What Do You Think Of The Public School System?

[Ceres]

I am interested in opinions on this from the general public, so two questions:

1) Do you think the public school system where you live is sufficient?

2) What do you think would make it better?

[Cat]

1) Is the PS system where I live sufficient?

No.

I live in a town with a lot of upper middle/upper class folks. Taxes are very high. Here are some facts about the public schools in town:

Expenditures Per Student: $11,975 - 98th percentile both Nationally &
91st perecentile State Wide
Student/Teacher Ratio: 11.2 to 1

Yet our schools consistently perform below the state and county averages. They have no playgrounds or gyms, and use the already overcrowded public parks for recreation.

There are two charter schools. One doesn't have its own building, and uses a floor of a regular middle school. There is no gymnasium or playground. My stepdaughter attended there for two years and went from As to Cs and Ds because there was no work ethic. The teachers were apathetic too. The other charter school has its own building. Up until last year scored very poorly on state tests. Suddenly last year their scores shot up to 100% of the kids being proficient or better, which left me rather suspicious.

The private schools, which again I have dealt with through my stepdaughter, aren't much better. Very expensive but not a lot of academic rigor.

2) What can be done?

Well, part of the problem where I am is the corruption that is entrenched in every aspect of government including the school system. I know of no way to improve things beyond having the private sector take over the public schools.

Once that was done, the other problems could be identified and addressed.

[Chesna]

Like everything else..there are some good there are some bad. As my daughter will be entering Kindergarten this year I am not very familiar with the school here, but from others I have spoken to, they are ok. We have a medium size imigrant community of both Russian and Hispanic so our test scores are judged differently due to these populations. But I also believe that parents need to take as much of an active effort as they can with their child's education. As Ellie has speech and phonics issues I will be making those known to her teacher at open house. I also plan on keeping in touch with the teacher about those issues and if improvement is not seen, I do have the ability to ask the speech clinician check on her and eval her for special services. I would be surprised to see a state with no school problems...what needs to be done is very highly trained and educated teachers who are paid what they deserve and classrooms that are small and helpful with school being able to offer the extra support and services needed to make sure each child succeeds. But I firmly believe with all that..if the importance in education and continuing that education is not present in the home, even the best school will not overcome that.

Chesna

[DreamSpell333]

well,..

the schools that I attended back home were pretty good while i was there.
Although they all had their issues with size of the school and amount of childen but I've heard that they have improved and/or are proposing either addng an addition or
rebuilding the school. (mainly the elementary and middle schools).

Teacher wise.. They are good. Since Hannah isnt in school yet I can only judge from
My school experiences.. I will know more once she is in school..

[ladyalpha]

I think this school that my children are in depends a lot on what type of student the child is. I have found by reading notes that my oldest has brought home that some of her friends have written that a lot of children are being passed through without basic skills. Last year one of her friends couldn't spell the word 'pool'..they were in 4th grade!
The office is a complete joke and full of the rudest people I have ever had to encounter in my life. I called one day to let the school know that my kids would not be riding the bus after school (silly me thought they needed to know that so they would know where their students were and so the driver would know she didn't have to stop at our home), well I used the word "inform"..that apparently was a huge mistake. The vice principal lost his mind that I was calling "to inform him of something". I calmly explained what the word inform meant and then found out that I didn't need to call them at all because they didn't care so long as the kids knew they weren't riding.
If you step into the office the workers, vice principal and principal will look at you and either walk away or turn their backs on you. Now originally I thought I was getting this attitude because they treat "new" people in town like that. They don't realize that I spent a lot of my childhood in this town and went to all three schools (elem., junior, high school) and I know how this town works. But, I do tend to forget that you can't use big words with them. But, I found out that it is how they treat almost all the parents.
Academics wise, my kids are advanced and when my middle child was in 1st grade the teacher did try to help her with that by giving her the option to do harder worksheets when not busy with regular school work. But, she didn't get credit for the work and if she didn't understand the directions by reading it the teacher told her that it was too hard for her and to put it up. Since then they try to keep her held back with the other kids in reading because they are afraid of content issues in books for her reading level.
I have heard from teachers in a town in Arkansas that we moved here from, that the students from here that transferred there were behind academically. In that school they wanted to advance my oldest to the next grade but here they do not do that. Your in the grade your in..deal with it. They are not allowed to give them the next grades work and have it count either.

But, compared to the way we were treated in Wisconsin, I do see some benefits here. There the teachers had issues with me supplimenting at home. I heard how I needed to make sure our oldest had a childhood and playtime, etc. I was too hard on her, etc. I tried to explain for awhile that I wasn't chaining her to a desk when she got home from school..that our learning was based on what she wanted to know and things that went with what they were teaching at school. But, they didn't want to hear it so I stopped trying to defend our stance on things.
Here, they are happy that we help the children and that education is so important to us. It has shocked some of the teachers when I tell them I'm a hands on parent and will keep in touch with them. I don't expect them to raise my children..that's my job. But, they are happy to have the girls in their classes and know that if a problem was to arise I would be there taking care of it.

I think to fix the problems here the "authority" figures need to learn how to speak to parents with respect and realize that parents are not enemies.
The teachers really need to be focusing on the basics and make sure that at least that is learned before pushing them through to the next grade. I know they are pressured to make sure the kids know what is on the big tests, but imo not teaching the basics is going to hurt these kids later in life. Without a firm foundation the other information isn't going to matter.
Oh, yes and those teachers that pick favorites need to be spoken to and made to understand that is no way to teach a class. My middle child is about to be going into a class like that apparently. If your the favorite you can do anything..if your not, forget it.

[Brónach Druid]

Where I live now, no. Where I lived before, at that time, yes.

Wow, this is a topic I feel very strongly about, especially with some of the problems I have encountered or witnessed here...but to put it in a "nutshell"
I think one of the biggest issues is getting parents more involved in their child's education. Parents need to recognize that education must be encouraged in the home and they must supplement what their child is doing in school at home. It shouldn't be left solely in the school and teachers hands.
In the schools themselves, I think each classroom needs to have a full-time certified teaching assistant.
I also feel we need to go back to the "old" way of thinking. Some people may disagree with this, but I personally feel that teachers are too overwhelmed by mainstreaming in the schools. I think we need to go back to dividing kids up into groups of like achievers. Special classes for children who need special attention. I also feel that children who cannot speak English need to learn and be able to function in the language to pass the class. In my own observations it always seems to come back to that there are so many distractions and chaos going on in the classrooms that teachers don't seem to have the time to deal with the problems, deal with the children who require special help as well as try to keep the other children challenged so they do not grow bored. I have also seen far too many kids pushed through. In the state I live in now there is also a huge problem of schools using tricks to make their scores look better then they are.
Oddly, another problem here is that if you have any questions or concerns the teachers here are required to give you a "stepford" response which goes something like, thank you so much for bring that to my attention and thank you for your interest and concern...blah,blah, blah. Some of the teachers really are good and do care, others just feed you this required response and do nothing, so you always have to follow up.
In every school my children attended, the entire school always knew me by name and reputation. Now I was not a "bully", but I have never been afraid to speak my mind when it comes to assuring my children received a good education. After all if your children are in public school...your tax dollars are paying for that education. I think parents need to keep an open line of communication going with the school and teachers and not be afraid to speak up or ask questions when they feel something is not meeting their expectations or just doesn't seem right.

[imakee]

My son will be entering the second grade this year. This is his third school and the first time he will be going to the same school as the previous year. We move a lot. My son has special needs and I have had a bit of work to do to make sure he gets the help he needs without being left in a corner and ignored. That said the schools have been really great about not fighting against me. The school he is at now is the best for him right now and hopefully his next school won't undo the progress he has made.

[Cat]

I think one of the biggest issues is getting parents more involved in their child's education. Parents need to recognize that education must be encouraged in the home and they must supplement what their child is doing in school at home. It shouldn't be left solely in the school and teachers hands.

I agree completely. One of my biggest beefs with the schools here is that not ONE of them does that. I'd attend a parent teacher conference only to find that my stepdaughter hadn't been doing her homework for the entire marking period. Yet no one ever called us to tell us there was a problem. Attempts to coordinate with the teachers to fix the problem never worked because they didn't do their part. We were never informed of any school event, any behavioral problem, any ANYthing. On one occasion she got stranded at school due to her mother's idiocy. She ended up walking across town after dark because no one thought to call us. The only time her schools remembered how to contact us was when they wanted money.

Sorry to go off on a tangent, this is a real pet peeve of mine.

[alwaysfallingup]

I live in a very rural area. The school my foster kids will be attending is the same school I went to, and is tiny (my graduating class was 23 students). There are some advantages to this, since each child definitely gets individual attention, there isn't a lot of crowding, etc. However, there is VERY little money available to the schools. Some of the classes are taught without the aid of books of any kind, there is no air conditioning and sometimes no heat, the classes are very limited, the school lunch program is faltering, and the buildings are in a horrible state of disrepair bordering on unsafe (my little sisters are homeschooled because of some of these issues...such as there being no math books for the sixth graders at all), and there is no art or music in any of the grades now. In fact, there is very little beyond the basics.

So, Preston and I have been thinking of what we can do to enrich our foster kids' school experience (if we had children of our own, I'd possibly homeschool, but we can't do that with fosterlings). We've decided that we're probably going to approach the school and offer to start a theater program after school. Preston was a theater major, and both of us have spent years in theater in acting, set design, and directing. We think it'll give the kids a chance to experience the humanities and be a fun way for Preston and I to stay involved in something that we both love in an area that has no arts experiences whatsoever.

Beyond that, we're going to offer as many enriching experiences as we can with trips to the planetarium, zoo, museums, theaters, and more as well as exploring any interests the kids have.

[Tanya]

Both inaustralia and the US I find it appalling.

If I raise my daughter here she will go to a small rural public school until year 5 then to a private Anglican school...though I hate the stupid christian overlay...

If i go back to the US, again a small rural primary and probably Catholic HS.. the truth is.. religious schools just are better college prep.

[ladyalpha]

I agree completely. One of my biggest beefs with the schools here is that not ONE of them does that. I'd attend a parent teacher conference only to find that my stepdaughter hadn't been doing her homework for the entire marking period. Yet no one ever called us to tell us there was a problem. Attempts to coordinate with the teachers to fix the problem never worked because they didn't do their part. We were never informed of any school event, any behavioral problem, any ANYthing. On one occasion she got stranded at school due to her mother's idiocy. She ended up walking across town after dark because no one thought to call us. The only time her schools remembered how to contact us was when they wanted money.

Sorry to go off on a tangent, this is a real pet peeve of mine.

This school is bad about that too. I told the teachers that if my kids grades started slipping to notify me immeditatly. Thankfully they didn't slip because I could tell by the look I got that I wasn't going to be notified.
The first year we transferred the kids here they held two papers against my oldest. They did the work as we were enrolling them but she insisted that she wouldn't have given her a zero on it if that was the case. When I asked if she could make up the work I was told yes..but then the woman never gave the papers to my daughter to do. As much as it bothered my daughter to have a low grade on her report card (they come out every 9 weeks here) we just had to blow that off.
The only thing that keeps the teachers from seeing me every day like previous teachers is that we live outside city limits now. I keep in contact with notes and occasionally just stop in but not near as much as I am used to doing. Making an appointment to speak to them is a waste of time due to the office workers.

[Zoritsa_Nepenthe]

I agree completely. One of my biggest beefs with the schools here is that not ONE of them does that. I'd attend a parent teacher conference only to find that my stepdaughter hadn't been doing her homework for the entire marking period. Yet no one ever called us to tell us there was a problem. Attempts to coordinate with the teachers to fix the problem never worked because they didn't do their part. We were never informed of any school event, any behavioral problem, any ANYthing. On one occasion she got stranded at school due to her mother's idiocy. She ended up walking across town after dark because no one thought to call us. The only time her schools remembered how to contact us was when they wanted money.

Sorry to go off on a tangent, this is a real pet peeve of mine.
This was my biggest pet peeve when my son was in grade school.He had ONE decent teacher who called me daily and who made my son stay after school to either work on homework,or sentences.That was 5th grade and he did well.He hated that teacher,but I loved him...sadly he retired early a few years back.He was about the only decent teacher that school had.

In the schools around me now,they have a program where you can look up the homework thats been graded and added to their grades.Unfortunately,not all teachers update it and there are still times when I can't find out if my son is missing assignments.I really wish they would add in homework yet to be assigned,but it is a slight improvement from not knowing anything at all.

My youngest starts Kindergarten next week at the same school my oldest attended.If we are still in this house come second grade,he will be homeschooled for that year....sooner if anyone gives me a hard time about his education.I feel bad that I wasn't as pro-active in my oldest's when he was younger....but I was a young mom who felt the teachers were always in the right.Not now....now I'm a b%@ch.

[Philosophia]

Both in Australia and the US I find it appalling.


Well, where I am in Australia, the public schools are pretty good. Most of the teachers are actually quite nice and will listen to you when you need them. I guess it depends on where you are in Australia.

[David19]

Quick question, when you use the word public school, do you mean private (as in you pay for it) or do you mean state school?. Sorry if that sounds dumb, but I think the U.S. (and Australia?) have a different meaning about public schools than here in the UK? (public school here means one you have to pay for).

Anyway, back to OP, here in the UK, I went to state school (free), and I thought it was cool, it depends on the area, though, but I think state schools are better, at least in some ways, than private.

Private schools, IMO, don't really prepare you for the "real" world and also one friend of my mum has 2 boys who went to private school, and they just f***ed up their lives - one is on drugs or something, and the other is 15 and his mum couldn't control him anymore and it got so bad, she moved out of London with her daughter and left him on his own in a flat.

[imapepper]

I went to public schools all my life and excelled, but I give a lot of that credit to my mother who read to me, played memory games with me, tutored me, went to all of my school functions including teacher conferences, proudly displayed my art and science projects at home, saving all my ribbons and awards, and generally taking an active role in my education. Yes, the public schools in my community were decent, not the best, and not the worst, but I think how involved a parent is, is the key and a missing factor. I dislike it when concerned parents, active parents, are seen as a threat or annoyance to teachers and schools; there needs to be more parents like this! I'm definitely going to make sure when my daughter gets to school that her teacher or teachers know me on a personal, name basis, I don't want to be another face in the crowd. I plan on being active in her education, like my mom was with mine, and teaching her here at home too by reading together, going to museums, art galleries, historical sites, using math flash cards, etc. Oh and, my mom was a single, full time working parent who often came home in the late evenings, but was still an active parent, so I don't see any excuses really, at least based on my experience.

I also think the old-fashioned way of teaching should return too, with separating kids based on their personal capacities in different subjects, I still got this sort of education and it was great. We all got the personalized help we needed and eventually everyone was achieving to their greatest potential. All of this experimental, integrated subject stuff is so awful, I had some of that experience in high school with an experimental integrated math program, and after three years the school district realized they had to change something because 70% of the students were failing math. Kids shouldn't be treated as guinea pigs, especially when it comes to their education.