3in9th Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 If you could change anything about the American PS system, what would it be? For me: Completely do away with Education degrees. Teachers would have to get a degree in the field in which they would teach. If you teach high school Chemistry, you have a B.S. in Chemistry. If you teach high school English, you have an English degree. For the more difficult to categorize kinds of teaching, such as early childhood/early elementary, you would take appropriate coursework in child psychology, child development, and disabilities as well as coursework in the basics of the subjects offered at that level- math, reading, writing, social studies, science, etc.- and also have to minor in teaching methods and pedagogy. Stop grouping kids by age and homeogenity of socio-economic class, race, gender, etc. Kids can learn about others from other races, genders, socio-economic class, etc. by grouping them outside of the academic classroom in courses such as art, music, PE, and recess and lunch groups. I saw this happen with my Special Education students and they got the academics they needed, but also the socialization that was also so vital. Give kids a chance to do vocational and technical education far earlier. Something like O-levels and A-levels in the UK and other countries. There's no reason that a 16-year-old who wants to be a cosmetologist can't earn his or her license in 9th and 10th grade and graduate and begin working. To that end, bring in apprenticeship programs like other countries do as well. For those with college aspirations, make sure they are on the right track academically earlier on and push them to excel so they are truly ready for college and not like what we have now with so so many community college and college students needed academic remediation as soon as they arrive on campus. Completely overhaul Common Core. Great in theory, horrible in practice. I see the wisdom in trying to create nationalized standards. We are a very mobile society and if one kid moves from California to Tennessee it's possible to completely miss some aspects of the curriculum and have a deficiency or be behind/ahead. However, allowing business people and people who know nothing about child development try to write standards and expect 3rd graders to write about abstract math concepts, for instance, is the sad state we're in right now. Get the billionaires out of public school education. I'm looking at you Bill Gates and Koch Brothers. What's on your wish list? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Restructure classrooms as subject-specific resource rooms. Each student should have an IEP and work at their own pace. Teachers should be curriculum experts for their subject and match students with materials of the appropriate level/learning style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 1. Stop doing funding with property taxes. The US is one of very few advanced nations where wealthier students get public schools with more funding than impoverished students. Do funding federally. If schools get more, it should be because they need the money more (perhaps because their students are disadvantaged and their parents cannot make up a gap in education). 1a. Strongly limit how much funding can come from outside sources (such as the PTA). 2. National standards are not a bad idea. However, they should be written by people who grasp child development and education, rather than by going "Well, we want them doing this at 18, so let's divide the subject up into 12 sections and allot one per year...." 3. Smaller class sizes. Much smaller class sizes. I can't say that enough. IEPs for all are a great idea, and those IEPs should say "small class size". 4. Nationally mandated break periods during the school day, which cannot be taken from the students for "bad behavior". If they must have an indoor recess due to bad weather, standards for what constitutes bad weather should be clearly written. 4a. At least half of recess periods should be free play, where free means free - no bans on running, holding hands, etc. If you want students to have a daily gym period, I'm all for that as well. That's separate. 5. No homework in the lower grades. A minimum amount of homework starting in upper elementary or middle school. 6. Prisoners are allowed to go to the bathroom once every eight hours. Students should be allowed to as well. Potty time is a basic human right. I know teachers think their work should be considered utterly scintillating, but nobody can focus when their bladder is about to burst. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMamaBird Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 A friend of mine has a child in a private school that does levels rather than grades. First hour for everyone is Math, so you go to which every Level you belong in, whether it be first or fifth. Next hour would be Reading where your child might be in a completely different level than what they're working on in Math. That way everyone gets a tailored education, much like how we homeschool our kid and one teacher isn't trying to adapt their one grade classroom to students all over the board. I'd love to see that implemented in Public School. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Agree to some extent, less to others. For middle + secondary education, I'd like to see an extended mentoring period rather than all of the education classes. From what I've heard from students who left to teach, they felt as if their education classes did not prepare them for classroom management and the like. For elementary education, I'd like to see more specialists in math and reading from the early grades. I really think that the advanced subject knowledge would help students. I wouldn't necessarily say they'd need a math major, but a minor would be a good idea. As far as grouping, in elementary school I would like to see independently paced instruction in english and math for sure so that late bloomers can catch up and early achievers can soar as high as they can. I think trying to make every subject completely independently paced would be a logistic nightmare. In middle + secondary, I feel that most will have evened out. I'd prefer to go with tracked classes, with the higher tracks available on an opt-in basis, but students who are not passing will need to move down a track after the first marking period. In other words, I think there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with allowing a struggling student to attempt a higher track, but the teacher should not be compelled to adapt instruction to their pace. Apprenticeships and vocational instruction -- yes yes yes, although there should be a night school option for working adults who want to go to a 4 year college to pick up an academic diploma to qualify them. This should be free or very low-cost, but if you are goofing off you get suspended after the first semester with a minimum waiting period of let's say 3 years to reapply. Also, let's fund our state + community colleges sufficiently that students can pay for their own college with a minimum-wage job, and quit doing the student loans racket. Again, this would come with tighter standards on students who aren't really trying. For example, someone with a 0.0 semester gpa really needs some time off, not probation and another chance next semester. (Someone who has a 1.8, on the other hand, *should* get another shot). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 4. Nationally mandated break periods during the school day, which cannot be taken from the students for "bad behavior". If they must have an indoor recess due to bad weather, standards for what constitutes bad weather should be clearly written. 4a. At least half of recess periods should be free play, where free means free - no bans on running, holding hands, etc. If you want students to have a daily gym period, I'm all for that as well. That's separate. 5. No homework in the lower grades. A minimum amount of homework starting in upper elementary or middle school. Especially these. I didn't mention these, but I should have. Let's add in that they should get a lunch period long enough to actually eat their lunch, not have to bolt their food or go hungry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 track by ability with most courses stop with the standardized testing craziness stop forcing academics at younger and younger ages shorten the school day, do away with excessive amounts of homework go deeper with fewer topics rather than skimming tons of topics read more real books rather than just snippets have separate math instructors beginning in early elementary make higher education more affordable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petrichor Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I'd like to see teachers who are (and are treated as) professionals, teachers who know their subject of focus at a much higher level than they are teaching at. I'd like to see those teachers have the ability to teach their students their subject at the level that the student is at. This of course requires smaller class size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Get rid of text book publishers. Read real books that don't cost $300 each. Treat students with respect instead of treating them like children. No one should ask permission to pee!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3in9th Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 Some I forgot: More than 180 school days a year. My homeschooled kids get instruction from July 1 to June 30 every year, but we take big breaks. Integrated curriculum. Less teacher in-service. It was almost always useless when I was a teacher. We called them "Sit and Gets"- Sit and Get talked at. Mindful curriculum purchases. I often felt that the SD where I taught had money to spend and they didn't want a surplus which might cause funding to get cut so they were always buying fad curricula. We didn't use half of the stuff they bought and the ones that were out of style (like Saxon Phonics) and so effective got pushed out because their salespeople either didn't exist or didn't push hard enough with the SD's administration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 make schools safer places to be...I know that's a big one and a tough one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Completely do away with Education degrees. Teachers would have to get a degree in the field in which they would teach. If you teach high school Chemistry, you have a B.S. in Chemistry. If you teach high school English, you have an English degree. For the more difficult to categorize kinds of teaching, such as early childhood/early elementary, you would take appropriate coursework in child psychology, child development, and disabilities as well as coursework in the basics of the subjects offered at that level- math, reading, writing, social studies, science, etc.- and also have to minor in teaching methods and pedagogy. What you described for early childhood/early elementary is exactly what an education degree is. For high school certification in our state you don't have to have an actual degree in the field like you suggested but you do have to pass a competency exam in the subject area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 School year round- I'd rather have a week or two here and there off than 3 months all at once Later start times, dd1 gets up at 6 to get on the bus at 645 and starts school at 750, shes in 1st grade. She gets out at 235 and gets off the bus at 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3in9th Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 What you described for early childhood/early elementary is exactly what an education degree is. For high school certification in our state you don't have to have an actual degree in the field like you suggested but you do have to pass a competency exam in the subject area. The university near me doesn't require a single class in child psychology or child development. They have a very bad reputation for having classes that deal with making bulletin board displays and foldables and also having unlimited do-overs for their grades. So many students with education degrees end up with 4.0s in their education classes the entire college of education is the laughing stock of the university. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 stop blaming teachers for all the problems.... I bitch about the education system as much as plenty of other people, but I find it kinda of obnoxious that teachers are getting blamed for lousy policies or not being able to work miracles. They are given less and less control over things, but are now being blamed for more and more issues that are often out of their control. ***edited to add this is not directed towards anything anyone here has said, just a general thing I notice and a general suggestion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 The university near me doesn't require a single class in child psychology or child development. They have a very bad reputation for having classes that deal with making bulletin board displays and foldables and also having unlimited do-overs for their grades. So many students with education degrees end up with 4.0s in their education classes the entire college of education is the laughing stock of the university. The university I went to has a very good local reputation for it's education graduates. We did not do a single bulletin board display in our coursework but did spend a lot of time on instructional objectives tied directly to specific classes. We were required to take a class in teaching every single core subject as well as classes like art, music and p.e. at the elementary level. This is for elementary level only. For secondary education you are required to get a major in your discipline with the addition of a education endorsement to allow you to get a teacher's certificate. I don't have the time to see exactly how much of this is what is required by the state but I suspect that a lot of it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3in9th Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 Double teachers' salaries, but only if they are as qualified as I outlined above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I would have mandatory Physical Education classes, 5 days a week. When I was in public schools, in CA, we had that. Looking back, it was incredibly important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 My main wish is that the federal government be completely removed from educational policy; removed from setting standards, removed from funding, removed from setting policy. Then I would like to see local governments be willing to boot behavior problems out of the classroom, have small classes that are grouped by ability (similar to the levels that someone mentioned above), no homework until high school, The option for a top-notch vocational or academic education, and a move away from multiple choice testing for the purposes of determining graduation status. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3in9th Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 The university I went to has a very good local reputation for it's education graduates. We did not do a single bulletin board display in our coursework but did spend a lot of time on instructional objectives tied directly to specific classes. We were required to take a class in teaching every single core subject as well as classes like art, music and p.e. at the elementary level. This is for elementary level only. For secondary education you are required to get a major in your discipline with the addition of a education endorsement to allow you to get a teacher's certificate. I don't have the time to see exactly how much of this is what is required by the state but I suspect that a lot of it is. That sounds like my alma mater. You technically couldn't major in education. You got your education classes and credential by going to their Master's program. It was rumored that it was harder to get into that any other Master's program and that was 20 years ago so it's probably even better. FWIW, the education graduates here have a hard time finding jobs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomtoCandJ Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Do away with overpaid administrators and board members Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyMountain Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 We need to train teachers better. Education should be a competitive field with good candidates not something where they are achieving below average. They should be educated in the field they are teaching and have a lot of training both in school and then on the job after they graduate. We need to separate sports from school. Having a sports team is not only very costly for a school but it hurts achievement. When kids are in school it should be about getting an education not how the high school football team is doing. Kids can take sports recreationally. The day for younger children can be shorter especially for the kids grasping concepts well at the time. If a kid is having a harder time grasping concepts then they should be provided help for as long as they need it. They should not be pigeonholded because they need help. Kids should be told that it is ok to struggle sometimes and that they learn through hard work. We should have high expectations for our kids and good general guidelines that are high but the teachers should have more autonomy on how they achieve this. Do not sacrifice recess and active breaks. Kids learn better when they get active breaks. All schools should get the same economic resources. High tech classes with smart boards and expensive equipment is not needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Closeacademy Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Honestly, I'd look more at the Nordic countries for ideas. Have Kindergarten be all about play again. Handwork plenty of recess have science be explore the outdoors and the natural world around them less seatwork and more stories in the early grades Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 It's threads like this that make me wonder if I'll EVER go back to classroom teaching. It's just so much thankless work in an increasingly hostile atmosphere. It used to be OK to teach the alphabet in kindergarten or let a second grader have an easy subject. Now the whole class HAS to be reading in kindergarten and that second grader had better be AT his challenge level in EVERY subject. Classroom teachers are expected to be private tutors to each student, but they're not granted the ability to control time so it would be logistically possible. As much as I LOVE working with a classroom full of kids and seeing them grow and learn through the year, dealing with increasingly overpaid administrators and constant 'advice' from people who have only experienced the classroom as a student just doesn't seem worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 We need to separate sports from school. Having a sports team is not only very costly for a school but it hurts achievement. When kids are in school it should be about getting an education not how the high school football team is doing. Kids can take sports recreationally. Corollary: I would like to see more publicly funded (that is, free or very low-cost) extracurriculars and school break camps for kids. (Would also be amenable to a voucher system, something I'm not thrilled with when it comes to school proper.) There's no reason kids shouldn't all have access to free-or-low-cost music lessons, sports lessons, swimming lessons, etc. Currently, these things are primarily run through the schools, but of course not all schools offer what any particular kid is interested in, and not all the non-school options are affordable for all students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Do away with assigning schools based on home address. That has make people flock to "better" school districts by choosing where to rent, or stay where they are and send kids to private and B&M public charters. My area is heavily PTA funded and also funded though property tax. The differences between local schools are crazy due to income demographics of parents. The state govt had owed school districts money so relying totally on state funding might not be a good idea. Textbooks and workbooks prices for k-5 are way too costly. $100 per student for math textbook was what we were told during parent orientation and the math workbook quality is that of thin jotter book paper. With that kind of quality, schools should get a low price edition cost for the books. My older public school classroom was 20 students to a teacher for k-3. Didn't help much. Smaller class size would also mean more portables in some area. The local school went to a class size of 30 and still needed to add three portables for k-5. The portables took over the outdoor basketball courts. While I am neutral about standardized testing, the local schools skip science from k-4 because there is no state tests for it. In 5th grade, they prep for the state tests. Students who were weaker in English but not ESL or LD weren't given help until 3rd grade because there is no state test in k-2 so no resources were allocated. Crappy as standardized tests are, having a fail grade in the states test gets kids help which they may never get because of social promotion. ETA: My school district doesn't fund sports other than having a functional swimming pool in high schools. Kids who want to do sports typically apply for financial aid at YMCA for their sports program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Thinking some more about high school math, because math is my specialty: I would really like to stop forcing advanced algebra and trigonometry on students who already know they do not want to go to college/into a technical field or want to major in english/history/something like that. If they want to take it for the challenge, great! But I'd rather see the average, run-of-the-mill, not-math-liking student take a series of math classes that focuses less on reaching advanced concepts as fast as possible and more on a thorough understanding of basic, basic concepts. I see people who supposedly had calculus in high school who cannot solve problems such as "If a book is on sale for $16 at 20% off, what was the original price of the book?" I would like to see the minimum level of mastery be: 1) Arithmetic -- the four basic operations, fractions, decimals, percents, and ratio. 2) Algebra -- especially the linear part of algebra 1, and also graphing and what it actually means. 3) Geometry -- but more focused on problem-solving than on two-column proofs. 4) Statistics + logic + reasoning. 5) Financial mathematics. This of course would be insufficient for someone who wanted to enter university and start at calculus, yet I feel that if my students understood this thoroughly, they could enter college, start in college algebra, and be ready for a serious calculus course in a year, rather than floundering through intermediate algebra . I would honestly expect that most "mathy" students could finish this significantly earlier, but that's ok. They can go on and take more advanced stem-major courses. I think this would give an average to sub-average student a higher level of actual understanding and proficiency than they get now from the monkey-see-monkey-do let's-answer-the-stupid-standardized-test-questions-correctly classes that populate the high schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinnia Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I would like the flexibility for more ability grouping in core subjects. Less angst over "my kid didn't get into gifted, and he/she deserves a good/fun/exciting education, too!" and more realization that gifted is special ed cause it's different than regular education. That was the big thing that led us to homeschooling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I would have mandatory Physical Education classes, 5 days a week. When I was in public schools, in CA, we had that. Looking back, it was incredibly important. I don't know that I agree. There is a lot of bullying that comes from PE class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I don't know that I agree. There is a lot of bullying that comes from PE class. I think it could work if the PE classes were more like college PE classes and less like "ok, six weeks of volleyball, six weeks of basketball, etc." You could elect classes like Aikido, Fitness Walking, Weight Training, Pilates, whatever ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 School choice. Independence in the local schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Have the option for schools to be open later, even if it is just the cafeteria and gyms for study areas and recreation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barnwife Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 The university I went to has a very good local reputation for it's education graduates. We did not do a single bulletin board display in our coursework but did spend a lot of time on instructional objectives tied directly to specific classes. We were required to take a class in teaching every single core subject as well as classes like art, music and p.e. at the elementary level. This is for elementary level only. For secondary education you are required to get a major in your discipline with the addition of a education endorsement to allow you to get a teacher's certificate. I don't have the time to see exactly how much of this is what is required by the state but I suspect that a lot of it is. I took many classes at my university that would fit your descriptions above. Most were a joke. My lab art class (designed specifically for elementary education majors to assist us with teaching art if that fell under our contract) jumps out as a complete waste of time. I mean I distinctly recall an assignment in which we were each given a nice 4 x 6 ish inch bound book of blank white pages. Then we were told to create a book about barns. And we had days of class to work on it. Really? How in the world did doing that make me more capable of teaching art to a class of 30 elementary students? (FWIW, I visited the farm of a family I knew and took photos. I watercolored the pages and glued the photos in.) I can honestly say that the vast majority of my classes for my elementary education degree were a waste of time. And my degree is from a highly rated university in the state. IMO, much more time needs to be spent giving teacher classroom management training. I'd have prospective teachers do much more shadowing of already certified teachers. As in, there should be about 1 year of classes and then the rest of a 4 year teaching degree should be student teaching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I took many classes at my university that would fit your descriptions above. Most were a joke. My lab art class (designed specifically for elementary education majors to assist us with teaching art if that fell under our contract) jumps out as a complete waste of time. I mean I distinctly recall an assignment in which we were each given a nice 4 x 6 ish inch bound book of blank white pages. Then we were told to create a book about barns. This is really hilarious given your name. (total sidetrack) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Serenade Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 I'd go back to smaller, neighborhood schools for elementary. And even for Middle School and High School, I wish there were more schools, just smaller. I don't like these mega high schools with thousands of kids in them. I think if there would be a smaller high school near me, I might even consider putting one of my kids in. And I wish in all states, that homeschooled kids would have the opportunity to take a class or two at the public school if desired. This is not possible now in my state. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Serenade Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 We need to separate sports from school. Having a sports team is not only very costly for a school but it hurts achievement. When kids are in school it should be about getting an education not how the high school football team is doing. Kids can take sports recreationally. This is a big one. I forgot to put it in my post, but to me this is the most important thing of all, to get rid of sports in schools, other than for in-class PE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incognito Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 The university near me doesn't require a single class in child psychology or child development. They have a very bad reputation for having classes that deal with making bulletin board displays and foldables and also having unlimited do-overs for their grades. So many students with education degrees end up with 4.0s in their education classes the entire college of education is the laughing stock of the university. FWIW, where I live now all teachers have to get an undergraduate degree, then they go for their teaching certification separately - it takes 2 years (I *think* they can get it done faster if they do both summers sandwiching one year, but I could be mistaken). I think this set up avoids the problems you have seen in the university near you (and that I saw in the university I attended). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 We need to separate sports from school. Having a sports team is not only very costly for a school but it hurts achievement. When kids are in school it should be about getting an education not how the high school football team is doing. Kids can take sports recreationally. I don't agree with that, sports are good for many things and not just a judgement on popularity. Extracurriculars have value and they should all be treated the same whether it be music, art, or sports. I didn't pursue music in college but I played an instrument for several years and also participated in art and sports programs. I disagree they hurt achievement. Kids with participation in extracurricular activities usually have a higher GPA, better attendance, lower risk factors, and fewer suspensions than kids who do not. Also without the school's support many kids could not afford to participate in some programs. I played the bassoon for several years, my parents could not have purchased a bassoon. I would support schools supporting extracurricular activities from a younger age than eliminating them. Allowing for music instrument instruction from early grade school would be better as would better physical education, art, and sports instruction from a younger age. I didn't take PE after grade school because of my extracurricular participation but IME more organized activities are more instructive and have more value than just a PE class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 And I wish in all states, that homeschooled kids would have the opportunity to take a class or two at the public school if desired. This is not possible now in my state. I can see how that might be a scheduling issue at the elementary level if kids are mostly in one classroom. It really shouldn't be a problem at the higher levels, where it's assumed children are moving classes anyway, and it seems this would be helpful for kids who are on high school level but whose parents have trouble teaching whatever-it-is and who have trouble arranging a tutor (or whatnot) for whatever-subject. Seems pretty simple to me, and I don't know why more states don't mandate that this be an option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxbridgeacademy Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 1. Stop doing funding with property taxes. The US is one of very few advanced nations where wealthier students get public schools with more funding than impoverished students. Do funding federally. If schools get more, it should be because they need the money more (perhaps because their students are disadvantaged and their parents cannot make up a gap in education). 1a. Strongly limit how much funding can come from outside sources (such as the PTA). 2. National standards are not a bad idea. However, they should be written by people who grasp child development and education, rather than by going "Well, we want them doing this at 18, so let's divide the subject up into 12 sections and allot one per year...." 3. Smaller class sizes. Much smaller class sizes. I can't say that enough. IEPs for all are a great idea, and those IEPs should say "small class size". 4. Nationally mandated break periods during the school day, which cannot be taken from the students for "bad behavior". If they must have an indoor recess due to bad weather, standards for what constitutes bad weather should be clearly written. 4a. At least half of recess periods should be free play, where free means free - no bans on running, holding hands, etc. If you want students to have a daily gym period, I'm all for that as well. That's separate. 5. No homework in the lower grades. A minimum amount of homework starting in upper elementary or middle school. 6. Prisoners are allowed to go to the bathroom once every eight hours. Students should be allowed to as well. Potty time is a basic human right. I know teachers think their work should be considered utterly scintillating, but nobody can focus when their bladder is about to burst. When I was in grade school we had recess every day, you had to really be awful to be kept inside. I remember playing. Swinging, racing, drawing a hopscotch thing, throwing a rock to count where to jump to. I played jacks and when I got a bit older we played four-square and hackey-sack. There were always balls to play with including a baseball and bats. We had Gym or Music or Art every day(depending on the rotation we might get 2 in one day). The food sucked but we had 40 minutes (from bell to bell) to eat it in. We did have very large classes, low-mid 30's. Small class size and recess. It would make a world of difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyMountain Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 This article does a good job talking about the problem with sports and school. http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/the-case-against-high-school-sports/309447/#disqus_thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 This article does a good job talking about the problem with sports and school. http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/the-case-against-high-school-sports/309447/#disqus_thread http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2004/2004schlesserc.pdf http://www.academia.edu/7102902/Student_engagement_in_extracurricular_activities_and_academic_performance_Exploring_gender_differences http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc2879/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 But does access to sports have to be done via the schools? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 But does access to sports have to be done via the schools? If we don't want to make access a class issue. I participated in extracurricular activities, I was also in the school's magnet programs. Most of the kids in my classes were involved in some sort of extra curricular activities...most of them were in music programs but there were also kids who participated in sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabet1 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Early grades would be hands on, go at your own pace, no standardized tests. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabet1 Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 It would be illegal to take tax education dollars and use it to make a massive, close-to-NFL level football team. Tax dollars can only be used for education. If there are sports paid for by tax payers, they will be everyone gets to play stuff, for educational and health purposes. Not to inflate the egos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 If we don't want to make access a class issue. But access IS a class issue right now, because some schools offer lots of clubs and sports and activities and some... don't. And those that do often charge fees. You said yourself, you were in a magnet program. Those schools have extra funding to allow them to attract more students. Why not divorce the extracurriculars from the schools, but have them publicly funded? That would allow many more options. After all, only a very large school can offer karate AND fencing AND football (for all players, not just the best) AND drama (for all actors, not just the best) AND chorus (for all... you know the drill) AND archery AND swimming AND basketball.... but a community with 3 or 4 public high schools and 2 private ones probably can offer all those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 But access IS a class issue right now, because some schools offer lots of clubs and sports and activities and some... don't. And those that do often charge fees. You said yourself, you were in a magnet program. Those schools have extra funding to allow them to attract more students. Why not divorce the extracurriculars from the schools, but have them publicly funded? That would allow many more options. After all, only a very large school can offer karate AND fencing AND football (for all players, not just the best) AND drama (for all actors, not just the best) AND chorus (for all... you know the drill) AND archery AND swimming AND basketball.... but a community with 3 or 4 public high schools and 2 private ones probably can offer all those. I was in a huge school with over 2000 kids. That's why they could afford the programs, there are tons and tons of kids in that area. That town does have three high schools and probably most the extracurricular activities you mentioned. The Atlantic article was discussing a high school of 282 kids but my graduating class alone had three times that number. My hometown is one huge suburb that is famous for being hit by really big tornadoes and Toby Keith went to my high school, that's about it. It's hard to compare some of the huge districts with the small towns. The smaller towns could work together so they could get more programs but some are so far apart that could prove difficult. Some mentioned having issues with huge schools but I feel that having attended a large school it does make it easier to find a place. My friends were not popular sports people, my friends were/are nerds. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in TN Posted February 18, 2015 Share Posted February 18, 2015 Teachers, as much as possible, should be allowed to teach their subjects using materials they choose. A good plan will be part of the hiring process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 I would have mandatory Physical Education classes, 5 days a week. When I was in public schools, in CA, we had that. Looking back, it was incredibly important. Yuck. I would have dropped out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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