Parents Outrage At School Over Gay Storybook

[insein]

Anybody who has spent any time out of this egocentric country knows that the majority of people here are dumb as shit. I've been in plenty of third world countries that have higher literacy rates than the ''Greatest country in the history of the world". Not to mention our kids are the most spoiled, bar none.

I have to agree unfortunately. Thats statistically over our whole population though. In sheer number, i'd say we have more "smart" students then those countries do.

 

[Nuc]

I have to agree unfortunately. Thats statistically over our whole population though. In sheer number, i'd say we have more "smart" students then those countries do.

Asian students in particular are highly motivated to succeed in school. Even in some African countries. I went to a Zulu school in South Africa and the kids were much more well behaved and focused than the ones here. Anywhere the British system is still used has disciplined students. Another major factor is that in many third world countries you can't buy an education like here. You must excell to be admitted to college because the state pays for it. I know socialism is a dirty word on this board but this is one example where it produces a superior product. When you can buy an education the parents can also pressure schools into lowering standards so that Buffy and Sean get good grades.

 

[jillian]

jillian,

As a teacher, I can tell you that over-inflated self-esteem IS a problem in schools today. An example of this can be seen in the study that was done a few years ago comparing self-esteem regarding intelligence to actual test results from students from a variety of different nations. What the study revealed was that many American students stated that they felt very intelligent while their test results had the ranked very low in math and reading/writing. Meanwhile, students from other nations had high rankings on the tests, but listed themselves as average to low-average intelligence.

I haven't seen that study. But I can't say it surprises me. But again, I think it's parenting that's the problem. If you tell your kid everything they do is just perfect, no matter how they're acting or what they're doing, then you foster that kind of attitude.

It's kind of like what we see with the psycho soccer parents. What kind of lesson are kids taught who's parents can't even take a kid's team losing a match?

I think kids should be rewarded based on accomplishment.

I also think parents have to be attuned to danger signs and respond.

Funny/true story: when my son was in kindergarten, we picked him up one day from school and his teacher looked frazzled. She said the kids had been doing story time (where they all sat on a rug in the classroom) and my son decided he was a "cat" and began acting that out. At that point, the other 27 kids in his class thought it would be fun to be cats, too. The poor woman was beside herself... she just looked at us and said "please, take your 'cat' home"... heh!

Now...we didn't tell our son that this behavior was "cute". We told him it wasn't acceptable and then signed him up for Tae Kwon Do to reinforce the concept of discipline and focus.

So...I really do think parents have to work with teachers and take responsibility. It's like Dr Grump pointed out, you have to be involved. And that's true whether you're both working or not.

Now mind you, I'm not saying I'm parent of the year. And I have no clue if any of this stuff is gonna work out in the end. I just figure you have to at least try.

Now...I will be the first to argue that comparing American schools to other nations schools can be misleading due to the fact that we include all students in our testing results, not just the college-bound ones, etc. But I do think that it hints at the fact that American students, in general, may have way more self-esteem than they may deserve regarding their ability.

I can't put my finger on it, but something doesn't seem right about it being a self-esteem issue. But I can't say I have any expertise that leads me to that conclusion. So I'll defer....

I see similar things in my day-to-day teaching...students who feel that they are brilliant...when really they should be putting in a bit more time studying. I attribute this more and more to parents who both work and so they spoil their children rotten rather than parenting them...

And then the educational system is left to remediate or just deal with these kids and we undervalue and underpay teachers....unlike other societies where teachers are valued and rewarded.

By the way, I don't think it has totally to do with both parents working. We both work and still put in enormous time with our son and his school endeavors. I even make sure that I take off from work to do at least one school trip a year with his class and he gets to do "take your child to work day" with me and also comes to work with me when he's off from school (though I try to take some days off he's off school, too). What I DID do was make the decision that because we both work, I was gonna stick with having only one child, because there's only so many directions you can pull yourself in...and he deserved to have my focus when I'm around. So maybe sometimes parents have to be smart enough to think about issues like that.

There is no question that I would put in more time with him if I were home, but he seems to be none the worse for wear and excels.

I'm glad you brought up "Rainbow Fish" though. That book drives me up a friggin wall!!!!! What type of message is that for kids!?!??! Its basically like telling our young children that its better to hide your talents to fit in than to stand out and shine...UGH!

lol... I hate that f*ing book. And I agree that's EXACTLY the message it sends. Bizarre....why would anyone teach that to a child?

 

[insein]

Asian students in particular are highly motivated to succeed in school. Even in some African countries. I went to a Zulu school in South Africa and the kids were much more well behaved and focused than the ones here. Anywhere the British system is still used has disciplined students. Another major factor is that in many third world countries you can't buy an education like here. You must excell to be admitted to college because the state pays for it. I know socialism is a dirty word on this board but this is one example where it produces a superior product. When you can buy an education the parents can also pressure schools into lowering standards so that Buffy and Sean get good grades.

The difference? School is a PRIVELEGE there. Here its an entitlement. there is no sense of accomplishment when an education is handed to you. In those countries, school means life or death. Smart people usually live and eat over there. Dumb people usually starve to death. Here everything is handed to these kids and they are pushed through school regardless of their grades.

 

[Eightball]

The difference? School is a PRIVELEGE there. Here its an entitlement. there is no sense of accomplishment when an education is handed to you. In those countries, school means life or death. Smart people usually live and eat over there. Dumb people usually starve to death. Here everything is handed to these kids and they are pushed through school regardless of their grades.

Everything you said made sense.