You know how public school teachers like to say...

[Dooley]

...that they have to "fix" homeschool kids when they come into their class? My MIL, a retired teacher, said this to me many times. Anyway, today, I withdrew our freshman from high school to come back home. One of the many reasons? They did only 7 chapters of French and she got a full credit - she even said on the final, they tested only on the first 3 chapters! They did 1/3 of the Biology book, and she got full credit (dissected nothing), did not get half way through Geometry, got full credit. So...I now have to "fix" what our high school failed to do. This is how they are passing kids, not even providing them with a real foundation in any subject, just cutting down the information. My dd is ticked and I am too. She even thanked me for how "hard" I have been with her over the years, academically.

 

It was an experiment to have her go, but we are all glad she is home, now she can get a good education.

 

I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I think in both cases it depends on the teacher. There are homeschool teachers who only do part of the textbook and never finish anything either. But I do agree with you in that I've seen it personally much more the other way around. Either way - I have much more control if I'm the teacher. Now - nobody had better say anything about how I am going to jettison our Latin book today and buy another one! Enjoy teaching your daughter at home. And don't feel like you have to fix everything for her all at once.

[Happy]

We had to 'fix' our guy, too.

 

In ps eighth grade, my son was an A-B student and in honors math. Within a few weeks of homeschooling, we realized he couldn't read past a fourth grade level...and hated it to boot. Plus, he didn't know his multiplication tables at all.

 

So much for grades and 'honors.'

[Carrie12345]

I'm still working on "fixing" my ds. He spent K-4 making straight A's for extremely sub-par work, imo. Book reports that were plain wrong (he once wrote about Laura Ingalls Wilder working hard to finish college in order to become a teacher- which he pulled out of his rear), projects thrown together in 15 minutes, and even test papers coming home, marked correct, with incorrect answers on them.

 

And the cyber charter is willing to let him get away with the same sort of things, but my involvement usually enables me to step in. Of course, then there's the battle of "but my teacher said..." or "the computer says..." Which is why my fingers are crossed for "real" homeschooling next year.

 

There was an article in this Sunday's paper about PA students, and how 33% of PA high school graduates attending PA State colleges are taking remedial classes. Gee, big surprise!

[Kelli in TN]

I will admit to having been a bit shocked when my daughter went to public school and never finished a single textbook.

 

It just would not occur to me that we did not have to finish a high school text.

 

Sometimes we don't finish an elementary text, but that is usually because the child has conquered the material and needs to move on. But high school? No, I am too afraid of leaving a gap.

[Dooley]

I usually try to finish the text, and usually pretty much do, but I thought I would get a "break" with putting her in ps. I guess, in terms of a much larger picture...these are tomorrows leaders who arent even ready to go to community college. Is this what the school system does so they can pull the wool over the eyes of the parents and taxpayers, saying "Look how well our kids are doing" of course forgetting to add that for 4.5 months, they only got to chapter 7....

 

Public school parents should be concerned!

[Guest Katia]

Oh, yes, I can SO relate. I had one I had to "fix" as well. Then I kept all the littles at home so that they wouldn't need "fixing".

 

It is simply shocking the amount in the ps texts that don't get taught/covered. I know I read here often that public school math and/or science texts at the high school level cover so much more than the homeschool texts...blah, blah, blah. But, it doesn't really matter how much is in those texts when the students never get around to that material, does it?

 

I'm sure that somewhere out there are public schools that finish those texts and teach all those concepts....but I've never run into any. Dh has taught in many ps in 8 different states. He is our biggest supporter of homeschooling all the way through!

 

Good luck with your "fixing". The reality of public schools can be a rude awakening, eh?

[Crissy]

Public school parents should be concerned!

 

Yes, they should!

 

I think it is also important that we as parents (of public or home schooled children) teach them from a very early age to take responsibility for their own education.

 

This is the third year that my son has been taking a science course at the public school (though as of yesterday, he is enrolled full time), and he is not happy with the lack of challenging course work this year. He requested a different course/teacher, but due to some of his classes that cannot be moved, he must remain in this particular science class.

Rather than bemoan the fact that his teacher is not educating him well enough (though his first reaction was to place blame), he has taken it upon himself to cover the chapters the class skips and make use of the public library to get a greater understanding of the topics they cover.

 

He understand that this is his education and his future in which he is investing. No single teacher or institution can give him all he needs, and the ultimate responsibility for becoming a well educated adult falls on his shoulders.

[Colleen]

...that they have to "fix" homeschool kids when they come into their class?

 

No, I've never heard a public school teacher say that, but I have no doubt that there are previously-homeschooled students who enter a classroom with some educational deficiencies.

 

Anyway, today, I withdrew our freshman from high school to come back home. One of the many reasons? They did only 7 chapters of French and she got a full credit - she even said on the final, they tested only on the first 3 chapters! They did 1/3 of the Biology book, and she got full credit (dissected nothing), did not get half way through Geometry, got full credit. So...I now have to "fix" what our high school failed to do.

 

Yes, it seems that they didn't cover a great deal of territory in those subjects. That bothers me as a citizen and taxpayer, and it would be bother me more if it were my student on the receiving end.

 

This is how they are passing kids, not even providing them with a real foundation in any subject, just cutting down the information.

 

I don't like the "us versus them" mentality and see no real benefit in playing that game. It stands to reason that there are varying degrees of schools ~ including homeschools.

 

It was an experiment to have her go, but we are all glad she is home, now she can get a good education. I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts.

 

I'm glad for you! Just keep in mind that your experience is just that: Your experience. Not all homeschoolers are doing "more" or "better" than their public school counterparts. And vice versa.:)

Edited January 27, 2009 by Colleen

[Crissy]

Originally Posted by Dooley

...that they have to "fix" homeschool kids when they come into their class?

No, I've never heard a public school teacher say that,

 

I don't think I've heard that either. I've had conversations with a few public school teachers about homeschooling, and their comments tend to be quite realistic rather than this sort of generalization.

[Tracey in TX]

NEVER heard a teach say they needed to fix homeschool students. Many teachers that I know here wish they could stay at home to educate their own children.

btw, it's not the norm to only accomplish 1/3 of a textbook to receive full credit. That's usually an indication of a teacher on her way out the back door. Sorry your DD had an experience like this. Did you report this to the school board when you dis-enrolled her?

[elise1mds]

I can't say I've ever heard a teacher say that specifically, but I have had a PS teacher try to talk me out of homeschooling because it wouldn't be "good for him." She has no children. Then again, I know several PS teachers who would love to quit and HS their own kids if they could afford it. It's tough!

 

And public schools aren't the only ones teaching children inadequately. Private schools can be equally guilty. My son is reading at a high level for his age. At the beginning of this school year, the teacher promised that reading would be tested every nine weeks and the child would be taught appropriately according to level, even sending him to a different class if need be. Is that what has happened?? Nope. My DS comes home complaining that he has to read the "easy books" along with everyone else. He's just in kindergarten. This is why he's coming home this fall and why I'm finishing up OPG with him before then. He needs the challenge!

[G5052]

I've taught homeschooled kids in co-ops for the last five years. I've taught homeschooled, public schooled, Christian schooled, and expensive private schooled kids at the local CC for ten years.

 

And frankly the longer I do it, the less I generalize. There are kids who get through the local $18,000/year private school who can't write, and there homeschooled logic-stage kids that I know who are superior to some of my college students in their ability to express themselves and listen.

 

Yes, there are some public schools that are very poor. I don't doubt the testimonies given here. However, not all public schools are bad. Not all private schools are superior. Not all homeschools are superior either.

 

You can't cherry-pick one student and say that they represent the entire school any more than you can pick one school of any kind and say that it represents a category. That's just not good logic. ;)

[Dooley]

 

 

 

 

I don't like the "us versus them" mentality and see no real benefit in playing that game. It stands to reason that there are varying degrees of schools ~ including homeschools.

 

 

 

I'm glad for you! Just keep in mind that your experience is just that: Your experience. Not all homeschoolers are doing "more" or "better" than their public school counterparts. And vice versa.:)

 

 

Colleen, I dont understand your "us versus them" post - that is far from what I am saying. And of course I understand its "my experience". Our oldest daughter is graduating from a public high school, I dont have a "game" to play.

 

My post is simply about how little was taught, that has resulted in my needing to add to it for the benefit of my child. As a public school parent, it does concern me.

[TravelingChris]

We are new in this area and I was talking to some other newcomers at a reception for all of us newcomers at a church. They couple I was talking with found out that I homeschool and they were asking about the transition to college. Well I have had two of them do this so far and niether had a problem. Nor did other homeschoolers I know since most homeschoolers are having independent learners well before the time the children go off to college.

 

Now about textbooks, I don't expect all of a textbook to be finished for a class. Most have more material than can be done in 180 days. However, usually about 75% of a standard textbook is finished unless a textbook is designed for more than one years' study. (Certain math texts are for one and a ha;f years or two years).

[Pamela H in Texas]

I agree with those that said that there are all kinds of things going on in homeschools, public schools, etc. Some of the best educated kids I've known have been public schooled kids and some of the worst have been homeschooled. Actually, MOST of the high school aged homeschoolers I've known have been woefully unprepared for life, much less college. These are not kids with LDs generally. Most of them just weren't educated (and didn't choose education for themselves). Sad.

 

But it all just depends.

 

Of course, I hate to hear public schools doing so poorly because we all have an interested in public schooled kids being educated (all kids really, but...).

 

Glad your dd is home and hope all goes well for the rest of high school.

[Guest Katia]

 

And frankly the longer I do it, the less I generalize. OP was not generalizing. She had a specific example in a specific school in many subjects.

 

Yes, there are some public schools that are very poor. I don't doubt the testimonies given here. However, not all public schools are bad. Not all private schools are superior. Not all homeschools are superior either. I haven't read any posts in this thread that suggest such a thing.

 

You can't cherry-pick one student and say that they represent the entire school any more than you can pick one school of any kind and say that it represents a category. That's just not good logic. ;) That wasn't done here. Yes, she is talking about one student but it was all her classes in the entire grade level. Other examples were specific to each person's experience with 'their' school districts.

 

I do not see an 'us vs. them' mentality here. I see people who have had public school teachers say the same thing to them as the OP heard (I know I have heard it a lot) and then they related how they had to "fix" the lacking education of their child. It happens. It's ok to post about it here at this homeschooling forum. We are here to support each other when these things happen.

 

I didn't see anyone generalizing that 'public schools are all bad and homeschoolers are all good'. Or, did I just miss that post? Of course people are people (kids are kids) it goes both ways. But, the discussion was centering around this specific lack of education in this specific school district to this specific child and others were supporting the OP with the same experiences that they had. This is a concern and people within the public school system should care about it, but they can't if they don't know it exists.

[PiCO]

You know how public school teachers like to say...that they have to "fix" homeschool kids when they come into their class?

 

I have heard a few public school teachers (and a few private school teachers) say this. And it's true- I knew some of the kids. As a matter of fact, I heard this from friends who teach, that were concerned about me homeschooling- they knew I was capable, but wanted to make sure I had a plan so my kids wouldn't be a homeschooled kid that needed "fixing."

 

ETA- most teachers I know support homeschoolers who are challenging their children academically.

 

It was an experiment to have her go, but we are all glad she is home, now she can get a good education.

 

I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts.

 

Also nice that your daughter is now 100% on board (I don't know if she was before or not, but now she has no doubt.)

[Pamela H in Texas]

they knew I was capable, but wanted to make sure I had a plan so my kids wouldn't be a homeschooled kid that needed "fixing."

 

I always struggle with this though. Anyone could point to my daughter and say what a success homeschooling her was. It is obvious by most people's standards. You couldn't ask for a better, sweeter, kinder, more capable kid.

 

However, my son is his own person. If he went to public school, they'd immediately jump in to "fix" him, no doubt. But if he had gone to public school all along, he'd still need "fixing." Exactly what needed "fixing" might differ a little, but there is no doubt that he'd need additional help in most subject areas.

 

It isn't fair for people to assume that homeschoolers like me dropped the ball (or worse, never picked it up) just because they have a kid who is a bit "behind" or slow or needs something different. I have been a BETTER homeschool mom to my son than I was to my daughter. The results just aren't the same.

[Colleen]

Colleen, I dont understand your "us versus them" post - that is far from what I am saying.

 

I apologize if I'm misreading you, but when someone says, "I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts", that does sound to me like a blanket statement, an "us versus them" generalization.

 

Btw, I agree with Tracey in TX that covering 1/3 of a textbook is not the norm. I hope you expressed your concerns to the school administration.

[HRAAB]

I have personally heard this comment from teachers twice. Once from my bil and another time from a lady I barely knew at church.

 

My dd went to highschool last year for one semester. She had homework maybe twice, for her accelerated English class, and that was it. Two of her textbooks she couldn't find at the end of the semester - she had never been required to open them. (I finally found them in her closet.) Her gpa was 3.8. That was our one and only experience with public high school.

 

That doesn't mean I have an us vs. them attitude. Not all public schools are equal nor are all homeschools equal. Frankly, I'm not in competition with the public schools. However, our experience with public school does not seem to be unusual. Of course, that is information drawn from homeschoolers who have pulled their kids from the ps system.

 

Janet

[Dooley]

Perhaps when I dashed this off "I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts." it was a poor choice of words. I was just posting about our experience and didn't really think that anyone would be parsing my words. I dont know how I could be an "us versus them" person, when our oldest is in public school - I certainly support all the hard work any teacher does.

 

I acknowledge everyone has varying degrees of experiences both homeschool and public. I shall be more careful about my posts in the future!

 

Have a great one -

[Mari]

Don't turn this into another "us vs. them debate!" We've all been there done that several times on this board recently. Dooley was just sharing something with us, that's all. Can't we just not be so sensitive and let her vent, for goodness sakes?

 

To me, the fact that she didn't ask for opinions makes me think she's seeking more "amens" from the choir. Here's one for you, Dooley, I spent 15 minutes last night defending my right to HS my children to two PS teachers who used the same "fix them later" line. Heck, a former PS teacher even wrote that here on this board not to long ago. It happens. Maybe not to all but definitely to some.

 

Good luck, Dooley.

[Hillary in KS]

I was a public school teacher, and I had to fix homeschoolers.

 

I had 4 homeschoolers over the course of 6 years. (One set of twins)

 

One was a little behind, but not much. Not alarmingly so, by any means. She was comparable to some transfer student's Id received.

 

The 3 other homeschoolers were dramatically behind. 2 could not read. One could read, but couldn't write or spell - most of his schoolwork had been done orally. One couldn't write her last name.

 

All three had social awareness issues. Things like blatant nose-picking. Immature behaviors. One had toilet issues. (His mom told me she was waiting until he was ready to train. I was teaching 4th grade that year.)

 

They were all very nice, but very off. With the twins, it was clear that they kids had "issues" because the parents had issues.

 

I can completely understand public school teachers saying they have to fix homeschoolers, because I've had to do it myself.

 

Thankfully, I also saw several stellar examples of homeschooling at church and in my neighbor family, so I saw how good homeschooling *could* be. :)

[tibbyl]

What I fail to understand is how a traditionally-schooled child can be so far behind without parental awareness and intervention. During the few years that my children were traditionally-schooled, we personally monitored their work to make sure they were on track in accordance with their capabilities. We did not view school reports as a reliable indicator of their progress. I guess what I am saying is that ultimately the parent bears responsibility for child's education regardless of method or medium used.

 

Shortly I will be working closely with my public high schooler in evenings on a research paper. Based upon her homeschooling performance, I know that she still needs some supervision when planning and organizing her project. The fact that she scores A's in honors English is irrelevant in my assessment of her needs.

 

On a sidenote, often traditional high school texts, Holt biology for example, have more chapters than need be covered in a school year. They contain extra material to allow for concentrations in subfields of interest or more indepth studies for talented students. But at least the basic course should be covered during the school year.

Edited January 27, 2009 by tibbyl
correct grammatical errors

[Crissy]

What I fail to understand is how a traditionally-schooled child can be so far behind without parental awareness and intervention.

 

I find that curious as well, and yet I know a number of young students whose parents haven't a clue about their studies.

[Paz]

I agree with you Dooley, but I had to share a funny story about finishing a textbook. When my ds was in 8th grade he went back to public school. His history textbook was huge. It covered world history form ancient times to pesent. The first time he brought it home I look at it and commented that the teacher was going to have a difficult time getting through that. She was a first year teacher and I was mostly pleased with the class. But the last 6 or so weeks of school they had many chapters to go to finish the book. She had the students outline each chapter and answer questions about each chapter, as well. My ds did a lot of work to finish the book. I am not sure how much he retained but every time I think of finishing a textbook I remember that class. :lol:

[littlebug42]

Not finishing textbooks does not surprise me at all. I was an honors student, graduated 9th in my class, received AP college credit for American History and can tell you next to nothing about American History after World War II. I never got to it in school. Overall, I feel that I got a fairly good education in the public schools but I think that had more to do with me and my desire to do well than with them with the exception of my 12th grade English teacher. He was without a doubt the best teacher I have ever encountered. He put all of my professors in college to shame and I will never forget all that I learned from him.

[Jean in Newcastle]

What I fail to understand is how a traditionally-schooled child can be so far behind without parental awareness and intervention.

 

I used to have a tutoring business. I got the bulk of my students at 5th grade because even though the parents were aware of problems all along, the teachers told them not to worry- that the schools would fix it. In 5th grade, the parents would all of a sudden realize that middle school was coming up and that their kid's learning problems were still there (and were often getting worse). That's when they called me. I've heard other tutors say similar things.

 

Having said that though, I know that sometimes as a homeschool teacher I see problems with my kids (ie. my ds's handwriting!) and I keep putting it off or I wait for him to develop more or I tackle it sporadically. I've talked to other homeschool teachers who have put off learning problems longer than they now wish that they had. I guess these discussions just make me really aware that while I don't have to stress about it - I do need to stay at the top of my game to maintain the standards of education that I want for my children. And that because I'm teaching for mastery of each subject - that I want to finish the textbook!

[Erica in PA]

Perhaps when I dashed this off "I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts." it was a poor choice of words. I was just posting about our experience and didn't really think that anyone would be parsing my words. I dont know how I could be an "us versus them" person, when our oldest is in public school - I certainly support all the hard work any teacher does.

 

I acknowledge everyone has varying degrees of experiences both homeschool and public. I shall be more careful about my posts in the future!

 

Have a great one -

 

Dooley, you didn't say anything wrong-- it's the nature of this board, when someone is perceived as making comments that may imply that homeschooling is generally superior to public school, that person will be corrected. Usually by a string of people.

 

It's one area where unless you want to get into that sort of debate regularly, you do have to be careful what you say here. Adding a disclaimer that says something to the effect of "but all schools are different, this is just my experience, there are many wonderful schools, etc." helps to ward those comments off. If you make a negative comment about homeschooling to cap things off, you may avoid correction altogether. :tongue_smilie:

 

Anyway, I think it's awful that the kids in your dd's school are being given credit for those classes. It's so unfair to those students-- this is their only chance at a high school education, and the school is blowing it. I am so glad that you were able to bring your dd home!!

 

ETA: I forgot to mention that things were very similar at my sister's high school a couple of years ago. It was very discouraging to see how little a foundation of knowledge was being laid. I wished for better for my sister, but my parents were not in a position to homeschool her or send her to a private school, so she had to make the best of it. One thing I think it's good to remember is that these are entire *schools* that we are talking about. Hundreds of students every year at each school who handles things this way, year after year. Who knows how many students might that add up to? That is really a shame. I am extremely grateful to be able to homeschool my kids, so that they won't be at the mercy of the local schools, and have to take the good or bad as it comes.

Edited January 27, 2009 by Erica in PA

[katemary63]

Same story here. My DD went back to PS for 9th. Half way through 10th, she had only done ONE biology "experiment" and that was dipping litmus paper in an acid and a base???? She said they spent most of their time watching the teacher do magic tricks. ( He was an amature magician) We had to start her over in Biology. She was quite a bit behind in Geometry and Algebra too. She actually came home for other reasons ( debauchery on the part of many students!) But it turned out to be better for her academically also. Not to say there haven't been struggles, but I KNOW that she got a better education then she would have received at THIS school anyway.

[msjones]

I don't have time to read all the posts right now, but just have to pipe in here...

 

My husband teaches high school math (all levels up to AP calculus) and I've never heard him say anything negative about the previously home-schooled kids he teaches. In fact, he has said the opposite. To paraphrase what I've heard him say repeatedly:

 

"The homeschooled kids I have are (almost) exclusively ahead of grade level in math, know how to study, how to learn, how to 'be students.' Also, they seem to be able to see the social situation for what it is and then rise above it."

 

Lets not paint public school teachers with too wide a brush.

[Mabelen]

What I fail to understand is how a traditionally-schooled child can be so far behind without parental awareness and intervention. During the few years that my children were traditionally-schooled, we personally monitored their work to make sure they were on track in accordance with their capabilities. We did not view school reports as a reliable indicator of their progress. I guess what I am saying is that ultimately the parent bears responsibility for child's education regardless of method or medium used.

 

Shortly I will be working closely with my public high schooler in evenings on a research paper. Based upon her homeschooling performance, I know that she still needs some supervision when planning and organizing her project. The fact that she scores A's in honors English is irrelevant in my assessment of her needs.

 

On a sidenote, often traditional high school texts, Holt biology for example, have more chapters than need be covered in a school year. They contain extra material to allow for concentrations in subfields of interest or more indepth studies for talented students. But at least the basic course should be covered during the school year.

 

I wholly agree with you.

 

I also wonder how these situations can continue to occur. Where are the students' parents? Where is the teacher's accountability within the school?

[Jackie in AR]

You know how public school teachers like to say that they have to "fix" homeschool kids when they come into their class?

 

Yes, I've heard several public school teachers say that. My SIL is a ps teacher, and I've heard her generalize about how (formerly) home schooled children just don't know how to behave in public because she once had a student who scraped his chair legs against the floor *very loudly* for several weeks after he started her class.

 

 

. . . today, I withdrew our freshman from high school to come back home. One of the many reasons? They did only 7 chapters of French and she got a full credit - she even said on the final, they tested only on the first 3 chapters! They did 1/3 of the Biology book, and she got full credit (dissected nothing), did not get half way through Geometry, got full credit. So...I now have to "fix" what our high school failed to do. This is how they are passing kids, not even providing them with a real foundation in any subject, just cutting down the information. My dd is ticked and I am too.

 

That is frustrating to me because it is my tax money that pays for the operation of the public school system; if they demand my money to fund their operations, they had better be doing a good job. It sounds like your school is failing miserably.

 

. . . guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts.

 

I don't think that generalization can be made to the homeschooling community as a whole. I have a friend who has done next-to-nothing with her dc in their homeschool for as long as I've known her. Now she's put them in a hs co-op where they are finally being educated.

[Jackie in AR]

Perhaps when I dashed this off "I guess its good to confirm we are doing more than our public school counterparts." it was a poor choice of words. I was just posting about our experience and didn't really think that anyone would be parsing my words. I dont know how I could be an "us versus them" person, when our oldest is in public school - I certainly support all the hard work any teacher does.

 

I acknowledge everyone has varying degrees of experiences both homeschool and public. I shall be more careful about my posts in the future!

 

Have a great one -

 

You shouldn't feel the need to apologize for your post, Dooley. Rest assured that words will always be parsed on this board.

[Joanne]

I was a public school teacher, and I had to fix homeschoolers.

 

I had 4 homeschoolers over the course of 6 years. (One set of twins)

 

One was a little behind, but not much. Not alarmingly so, by any means. She was comparable to some transfer student's Id received.

 

The 3 other homeschoolers were dramatically behind. 2 could not read. One could read, but couldn't write or spell - most of his schoolwork had been done orally. One couldn't write her last name.

 

All three had social awareness issues. Things like blatant nose-picking. Immature behaviors. One had toilet issues. (His mom told me she was waiting until he was ready to train. I was teaching 4th grade that year.)

 

They were all very nice, but very off. With the twins, it was clear that they kids had "issues" because the parents had issues.

 

I can completely understand public school teachers saying they have to fix homeschoolers, because I've had to do it myself.

 

I'm fairly certain every experienced public school teacher could also cite anecdotes about always public schooled kids who were poorly, abusively, neglectfully or oddly parented. I've even had a few I could identify in my YMCA programs.

 

I don't blame *that* on educational setting; a kid at risk due to parenting is at risk no matter where they "school".

 

I think that, sometimes (often, in some cases), information gets filtered through the "they homeschooled" filter. It's kind of like breastfeeding an infant in an atmosphere where most people bottlefed. Gassy baby? Must be the milk. Problems sleeping through the night? Must be breastfeeding. No intimacy between the parents? Breastfeeeding, certainly. ;)

 

I think the same focus happens when a HOMESCHOOLED child comes into the school system. There is often a hyperfocus that skews the context. Teachers teach a wide variety of children, including a wide variety of weird, "off", "behind" kids.

[msjones]

I do not see an 'us vs. them' mentality here. I see people who have had public school teachers say the same thing to them as the OP heard (I know I have heard it a lot) and then they related how they had to "fix" the lacking education of their child. It happens. It's ok to post about it here at this homeschooling forum. We are here to support each other when these things happen.

 

I didn't see anyone generalizing that 'public schools are all bad and homeschoolers are all good'. Or, did I just miss that post? Of course people are people (kids are kids) it goes both ways. But, the discussion was centering around this specific lack of education in this specific school district to this specific child and others were supporting the OP with the same experiences that they had. This is a concern and people within the public school system should care about it, but they can't if they don't know it exists.

 

She was generalizing in the title of her post when she wrote, "You know how public school teachers like to say..."

 

She went on to the more specific example, but she did begin with a broad generalization.

[unsinkable]

I was a public school teacher, and I had to fix homeschoolers.

 

I had 4 homeschoolers over the course of 6 years. (One set of twins)

 

One was a little behind, but not much. Not alarmingly so, by any means. She was comparable to some transfer student's Id received.

 

The 3 other homeschoolers were dramatically behind. 2 could not read. One could read, but couldn't write or spell - most of his schoolwork had been done orally. One couldn't write her last name.

 

All three had social awareness issues. Things like blatant nose-picking. Immature behaviors. One had toilet issues. (His mom told me she was waiting until he was ready to train. I was teaching 4th grade that year.)

 

They were all very nice, but very off. With the twins, it was clear that they kids had "issues" because the parents had issues.

 

I can completely understand public school teachers saying they have to fix homeschoolers, because I've had to do it myself.

 

Thankfully, I also saw several stellar examples of homeschooling at church and in my neighbor family, so I saw how good homeschooling *could* be. :)

 

I appreciate your post but it would be more meaningful to me if you could tell the ages & grades of all the kids. Not that you have to...but if you were teaching high school with the other 3....

 

Also, there really is no way of knowing the outcome if they'd been publicly schooled all along. The situation w/the 4th grader sounds strange...and who knows if the issues were so profound that school wouldn't have been very successful either?

[JennifersLost]

I agree with much that's been posted here - every situation is different, but I think there's a growing trend to let more and more kids skate by in public schools without really learning.

 

The time my boys spent in school undermined their drive for success with schooling and grades. I get much more backtalk about my expectations now than I used to, since all three boys were scoring at the top of their classes and coming home with "honors" even when they didn't work very hard. My oldest began to feel like why should he bother. My youngest felt he was doing great when he really wasn't doing well at all.

 

I think that's a great disservice to the kids.

[LibraryLover]

Never mind.

Edited January 27, 2009 by LibraryLover

[KristenS]

I have to chuckle about the not finishing textbooks part. Someone mentioned never learning past WW2 ... I'm not even sure we made it that far, the years we had world history. It was kind of sad. I wonder if part of it was end-of-year rushing, and I also wonder if part of it was because the teachers had lived through many of those decades and didn't really see it as 'history' that needed teaching? I know I have a hard time viewing the 70s or 80s or 90s as history ... the new American Girl doll Julie totally took me by surprise!

 

I will say, we've been lucky ... I only ever hear PS teachers bemoan homeschoolers on chat forums. The PS teachers I know in person don't say such things to me. Then again, my kids are young still, and I do have a teaching degree, which buys me a little leeway. LOL.

[MomOfOneFunOne]

I didn't read all the posts so . . . Cheers! to anyone who might have posted this before now.

 

I've heard it said before that homeschooled kids need to be fixed in order to fit in at school and I always thought of fixed as in, er, you know, fixed . . . um, castrated mentally/socially.

 

I'm so embarrassed. You'd be totally justified in deleting me, mod.

[datmama4]

I am much too cheap to NOT finish a textbook! I do remember my school days (waaaay back when) and I have to say I don't ever remember finishing an entire textbook in any subject.

 

To not even finish 3/4 of a textbook, though...that is really pushing the limits of having learned anything!

[LaxMom]

I'm sorry... when they say "fixed", they mean chemically set, so that they can be stored indefinitely without physical degradation or color loss, right? :glare:

 

A little funny from the public school: in middle school, my eldest daughter proudly brought home a paper she had written, on which the grade of "A" was prominent. I then READ this stellar example of adolescent prose... nearly illegible. Spelling errors. Grammatical errors. Bad punctuation. "What class was this for?" I inquire, thinking that maybe there has been some questionable decision about non-English teachers correcting for actual English. The answer? "Language Arts". Was this a rough draft? No.

 

Obviously, a note was returned with the paper, asking the teacher to identify for me the actual English skills evaluated for this grade. No reply. I did, however, get a nice reputation for being a mean mom, who was unconcerned about her daughter's self esteem. (I then added to my reputation on a variety of different topics, but that's a whole 'nother discussion.)

[funschooler5]

I guess I don't see what's so bad about not finishing a textbook. We have tons of books we haven't gotten all of the way through...we take what we need and move on. I guess if they really aren't learning a lot in the class, it's a problem, but I wouldn't say that not finishing the book means they didn't learn what they needed to. Actually, I don't remember ever finishing a book in all of my years of schooling, whether it was a grade school workbook, or a college textbook. I thought that was the norm. I always figured the teacher was emphasizing what they wanted to (and that's what we do when we are homeschooling.)