So, I read the new this morning....I shouldn't read the news...it's not good for my blood pressure!
Two articles stand out to me:
This one--http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/nationworld/stories/030908dnnatstemcell.1a06e392.html
It's about embryonic stem cell research. Apparently, it's not ok to clone for human reproduction, but it could be ok to clone human embryos in order to harvest their stem cells...a particular scene from the Matrix pops into my mind. My question is....why does the scientific/political community insists on exploring this possibility, when research has found adult stem cells and cord blood stem cells to be just as effective?
And this one--http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/education/stories/031209dnmetschoolsintrouble.3d77079.html
It's about education. DISD is looking at lengthen the school year for some of it's lowest performing schools and offering significant bonuses to bring highly-qualified teachers to those schools. Noble plan, but the sad truth is if the parents of these children refuse to be involved and make education a priority, no amount of extra time and great teaching will change anything. Lengthening the school year could actual increase the drop-out rate--who wants to go to more school when you already are apathetic about the amount of time you currently spend there? Then there's this quote:
President Barack Obama said this week that he wants kids to spend more time in school with longer school days and school years. He said the "challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom."
I get it...in a high-tech global economy its hard to keep in front of the pack, but there is more to life than academics. If you ever get a chance, read Nation of Wimps by Hara Estroff Marano--here's a link to the article that inspired the book: http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-20041112-000010.html. Why do we insist on pushing our children to be the best and the brightest? According to Marano, we feel inadequate in today's market and fear our children falling behind and having a lower standard of living than we currently experience. We want them to have a bigger house, better car, cooler job than we do. Therefore, we push, not realizing our concern for our children is actually concern for ourselves, our image, our peace of mind. Kids don't worry about this stuff, at least they don't until we tell them they should.
3 comments:
I don't understand why, when NO STUDY HAS EVER shown more classroom time to be an effective tool for improving education, we continue to insist on it. Well, yes I do, but it has nothing to do with schools as education and everything to do with schools as child care so that parents can be "productive" workers. And so that the family can be further undermined. Because 7 hours a day 180 days a year apparantly isn't enough to undermine a parent's authority in their children's lives.
Having a child in the DISD, I think it's fair to say that suburban parents looking in from the outside tend to paint the issues with a pretty broad brush.
Here's the reality: While more classroom time may not be "improving education," it certainly may provide an environment around the child which will improve education. In other words, instead of giving them time to go to an empty house and hours of unsupervised time, this might actually give those kids a chance to be surrounded by structure and authority...which might actually give them a shot at learning something in a classroom when they'd be out with gangs or playing video games or whatever.
In this case, it isn't "undermining the parents." The question is how to educate a child who has parents that don't value the educational process. And those social issues that create that environment are generations old. Why not give those kids a shot?
Also, I don't think sending a child for an education 7 hours a day 180 days a year is undermining parental authority. As a parent, I have chosen to delegate that authority (in one child's case, anyway) because they are one in which I feel can better educate my child than I can. It's the most loving thing I can do for that particular child (the younger one is home schooled, soon to be public schooled). Hence, the school isn't undermining my authority at all, but rather serving within it.
Just a thought.
I mean, the issues aren't simple and don't have simple solutions.
Oh, and well-said on the embryonic stem cell research. I don't get that, either. Of course, they eventually throw those that aren't used in the trash, anyway...
I think there could be things that could be deleted from school each day. A few years ago, the former principal at our middle school decided to add a class called, "CARE" - something like Content Area Enrichment Education. Anyway, it's basically teaching TAKS skills in each of the core classes. The kids rotated through math, science, history and lang. arts every 6 weeks (a new one every 6 weeks). Therefore the students at this school have only 1 elective because your other elective class is CARE. It frustrated me when both my sons chose band and therefore were forced to take CARE even though they both received commended on TAKS each year. Why did they need more help? Frankly, they would have been better off taking Spanish or something technology related.
The other thing I always resented was homework designed to engage me in the boys' homework. Hey, I did my own homework for MANY years, I don't want to do theirs. I love helping them with a task - like learning spelling words or listening to them read. But please, don't ask me to draw a picture and tell why something is important. Ugh.
Seriously, I don't think a longer day is the answer. I think it's being more effective in the classroom. Part of the problem in the middle school this year is that the new principal added an extra period. EIGHT 45 minute periods plus lunch. That's crazy. THe teacher hardly has time to instruct and the kids have precious little time to ask questions or even think about what to ask because they may not understand.
Ok...I'll step off my soapbox now.
I won't even get started on embryonic stem cell research...
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