I agree with the blogger about the lack of limits placed on students. We, as a state, are behind the majority of the country who has shifted back to the 'old school' method of education. We need leaders who research other areas of the country so we can keep up. We need to start holding students accountable for their actions, behaviors, and grades. As long as we keep giving them reasons to fail, they will. We need to get back to the good old days of teaching. If we have ESL/ELL students, we need to give them a year to get settled then put them in 'immersion' classes with the general population. Special Education needs to get back to focusing on students with true learning disabilities, not mainly 'OHI' kids. ALL students need to be expected to follow District and school guidelines and should be disciplined if they fail to do so, regardless of how it may make them feel. The 'kid glove' approach, where we factor in every possible reason and outcome, is not working. Instead we have out of control, spoiled, and sometimes violent students who do and say whatever they want to whoever they want. These kids have learned from an early age that the schools are not going to do anything to them because it may damage their self esteem, or they may come from a dysfunctional home, or it may adversely affect them in some other way. Well, guess what we are teaching them? We are teaching them to fail, because when these same kids grow up and get jobs, their boss isn't going to care if they have dyslexia or if their parents are divorced or how rich daddy is. If they can't speak English, too bad. If they are constantly late, they will be fired. If the kids of today do not learn how to be responsible members of society, they will have a hard time as adults. And the adults of today will be to blame. We need to start making changes to ensure these children grow up and make something of themselves. After all, they are our future, they are the ones who will be taking care of us when we are old. Do you want someone who is irresponsible, late, rude, or just plain lazy to be in charge of your well being?
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I can tell you what has happened in the last thirty years to lessen the amount of limits on students.....lawsuits! The students now have more rights than the teachers, and the students know this. Teachers' hands have been tied when it comes to discipline in the classroom.
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I am glad the black cloud of doom and despair has lifted for you. Where I work, the oppression is just coming from a different source. I get to go to work today and get cussed at, yelled at, threatened and disrespected in soooo many other ways it is not even funny. And this is from the students I am supposed to be helping. They behave like that because 1) they have no other way to express themselves, 2) they are used to getting whatever they want and 3) they know they can get away with it. Maybe I should transfer to your school?
posted by LCPS1 @ 5:49 PM
5 Comments:
Let's not lose sight of what the School Board is facing --- how and when to select an Interim Superintendent. We must insist that the Board wait to make this decision after the Feb. School Board election. All new Board members (one new member is assured) should be involved with this important step.
As a parent I am doing my job to make sure the rights of my kids are not trampled on by certain teachers and principals. There is a teacher at my child's school notorious for "yelling" at students and complaints seem to fall on deaf ears with the principal being that there is a "buddy system" between them so you have to look at it both ways, there are toubled students and teachers as well. I have made it crystal clear to the principal at my childrens schools that if any disciplining is to be done to my kids it's to be done by me or my wife and failure to follow my requests will result in dire consequences but this will not happen with my kids being that they are honor roll students and have always been, along with that I have taught them that respect is a two way street and you respect the teacher so long as they respect you and if a teacher disrespects you then they don't deserve that respect and they are to inform me or their mother of any disrespectfulness done to them by teachers or principals. The trust of teachers/principals has diminished in my family. You get what you give and although there are "problem kids" aka gangbangers in our school system you can't judge all kids by a few bad apples as some teachers tend to do. My mother had the same discipline policy when I was a kid and believe me I was more afraid of my mother than any male principal in LCPS and I love her for being this way with me when I was young, so parents do need to take responsibility for their kids behavior. I would prefer my kids be homeschooled but I don't have the resources for it and it's unfortunate that the voucher thing that former Gov. Johnson i think it was had in mind fell through because I for one don't have faith in the LCPS system from the top on down.With any luck the next superintendent will change my outlook on LCPS because God knows it is a mess. A fed-up parent
The commentor below needs a vacation, an antidepressant, to change professions or possibly all three! Can we please not brush ALL the kids in the schools with the same negative brush? The majority of kids I know seem to be behaving pretty well. The problem with the earlier comment about cracking down on kids is that as a parent, I LIKE the fact that my kid's teachers and administrators use some reasonable judgement tailored to the individual in deciding how to discipline. Some kids are just being kids who are within normal limits of misbehaving, while others are truly displaying the kind of wanton disregard for others that deserves more serious punishments. I never want to go back to the days where a little 5 year-old kindergartener is suspended and referred to juvenile probation because he brought a plastic water pistol to Water Fun Day in the last week of school, and all the principal can say is "Sorry, rules are rules".
I would not be doing my job as a parent if I did not go to my kid's school as much as possible and make sure that teachers, principals and LCPS staff (even physical plant staff) were not infringing on the rights of my children as well as other kids. Having three kids in the district we have experienced teachers that are prejudice against hispanics and those that tend to yell at students as well as monitors that could use a course in manners when talking to children. I realize that there are "good teachers and staff" in the LCPS system but I shall continue to keep an eye on staff at my kid's schools to make sure that the "bad apples" know that they are being watched by a highly vocal parent not afraid to fire off at the mouth at any questionable behavior by LCPS staff. LCPS staff has no business disciplining my kids should the need arise and I have made my children's schools well aware of this and the consequences should they not comply and call a parent before saying a word to my children, because it is the job of the parent and only the parent. Parents need to take responsibility for any questionable behavior of their kids. Needless to say I do and say this because I have lost faith in the LCPS system over the years and public education as a whole. The LCPS system as a whole is in need of an overhaul IMO. A watchfull & vocal parent.
To the 'watchful and vocal parent'...you have got to be kidding! Teachers have to call you before they 'say a word' to your little darlin regarding his/her behavior????
It's not teachers and principals who have ruined public education, but rather parents with their threats of lawsuits everytime somebody sneezes.
That is the sad but true state of public education.
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