergarten. When I was in school it wasn't until fourth grade. And all the fun stuff has been sucked out by budget cuts. No music, art, etc to speak of. It is an enviroment to create office workers and not much more. Sad really that education has become about pushing the standardized testing more then anything else. When my son started gr one the teacher told me all the work they did was to pass the grade three test.
No Child Left Behind was a wonderful policy at the core when it was first instated. The core philosophies of it have great underlaying intentions, but as with many things, those philosophies have gotten lost in the shuffle. *sigh*...really is a shame too. I think it really all depends on your child and your child's school. We are public schoolers! Why am I here, you may ask? LOL Well, a long time ago I had an in-home preschool and these wonderful ladies were great at helping me with ideas...so I have stuck around since then. I have also considered homeschooling...I flip flop all the time, but have yet to be truly convinced yet that it's what God wants us to do. So...our kids are staying where they are at unless something needs "fixing". Anyways...that's beside the point though. My son's school changed this year into a STEM Academy. It's a charter school that focuses on science, technology, engineering, and math. Before it changed over he did well...always did. However, this year he is doing even better because their curriculum is more hands-on...GREAT, especially for someone who has boys. This last month the kids have been bringing broken electronics to school to take them apart and figure out how they work...for example. Our school system is still very 'artsy'...we still have art, music, choir, bands, etc. We have had budget cuts too, but it has not been taken away to an extreme like some talk about. Tanner still has music twice a week, art twice a week, and gym twice a week...along with two recesses each day. He's in third grade. Not all school systems are alike. Some are like ours...others are not. I think it really depends on where you are and what your kid is like. Tanner is far from being burnt out...if anything, he wants more! He wanted me to put together math problems the other night for him so he could do more work. He loves to learn...even after being in school for 6.5 hours. I think it's important to challenge kids too. Some kids might be learning French in K, but studies have also shown that people learn new languages best when they are younger...along with other subjects. As a previous preschool teacher, I agree with it considering all my preschoolers went to K knowing how to read, do sign language, and know basic Spanish. At Tanner's school they take a child from where they are at...they don't 'push' the children, they only challenge them from where they are at in their learning level. I think it's reality that our society has become way more competetive than years past. It's almost like you can't find a decent job unless you have a Master degree these days. If challenging a child is what it takes, I say it's not harmful...as long as the child isn't being pushed beyond their learning level. Kids aren't cookie cutter, they are all different.
Wow Jenpoooh that sounds like a fab school you have Lucky. In the city I am in they think kids are cookie cutter and creativity is squashed to fit the mold
My heart breaks when I hear of schools like that. The arts are SO important, and so is letting kids be kids. Tanner's school does have it's downsides and flaws, but for the most part we are happy with it. I still get the homeschool bug every once in awhile, and if that is ever meant to be I know God will let us know. :love:
I WAS referring to the 'No Child Left Behind' legislation that penalizes schools for allowing for personality and learning differences in kids. It also forces schools to 'teach to the test' IMHO more than ever, since a bad test score means the school could lose funding. I think it breeds mediocrity in our schools- the kids in the middle are ok, but the kids at the bottom are subjected to intense programs to 'bring up their skills'. The kids at the top well.. at our ps the G&T program seems to exist in name only. Thank you for your thoughts. Since I'm still struggling with issues with my ds in ps (namely, that he doesn't want to go.. yet he doesn't want to homeschool or transfer either... arg), I've been paying more attention to other families with boys his age.. and several I know (from different states and school districts) have said they have gone through this with their children as well. A very good friend of mine who is a para-educator has been struggling with her own daughter for years.. her daughter is now a freshman in HS, and very smart. But it hasn't gotten any better. When I look at the skills and the busywork that is piled on my ds, it is hard not to wonder what the end result will be. And he's a straight A student. What's it like for the kids who have to struggle? What's it like for the kids who find it all really hard?
Meghan, I went through that same type of struggle with my son until this year. HE actally asked to be homeschooled in 1st grade...which I attributed to mostly his teacher not realizing that kids/boys can not sit still and do seatwork ALL day! She had no tolerance for boys in general and my son could never do 'right' by her...even though he was flourishing academically! I waited, knowing the school would be turning into a STEM school. This year he LOVES it! If he would have had the same issues this year, I would have yanked him and homeschooled him. Thankfully he is doing well and always wants to talk about his day when I pick him up. It was a long road getting there though. We will see what the future holds...but it was a long road to getting him to 'want to' go to school. He loved Kindergarten, but then 1st grade hit and he had that dreadful teacher. 2nd grade he was so-so...I think he was still mortified by his last teacher and it took him awhile to realize his new teacher wasn't the devil. LOL Now this year he has made a total turn around.
The problem with any "program" is that it's "a program." It doesn't take into account learning readiness, learning styles, or the humanity factor. Here's a thought: God said that we are all part of the Body of Christ. It takes arms, legs, hands, eyes, ears, etc. to make up a body. Every part has a task, so the legs can't do what the hands can do. Educationally speaking, we apply pressures to our children and put unjust weights upon them. But God specifically made us strong in some subjects and weak in others. He never intended for us to be "know it alls." Because he wants us to be humble, he purposely made us weak in certain things...thus positioning us to glean from others. (Sometimes you'll be my ears--sometimes I'll be your eyes!) But there is this notion that each student should excel in every subject (or at least try). It puts a crushing weight upon our children and makes them feel discouraged and stupid. Oh how I wish we'd go back in time with our expectations! Back to a time when learning was a thrill and it wasn't about grade point averages or filling-in-the-blanks. God intended for learning to be THE GREAT EXPLORATION...instead it's become The Great Frustration!!!! (I think I need to go cry now...) ~Jean
This is precisely why we pulled our 4th grader out of ps this week and won't be sending our 2nd grader back in the fall. The curriculum being forced on the schools here is just ridiculous. I was actually told they wouldn't be teaching anything to mastery anymore, the kids should just know what important points to pull from the lessons each day. No more than one day of instruction is being given on anything, just hit the high points and move on. Not only that, but I was told that if we could hang until after Christmas break, the curriculum was being set aside and the kids would be taught the skills needed to pass the standardized test. Sorry, my kids are more than funding and test scores. They are fabulous little people who deserve the opportunity to be who God created them to be
I think ps does burn out kids, but just like workers stuck in a job where they feel burned out--some kids learn to deal with it better than others. I think my son wouldn't have done so well if I had left him in ps (we started hs in 7th). When I was in school, I often thought it was worthless dribble we were learning and at times I enjoyed some things. I learned how to study for the tests and do "well" according to my grades, but it didn't really reflect my level of intelligence. I think if I had had another choice, I would have done well at home, but then again who knows? Back in the 80's it wasn't heard of in most places. I am trying to recall if I knew anyone homeschooled--I think maybe one family, but I am not sure. Wow, I am rambling.....
Yep. I believe the most burn-out is during the elementary and middle school years. This is the time that kids are learning HOW to learn. Schools tend to really kill that and it ruins their innate love of learning. For us, homeschooling has preserved that love. I have 2 in high school now. They were both ready, confident, self-sufficient, mature, and had a solid love of learning to bring with then to high school. (I only hs'd my oldest for 8th grade, but we used that year to undo the damage, build up self esteem, and kick-start her love of learning again. It was successful. )
At one of our local school districts, the kindergarten program is only Tuesday and Friday, for three hours each day. Now, I understand the idea of not pushing a child that young, but they still have to teach all the K stuff that's required by No Child Left Behind, yet in a vastly shorter amount of time. That and the kids are having a hard time retaining the info from one class day to the next. This is all due to budget cuts. I am glad my kids don't have to be taught the test. In fact, until my kids are required by law to take the test, I am not having them take anything. And even when they have to take it, I refuse to judge their education based on what some test score says. My ds isn't the type to be able to sit for 3 hours a day to take a test. I know this, so I'm not going to make it a big deal. It's sad what has happened to our education system. It's failing many children so much of the time. I know the teachers (most of them) are trying, but they have their hands tied by administration because of funding. It has to be very frustrating for them!
As fortressmom was saying, ps often will "set the curriculum aside" in order to teach the test, and that's precisely what I hate about it! We never "teach to the test" but simply spend our time learning "stuff", and our kids almost always do well on our annual achievement tests. The only kids out of 37 that I have taught who did not do well were those who had very distinguishable learning issues AND didn't want to do their work and get better at it (very few!).
I think it goes beyond PS, I think it is lifestyle choices of public school families as well. This is NOT an attack, as I "were one of dem" a year and a half ago, so it is easy to compare and contrast the differences. Many PS parents DO love their kids and work so hard to help them have wonderful experiences to enrich their children's lives. They KNOW instinctively that school is not enough, so they add in activities after school and kids are busy every night of the week. We were on that merry go round...Scouts, soccer, TaeKwonDo, church...it was awful but we were doing what we thought was best. The kids were worn out, and so were we, and we never had time together because we were so busy doing what we thought the kids needed. Fast forward to homeschooling the past year and a half. We dropped Scouts, we dropped sports other than TaeKwonDo, we don't have school events to attend or things to sell or homework every night. Life is absolutely more peaceful, and we have our family back. Funny too that our kids don't miss a darned thing...nothing...nada. They love being home, and when asked if they feel they need more outside activities they say a firm no. PS is often mindless learning, meaningless activities, time fillers and monotonous drilling. Sure, it isn't always that, but more often than not it is. Most learning is not hands on, children don't have choices to follow desires and interests, they are placed in boxes and expected to perform. Homeschooling is more interest driven, more passion focuses, more hands on. It makes a difference. What I have also found is that the way we homeschool is very discussion oriented, and our kids flourish when they have the chance to really be heard and share their opinions, and it forces them to really think about what we are studying and to back up their statements. This, sadly, is not something that kids in PS have much of an opportunity to do. I also think kids are being forced to learn material that is better suited for older ages, and they miss out on more age appropriate exploratory style activities. Many, many kids are not ready to read at 5 or 6, or for that matter are not ready to manipulate numbers then either. Homeschooling allows children to progress at a pace that makes sense for each individual child. All of the above and so much more leads to burn out. Let's face it, even for adults, being simply a number anywhere in life is mind numbing and leads to unhappiness! Cindy
Great points Cindy! It reminds me, too, of my ds. He LOVES picture books. Not necessarily mindless ones, but ones with beautiful pics and a beautiful, uncomplicated storyline. ps was all about chapter books, and his own preferences didn't matter.
