No Child Left Behind? How about adults?

[Lap_dancer 8]

You guys need to look in the TV guide and see when "Homeless to Harvard" is going to be on life time again. This is a true story. It proves that no matter what you have if you want to learn and be somthing your will work you tushie off. Librarys are free...

Doesnt mean that I did well in school by any means. I am not saying that! Just please watch the movie! Plus it was really good too!

GREAT movie.

I also recommend "Lean on Me" (1989) Starring Morgan Freeman

the true story of Joe Clark, principal at a school with a high number of at-risk students.

"The Ron Clark Story" starring Matthew Perry (2006) made for TV.

"Music of the Heart" starring Meryl Streep

"Stand and Deliver" starring Edward James Olmos

From inside the education trenches where the glass is half full,

Lap Dancer

[anonemouse 1]

We need to help our teachers learn to teach, not just to follow a curriculum or talk or instruct. I'm not a teacher so I don't have the first hand experience, but I have worked as a contractor hired to help schools fox this problem. And I know there's a huge deficit out there (can only speak for sure about schools in my state and two surrounding states) between what teachers are learning, how they're allowed to do their job, and the knowledge/skills someone really needs to teach effectively.

I agree with this to a certain extent, but I also think that we need to put responsibility on the student to learn, as well. In today's society, we like to place blame everywhere but the place it truly belongs. I have several family members who are teachers, and I have personal experience teaching college-level biology laboratories. The sad fact that I have come to realize is that many students just don't want to take responsibility for their education. They want to be baby-fed their education without putting any effort into learning what they need to learn. And from what I've heard from my relatives (they all teach elementary classes), it isn't any better there. In those cases, though, it isn't just the student failing to take responsibility, it's their parents that don't want to LET their child take responsibility. When a child fails a test, it isn't the child's fault for not studying, it's the teacher's fault because she didn't put every single test question on the review sheet. Little Johnny or Tiffany couldn't have failed to study for a test, it's all the teacher's fault.

[Lap_dancer 8]

I agree with this to a certain extent, but I also think that we need to put responsibility on the student to learn, as well. In today's society, we like to place blame everywhere but the place it truly belongs. I have several family members who are teachers, and I have personal experience teaching college-level biology laboratories. The sad fact that I have come to realize is that many students just don't want to take responsibility for their education. They want to be baby-fed their education without putting any effort into learning what they need to learn. And from what I've heard from my relatives (they all teach elementary classes), it isn't any better there. In those cases, though, it isn't just the student failing to take responsibility, it's their parents that don't want to LET their child take responsibility. When a child fails a test, it isn't the child's fault for not studying, it's the teacher's fault because she didn't put every single test question on the review sheet. Little Johnny or Tiffany couldn't have failed to study for a test, it's all the teacher's fault.

Thank you for this! You can't force parents to want to quiz their kids the night before a big test or make sure the homework is done, the papers are signed, etc., before they go out with friends. I once worked with a teacher (who was fired), who wrote the assignments on the board a week in advance, made sure the students wrote it in their planners (which the school provides), would give a countdown to when the assignment is due ( "tomorrow your paper is due on..." ) and would even call home and leave a voicemail for the parents as a reminder and STILL he would have students come in unprepared. He finally resorted to doing what he use to do when he was a kid, wrote it on the palm of his hand and he did this to one kid (why he was fired) after TWO calls home, a personal note for the family not to mention the reminders in the classroom. We even allow class time to work, after school tutoring in every core subject area and still you have a frightening amount of families who do not take advantage of these opportunities for their children. We even use the U.S. postal service rather than relying on the student to take the note home to family members and also flag bilingual/non-native speakers of English so something can go home translated.

BUT then we have the others that come prepared, or rise with a little encouragement or shine with some extra polishing. They make it all worth it.

[Lucy 0]

I'm more surprised by the aghast posts than the fact that some bank clerk doesn't know her presidents. When the news is dominated by the mediocrity of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, do you really think the majority of Americans are reading Foucault?

Just shoot me if W ever makes it onto our already ugly currency.

[Kat817 19]

While I totally agree that too many students and parents do not take responsibility towards the childs education, the problem is not one sided.

My DD was one of the VERY prepared ones, she was compulsively organized....a gene that I am not sure where it originated!!! Wasn't from me, and her Father---ridiculous thought!!! Early on in 2nd grade I think it was I was testing her on her spelling, and I had her spell something, and she messed it up, I told her no it was such and such a way, and she argues with me! She pulls her paper out of her backpack, and there on her pretest (yep---a chance to see how they would do before really having a test!) was the word, spelled wrong, and not marked as wrong. I told her we could look it up in the dictionary, it was not right, and as I looked over her paper, there were several grading mistakes, when questioned about it...the teacher had never even seen the paper she was using to study---they passed it to the person behind them to grade. So here is my child, studying intently on a paper graded poorly---and studying the words, spelled wrong, she will miss them on the big test...why? She studied them wrong. Because the teacher did not take any time to even look at them. She does not have a book, there are not enough for everyone, so they must stay at school---thus the pre test, so they have a study sheet...for what it was worth!

Point being---you can have a good student, doing good work as far as they know! If I had not corrected the paper---who would have suffered? She would have...through really no fault of her own!

Just as there are good students, and bad, and focused students and lazy ones...there are just the same in teachers, through the years of my kids in school we have met all kinds!

I DID know Benjamin Franklin was not a president! Whew!

Kat

[only4me 0]

As a parent of a Special Education Student I have to add my two cents.

My son is now a 19 year old and I can attest to the fact that there are children left behind. Life with my son has been a struggle from the second grade. He slipped through every crack available at our economically disadvantaged school district. I was given every excuse under the sun for his lack of focus and inability to retain information (from both teachers and doctors). I did not realize the scope of what I was dealing with until 1 year later when I had him tested outside of the school district. He was in resourse, inclusion, and finally a 6:1:1 and then bused to an alternative High School which dealt with mostly discipline problem children (I may add that our school district at that point was glad to see us referred to Boces) When he completed High School, and I mean completed not graduated. I was sent a letter from our school district stating that although my son could not pass the regent competency exams, he passed his high school courses (with mostly B's I might add)-that pretty much were finished with his education.

So now I have a 19 year old who does not have a high school diploma, is very turned off to education, and has no direction in his life right now. Do I blame the education system. You Bet!!! I as a parent did everything possible to get this child through school. From studying with him, to testing him and guiding him. Without my guidence and constant studying, he would not have been able to achieve the grades he did.

Do I blame his teacher.....NO, they did everything they could have for him. I blame the laws of New York State that Special Education students cannot compete with regular ed students. Special Education students who pass their classes but cannot pass state tests, should be given a local diploma.

[green 6]

My experience of my school education was the reverse from that described by the individual who has posted above. Although I was educated a long time ago the system in the province where I live was already moving into the direction of that come hell or high Water egalitarian mess that it is today.

I was quite a bright kid, especially in the areas of literature, history, geography, social studies, and languages - the artsy arena - and I spent my school years trapped in the humdrum of classes pitched to the median student. I was left blind with frustration, rage, and boredom. I did a lot of my learning outside of school. This was long before the arrival of internet, and I was very lucky that my father was an intellectual kind of guy and that he enjoyed teaching his kids.

At the time when I was finishing secondary school there was much work being done in my province in order to integrate Special Ed kids into the mainstream school system. My teenage reaction to this was one of vivid bitterness; while I could understand the logic of bringing the Special Ed gang on stream I simply couldn't understand why the nerds and their special needs were being abandoned at this time. It seemed like a willful waste of human resources.

Britain was still engaged in a practice at the time when I was young, an ethically distressing one I now realise, called streaming. This was all about their junior schools sorting out their students at the age of 11 or 12 years old in order to determine which of these students would be able to proceed on to the academic (=university-bound) programmes and which would be consigned to the trade programmes. Streaming is a practice which has long since been discontinued and certainly the mature Green finds this practice as being altogether unfair, immoral, and elitist. What I did find entrancing about this practice when I was an alienated teenager was that this cruel system did acknowledge that smart people were also of value and should be nurtured.

I will mention that over my adult years I have seen north American society lurch from bad to worse. While people are prepared to recognise and pay homage to athletes and the raft of talent which constitutes Hollywood, supermodel-ville, and Bono-musician-land, it would appear that this same sense of respect does not extend to those who are, well, smart, and who have gone on to achieve in the field of academic endeavour.

Democracy and the principle of egalitarianism are all about giving everyone the same shot at success. No one should be held back because of class, race, or religion and this is just about the best gift which we who live in the United States and Canada can offer to the rest of the world.

Nevertheless, education beyond a certain basic level should not be considered a universal right. It is something which certain people win through a lucky constellation of good genetics, interest, and hard work. It would never occur to most of us to demand the right to work as models, athletes, or actors. We all recognise that those individuals have received extraordinary talents.

I am aware that I am going to sound awfully harsh but it sounds to me that your son, only4me, has received some degree of care from the educational system in your jurisdiction. Certainly your child's teachers seemed to be standing up for him even though he did present with some social difficulties in class. This indicates that they both like and value your son, and that is a wonderful thing for any parent.

I dunno..... Perhaps your school system is unable to present your child with a graduation diploma for a number of reasons apart from the academic issue which I discuss above. Perhaps your child, a child who still does present with some social issues according to my reading of your post, is considered by the school authorities to be someone who must continue to go to school for this reason. They might figure that he is just not sufficiently emotionally mature and so cannot launch himself successfully out in the work world with his HS diploma at this time. It is very easy to feel anger on the part of someone whom you love. Have you discussed this issue of his emotional maturity and ability to survive real-land with his school?

[blahblahblah 4]

Prior to becoming a stay at home mother, I was an English teacher at two lower income high schools. Presently, I am tutoring a high school student from a very affluent area...

Here's my take:

1. Teachers hate teaching for standardized tests. HATE IT...It takes away all creativity in the classroom and makes our jobs passionless. It goes against everything you idealistically think you are teaching for.

2. Students are the same everywhere--regardless of socio-economic status. There are, in every school, the students who are captivated by learning and strive to be the best students possible, and those who could care less.

3. The problem does not lie in the lack of funds given to one school over another...it lies in the home lives of the students. If there is no one at home pushing those children to complete assignments, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If they don't have someone forcing them to attain the best grades, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If there is no-one holding them accountable for their poor marks, then there is only so much a teacher can do. See the cycle?

As for Ben Franklin being our President....that's sad and it sickens me.

Rain

[only4me 0]

Perhaps your child, a child who still does present with some social issues according to my reading of your post, is considered by the school authorities to be someone who must continue to go to school for this reason. They might figure that he is just not sufficiently emotionally mature and so cannot launch himself successfully out in the work world with his HS diploma at this time. It is very easy to feel anger on the part of someone whom you love. Have you discussed this issue of his emotional maturity and ability to survive real-land with his school?

Green- while I appreciate you comments and agree with a lot of what you have posted, #1- my son was not or ever has been a social problem. My post stated that he was sent to a school which mostly had discipline problems- his problem mostly was that he wasn’t a problem and because he was "polite, and a gentleman" as all of his teacher have stated, and he did not cause problems in his class, he fell through a lot of cracks. #2-Maybe I phrased it incorrectly, but I’m not asking my son just be handed a diploma, but the law in NY state make it so that each school district can enact a 'Safety net" and make 55 not 65 passing for Regent Competency exams. Not all school districts enact this policy. So if my son was in one of the school districts that have this safety net, he would have a diploma, and I wouldn’t be as frustrated as I am. My feeling is that either all schools in the state should either have this 'Safety net" or not. #3 my son has been a special education student since the third grade, I have had numerous conversations regarding my sons maturity, and whether or not he could survive on his own. To be honest, I don’t think at this time he is prepared for the world on his own, but then again my good friends son who just graduated with honors, isn’t ready either (and that’s her slant on it, not mine) I don’t know many 18 or 19 year olds that are. and as far as our school district goes, remember, they are the ones who sent me the letter stating that they have done their part and he has passed all of his requirement, their job is complete- have a good life. So that door is closed.

[only4me 0]

3. The problem does not lie in the lack of funds given to one school over another...it lies in the home lives of the students. If there is no one at home pushing those children to complete assignments, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If they don't have someone forcing them to attain the best grades, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If there is no-one holding them accountable for their poor marks, then there is only so much a teacher can do. See the cycle?

Rainer- This is simply not true in my case. I did not remain in that economically disadvantaged school district. I moved to one of the highest reguarded shool districts while my son was still in the elementary school. While I was in the first school district and had to attend CSE meetings to discuss my sons IEP, I was contantly told "your son has you in his corner which is his best asset, we have kids who are much worse off than your son who need the programs more--I had to hire an advocate to come to the next CSE meeting who knew the law and knew exactly what my son was entitled to and really taught me how to fight for service for my son, and it was always a battle in that school district. When I moved the new "Better off school district" I never had to fight for any services, it was like "this is what he needs, this is what he gets"..so in my experience, lack of funds greatly impacts what programs are offered, and who get them.

As far as working with my son, I dont think I could have worked harder. Its very hard for a Boy in the 11th grade who is reading on a 5th grade level and a 4th grade vocabulary level to keep up with 11th grade Studies. Yet he passed all of his classes, and struggled greatly because his problems are mostly processing, he cannot recall information like you and I. So in my own defense, I was not an absent parent, who didnt work with their child.

[only4me 0]

<p>One last thing. I did state that I did not hold any of his teacher to blame. They worked very hard with my son. Some of those teacher I will forever be grateful for.</p>

[anonemouse 1]

I agree with Green. I can remember being SO bored in school. I think that we are so afraid of letting our kids fail in this society, that we do anything and everything to keep them from failing, even when they may not be making the grade. We want everyone to make passing grades, even when they either haven't done the necessary work or aren't intellectually equipped to earn it themselves. To put it bluntly, my high school's programs were so dumbed down, I passed ALL of my classes with As and Bs without studying more than five minutes before exams. And I'm not a genious. It's pitiful.

I personally think our educational system should be stratified, based on potential ability and actual performance. It wouldn't be fair to ask only4me's son to compete academically with high-achieving kids, and it isn't fair to require high-achieving kids to be restricted to the academic standards of kids that aren't capable (for one reason or another) of reaching the same level.

[blahblahblah 4]

3. The problem does not lie in the lack of funds given to one school over another...it lies in the home lives of the students. If there is no one at home pushing those children to complete assignments, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If they don't have someone forcing them to attain the best grades, then there is only so much a teacher can do. If there is no-one holding them accountable for their poor marks, then there is only so much a teacher can do. See the cycle?

Rainer- This is simply not true in my case. I did not remain in that economically disadvantaged school district. I moved to one of the highest reguarded shool districts while my son was still in the elementary school. While I was in the first school district and had to attend CSE meetings to discuss my sons IEP, I was contantly told "your son has you in his corner which is his best asset, we have kids who are much worse off than your son who need the programs more--I had to hire an advocate to come to the next CSE meeting who knew the law and knew exactly what my son was entitled to and really taught me how to fight for service for my son, and it was always a battle in that school district. When I moved the new "Better off school district" I never had to fight for any services, it was like "this is what he needs, this is what he gets"..so in my experience, lack of funds greatly impacts what programs are offered, and who get them.

As far as working with my son, I dont think I could have worked harder. Its very hard for a Boy in the 11th grade who is reading on a 5th grade level and a 4th grade vocabulary level to keep up with 11th grade Studies. Yet he passed all of his classes, and struggled greatly because his problems are mostly processing, he cannot recall information like you and I. So in my own defense, I was not an absent parent, who didnt work with their child.

Only4me...

I was not writing in reference to your post...I actually hadn't read it. Your circumstance with your son is not what I was referring to. I meant the average child who's able, but not willing. I apologize if you took offense to what I wrote.

Rain

[only4me 0]

I personally think our educational system should be stratified, based on potential ability and actual performance. It wouldn't be fair to ask only4me's son to compete academically with high-achieving kids, and it isn't fair to require high-achieving kids to be restricted to the academic standards of kids that aren't capable (for one reason or another) of reaching the same level.

I think you are right, my son as well as all special education students should have been with kids who have to same kinds of issues. Unfortunatly, there are a lot of discipline problem students or kids with "at risk behavior" with high IQ's and no true learning disablilty in Special Education. Because there is no where else to put them. But that is another issue, and I cant even get into that one right now.

Putting a special ed student in with high-achievers sets them up for failure--in all cases no, in some yes. I do believe that inclusion classes have been successful, not in my case however. My issue really is with the standards of Education. Kids are not "cookie cutter students". Not all kids can earn a regents diploma, or local diploma, Many special ed kids can earn an IEP diploma which means they met the requierments of their IEP. But they cant write down on a job application that they earned a high school diploma with that. Its not considered graduation from High School. Without a high shool diploma, your chances are very limited. I am lucky that my son is eligible for VESED and can go to a one year vocational school being that he is a documented Special Ed student. But he still cant write down on an application that he graduated high school.

As a side note, I just found out this evening that my son passed his science RCT which he took this morning. One down, 2 more to go. He will take them in January (I will have to pay for a tutor to prepare for that)

[only4me 0]

Rainer, no offense taken, but as you can see, I do take what I have been able to help my son achieve very seriously, I have had to learn how to fight a system that seems to always have been against us. Sorry if I offended you.