School

[JustGeorge]

In public elementary school I was catching errors in the textbooks so what happened next shouldn't have caught the school by surprise. My hometown school district got embroiled in scandal after scandal over cheating on the mastery tests they had. I was one of a handful of students district wide that recognized what was going on right in front of everyone.

I found public education to be worthless. I learned more about how to deal with people and rules than anything of the subjects they claimed to teach. Thirteen years of education for what can be taught and mastered in less than four years is a massive waste of time. And then the pandemic opened up time for me to read up on the history of public education in the United States. It's a tragedy.

I am a parent and I had sent my kids off to public school. Being an active parent, doing the homework with them, making sure to go to the parent teacher conferences and the concerts and the events and everything else didn't prevent my kids from slipping between the cracks while their teacher says everything is fine to my face. I knew things were not fine but I had no idea how not fine it really was.

I'm homeschooling my kids. Now, they can read and they read for pleasure. Now, they can do math and do mental math and get the right answer. Now, they understand physics and engage in play. Now, they have a love of learning and curiosity that I hope they never lose. It was so close to being snuffed out when I pulled them out. It was happening before my eyes and I didn't understand what was going on.

My kids are like me. Teach us to read and then get out of the way. I have no love for public education. I consider it institutionalised child abuse.

I ended up an accidental homeschooler. During the pandemic, my non-verbal autistic son actually became verbal at 6 after a month of homeschooling. We kept going with it for the last 4 years.

It went great, but this last year was a bad one. He had some other severe mental health issues pop up, and we're trying to work him back into public school. He liked being homeschooled, but he's ready to go back. I liked homeschooling him, but it got to be too much during this last year.

Now, the question of my youngest, who goes next year... I don't want him to be resentful because his brother goes and he doesn't, but I am so unsatisfied with the quality of my oldest's education(who graduates this year, all public, though two years virtual public) that I am not comfortable fully handing the reins over to the public system. I've decided to 'dual enroll', putting him in for some things, taking him out for others.

I feel that once my oldest got past the elementary years, his education was a waste of time, and the vast majority of the socialization he picked up was detrimental. He's on the higher functioning end of the autism spectrum, and while that IEP was vital, there was times it was misused, too.

 

[siti]

I think that a great many people who are now adults are too young to remember that

Too young??? Good Lord! I was in secondary school when I first saw a computer in real life - our School's Commodore PET, which I actually got to use because I was in the brainy set for maths and science.

On the whole, I had a good experience and did reasonably well academically and in sports, but I left at 15 and went to work for few months before wasting a couple of years fluffing A-levels and finally restarting my education at technical college at 18. I think my school education was OK but I was a reasonably bright kid so I guess I would have done OK anywhere...and there were lots of kids who I thought were "smarter" than me - could fix cars and motorbikes, make tables and do all sorts of stuff I couldn't figure out at all...who did not do well academically. I don't think my schooling would have really worked well for them or for anyone who was exceptionally gifted academically...even my average intelligence was more than some of my teachers could handle...

...I remember there was a mechanics problem that none of the class was able to solve (and I had failed to attempt at the first asking) - when my classmates asked the teacher to explain the solution, he couldn't, then it went round the entire maths and physics departments and none of the teachers could figure it out...that piqued my interest so I actually did some homework that night and got it...the solution was actually trivial but not obvious ...but I was paraded around the staff room like some kind of prodigy...I realized then that my teachers were not that smart after all, but they did a good job overall with what they had to work with.

 

[Isabella Lecour]

I ended up an accidental homeschooler. During the pandemic, my non-verbal autistic son actually became verbal at 6 after a month of homeschooling. We kept going with it for the last 4 years.

It went great, but this last year was a bad one. He had some other severe mental health issues pop up, and we're trying to work him back into public school. He liked being homeschooled, but he's ready to go back. I liked homeschooling him, but it got to be too much during this last year.

Now, the question of my youngest, who goes next year... I don't want him to be resentful because his brother goes and he doesn't, but I am so unsatisfied with the quality of my oldest's education(who graduates this year, all public, though two years virtual public) that I am not comfortable fully handing the reins over to the public system. I've decided to 'dual enroll', putting him in for some things, taking him out for others.

I feel that once my oldest got past the elementary years, his education was a waste of time, and the vast majority of the socialization he picked up was detrimental. He's on the higher functioning end of the autism spectrum, and while that IEP was vital, there was times it was misused, too.

My eldest was on an IEP, had gone though the testing and turned out to be autistic. Well, actually, she's a very strong willed individual and she had lost all respect for the system and was politely refusing to do anything they demanded of her. And then, to make matters worse, they attempted to bribe her to do the work. Big mistake. I spent two weeks back in middle school, by her side, in all her classes. It was an eye opener.

Then the pandemic happened. My youngest loved school, for the most part. She reserved her dislike for individuals instead of the system. She had a yeller for an elementary teacher and that cause quite a bit of trauma. She's got a touch of dyslexia but nothing more. Between the two of them, I think she's the only one who could handle going back. She disagrees with me. She thinks she wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut if she returned.

We're not collage bound, at least not right after turning 19 years of age. I've got creatives, an artist and another writer. These are skills that require massive hours invested, not so much formal education. If they wanted to go back, I'd let them. I wouldn't give any concern to their grades either. Being creatives, they are going to need a trade to sustain them. Something physical is best as it lets the mind continue to work, so collage still isn't the best option at this point. Maybe when they are 30 and have a better idea of what they need.

The way I look at is, if they want the education, nothing is stopping my kids from getting it, be it now or at a later date. It is only the effort they are willing to put into learning that determines if they retain it. All anyone can do is offer it and hopeful provide an encouraging environment for them to learn in. Both know now that the school system isn't that environment for them.

 

[Eddi]

When I was at high school my mother and my teachers proposed that I apply for a scholarship at some private school, a boarding school, like Hogwarts

I didn't want to go, I didn't want to go to a posh private school full of posh people

Looking back, this was a big mistake

Maybe I wouldn't have got the scholarship, but I should have tried and maybe if I did get in my life would have turned out much better?

I much preferred my inner-city school, I wanted to be a politician and foolishly decided this would have been a better background to chose for myself

 

[Bthoth]

I'm assuming most of us here went to school as a kid. Whether it was public, private, home(or a mix), most places require some kind of education for children.

What was your experience with it? Positive, negative, both? Did you feel it was good quality, or did you learn more through other means?

Great. I was a problem child until Mrs Trueblood 3rd grade. She let me choose my own work and I was a science and math nut, so I was given material that was from other schools and my tests were mostly 1 on 1. Whether it was spelling, algebra or even physiology, I was spoiled rotten with the extra attention and the other students used to ask me what i was learning each week.

If you're a parent, what was your opinion of the education your child received?

Private high dollar expense, but each learned that the education is what helps a person understand life and how the world turns.
I knew that public school was more like baby sitting and I wanted knowledge to be the importance.

If you were/are a teacher, what is/was your opinion on education as it is(or was when you were teaching)?

For the purposes of this thread, I'm only interested in personal experiences and opinions regarding childhood education(as opposed to college education), and not what should/could be done about the education system.

That's how all commenting should be specified. It bugs me when people try to speak for a collective.

 

[siti]

I wanted to be a politician and foolishly decided this would have been a better background to chose for myself

Eton's your best bet if you want to be PM. I didn't go there either - that's probably where I went wrong too!

 

[Eddi]

Eton's you're only real option if you want to be PM.

Yes, sadly that's very true

But the place in question wasn't Eaton, or Harrow, it's more obscure and I don't even know if it's any good but it must have been better than the one I actually went to!

 

[Vinayaka]

I'm assuming most of us here went to school as a kid. Whether it was public, private, home(or a mix), most places require some kind of education for children.

What was your experience with it? Positive, negative, both? Did you feel it was good quality, or did you learn more through other means?

If you're a parent, what was your opinion of the education your child received?

If you were/are a teacher, what is/was your opinion on education as it is(or was when you were teaching)?

For the purposes of this thread, I'm only interested in personal experiences and opinions regarding childhood education(as opposed to college education), and not what should/could be done about the education system.

I went to a very rural school for 1-9. The only other buildings on site were 2 teacherages, and a curling rink. All students were bussed. The school population was around 75 when I went, and closed about 5 years after I finished Grade 9. It was much like an extended family. I had 2 sets of cousins attending the same school, and it was very neighborly/community orientated with little diversity, other than a few Ukrainian families who brought 'different' lunches. I was always in a split class, needless to say. Our class started with 12, and ended with 10, as 2 kids moved away. I was naturally intelligent, but also has good or adequate teacher. (Not much to compare with) I had a total of 5 teachers, and my favorite subject was recess. So it was a good education, and the move to high school in a town of 3000 was culture shock. It took me a few months to adapt. We drove in spring and fall, and were boarded in town during winter.

As a parent (and teacher at the same time) I was satisfied with what the schools did, given the resources they had. Three of the 5 kids went on to post secondary, and the other 2 are in trades. Our kids were a mixed lot for sure ... 3 girls and 2 boys. All but one liked school. The one out had his own idiosyncrasies that for some reason brought on bullying. For various reasons we occasionally home schooled. I'd provide the curriculum and Boss did instruction.

My time in teaching was varied. I taught several grades, and eventually my main conclusion about it was that the primary factor was the ability or personality of the individual teacher. I taught with teacher who outright lied to parents to avoid conflict, ones who taught very little due to their own laziness, and many who were warm, excellent teachers, and loved by students and staff alike. Personally, I was very much a behavioralist, and curriculum was often secondary. I was more interested in showing my students how to learn, not just to learn. Social behavior was stressed, as I saw that as more important than brains in becoming a better person. You really need to learn how to get along with others. This often went against how other staff saw things. Needless to say, my class did a lot of group work, as well as things like reading buddies with the K class. My classes usually were quite disciplined, not because I was a yeller or anything, but because usually I could convince them that it was to everyone's benefit to have good conduct. I made it personal by saying things like, "if you misbehave a lot or start a fight with a classmate, then you're going to have a grumpy teacher to deal with as well."

My students often didn't do as well on some standardized tests as some other teachers, but I refused to teach to the tests. The school environment did positively change over the years ... less fighting, happier, etc.

 

[Vinayaka]

I attended public school in Illinois. It was acceptable, though I was bored with the curriculum. I felt homework was redundant and a waste of time, so I didn't do it. So although I did extremely well on exams, my grades suffered in classes where homework was a part of the grade.


School ratings/rankings were the top priority when selecting a place to live, so my children attended schools with high rankings. What I found disappointing from when I attended school was willingness just to push kids to the next grade level regardless of knowledge. But I really can't complain about either of my kids education. One went on to be accepted at a highly reputable college.

How do they rank schools in Illinois?

 

[Clizby Wampuscat]

I'm assuming most of us here went to school as a kid. Whether it was public, private, home(or a mix), most places require some kind of education for children.

What was your experience with it? Positive, negative, both? Did you feel it was good quality, or did you learn more through other means?

If you're a parent, what was your opinion of the education your child received?

If you were/are a teacher, what is/was your opinion on education as it is(or was when you were teaching)?

For the purposes of this thread, I'm only interested in personal experiences and opinions regarding childhood education(as opposed to college education), and not what should/could be done about the education system.

I grew up and went to the public school systems in Minnesota. They were well funded and I got a good education that allowed me to go to college and get an engineering degree. I actually was failing out in 9th grade due to my parents divorce and my bad decisions. Then a teacher talked to me and basically said in a kind way that I was screwing myself and I needed to start applying myself. So I did.

Now I live in Texas and have two public school graduates (2020 and 2022) in college. They got a good education in the district we moved to, it was well funded and had opportunities to get a good education. I also have a child in 7th grade being homeschooled. He was in public schools until 5th grade but the pandemic ruined the district. My wife subbed in 5th grade and it was awful, no accountability for the kids, did not challenge kids, it was a bad environment. The school board is very political and has lost its way on educating kids. He now goes to a homeschool coop and is doing great. This is how school should be done, the parents get a lot of say in what they learn and how it is done. Most of the teachers are certified and from the public school system.

 

[Dao Hao Now]

I'm assuming most of us here went to school as a kid. Whether it was public, private, home(or a mix), most places require some kind of education for children.

What was your experience with it? Positive, negative, both? Did you feel it was good quality, or did you learn more through other means?

If you're a parent, what was your opinion of the education your child received?

If you were/are a teacher, what is/was your opinion on education as it is(or was when you were teaching)?

For the purposes of this thread, I'm only interested in personal experiences and opinions regarding childhood education(as opposed to college education), and not what should/could be done about the education system.

I went to public schools from K-12 in the US.
I started kindergarten in CA in the mid 60’s, moved to TX in 2nd grade, moved to FL for middle and high school and graduated in 1979.

I only have vague memories of my schooling in CA.

When I moved to TX they tried to put me back a grade after failing a spelling test.
I have very vivid memories of the woman who administered the test with her beehive hairdo and bright red lipstick smeared on her teeth who had a very heavy drawl telling me “just spell ‘em just like they sound, Honey”
So I spelled “stars” where she meant “stairs”,
and “all” where she meant “oil”, “far” where she meant “fire”……you get the idea.
My mother wouldn’t have it, so I ended up staying with my grade.

I was lucky enough to go to a brand new school with a new teaching program which included SRA reading and was geared toward individual “pods” you could move through at your own pace. It was great.

The next school I went to, (still in TX) I was constantly being sent home or suspended because my hair would touch my collar or my ears (gasp!). My sister was made to wear a burlap sack if they deemed her skirt too short.(skirts being mandatory for girls)
I obviously don’t have particularly fond memories from that school, but did learn a lot about…shall we say societal pressures and prejudices.

When I moved to FL they were ranked 48th in the nation in education and it showed.
They followed the teach to the lowest common denominator theory of education, and that common denominator was pretty low.
I wasn’t surprised by the nickname “Flori-duh”.
Apparently the didn’t have the budget for very many advanced classes, so I was stuck being bored out of my mind and started skipping classes and such, only showing up to ace the tests. I saw it more as a prison sentence than an education.
They gave the first high school proficiency exams for graduating high school in my junior year and about 40% failed it. It was pathetic.

So, when my daughter was born, I made sure we moved out of FL before she started school.

She did her K-12 in NV with the exception of 1 year in KY after her mother and I divorced.
She went to a private daycare with a pre-K program and then to public schools.
They were not stellar by any means, but not terrible…middle of the road.
I never relied solely on the schools for her education. I would read books with her and discuss them with her. She’s very bright.
As she got into high school, her grades started slipping as peer pressures and hanging out with the “cool kids” started becoming her priority and she was “dumbing down” so she wouldn’t scare off the boys.
So I pulled her out of regular public high school and put her in a charter school where she attended community college classes on their campuses. It was a good program where she earned college credits at the same time.
She wasn’t too happy about it at the time, but after a few years reluctantly admitted it was the best thing for her.

 

[SalixIncendium]

How do they rank schools in Illinois?

I'm not sure, as I left Illinois in 1997.

At that time, I and my then wife had decided since neither of us had family in Illinois any longer (my family left to move to West Virginia) to move near her family, who lived near Youngstown, OH. I remember doing some research on schools at the library (the internet was just beginning to grow in popularity) into area schools and found the schools over the state line in Pennsylvania ranked significantly higher than the schools in the Youngstown area, so we purchased an old Victorian home in a small Pennsylvania town with the highest ranking schools in the two counties that bordered Ohio in that area.

 

[Vinayaka]

I'm not sure, as I left Illinois in 1997.

At that time, I and my then wife had decided since neither of us had family in Illinois any longer (my family left to move to West Virginia) to move near her family, who lived near Youngstown, OH. I remember doing some research on schools at the library (the internet was just beginning to grow in popularity) into area schools and found the schools over the state line in Pennsylvania ranked significantly higher than the schools in the Youngstown area, so we purchased an old Victorian home in a small Pennsylvania town with the highest ranking schools in the two counties that bordered Ohio in that area.

Here I considered the school ranking a joke. A right wing think tank used provincial achievement test results, and that was the only criteria. Given that same data, my grade 6 math class could have done the ranking. Naturally the 'best' schools were the private ones where you needed to apply to get in, and academics was one of the criteria for that. Those schools had much smaller classes and more resources. At the opposite end were inner city schools with a lot of immigrants. We have both Catholic and public districts divide here, and sometimes schools would recommend to a parent that they send their kid (the lower achievers or handicapped) to the other district in the guise that they had a better program. So there was a ton of politics going on.

But perhaps Ohio did it differently. It was such a subjective process, this ranking.