Your posting below is excellent- I agree wholeheartedly. Thanks for
making the point that more Federal dollars will not magically cause
parents to get involved with their kids education. You are right,
that is a BIG factor. Your other points are super, too. There's no way
that dollars will solve the problems you mentioned- especially in light
of the PC element you mention. (Indeed, concerned, involved parents
will have a decidely positive effect in eliminating most of the problems
you mentioned. Ah, were there a magic bullet to turn the hearts of
parents toward their children...)
Thanks Rick!
David
*****
Rick Tarara said:
I think you answer your own question here. As more and more parents who
really care about and participate in their children's education remove their
children from public education, then what is left for the teachers and
administrators to work with? The kids with little or no parental support!
Couple this with other factors like:
a) very inhomogeneous populations both social/economic and ethnic in the
public schools (much more homogenous in the private)
b) classrooms that include both EH and MH students who often end up
disruptive since they cannot properly participate in the work.
c) the PC reluctance to track students hence having classrooms with the
broadest ranges of abilities.
d) the 'legal' restrictions that tie the hands of teachers and
administrator in terms of getting disruptive children out of the classrooms
where they are preventing the others from learning.
etc., etc., etc. (I have lots of stories--my wife is a public school,
elementary principal.)
Considering all this, there is little mystery as to why the public schools
are unable to match private school performance.
Rick
*********************************************
Richard W. Tarara
Associate Professor of Physics
Department of Chemistry & Physics
Saint Mary's College
Notre Dame, IN 46556
219-284-4664
rtarara@saintmarys.edu
Dr. David Ward
Dept. of Chemistry & Physics
UNU#3160
Union University
1050 Union University Dr.
Jackson, TN 38305
ph. 901-661-5241
email- dward@uu.edu