Posted on 09/13/2011 12:40:01 PM PDT by BruceDeitrickPrice
I come from a family of teachers. The 800 pound gorilla is the rejection of sound phonics instruction in the classroom. The kids in better schools are “after-schooled” by their parents so that the educational malpractice by our “highly trained education professionals” is not as evident with them.
In international tests our students from “good schools” do even worse against their international peers than do our students taken on average.
I have never seen the term applied to college students.
As for you being a child and helping another institutionalized child ( in this case privately institutionalized), yes, you were “afterschooling”. I see this among the Latino children in our congregation. They find someone who is a good student, usually someone who has been afterschooled. Make friends with them and then ask for help.
Guess who is taking all the credit for the improvement in the children's scores? Yep! The local government school!
I used to tutor but finally had to stop. The methods used by the school were so irrational that I was afraid that I would make snarky remarks about the school and the teachers. I didn't see how that could be helpful.
They are wrong.
Were you aware that **NO** studies have ever been done that show how much knowledge is acquired in the classroom as compared to that learned at home due to the parents, friends of the family, or the child himself.
This has NEVER been studied. NEVER!
We spend up to a quarter of a million dollars or more per child for 13 years of education and NO ONE knows if they learn anything in school. Or...If the knowledge they do acquire is due to the parents, the child, or others outside of school! Imagine that!
If you doubt me, I will send the e-mail from a prominent Stanford University professor of education where he plainly states these studies were NEVER done.
Wintertime has neatly explained here why Sight Words are a wicked Ponzi scheme:
“Since our congregation’s kids are so smart, they **easily** memorize the first 100 words needed for 1st grade and then the 200 or so words needed in 2nd grade. Their parents think that they are learning to read when they are **NOT**. In third grade they hit a wall.”
Eight or nine years old, these kids know only a few hundred sight-words. They can read only books with a “controlled vocabulary.” That is, they can’t actually read. The Education Establishment perpetrates this vicious hoax.
I see among the Spanish-speaking adults with elementary-grade educations from Mexico or Central America that they did learn phonics. When they write down lyrics to songs (I lead a Spanish choir) or announcements for the service, they spell Spanish words phonetically, mixing v and b, j and x, d and r, missing silent letters, etc., according to their local pronunciations.
Since they do actually decode words instead of having them memorized, they can easily be trained as lectors or learn new songs, even if some words are unfamiliar, because they know the sounds letters make and the rules of accent.
WRONG!
The poor child feels horrible about not being able to read. They get pressure from school and lots of disapprobation for “not working hard enough” from the immigrant parents. It is pure emotional child abuse, day after day.
That is very sad. I haven’t been sufficiently involved with the hispanic children’s education to see that level of detail.
Last year I had a first grade Sunday School class that was half Anglo and half Latino, but at 6 years old, reading fluency is extremely varied, and there were no observable differences between the children in different groups. Some children could read very well, and some just barely. Basic ability is an issue at that age, I think; I had my 4-year-old and 6-year-old sons in the class, and the younger one reads more easily than the older. Vlad is one of my “instant readers,” from three years old, while James had to be taught phonics.
All the Spanish-speaking children knew their prayers and basic Bible content, though. They come to Mass every Sunday, from grandparents to babies, and the families who are regular Mass attendees also practice their faith and teach the Bible at home.
In a politically correct society how does a teacher, usually a liberal, explain to a parent that their child is stupid....and obese?
It is not a teacher’s business if a child is obese, and few children who are not obviously handicapped are unable to learn to read, if properly taught from the age of 5 or 6. Even some people with Down’s Syndrome learn to read, as do many others with different mental impairments.
Many, perhaps most, people lack the capacity to master theoretical physics (for what it’s worth, Sheldon), just as many will never be star musicians or world-renowned artists, based on personal ability. However, this is simply not an issue when we’re talking about basic literacy and numeracy.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.