Opinion on Public School System?

[ThatWasFat]

For school, I am supposed to write a report on education, and one of the parts is to get the opinion of others on the united states public school system. What do you think it's purpose is? Do you think it's doing a good job? Do you think it should be changed? If you feel like answering, it would be great. And go ahead and vent if you hate it, it' ok

Thanks

 

[minendo]

Highschool was/is pointless and everything I needed to learn prior to college I learned in Kindergarten.

 

[NetworkDad]

Eye tink ower publik skools are dueeng a grate job.

 

[tgillitzr]

Originally posted by: dwell

Where is St Louis in relation to DC?

<-- 15 years of private school really paid off

Could be worse...

 

[charrison]

They are fine as long as the student is willing to work. IF the student is not willing to work, not much will be learned.

 

[tm37]

Originally posted by: charrison
They are fine as long as the student is willing to work. IF the student is not willing to work, not much will be learned.

Yet they will still pass.

I am going to go to bed ANd I will tackle this tommorow evening.

 

[Dragnov]

What? You haven't determined what the purpose of school is? It's to make more money of course!!! Why else in the world would you pay so much for "education"?

Why else do you think we pretend that education is our #1 priority, when we pay our public teachers very little, and our University of California lecturers are on strike. Why else would they keep replacing UC lecturers every 5 years with new, inexperienced ones so that the UC can save money? Why else would you be willing to go through graduate school, get a PHD and everything? I mean teaching is such a high paying and rewarding job.

God I hate school. Oh I'm sure they all really want me to succeed in life and care for my future so that they can hit me up with some money when I become alumni. Honestly, who the hell would go through so much and pay so much if it didn't mean net benefit at the end (in other words, more money).

 

[helpme]

Originally posted by: minendo
Highschool was/is pointless and everything I needed to learn prior to college I learned in Kindergarten.

 

[UltraQuiet]

The number one problem in the public schools is that the parents are not involved. They don't force the schools to do their job and they aren't involved enough in the education of their children. There are a multitude of reasons and excuses for this but, IMO. if you have children and they aren't you're number one priority you are seriously fscked up. I am fairly certain that there is an elementary school in GA and now one here in TN that would have me killed if they thought they could get away with it. I am constantly on their ass about educating my kids. You all would have been proud of me last year when I first got here and they told me the kids didn't get homework on Wed. because, "you're supposed to be in church on Wednesday evenings." WTF did you just say!? The state added a subject this year so they are forced to give homework every night. Lots of people bitchin' about it, too.

 

[Aceman]

Get rid of at least half of the "administration". It's dead weight. The money they're wasting on a Director of Time Out in an elementary school.! That $50,000/yr job could be spent on a raise for the teachers and bringing in another teacher. WTF do we have assistant principals and multiple secretaries that are underworked?

The money is wasted and not properly accounted for. I recently got nailed to foot a bill for a new elementary school building. The old building is structurally sound and just need some renovation and expansion. A lot less expensive than a new building!

I use to be proud of being educated in Minnesota and the great education system it HAD. My children are now in the Minnesota school system and I'm ashamed of what it's become.

 

[Maleficus]

Originally posted by: minendo
Highschool was/is pointless and everything I needed to learn prior to college I learned in Kindergarten.

 

[vi edit]

Once you get out of grade school, and into junior high/high school, it's exactly like the real world. You can either sit on your ass and try to get spoon fed, or you can go proactive with yourself and make something of it. You get out of it what you put into it. One or two bad teachers doesn't ruin an education. Hell, a bad school doesn't ruin an education.

In college I took the same classes as everyone else in my major, yet I walked out of there knowing 10x the amount of stuff that just about any one else. It wasn't because of teachers, it wasn't because of the school program, it was because I took initiative and spent time outside of the 45 minute classroom time actually trying to better myself.

Once I hit Junior high(and actually, even earlier than that), I knew well enough that stuff doesn't land in your lap. You have to work for it. Maybe I was just blessed with having a good work ethic instilled in me by my parents. Maybe I've just got higher hopes. I don't know. Nearly every town has a public library and every school has at least *a few* teachers that are willing to sacrafice some of their free time in assisting you if you need it. You just need to have the desire to go out there and better yourself.

I'm just so sick and tired of these spineless pukes blaming the public education system on their failures.

 

[charrison]

Originally posted by: vi_edit
Once you get out of grade school, and into junior high/high school, it's exactly like the real world. You can either sit on your ass and try to get spoon fed, or you can go proactive with yourself and make something of it. You get out of it what you put into it. One or two bad teachers doesn't ruin an education. Hell, a bad school doesn't ruin an education.

In college I took the same classes as everyone else in my major, yet I walked out of there knowing 10x the amount of stuff that just about any one else. It wasn't because of teachers, it wasn't because of the school program, it was because I took initiative and spent time outside of the 45 minute classroom time actually trying to better myself.

Once I hit Junior high(and actually, even earlier than that), I knew well enough that stuff doesn't land in your lap. You have to work for it. Maybe I was just blessed with having a good work ethic instilled in me by my parents. Maybe I've just got higher hopes. I don't know. Nearly every town has a public library and every school has at least *a few* teachers that are willing to sacrafice some of their free time in assisting you if you need it. You just need to have the desire to go out there and better yourself.

I'm just so sick and tired of these spineless pukes blaming the public education system on their failures.

Well said.

 

[Shantanu]

You sound like a conspiracy theorist. There is no "public school system", only local school districts that vary considerably from town to town. Some are better than others. On the average, however, private schools, namely Catholic ones, tend to deliver better results, even though they spend less money per pupil.

when we pay our public teachers very little, and our University of California lecturers are on strike.

When I lived in Long Island, the average public school teacher got paid in excess of $70,000. This was back in the early 1990's. Many doctors on Long Island don't don't make that kind of money.

 

[Diandra016]

I hate public schools, i've been in them all my life and i feel like it was a waste of time, the teachers and students are worthless, my boyfriend goes to a private school and he is so smart. i wish i could of gone to one. and now he's in a four year college and i am in a junior college, thanks alot public schools and for that i'm taking prealgebra like a retard.

 

[Gonad the Barbarian]

Public schools suck. They concentrate too much on too narrow an assortment of subjects and are paced so slowly even the lowest common denominator can get through with little problem.

 

[HombrePequeno]

Originally posted by: Diandra016
I hate public schools, i've been in them all my life and i feel like it was a waste of time, the teachers and students are worthless, my boyfriend goes to a private school and he is so smart. i wish i could of gone to one. and now he's in a four year college and i am in a junior college, thanks alot public schools and for that i'm taking prealgebra like a retard.

Don't blame public schools for your failings. Your boyfriend isn't smart just because he is at a private school and going to a private school is not going to automatically make somebody smarter.

I think public schools are generally okay except they have one major problem: the funding goes to the wrong places. Instead of paying teachers more or hiring more, they spend tens of thousands on new computers that aren't really needed.

 

[gopunk]

Originally posted by: Diandra016
I hate public schools, i've been in them all my life and i feel like it was a waste of time, the teachers and students are worthless, my boyfriend goes to a private school and he is so smart. i wish i could of gone to one. and now he's in a four year college and i am in a junior college, thanks alot public schools and for that i'm taking prealgebra like a retard.

your education is what you make of it. i went to public schools and i'm smarter than your boyfriend.

 

[tm37]

Lots of constructive thoughts here and I agree with some of it.

I am a firm believer that the public schools have failed our children and us. I think it is time for some changes but in order for those changes to be made we are in need of some serious gut checks. It is going to take the people of this country to accept a few undeniable truths.

1. Some children are smarter than others.
2. Some teachers are bad.
3. Proper allocation of funds does not necessarily mean MORE MONEY.
4. Knowledge and learning create self-esteem.

We have almost crossed over to the point of no return with our school system. No one is accountable, not the students, not the parents, not the teachers and certainly not the politicians and administrators. Everyone plays the blame game. It's always someone else?s fault.

To make changes there needs to be drastic changes to the way we do things while we teach our young school should not be about learning who you are and gaining confidence it should be about learning HOW TO LEARN and gaining knowledge. We place so much on making sure that children feel good about themselves that we forget to find out if they should. We create a false confidence that hurts WAY MORE than it helps. It is a short-term answer that has long-term repercussions. By giving someone false pride they do not strive to do better they typically will see that much can be gained with little effort. SCHOOL SHOULD BE HARD. Kids should have to work to get A's and the reality is that if a child fails it isn't always because the school failed the child more often it was because the child and parent failed the school. Teachers should constantly be in contact with the parents. Letting them know how the kids are doing.

TEACHERS should not be giving blanket immunity. They should be held accountable and IF they are not getting the job done they should be replaced. That's right I think that eliminating BAD teachers will create a better learning environment. I have no doubt that If the thought you may get canned is in your mind people tend to give more effort. I Know my job is secure but that security only come from the fact that I give them everything I have got for 8+ hours a day. I know that I can be replaced. Teachers on the other hand need to show up. Yet if they fail the consequences are much greater than if I were to fail at my task. They should be held accountable for the failures that they perpetrate on us and the few that are failing us are having a huge impact. I am not saying that all public school teachers are bad but I am saying that there are some that are and they should be removed from the system.

STUDENTS should be allowed to fail. One Failure can teach you more than on hundred false successes can and by allowing a child to fail and letting them know they do need to work harder in order to be successful they will learn or be passed by and most will not want to be passed by. People by nature will do what it takes to succeed and if I think I obtain what I want or need by giving a sub par effort what motivation does one have to strive to be better.

PARENTS need to be evolved in their child?s education. The school has one job and it isn't to instill self-confidence in your little Johnny. It is to ensure that He can read, write, and do math. They are teaching your child to LEARN and that is all. The motivation should be from home. Parents need to understand that THEY are ultimately responsible for their child?s upbringing not the government. The schools should be honest with the parent and let them know when the child is acting up or not doing their work. The school should let the parent know that if the child cannot keep up with the class they will be dropped and IT IS THE PARENTS JOB to ensure that the child keeps on task.

SOME STUDENTS WILL BE LEFT BEHIND. That's right, I know it sounds bad but our current LEAVE NO CHILD BEHIND has failed us. Some kids should be left behind and ultimately they will have no one to blame but them selves. People rise to challenges and most will here to. If I were running a school and I could get 90% of my students to the top by leaving 10% behind I would in a second the current system brings that 90% down to the level of the lowest 10 and that just isn't fair to the 90%. Some kids will fail and failure is a part of life. I have learned far more from my mistakes than from any of my victories. When you win you rarely reflect yet when you fail you almost instinctively look for a reason. And the school needs to let the parents know why that failure occurred. Protect them all you want or let them OVERCOME obstacles. Give them the tools to succeed and let them. Or do the work and they will watch. That teach a man to fish story IS FOR REAL. The problem is we just keep giving them fish so they never go hungry.

Build self-esteem through real success and not false pretense. Not thing is more dangerous that someone who truly believes they have all the answers who clearly has no clue. Giving someone something for the short-term adulation that follows is a dangerous path. Yet allowing someone to succeed and overcome obstacles always creates a winner and a strong-minded person. What doesn't kill you truly does make you stronger and right no the streghth we are requiring to graduate couldn't lift a tissue. Raise the bar let kids fail and teach them why they failed and how they can avoid future letdowns. LET THEM LEARN HOW TO LEARN. Learning is more than remembering dates and a word, learning is understanding the importance of those words and dates and how they relate to other dates and words. Seeing how things interact and having the ability predict how they will react again.

MORE MONEY isn?t the answer. Yet that seems to be the solution that is always proposed. I see private schools that get by with far less and get much better returns. If you look at the highest spending districts they are almost never near the top in performance. Yet some poorer districts are able to be a much higher rate. In MN the rural schools have higher-class sizes and spend 20% percent less per pupil and yet have a much higher level of education. The students in these schools typically score much better on the tests do better when they attend college all for less than the Metro Schools are spending. Leadership and Teaching are far more important that money.

 

[ThatWasFat]

Hot damn! That was great guys. You gave me lots to work with. I was only allowed to use this source if there was a general consensus, and I think I can do it. Thanks

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: Diandra016
I hate public schools, i've been in them all my life and i feel like it was a waste of time, the teachers and students are worthless, my boyfriend goes to a private school and he is so smart. i wish i could of gone to one. and now he's in a four year college and i am in a junior college, thanks alot public schools and for that i'm taking prealgebra like a retard.

Like Dave said the problem with public schools is that the parents don't get involved enough. With private schools the parents are shelling out big bucks so they are going to make sure their kids do their work so they get their money's worth.

 

[Tominator]

Originally posted by: tm37
Lots of constructive thoughts here and I agree with some of it.

I am a firm believer that the public schools have failed our children and us. I think it is time for some changes but in order for those changes to be made we are in need of some serious gut checks. It is going to take the people of this country to accept a few undeniable truths.

1. Some children are smarter than others.
2. Some teachers are bad.
3. Proper allocation of funds does not necessarily mean MORE MONEY.
4. Knowledge and learning create self-esteem.

We have almost crossed over to the point of no return with our school system. No one is accountable, not the students, not the parents, not the teachers and certainly not the politicians and administrators. Everyone plays the blame game. It's always someone else?s fault.

To make changes there needs to be drastic changes to the way we do things while we teach our young school should not be about learning who you are and gaining confidence it should be about learning HOW TO LEARN and gaining knowledge. We place so much on making sure that children feel good about themselves that we forget to find out if they should. We create a false confidence that hurts WAY MORE than it helps. It is a short-term answer that has long-term repercussions. By giving someone false pride they do not strive to do better they typically will see that much can be gained with little effort. SCHOOL SHOULD BE HARD. Kids should have to work to get A's and the reality is that if a child fails it isn't always because the school failed the child more often it was because the child and parent failed the school. Teachers should constantly be in contact with the parents. Letting them know how the kids are doing.

TEACHERS should not be giving blanket immunity. They should be held accountable and IF they are not getting the job done they should be replaced. That's right I think that eliminating BAD teachers will create a better learning environment. I have no doubt that If the thought you may get canned is in your mind people tend to give more effort. I Know my job is secure but that security only come from the fact that I give them everything I have got for 8+ hours a day. I know that I can be replaced. Teachers on the other hand need to show up. Yet if they fail the consequences are much greater than if I were to fail at my task. They should be held accountable for the failures that they perpetrate on us and the few that are failing us are having a huge impact. I am not saying that all public school teachers are bad but I am saying that there are some that are and they should be removed from the system.

STUDENTS should be allowed to fail. One Failure can teach you more than on hundred false successes can and by allowing a child to fail and letting them know they do need to work harder in order to be successful they will learn or be passed by and most will not want to be passed by. People by nature will do what it takes to succeed and if I think I obtain what I want or need by giving a sub par effort what motivation does one have to strive to be better.

PARENTS need to be evolved in their child?s education. The school has one job and it isn't to instill self-confidence in your little Johnny. It is to ensure that He can read, write, and do math. They are teaching your child to LEARN and that is all. The motivation should be from home. Parents need to understand that THEY are ultimately responsible for their child?s upbringing not the government. The schools should be honest with the parent and let them know when the child is acting up or not doing their work. The school should let the parent know that if the child cannot keep up with the class they will be dropped and IT IS THE PARENTS JOB to ensure that the child keeps on task.

SOME STUDENTS WILL BE LEFT BEHIND. That's right, I know it sounds bad but our current LEAVE NO CHILD BEHIND has failed us. Some kids should be left behind and ultimately they will have no one to blame but them selves. People rise to challenges and most will here to. If I were running a school and I could get 90% of my students to the top by leaving 10% behind I would in a second the current system brings that 90% down to the level of the lowest 10 and that just isn't fair to the 90%. Some kids will fail and failure is a part of life. I have learned far more from my mistakes than from any of my victories. When you win you rarely reflect yet when you fail you almost instinctively look for a reason. And the school needs to let the parents know why that failure occurred. Protect them all you want or let them OVERCOME obstacles. Give them the tools to succeed and let them. Or do the work and they will watch. That teach a man to fish story IS FOR REAL. The problem is we just keep giving them fish so they never go hungry.

Build self-esteem through real success and not false pretense. Not thing is more dangerous that someone who truly believes they have all the answers who clearly has no clue. Giving someone something for the short-term adulation that follows is a dangerous path. Yet allowing someone to succeed and overcome obstacles always creates a winner and a strong-minded person. What doesn't kill you truly does make you stronger and right no the streghth we are requiring to graduate couldn't lift a tissue. Raise the bar let kids fail and teach them why they failed and how they can avoid future letdowns. LET THEM LEARN HOW TO LEARN. Learning is more than remembering dates and a word, learning is understanding the importance of those words and dates and how they relate to other dates and words. Seeing how things interact and having the ability predict how they will react again.

MORE MONEY isn?t the answer. Yet that seems to be the solution that is always proposed. I see private schools that get by with far less and get much better returns. If you look at the highest spending districts they are almost never near the top in performance. Yet some poorer districts are able to be a much higher rate. In MN the rural schools have higher-class sizes and spend 20% percent less per pupil and yet have a much higher level of education. The students in these schools typically score much better on the tests do better when they attend college all for less than the Metro Schools are spending. Leadership and Teaching are far more important that money.

That is the best response to any thread I've ever read! Great job and I totally agree!

 

[ElFenix]

the funding system for schools is really weird. it has nothing to do with if you even use the system or not. property taxes?

 

[Chaotic42]

They teach kids what to think instead of how to think. They should also stop worrying about everyone's feelings. There are winners and losers in life, the kids should know that.

My thoughts? Everyone who has anything to do with it now should be fired, and someone else should restructure the whole thing.

 

[Darein]

I think public schools are trying too hard to teach to the lowest common denominator.