Because Educator!

I am involved in an email group for a local community that is more our less urban. This community shares a school system- ranked as one of the worst in the state- with a rather more inner-city community. The email group is, for the most part, well educated and financially successful.

And incredibly divided on the local school system. All it takes is an email to the group that mentions the word 'school' and the acrimony flies like rice once did at a wedding.

 Today somebody made the mistake of asking for the name of a good school for dog training, or some such, and the 'debate' was on.

After one well reasoned email explaining why it was tantamount to child abuse to subject your children to this local school, when for a few dollars more you could send your kids to one of the finest systems in the state in a neighboring district, we have this response:

I would have to disagree with you and say that yes, I do and am sending my kids, who are from foster care, to the public school. After careful thought and consideration, my partner and I decided on this District for several reasons:
1) we want our children to be in a diverse school where they're not the minority;
2) the believe that we have the ability and the desire to help improve the school where we live and spend our money; and lastly,
3) we don't want our kids to be isolated and in school with kids whose parents are bigoted, classist, racist neanderthals, who believe that just because they have, they do.

As an educator, I believe we have a responsibility to help prepare out kids for the real world - a world that includes, like it or not, people of different cultures, experiences, and income levels.  Granted you can send your kids wherever you want, and if you have the means, do what you feel is best. We've chosen to help support our own and have even volunteered at the local school to help make it better.  This is not a slam against you or anything you choose to do, but it seems to me if instead of sending our kids away, we all worked to make it better, these conversations wouldn't be necessary.



Wow. All I can say is Wow. Shall we break this down a bit?



I would have to disagree with you and say that yes, I do and am sending my kids, who are from foster care, to the public school.
Right off the bat we have to note that these are not her kids, but some she is being paid to raise; let'em go to Hell.

After careful thought and consideration, my partner and I decided on this District for several reasons:
DING DING DING DING DING; "PARTNER". So an unmarried couple, who are being paid to raise somebody else s kids choose the cheap way out. What a surprise.

 1) we want our children to be in a diverse school where they're not the minority;
Ooops; it seems the DIVERSITY Card has made an early appearance. Can some one explain to me why diversity makes an iota of difference in primary education? Why does your color, culture or social status affect the learning of 2+2=4?

2) the believe that we have the ability and the desire to help improve the school where we live and spend our money; and lastly, 
Admirable sentiment. And typical lefty tripe. Long on good feelings and very short on specifics. 

3) we don't want our kids to be isolated and in school with kids whose parents are bigoted, classist, racist neanderthals, who believe that just because they have, they do.
The Money Quote. The "You-don't-agree-with-me-so-you-are-every-evil-thing-I-can-think-of" response. Apparently having the ability to select a better education for your child, and having the ability to pay for that education makes you all sorts of nasty things. Go ahead; sacrifice your children on the alter of political correctness so this silly twit won't call you names anymore. Oh and you have more money than I do and I am bitter about it.


As an educator...
I rest my case; no further review is required. We MUST support the public schools, no matter how much damage they have done and will do, because EDUCATOR. That means whatever opinion you have on schools is wrong, because EDUCATOR. I spent $200,000 getting a degree that pays me $40,000 and that makes me smarter than you, because EDUCATOR.

Face it; we cannot force a child (or an adult) to learn anything we can present the information, and can ask them to learn, but they will only absorb what they want to learn. Books, computers, iPads, PowerPoints, movies or filmstrips; the presentation of the information is incidental to the child's desire to learn.

Abe Lincoln educated himself with borrowed books and the back o a shovel to practice on, because he WANTED to learn. He may have learned faster with an iPad, but the tools didn't effect the basic desire. Drug dealers who couldn't pass 5th Grade math can run a successful business because they learned what they wanted to and what they needed to along the way; the same way every past generation learned what it needed to survive and prosper.

We don't need to spend millions of dollars on schools; we don't need computers and iPads and tutors and hundreds of hours of testing.

We need to convince the child that the information we are giving them will be worthwhile retaining.

It is that simple.

And that hard.