This is a good 20/20 documentary. The lack of education in the school system, parents do not have the choice to choose which schools are best for their children (Monopoly in the school districts), and teacher's union are few of the topics covered in the documentary. The documentary is about 40 minutes long. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx4pN-aiofw
I am in the middle of watching this now. WOW. I feel so sorry for that teenager, Dorian, who can only read at a 4th grade level! And the system just kept saying he was doing fine? Unbelievable. TFS. That link's going on my blog, for sure.
What is even more disturbing is that Dorian's mother had to hire Sylvan to do the job the school would not do. After 72 hours with Sylvan, his reading level had jumped 2 grade levels. They state if the money were attached to the children (giving them a choice to choose which schools would be best for them), the schools would work harder to give them the best education. However, since the money is attached to the school districts and the zip codes, parents do not have a choice unless they place their children in private schools. This is one of the reasons why they do not want the parents to have the right to homeschool. They want the money for the school districts.
I'm on dial up and can't watch videos, however, sounds like an episode I saw a few years ago (maybe primetime live or something), anyway, they compared our system to the one in (I want to say Norway or Sweden). Over there, if the student was bored or didn't like the way the teacher taught, they could swap schools and go wherever they wanted to. The teachers salary and even their job was based on how many students came, or wanted to come, into their class and learn from them. This made the teachers competitive and always looking for ways to make class more enjoyable, interesting, and not boring for students. If they did that here, half of the schools would shut down!
Our city has a system set up so that if a certain school scores low enough on the.. um.. I want to say AYP? test, the parents of the students in that school have the option to transfer their child(ren) to any other school in district. The district will wave the normal fees that go along with that type of "out of area" transfer. Here's the problem: Instead of improving the failing schools, as one might think would happen, the "good" schools are becoming overcrowded and therefore begining to do poorly as well. The school that my children would attend now has an average class size of 40 for K-5!
Sorry that I'm a few days behind here. I'm not sure if this is the same documentary I watched a few years ago, but it sounds like it. In many other countries they have very competitive schools. The schools are responsible for giving excellent education and keeping students or they end up having to shut down. The individual schools have to be accountable and the parents have power. In our PS system the schools only accountability are standardized testing and goals set up by No Child Left Behind. Parents do not have choices and are virtually powerless to get their child into a school that is appropriate. There is no threat of closing doors in PS. I don't ever see a day where our current system will change for the better. Our society is being dumbed down for a reason and the quickest way to accomplish this is through education. At least that's my take on it (maybe I'm a conspiracy theorist). Anyway, thrilled I can educate my own children.
The public school system to me is a joke!..Just the other day i was watching on the news where because of budget issues..Hawaii is going from 5 days a week to just four! Oor children should be at the top of list when it comes to where the money goes...but it doesnt happen..thats why i homeschool...
I've only watched the first five minutes or so and had to pause to get this thought down... Not trying to disrespect anyone's opinion. I have lots of things about PS that I don't care for, which is why I will be HSing next year. BUT, does anyone else see a parenting issue here? I mean, the kid taking his shirt off and dancing around the room is clearly out of control. And the geography class playing Monopoly where the teacher is talking and the class is blatantly ignoring him needs to be taught some respect. If I had ever behaved that way in school (or anywhere else) my parents would have take care of it IMMEDIATELY. In defense of the good teachers out there (and for sure not all of them are good, but lots are), not all of the problems with public school stem from the teachers. We have to work with the students the way they come to us and our hands our tied in a lot of situations. I know that public school has lots and lots of downfalls and I will be pulling my own children out next year. But let's not blame everything on the teachers.
I'm so hearing you, Tiff! Most of the teachers I knew in my 20 years of school social work did the very best they could with what they were given to work with -- between the constantly-changing demands of the Central Office as transmitted from the State as transmitted by the Feds, and the parents who demanded ridiculous concessions for their student, I think they did their very best, and really cared about the students they taught. I did meet a few who were just there to collect a paycheck and get holidays and summers off, but very few. There were more who were actually incompetent (not only as teachers, but some of them as human beings too...) but because they were tenured, it would have caused entirely too big a stink to try to get rid of them, so they stayed. And there were a very few (maybe two or three that I knew of) who actually didn't like kids. But MOST were wonderful, caring people who tried to teach the kids what the kids needed, within the restrictions imposed by the school district, the State, and the Feds.
Okay, I finished the video. I agree that there are lots of problems with public school. I think most of the problems come from administration, school boards, and unions. In my district this year, our superintendent received a very substantial raise and several new administrative positions were created. So, money that should have gone into the classroom for things like manipulatives, curriculum, and teacher training is now going into salaries for people who have no direct contact with the children. And I am sitting in a room of 4 year-olds with no heat for at least another week (thank God the lowest temp we've had so far has been in the 40's, so it hasn't been bad, but it's really frustrating). Anyway, I still stand by what I said before, please don't place the blame soley on teachers. Many of us are here becasue we truly do care about and want to help children. We do the best we can within a system that severely limits our options And, if you notice, the kids who were able to move to the charter schools were the kids who had parents who were involved and concerned enough to put forth the effort to demand it and to sign up and show up for the "lottery". Of course they are going to do better than those without parental support. The problems with public school go well beyond the classroom or school building walls. We need to look at our country's society in general to find where the problem begins. But, as long as the problems continue in the public school system, my children and I will do our learning at home.
They really do not teach anything where I live. I live in what is supposed to be an exemplerary area, the schools I am zoned for all are. But, they do almost nothing for educating. My oldest is in the public schools still. He learns nothing really. The books are awful the there is no control over the classrooms. I blame the administration, the parents, the kids, and the teachers. No one really seems to care about educating the children, and the children don't seem to either. I really blame the school district and state the most though. The districts often teach the parents that they cannot parent their own children and they do not know what their children need. I did a lot of volunteer work and really got sick of pompous teachers and staff who just thought they were so much better than the parents and the students. I know there are plenty of good teachers out there, but all the bad teachers and administration have overshadowed anything good. And the government votes in what is to be taught and not taught. So it is no longer about educating but rather about whatever current political agenda.
I really feel bad for the teachers. I didn't watch the video, but thought I would comment anyway. I feel pretty sure that teachers (the good ones) start out with a vision of inspiring children and helping them learn and even enjoy learning. I would imagine that the perfect dream would be a well behaved classroom where the teacher could expect respect, be able to choose their method of teaching, and enjoy being with the students. But, unfortunately, this society is not going to let that dream happen. Respect? Are you kidding the kid's parents might not even respect you let alone the students. Choose your own method? No way-the system wants good looking reports-so you have to use their materials and do it their way to make the grades on standardized tests. Enjoy the students? Well without respect that would be difficult, plus there are so many students, the work load is overwhelming so enjoyment probably flies out the window. I would also imagine that a lot of good teachers give up and go to a job where they are better appreciated. Why settle for bad/fair pay only to have to suffer with the lack of support and respect?
It's things like this that make homeschooling so much more appealing. Big Brother is controlling more and more of our options right down to what we learn. Homeschooling gives you the freedom to encourage your children to think laterally, critically and enthusiastically.
