Parents: Stop blaming it all on the education system

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   Julia Changposted 13 years ago

   I personally think that many use the education system as a scapegoat for their kids' general lack of interest in learning. I think it starts at home with the parenting methods and how the parents motivate and encourage learning.
   
   How do we become more responsible parents towards the education of our kids? There must be more to it than relying solely on the public school system to give all the necessary knowledge to our kids so that they can become knowledgeable, well-informed adults.

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   Reading is fundamental. Reading books, reading the classics. Video games teaches reading like wild fire. But kids get carried away and after that a waste of time.

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      Julia Changposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      I agree! Reading is so essential to spreading knowledge but I don't think using a video game to teach is necessary if a parent just invests time with the child. I think video games and television in general are just a lazy parents' way of removing that responsibility from themselves.
      
      Technology is great to a certain point but I guess my point is that it shouldn't take the place of great parenting.

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3. 62

   Daniel Carterposted 13 years ago

   According to Hilary Clinton, "It Takes a Village."
   That concept is probably some of the best advice in this age.
   
   The business world teaches us to only look out for ourself. Education is a form of mentoring. Family, friends, and community—as well as educators—should consider getting involved. If this type of education and mentoring were more fully implemented, we would develop deeper connections in our communities, and thus foster better business and living models.
   
   At least, that's the theory, which seems very reasonable to consider.

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4. 61

   TMMasonposted 13 years ago

   I don't blame the education system per-say. I blame the NEA, and the fed Dept. of Ed.
   
   Parents teach their kids and the schools and teachers pollute their minds with BS, and tell them their parents don't know anything. It is all indoctrination, and it needs to stop.

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      Jeff Berndtposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      "Parents teach their kids and the schools and teachers pollute their minds with BS, and tell them their parents don't know anything. It is all indoctrination, and it needs to stop."
      That's a load of hooey.

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         TMMasonposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Thats a loud of HONESTY... you forgot a couple of letters. Have you not heard your Al Gore in the schools around America. "Kids I am here to tell you, that you know things and more about things than your parents do" As the lil teachers applaud his idiocy. Brought to you by the NEA.
         
         And I am not saying the parents are blameless. After all it was we who allowed the Unions and Govt to steal our schools and children from us. And there are those who do not care to teach their children, or do not have the time.

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   Daniel Carterposted 13 years ago

   Blame is about being a victim and refusing to do anything about the problem, saying "it's not my fault, it's theirs and they OWE me."
   
   As long as blame is in the equation, so is enmity. As long as enmity is present, refusal to agree on anything to move forward will be the prevailing condition.

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6. 90

   jponiatoposted 13 years ago

   I agree that early reading is essential, although I'm not so sure that video games is good for that.  My wife and I read to our kids almost daily, starting when they were tiny babies, even before they could talk.  As they got older, I would occasionally choose a book a little ahead of their comprehension skills, and take the time to explain unfamiliar concepts.
   
   By the time my daughter was 4 1/2, she could read at a 2nd grade level.  She graduated 16th in her class of about 400 students.  Both of our kids grew up loving to read and thirsting for knowledge.  Both are considered "gifted" by the school system, all honours and AP classes.  My son, a junior now, may graduate higher than his sister did.  I actually think that is one of his secret goals.
   
   I whole-heartedly believe that learning starts long before our children enter the school system, and that good parenting is vital to foster their education.

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   knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

   Educated parents create educated kids. They know what it is. Uneducated parents create uneducated kids, since they don't have it they justify it. Better to be positive in one's ignorance.

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   Stacie Lposted 13 years ago

   "It takes an entire village to raise a child"...that being said, everyone has a stake in the education of a child.
   there are too many parents that don't make their kids accountable and place blame on everyone else..

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   Hugh Williamsonposted 13 years ago

   "I whole-heartedly believe that learning starts long before our children enter the school system, and that good parenting is vital to foster their education."
   
   Absolutely.
   
   Not to say that there couldn't be many improvements made in our ed system, but if the parents aren't involved with the child's learning, well, you just cannot make up for that with education.

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10. 72

    Jeff Berndtposted 13 years ago

    A lot of people like to scapegoat our public school system, especially those that want to tear it down.
    
    But if it's not the school system, it's dungeons and dragons, or heavy metal music, or rap, or video games, or the entertainment industry, whatever.
    
    It's a lot easier to blame someone else than it is to take responsibility.
    
    If your kids are having problems, maybe you should think about what kind of parent you think you are, what kind of parent your kid thinks you are, and what kind of parent you want to be.

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11. 61

    knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

    "A lot of people like to scapegoat our public school system, especially those that want to tear it down." Like Goldman and Sacks and the private school industry. They can make billions and they plan to.

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    TMMasonposted 13 years ago

    Just look at the New Jersey Teacher's Unions today, they are a perfect example of the Left and the unions today. Calling Christie, Hitler, but don't call them any names.
    
    Your all fired!.. get out of our Schools.

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    starme77posted 13 years ago

    Well I think its alot of bull shit programming - see people are animals and many animals go into hibernation or torpor in winter months - they sleep deeper they grow there is a natural clock for all animals and ours is disturbed when we are programmed from age five to get up at 5 or six every morning practically all year round - humans are an animal species and were not made to do the same thing day after day after day like that - ever see any animals that do that?

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       wildernessposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       Few children have to get up at 5 to get to school, but you may have something here.  Most (diurnal) animals sleep at night, getting up a little before the sun rises, and perhaps children should follow that same basic pattern.
       
       Of course, this means go to bed with the sun, too.  To bed at 8 in the winter, up at 6:30 or 7.  High school students that want to stay up till 2 and  sleep till 10, probably won't like it, but oh well.
       
       It would probably cut down a good bit on child crime as well.

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14. 61

    TMMasonposted 13 years ago

    Yes the Teachers are great, and the education system is perfect.
    
    
    U.S. students don't know much about American history, according to results of a national test released Tuesday. Just 13 percent of high school seniors who took the 2010 National Assessment of Educational Progress, called the Nation's Report Card, showed solid academic performance in American history.
    
    The two other grades didn't perform much better, which just 22 percent of fourth-grade students and 18 percent of eighth-graders scoring proficient or better.
    
    The test quizzed students on topics including colonization, the American Revolution and the Civil War, and the contemporary United States. For example, one question asked fourth-graders to name an important result of the U.S. building canals in the 1800s. Only 44 percent knew that it was increased trade among states.
    
    "The history scores released today show that student performance is still too low," Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a statement. "These results tell us that, as a country, we are failing to provide children with a high-quality, well-rounded education."
    
    Education experts say a heavy focus on reading and math under the federal No Child Left Behind law in the last decade has led to lagging performance in other subjects such as history and science.
    
    "We need to make sure other subjects like history, science and the arts are not forgotten in our pursuit of the basic skills," said Diane Ravitch, a research professor at New York University and former U.S. assistant education secretary.
    
    Of the seven subjects on the national test, students performed the worst in U.S. history. Officials with the National Assessment Governing board, which oversees the tests, say the results aren't comparable to the other tests because different students take each exam in different years.
    
    The scores on the history test did not vary remarkably from years past; in 1994, for example, 19 percent of fourth-grade students scored proficient or better in U.S. history.
    
    More than 7,000 fourth-grade students, 11,000 eighth graders and 12,000 high school seniors from a nationally representative sample took the test last year.
    
    To be considered proficient, they had to get certain scores out of 500. For fourth-graders, the score was 243. Eighth-graders needed 294, and 12th graders had to get a 325.
    
    Judy Brodigan, who was head of the elementary social studies curriculum for the Lewisville, Texas, school district for a decade, said history and social studies classes aren't as much of a priority for school districts as math and reading. She noted that many states only test history and social studies starting in middle school, which means elementary school students don't get the background they need in the subject.
    
    "When the foundation isn't built in elementary school, these students are coming to middle school lacking crucial skills," Brodigan said. "What it means is that in what is becoming a more and more global society, American students are more and more at a disadvantage."
    
    Educators said history is critical to students learning how to become better citizens and understanding how the country's political and cultural systems work. Students need to not only recognize leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Lincoln, but also understand why they were important to the development of the country.
    
    "Overall the quality and success of our lives can only be enhanced by a study of our roots," said Steven Paine, former state schools superintendent for West Virginia. "If you don't know your past, you will not have a future."
    
    ---
    http://www.kypost.com/dpps/news/nationa … ry_6444407

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15. 61

    knolyourselfposted 13 years ago

    American education is a class system, public, private and elite boarding schools. The kind and perspective of education one gets depends on the class of the school and the class of the teachers they hire.

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    Kangaroo_Jaseposted 13 years ago

    'There are no bad student, only bad teacher....'
    
    quote - Mr Miyagi, The Karate Kid

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    rebekahELLEposted 13 years ago

    I think it starts before conception. Parents should educate themselves on what it means to parent,learn how children develop throughout the different stages of childhood. We know that parenting doesn't come with instructions, and so very few prepare themselves for the awesome responsibility and work involved in raising a child.
    Parents are the primary teachers. Education doesn't need to be separated from home and school building. As Daniel mentioned, a community is involved. There are libraries, youth programs, museums, nature, community events. We have this 'boxed' concept of education only taking place at school or universities. Truly the world is the classroom.
    Those who blame the educational system are those who blame their boss, their in-laws, the president or previous administration, their spouse, their parents... anyone else but themselves.
    I have a few hubs about education, mostly early childhood, which may be helpful. One is about how to educate children outside of the classroom. The possibilities are endless. A child is naturally curious, the parent can help instill a love for learning and discovery very early.

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