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  • From: KNat <knat AT sprintmail.com>
  • To: homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Homestead] Schools
  • Date: Thu, 23 Nov 2006 08:20:17 -0600

Clansgian AT wmconnect.com wrote:
This is why PS is a good thing. Millions of kids in this country have
parents like Bev had who don't care.

The reason there are so many parents who dont' care is because over the past centruy and a half we've created an institution that allows, encourages, promotes, and fosters parents not to care. If you want to have kids and largely ignore them, fine, the government schools will take care of the problem.
Our principals were talking yesterday about the number of kids who had were out of school. May schools would find that deplorable and "in need of improvement." (state term for noncompliance in a school.) They were looking individually thru "excuses" to make sure the students each had "better offers." Ex a child of new divorce going with only one parent for the holiday asked the other for a day with her before he went. That is not not caring enough to bring them to school. Sure, its easier to run a school when everyone comes all the time, but sometimes children need to be children and students of the world. One Coordinator summarized an article to the other "In North Dakota" (how's that 2 threads at once)" they found a great way to get families more time. They only run 4 days a week! And they save a bunch of money besides." They then went into cost savings that people would understand as a selling point even in this day of "good schools" demanding longer and longer hours. These are the people that run a school specifically to meet the needs of the children and one need the children and parents have, that they see as important, is time together. And the educational fertility that comes from children having full lives is a benefit to all. At higher grades the focus can be a day or two a week interning to find a mentor to shepherd a young person into a career but in Elementary, parents still offer the best access to "real world." Parents who care about the child's development though, not parents who care to "support" the system by demanding children comply (too often schools meaning behind "behave.") Parents who include the child in what they do.
Before someone chimes in I am different please know I spend many days a week helping those "unfortunates" that "neglect their children's education" unlearn the culture instilled by their PS experience so they can be "good" parents too. I've met a small few too sick to know they have a child (and we need to know them individually) but mostly the absent parents are adults who were taught to turn their lives and their children over to others whether those others make sense or not. To comply with rules without using logic that could be problematic to those making the rules. Can't really blame them for expecting those others to do it all. When they learn the value of being themselves around their child things change for everyone. Send the children to school so they see other lives besides sitting in front of a television is only one possibility and is only meaningful if the school life is more valid. I know many adults that got their skills helping parents, uncles, grandparents fill out welfare forms and work the system. Several prominent business men were acculturated in street drug sales thru their using families. There are positive skills taught by sick people too and removing everyone's children will not solve those family situations.

Kathyann






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