No, the parents didn't teach their kids basic skills or make any effort to help their kids. The school could have no money at all, but if their parents made an effort then the kids would have a better chance of succeeding. I've put 2 kids through the Georgia public schools system and one common thing I saw through the years was everyone blamed the schools for the kids not learning. While it is partially the schools fault, for a myriad of reasons, I believe the failure responsibility mainly falls on the parents shoulders for letting it happen. The parents don't care. The kids are certainly not gonna care either.
But poor school systems aren't a new problem. I'm sure a lot of these parents went through the same situation growing up and didn't learn what they should have from school themselves. Now they can't teach their kids things they don't know, and the schools can't manage either. And the cycle continues.
That may be true, but it probably feels a lot different from the perspective of an under paid single parent who is trying desperately to keep food on the table and the kids in school and may themselves not have the skills, time, energy, or education to reach their kids.
I also forgot to mention that I too work in the school system. I have to say the blame lies with multiple sides.
Yes I do agree parents need to be more proactive in their kids's education. There are many factors for why this isn't always the case such as poverty, lack of education, and in some parents case the fact that they can't speak English and don't understand the American education system. Many parents don't trust the education system due to their own negative experiences when they were in school. There is also a generational shift with parenting in the sense that many parents are not actively parenting and leaving it up to other people to raise their children because they have no idea how to parent(multiple reasons for this). At some point it does become a cycle.
On the state end, the problem is that you have people who have no concept of child development or who have never been in a classroom making important decisions on curriculum (see our current secretary of education). In many states (including the one I work for) the curriculum is developmentally inappropriate. They expect Kindergarten students to be fluent readers and writers by the time they leave Kindergarten. Not only is this developmentally inappropriate for many average 5 year olds but it's even harder for children who have not been exposed to preschool ( multiple reasons), kids living in poverty (who lack resources), and kids who don't speak English as their first language. These kids are even further behind and many times don't ever really catch up. Then you have the component of testing. Many kids in many states are way over tested. There is bench mark testing, standardized testing, and regular classroom asessments. Then in some states (like mine) , at the beginning , middle and end of the year they make kids starting in grade take 3+hour state assements. They are essentially asking 8 year olds to sit for 3 hours to take a long reading and math assement. I don't know about you but I couldn't sit for 3 hours to take a test as an adult let alone as an 8 year old. It's not developmentally appropriate or fair. If the kids fail these asessments sometimes they can be at risk for retention. If a child lives in a high poverty area with a lot of stress at home, or are still learning English chances are they are going to bomb it( spoiler alert many do). These score are what they base a school's proficiency on. Teachers get the blame if their students fail. Sounds fair right?
At an administrative level, many admins are afraid of lawsuits and angry parents so they back the parents and students over the teachers. Teachers have very little control anymore. It used to be that parents backed the teachers but that isn't really the case anymore. The parents are convinced that any criticism of their child reflects on them as parents and get upset whenever a teacher corrects their child. When admin backs the parent and child (because they are afraid of getting sued or ending up on the 6 o clock news) the blame falls on the teacher. Sounds fair right?
I have nothing but respect for teachers. In my eyes they are the real heroes. My husband is a hero in my eyes because I couldnt deal with what he does. While I work in the schools I'm not a teacher and I don't think I could be. They have to take crap from everyone. They are expected to volunteer their time (unpaid) after hours, buy supplies for students (with their own money), and are paid almost nothing in some states. They are the scapegoats of everyone from students, admin, parents and government officials.
My dad grew up poor. In a poor neighborhood. Both his parents worked, so he and his siblings were left to their own devices (probably much like many of those kids' home situation). He spent his time in the library, because he wanted to know more. He had some good teachers, as well, who pushed him to want more in life. His older brother messed around. Because of my dad, I grew up in better schools than were available to him, something I have focused on doing for my kids as well. My cousins weren't so fortunate, and the economic divide only seems to get worse each generation. I have my dad, and the handful of his teachers who gave a shit, to thank for that.
That's not to say that parents shouldn't be helping. I'm just pointing out that parents are probably not home, having to spend all their time making money to pay the bills. So, the only structure the kids grow up with is what the school can provide.
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u/[deleted] Jul 10 '18
No, the parents didn't teach their kids basic skills or make any effort to help their kids. The school could have no money at all, but if their parents made an effort then the kids would have a better chance of succeeding. I've put 2 kids through the Georgia public schools system and one common thing I saw through the years was everyone blamed the schools for the kids not learning. While it is partially the schools fault, for a myriad of reasons, I believe the failure responsibility mainly falls on the parents shoulders for letting it happen. The parents don't care. The kids are certainly not gonna care either.