A broken system
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
There is a revolt brewing in public education. There are many very unhappy customers, vividly illustrated by far too many students leaving the system without knowing how to spell, read, or how to make change. This is from the kids themselves, not the parents.
When is a 50 percent or 70 percent passing rate preparing students for the real world? When do the cashiers at any retail store keep their job when they make change correctly only 70 percent of the time?
Any child in a failing school such as Sabattus should not be sentenced to that institution, but should have the ability to take their education dollars to the educational institution where their parents believe they would have the greatest opportunity to succeed. It is about children and their education.
Educrats are quick to oppose educational options outside the public school arena.
Americans have choices - where we buy our groceries, where we live - we make critical decisions determining our children's lives every day. Yet the educrats don't trust the parents to make educational choices for their children.
There is a failure on behalf of the education community to recognize their customers - the parents, taxpayers, business community and students.
When Sabattus schools are rated "acceptable," that second from the lowest rating isn't acceptable to parents and to taxpayers.
The current system appears not to be working in the best interest of the children. However, it appears to be working well for school administrators' pay envelopes. Phillip Webber Sr., Sabattus |
CLICK HERE To Show/Hide Discussion Thread - (17 Comments)
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Posted By:Douglas at August 13, 2008 6:59 AM (Suggest Removal) I would be interested in finding out how much the school is failing versus how much the parents are failing their children. Is thier homework being done? Are the parents checking it and clarifying as needed? Are the children being allowed to play video games instead of do homework? For many reasons, parental involvement has fallen off in the past two decades, and it should not be left up to districts to raise the children.
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Posted By:Chahlie at August 13, 2008 7:16 AM (Suggest Removal) There are certainly a number of apathetic parents who expect the schools to babysit and raise their children. However, I maintain that it is up to the schools to seek academic excellence. If a student fails to learn the curriculum, then he/she must realise the consequences of that. A social passing grade is not the answer. Teachers today attend class dressed much like the students themselves. There is nothing to defune them as the authority figures they are supposed to be. My teachers wore jackets and ties and dresses. They looked the part and they didn't take any crap. Nor did they stand for dissruption in their classrooms. They were there to teach and had the expectation that students were there to learn. And should a student not learn, he/she was held back. As one who has worked with children for many years,(I am not a teacher), I have found that children will do what is expected of them if given the chance and the tools. Expect excellence...you'll get it. Settle for mediocraty...you'll get that too.
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Posted By:Matt at August 13, 2008 7:29 AM (Suggest Removal) Douglas, half the problem is that the districts TRY to raise the children, rather than focusing on the 3 R's. (A little history and civics might be a good idea, too.) Public schools are stuck trying to be all things to all people, and of course, end up doing nothing well. The letter writer has great point- why no CHOICE? Giving the customer a choice is what makes all businesses strive to succeed, and it seems that not all schools are putting forth the kind of effort necessary.
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Posted By:Joe at August 13, 2008 7:47 AM (Suggest Removal) Chahlie, you describe the sloppy teachers, but not the parents who come to parent/teacher nights drunk, on drugs or don't come at all. When you were a child, I'd bet that children began their education having had a baseline of structure that kids today simply don't have. A teacher can no longer say that s/he won't "put up with something," because the first person who will complain is the parent for "abusing my child." the system may be broke in Sabattus, but it's the parents who are first line of that problem.
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Posted By:Douglas at August 13, 2008 8:10 AM (Suggest Removal) Matt, you're right as well. I teach and when I saw the old St. Pat's school closing in Portland I was chomping at the bit to try to open a classical education based private academy. Parents who are serious about their child's future should indeed have a choice.
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Posted By:Mike at August 13, 2008 8:33 AM (Suggest Removal) You can always vote with your feet and homeschool your kids instead. We've done it for the last 17 years, and hope to continue for 5 more. Our kids have had a challenging education with high expectations, but best of all, they were raised with our Christian values, and not the values of a Godless society.
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Posted By:Douglas at August 13, 2008 8:41 AM (Suggest Removal) That's all good, Mike but most parents I've been in contact with are not qualified to teach. This is not to say that they are at all ignorant, but I believe that a person must have a certain level of confidence with the subjects they are to teach and when a child reaches high school, parents must be proficient enough to keep up. Also, many Christian home school programs I have seen (the prepared ones), fall short of what one would call a rounded education.
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Posted By:Matt at August 13, 2008 9:38 AM (Suggest Removal) Ever notice how the Dem's care so much about "choice" when it comes to a woman's right to choose abortion, but they are dead set against school vouchers? Boy, those two positions seem incongruous with their constant blathering about "it's for the children..."
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Posted By:JohnBerry at August 13, 2008 9:55 AM (Suggest Removal) I have recently tutored two graduates of a local high school. One of them had started college and then realized that he was woefully unprepared. The other was told by a college admissions person that he should go to a community college and then come back when he was better prepared. Both of these teens thought that the school system was preparing them for college. It did prepare then for some standardized testing, but not much else. ----- I am not saying that they were the norm for the local schools. One factor, I am sure, was that they come from single parent homes. Their mothers did the best that they could and should be commended. Their "fathers" were nowhere in sight. ----- This is a very complex issue but I believe that more choice would provide a better education for all of our children.
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Posted By:JulieL at August 13, 2008 4:51 PM (Suggest Removal) Shalom, is this the "new math" my friends are all complaining about? In both cases they have daugthers in private schools; $20,000 per year, and they are not allowed to carry number when adding up columns. One high acheiver was disciplined for having a penciled in figure at the top of the column and had points deducted.....how are parents suppose to help their kids with "new Math?" My son starts kindergarten in a few weeks and I can hardly wait.....snicker.....
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Posted By:JulieL at August 13, 2008 4:55 PM (Suggest Removal) PS, I hope and pray my son is a geek...
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Posted By:jack at August 13, 2008 9:07 PM (Suggest Removal) With that comment. I can understand why todays children come to school with so many problems.
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Posted By:jack at August 13, 2008 9:09 PM (Suggest Removal) Mr. Webber your article sounds like it came from a politician( and we all know who that is). I happen to have a child in the school system, and am very happy with it. I will support this school system in any way I can. Every parent has the choice to send their child to a private school. Could you imagine if all the old people had to support children who were deciding to go to a private school?!?! In every other town everyone pays taxes for their school, why should Sabattus be any different. For someone who only pays a SMALL amount of taxes you complain A LOT!
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Posted By:dr. dosh at August 13, 2008 9:24 PM *'>(Suggest Removal) i am a nerd • A fact these days is that , due to good nutrition and such , many children are smarter I Q - wise than their teachers . i am not saying they are wiser or have more experience . Look at it this way ; The avg. I Q of people in U . S . is 100 , by definition . We have a govt. of the people , by the people , and for the people , correct ? O k , then . You avg. teacher's I Q is going to be 100 then . No more , no less . 1/2 the kids w i l l be smarter : 1\2 w i l l be dumber . It's a thankless job being an educator : like being a nurse , police , firefighter , or an E M T . Public service . It's not what you got , it's how you use it. Forrest Gump proved that Alo'ha (=>*
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Posted By:Garrett at August 13, 2008 9:39 PM (Suggest Removal) Homeschooling is not always about being taught by your parents...but more about seeking out the information for yourself. Sure, in elementary grades you may need some parental guidance...however, when I was in 6th and 7th grade I read my textbooks with a desire to learn...and of course, pass my exams. Homeschooling can be a little socially exclusive....but I believe it is academically superior to attending mediocre public schools and certainly cheaper than going through uptight private schools. Fact is, most parents don't care enough. Peace
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Posted By:gil at August 14, 2008 12:21 AM (Suggest Removal) dr. dosh, bra, lay down the pipe and read the book Forest Gump was based on. The main character in there wasn't a guy who backed into luck, he was the guy who destroyed everything he touched. Hollywood couldn't handle that and changed the entire premise of the story. So your Gump assertion is moot. As for education, the parents should be allowed vouchers to choose which school their kids go.
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Posted By:dr. dosh at August 15, 2008 12:38 AM *'>(Suggest Removal) l o l Gil . Gump is a fictional character . .like Sponge Bob , ok ? " Life is like a box of chocolates . You don't know what you will get , until you stick your finger in it ." You completely missed the point , Gil . We home schooled our kids when i worked in Africa for 4 years . Used the Calvert School out of Baltimore , MD . i recommend them and their program , highly . http://www.calvertschool.org/calvert-school " It's not what you got ; it's if and how you use it . Forrest Gump proved that ." Alo'ha (=>*
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