Issues in Education

[TIDE-HSV]

As an educator now for 39 years, I was retired last year for one year. The reason we have such a rapid decline in reading is because everything is done on a chromebook, laptop or desktop computer. Bottom line, kids do not read!!!!

In Ohio, we have the 3rd grade reading guarantee. Kids can take the test in the fall and spring of their 3rd grade year and again during the summer between 3rd and 4th grade with more intense tutoring. If they fail the reading test, the ONLY way they can go to forth is if the parent, principal and teacher all sign off for placement in 4th grade. As an elementary principal during the first few years of this test, I cannot tell you how many parents would come up with every excuse in the book why their 3rd grader could not read. We held to our core values by and large and did not allow students to go on to the 4th grade with very few exceptions ie; multi-handicapped. It was not fun but it is amazing the number of kids who passed the test in the following years.

We get kids 6 hours a day in elementary school. I am 100% convinced that nothing should be taught except Reading and Math K-2nd and then add in a little science or History with the Math and Reading.

Rant over.

A few years back, it came out that a lady I knew was a homeschooler. It took my breath away, she was so completely clueless. Then it came out that they had a group of kids, obtained their material from a homeschooler organization and too turns teaching. IOW, it wasn't homeschooling at all. It was a rump, unaccredited school...

 

[alabama mike1]

A few years back, it came out that a lady I knew was a homeschooler. It took my breath away, she was so completely clueless. Then it came out that they had a group of kids, obtained their material from a homeschooler organization and too turns teaching. IOW, it wasn't homeschooling at all. It was a rump, unaccredited school...

Many home schooled children are placed in unaccredited schools. There is a problem when the student(s) tries to enroll in a college credit plus class or actual college. Some states require a test or a student is placed on probationary status until the college can see and decide if the student(s) can stay.

More and more parents are going away from the public schools and enrolling their kids in private, Christian, charter or homeschooling. I have no issue with where a parent decides to put their child in an educational setting but the parent needs to fund the education and not the public school.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

Many home schooled children are placed in unaccredited schools. There is a problem when the student(s) tries to enroll in a college credit plus class or actual college. Some states require a test or a student is placed on probationary status until the college can see and decide if the student(s) can stay.

More and more parents are going away from the public schools and enrolling their kids in private, Christian, charter or homeschooling. I have no issue with where a parent decides to put their child in an educational setting but the parent needs to fund the education and not the public school.

I had both daughters in private school, one through 6th grade and one through 9th. They both later said they would have preferred to remain in private school, although they backed the transfer to public at the time...

 

[alabama mike1]

I had both daughters in private school, one through 6th grade and one through 9th. They both later said they would have preferred to remain in private school, although they backed the transfer to public at the time...

I attended a private school for grades 9-12 in Florence. It was very structured and routine, which I needed at the time. Academics teaching was lacking bc the "teachers" did not have degrees in education, some none. I turned out ok for the most part once I started thinking on my own.

A lot of the "Christian schools" of the 60'and 70's got their start bc of the racial issues going on in the south at the time and the hard core Independent Fundamental influencers of men like John R. Rice, Lee Robinson, Jack Hyles and at one point Jerry Falwell.

 

[RollTide_HTTR]

I have 2 sons (3 and 1) and my wife and I are currently looking at homeschooling as an option. I grew up going to private schools while my wife (former early childhood teacher) grew up in public schools. We have discussed both our experiences at length over the years and neither of us are huge fans of public schools. It's pretty clear my experience at private school was far superior to hers. Specifically, I was treated much more like a human than is possible at the often overcrowded public schools. And she went to school in Montgomery County Maryland which at the time was considered one of the best counties for public school in the country. Granted she went to Gaithersburg which was not as highly viewed as Wootton and Churchill.

We both feel pretty strongly that our eldest son would not fit well in a public school environment especially given the county in Maryland we live in now. We have very limited private school options where we live now and most of them are religious which is basically a nonstarter for us unless the school is Episcopalian and doesn't have daily chapel.

It's a big decision, my 3 year old is currently in a pre k program and will likely stay there for another school year but we are supplementing at home and are seriously considering moving to full time homeschool for Kindergarten.

My wife, as a former teacher, is much more confident in the idea than I am. But, I have started to dive deep into the world and have become more convinced that it can be a viable option if done well which I think we are likely capable of. I am still not completely sold because it will be a LOT of work but I don't feel confident in our local public schools especially for my oldest son. He's definitely what some would call a deeply feeling kid. If there were more private schools that wouldn't require 2 hours in the car every day I think that is the path we would take but unfortunately the options are limited.

Regardless of whatever we end up choosing to do, I do not think we should be receiving money from the state to homeschool our kids.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

I have 2 sons (3 and 1) and my wife and I are currently looking at homeschooling as an option. I grew up going to private schools while my wife (former early childhood teacher) grew up in public schools. We have discussed both our experiences at length over the years and neither of us are huge fans of public schools. It's pretty clear my experience at private school was far superior to hers. Specifically, I was treated much more like a human than is possible at the often overcrowded public schools. And she went to school in Montgomery County Maryland which at the time was considered one of the best counties for public school in the country. Granted she went to Gaithersburg which was not as highly viewed as Wootton and Churchill.

We both feel pretty strongly that our eldest son would not fit well in a public school environment especially given the county in Maryland we live in now. We have very limited private school options where we live now and most of them are religious which is basically a nonstarter for us unless the school is Episcopalian and doesn't have daily chapel.

It's a big decision, my 3 year old is currently in a pre k program and will likely stay there for another school year but we are supplementing at home and are seriously considering moving to full time homeschool for Kindergarten.

My wife, as a former teacher, is much more confident in the idea than I am. But, I have started to dive deep into the world and have become more convinced that it can be a viable option if done well which I think we are likely capable of. I am still not completely sold because it will be a LOT of work but I don't feel confident in our local public schools especially for my oldest son. He's definitely what some would call a deeply feeling kid. If there were more private schools that wouldn't require 2 hours in the car every day I think that is the path we would take but unfortunately the options are limited.

Regardless of whatever we end up choosing to do, I do not think we should be receiving money from the state to homeschool our kids.

We certainly didn't...

 

[crimsonaudio]

Regardless of whatever we end up choosing to do, I do not think we should be receiving money from the state to homeschool our kids.

We homeschooled all of our chirruns and received zero government dollars (and zero reduction in property taxes) - which we were 100% okay with.

Zero regrets from us - all three of our kids are dominating (or did dominate) college and are excelling in their chosen fields. It takes some work, but with diligence a good team of parents are capable of delivering a top-notch education to their kiddos.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

"good team of parents"

That says it all. I know some who are homeschooling I wouldn't trust with my pets...

 

[Crimson1967]

I can’t find the old “Alabama, you’ve done it again thread so I will put it here.

Alabama voters may soon decide whether students must sing national anthem once a week

The bill would put the issue up as a constitutional amendment to be decided by a statewide vote.

www.al.com

State legislature is pushing a constitutional amendment that would require students sing the national anthem once a week. If passed, it would be on the November ballot.

The Supreme Court ruled in the 1940s it is unconstitutional to require students recite the pledge so this would seem to be illegal as well.

 

[CrimsonJazz]

I can’t find the old “Alabama, you’ve done it again thread so I will put it here.

Alabama voters may soon decide whether students must sing national anthem once a week

The bill would put the issue up as a constitutional amendment to be decided by a statewide vote.

www.al.com

State legislature is pushing a constitutional amendment that would require students sing the national anthem once a week. If passed, it would be on the November ballot.

The Supreme Court ruled in the 1940s it is unconstitutional to require students recite the pledge so this would seem to be illegal as well.

I refuse to give ALdotCOM the clicks, but is there a rationale for this provided in the article?

 

[Bamabuzzard]

I refuse to give ALdotCOM the clicks, but is there a rationale for this provided in the article?

From the article:

Allen said the measure is a “good way to teach our young people” about America and its freedoms.

About the only reason given from what I read. Is this the biggest problem they have in the Alabama educational system?

 

[CrimsonJazz]

From the article:

About the only reason given from what I read. Is this the biggest problem they have in the Alabama educational system?

I can think of about a hundred bigger problems and I'm not even an educator.

 

[Crimson1967]

What better way to teach about freedom than to force people to sing a song.

I wonder if everyone who supports this has their family sing the anthem at home.

I was eating lunch yesterday at a restaurant in Albertville. At the stroke of noon the national anthem suddenly started playing and everyone stood up and put their hands over their hearts. I joined in but thought it was weird. Someone said they do it every day.

 

[alabama mike1]

I can’t find the old “Alabama, you’ve done it again thread so I will put it here.

Alabama voters may soon decide whether students must sing national anthem once a week

The bill would put the issue up as a constitutional amendment to be decided by a statewide vote.

www.al.com

State legislature is pushing a constitutional amendment that would require students sing the national anthem once a week. If passed, it would be on the November ballot.

The Supreme Court ruled in the 1940s it is unconstitutional to require students recite the pledge so this would seem to be illegal as well.

Maybe the state legislature, local boards of education, superintendents, principals and teachers should explain the meaning of the words and background to our kids. I know what a concept.

 

[RollTide_HTTR]

We homeschooled all of our chirruns and received zero government dollars (and zero reduction in property taxes) - which we were 100% okay with.

Zero regrets from us - all three of our kids are dominating (or did dominate) college and are excelling in their chosen fields. It takes some work, but with diligence a good team of parents are capable of delivering a top-notch education to their kiddos.

Any advice/tips. Would be curious what your overall approach was since there seem to be a wide variety of styles and opinions

 

[crimsonaudio]

Any advice/tips. Would be curious what your overall approach was since there seem to be a wide variety of styles and opinions

My wife took the lead for the most part, but several things were 'non-negotiable' for us:
- We required an 'umbrella school' that would ensure were always on track (quarterly grades, annual standardized tests, etc.). Not expensive but worth it if you find a good one.
- We required a good curriculum. Some parents kinda wing it but we really wanted to find a tested, proven curriculum that would teach the kids what they need to know. As they got older we were able to piece-meal it based on their needs, but early on it was important to have something relatively standardized.
- We weren't afraid to outsource as the kids got older. Once the kids got into upper level STEM stuff we hired competent teachers / tutors to help them in the more advanced science and math courses. While I had math through CalcII (and was always strong in math) the time required to brush up on the upper-level stuff to be able to truly teach it was too much.

I'd be happy to discuss more detail offline if you'd like, just drop a DM and we can rope my wife in to help. I've begged her to start a 'how to homeschool' tutoring program for new HS parents for years as she's a ninja wrt homeschooling - neither of us have anything higher than an AS degree yet all of our kids have rocked college.

 

[Crimson1967]

The state of Tennessee wants to require every college in the state to have a Charlie Kirk Plaza. The guy who said college is a fraud and dropped out after one semester at a community college.

 

[81usaf92]

Maybe the state legislature, local boards of education, superintendents, principals and teachers should explain the meaning of the words and background to our kids. I know what a concept.

Well the fact that the war it is referring to has a few major battles happened in what would become Alabama I would hope they knew.

For me though… the Star Spangled Banner maybe one of the weirdest national anthems in the world. It talks more about a singular event over a broad spectrum of what the country offers. I always think “America the beautiful” is a far more deserving song for a national anthem but it’s whatever really.

 

[CrimsonNagus]

What better way to teach about freedom than to force people to sing a song.

I wonder if everyone who supports this has their family sing the anthem at home.

I was eating lunch yesterday at a restaurant in Albertville. At the stroke of noon the national anthem suddenly started playing and everyone stood up and put their hands over their hearts. I joined in but thought it was weird. Someone said they do it every day.

Were you at Local Joe's? This is what Google AI said, it's a tradition at that restaurant.

According to reports and restaurant announcements:

• Daily Tradition: The restaurant plays "The Star-Spangled Banner" at both 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM, Monday through Saturday.
• Protocol: During the anthem, staff and diners typically stop, stand, and place their hands over their hearts.
• Background: The tradition was started by Floyd Powell, a Vietnam War veteran, to honor the country.
• Location: Local Joe's is located in downtown Albertville, specifically in the old Hammer's building. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Note that while it is a daily, twice-daily occurrence at this specific, well-known spot, it is not a town-wide, mandatory, or city-wide broadcast event. The restaurant is closed on Sundays. [1, 2]

AI can make mistakes, so double-check responses
[1] https://www.sandmountainreporter.com/free_share/article_083575d8-49a0-11ed-a0e5-4bdeaeebdf3c.html
[2] https://www.advertisergleam.com/new...cle_4c2553ec-8c03-11ef-be93-dbd68ec5fdfa.html
[3] https://www.waaytv.com/news/alabama...cle_efb1b21c-7a1d-5fa1-9bdf-55d30df6b0a5.html
[4] https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUse...42961152-Local_Joe_s-Albertville_Alabama.html

Was the food good?

 

[CrimsonNagus]

My wife works for the ALSDE. She was reviewing some information about a charter school and saw this in their student handbook:



I have some questions for the school.

So, I can commit 2 homicides and may only be suspended for a total of 15 days. Does jail time count towards the suspension?

Does the homicide have to take place at a school function, or does any homicide count?

Every rule in this code of conduct listed the same punishment, whether it was for bullying, theft, or homicide. I just find it odd that a school felt the need to list homicide as part of their code of conduct, and that it was anything less than an immediate expulsion.