Public Schooling

[AllAmericanMag]

ANd lastly, in response to AllAmericanMag: do you really beleive that is comunism? Take a look at other countries, like France that use federal run schooling. Everyone there gets an equally good education.
.

Yea, I do.


Welcome to capitalism.

[personman]

do you believe that that is right?

Do I believe that one should be rewarded for working? Why yes, yes I do.

[maxama10]

My School is a very good one. too bad 3/5 of the kids dont take advantage of it.....

[SlipknotX556]

I'm 16, live in the upper east side of Manhattan. Parents do very well for themselves and I go to a private school (Horace Mann).

You got a very good high school. My dad went to Barnard way back, then Horace Mann took them over. You are getting one fine education, cherish it you are very lucky. Kids in my school dont even know what ocean we live near, no joke.

[tony3]

I think public schools should implement standard uniforms. It is easier for kids with less money to fit in, imo. Just a small thing that could improve the public school experience.

[Toranaga]

Ya I am very happy my parents can afford to send me to Horace Mann, I love it here :). Also my dad went to Horace Mann when they first aquired Barnard.

Now to respond to personman: While yes you are working and making enough money to live in a good area and therefore go to a good school, there are people who live in very bad areas and send there kids to bad schools who also work, andwork harder in some cases. (not meant as an insult to you or your family, just a comment on the fact that some parents in areas liek these may work many jobs). Does this mean that their kids dont deserve as good an education?

[Alpha]

If I had a penny for every time a kid in the US said that, I would be a billionaire. It's true, but only to a certain extent. The school has two main purposes:
1. To prepare us for our future education and careers (so we are successful)
2. To teach us basic principles so we aren't completely stupid when we graduate.

I put those in that order for a reason, and that is because #1 is a far bigger priority. You may not know it, but the school isn't expecting us to rememebr everything you are taught in school. In fact, we will probably only use a small fraction of our education in our specific careers. This is not only acceptable, but is also expected. The reason schools teach you so much is so that you can get a taste of everything so you can pick the career that you like most. If the job you wanted as a Kindergardener hasn't changed when you you graduate high school, the education system has failed you, or else you are just messed up in the first place.

.

I can totally whole heartedly agree with knowing science, history, english, math, all the fundamentals that every person living in america SHOULD know.

I know exactly what adn where I'm goign after highschool, adn I know what I'm doign with the rest of my life. I've known for years. Maybe the school system has failed me, but I don't want to profit out of life, I want others to profit. So what if I go to college to get a better education so I can get a good job adn have money. What's money?

If I die with a dolalr in my pocket, thats one more dollar then I'm going to need. I want my future generations to benefit from the things I do today.

I do have a taste of all sorts of different careers, and I have interests in almost all of them. But my interests, dreams, hopes, aspirations lie behind a gun, or at a workbench fixing one.

[AcemanPB]

In response to AcemanPB and Personman: While it is true that you get what you pay for, do you believe that that is right? and if not, what do you think should be changed?

Well I was just saying that it is hard to find good qualified teachers when the school systems pay them so little. My best teachers in highschool were all very well qualifed and could have easily got higher paying jobs, they stuck with teaching because they enjoyed it.

[personman]

Now to respond to personman: While yes you are working and making enough money to live in a good area and therefore go to a good school, there are people who live in very bad areas and send there kids to bad schools who also work, andwork harder in some cases. (not meant as an insult to you or your family, just a comment on the fact that some parents in areas liek these may work many jobs). Does this mean that their kids dont deserve as good an education?

It's the parents responsibility to see that their kids get a good education. If they cant afford a child, maybe they shouldn't have had one.

It's not the kid's fault, they really cant do anything about it. I think everyone should have a chance to succeed. However, if their parents arent willing to work hard in order for their children to get a good education, it looks like they're out of luck.

My dad was born into poverty. He told me he litterally went around door to door and sold pieces of junk when he was a child just to bring food to the table. Shoelaces, buttons, anything he could find. He finished high school and went into the military. After he was done serving in the military, he went and got educated in textile engineering. Made a living off that and now he's a numistmatist. He went from poverty to supporting a 5 person family. It's not impossible, its just most people are too lazy to work hard.

I guess it isn't quite fair to the kids, but they have their parents to blame I suppose.
It's a tough situation but socialism is not the answer by any means.

[Toranaga]

In response to AcemanPB: Oh sorry I misunderstood you.

And In response to personman: i guess thats where your and my opinions differ. Do you think that the education system (In general, not specifically your school) should be changed or are you happy with the way it is?

[cris8762]

here are just a couple things i would like to change:

1. Stop busing in kids. It isn't helping them because they dont want to be here. Let them go to schools near them. I would hate school if i had to wake up at 5am to catch a bus and then stay after school for an extra hour EVERY DAY to take the same long *** bus ride home.

2. Get rid of the voucher system. It is taking $$ away from the public education system and giving it to private schools (many of which have religious backgrounds which violates separation of church and state). If parents want to send their kids to private schools, they have to pay for it themselves.

discuss, any flames can be directed towards me on AIM

[slade]

If I had a penny for every time a kid in the US said that, I would be a billionaire. It's true, but only to a certain extent. The school has two main purposes:
1. To prepare us for our future education and careers (so we are successful)
2. To teach us basic principles so we aren't completely stupid when we graduate.

I put those in that order for a reason, and that is because #1 is a far bigger priority. You may not know it, but the school isn't expecting us to rememebr everything you are taught in school. In fact, we will probably only use a small fraction of our education in our specific careers. This is not only acceptable, but is also expected. The reason schools teach you so much is so that you can get a taste of everything so you can pick the career that you like most. If the job you wanted as a Kindergardener hasn't changed when you you graduate high school, the education system has failed you, or else you are just messed up in the first place.

Here is my plan for public schooling in Amreica:
1. Stop spending so much on the prison system in America (in any way possible).
2. Put all the money we save to public education.
3.
4. Profit.

If only it were that easy....

Edit: I always expect people to make fun of spelling errors in a post that talks about education in any form, so go ahead, make yourself feel a little bit better. Flame away.

it is true. i agree with some of what alpha is saying. research has shown that the most effective time to learn a new language is when you are very young; i never did, and i know i never will, despite the fact that i am forced to take language classes. seriously, what i have learned just browsing on AO, talking with you all, far surpasses what i have and will ever learn in latin class, in both magnitude (heheheh, i know where that came from after taking latin! and that helps me... how?) and importance to my future. i already know that i will not learn another language, i will learn only a small ammount from taking the class, and it is a waste of my time. the only way in which it will benefit me is by showing up on my transcript. what i WOULD like to happen is have the schools offer more in the way of variety; personally i think it would be much more advantageous to me if language was an optional course for those that wanted to pursue it, and i could take courses in technology to replace it. not woodworking or realbasic programming, but real courses. instead the closest thing to that is being in the robotics club and staying afterschool till 7... which reminds me... anyone else on here going to the battlebots competition in florida?

ot only does this prepare you for higher education, the studying of a forein language helps in understanding and appreciating other cultures, which is an issue with many Americans

...or it makes you despise the language. wouldnt a class on foreign cultures be much better?

I think public schools should implement standard uniforms. It is easier for kids with less money to fit in, imo. Just a small thing that could improve the public school experience.

yay for conformity!! seriously, what are you smoking?? everyone should be forced to wear uniforms so they "fit in"???


personman - if its not the kids fault, why should the kid pay for it?

"I guess it isn't quite fair to the kids, but they have their parents to blame I suppose."

yes, cause blame solves everything

[Lohman446]

A lack of competition, of a need to be better, has hurt schools.

1) Make school funding based on how many students are in class - $XXXX of dollars per student.
2) Let students choose there school - so that the best schools attract the most students... make it like business. Either you succeed or you fail as an adminstrator in getting the best teachers, best conditions, and giving the best education.
3) Supplement the schools that are failign by replacing there leaders and putting in someone who can succeed.


Its a business... being a school administrator does not mean you don't have to make the considerations that other business administrators do. We are where we are today because many administrators did not advance as quickly as they needed to, because they did not have any real competition to loose there customers - it was a sense of entitelment that has harmed us all.

[skife]

i go to an alternitave highschool.
we have coke whores, "thugs", ect.

there are 9 different colors/types of tiles in 1 room
there is asbestos in the ceiling.
the windows are old and shaddy, they dont have crap for insulation.
Nobody at my school cares.
our lunch is hauled in from the normal highschool in crates.
there are a few wireless cisco routers around and most kids think they are for the security system (the one that doesn't exist)
We call our principal "coach" (he's the highschool's basketball coach)
9/10ths of the school goes over to the park and smokes during lunch.
swearing isn't uncommon. (even by teachers)
the buliding is older than your grand parents.
nobody cares about the students there because we are all "trouble" or lost causes.

[bleachit]

I had a really good education. I moved just before I went into high school to what I consider a better school district. Had I stayed in the other district I believe my education would have sucked... the thing is the districts are less than 30 minutes apart and both rural communities...my first much more so than the second.

I think one of the biggest issues with school is the quality of teachers and the students willingness to learn... I was blessed with some of the best teachers in high school that I could have ever asked for, its a shame so many of them retired recently. while money certainly is a factor, all the money in the world can not overcome an incompotent teacher or a students apathy.

there are a lot of things our nation as a whole should not be spending money on.. and there is a lot it should be. There are a lot of schools that suck... and a lot that dont. Its a shame when the ones that dont suck are in jeopardy of closing because there in not enough money to fund them.