[fso301]

Just go back to the 3R’s plus a D=discipline!

There is no going back because the school model is based on an outdated assumption that +90 percent of students live in nuclear families and that parents are partners in the child's education.

[wiggen]

well put. there’s reality and wishing and you described the reality of the situation.

[grania]

I'll disagree with you. The outdated assumption that hasn't existed for decades is that the parents should have no input into what goes on in the classroom. A school should be strictly but even-handedly run with a clear set of rules...no exceptions. A teacher should explain what their grading system is. The parents should stay out of the picture, and you know what? With excellent teachers and discipline support students from disadvantaged backgrounds do just fine.

The public school should be a place where what happens to you outside the school (good or bad) does not affect what goes on inside those walls. It all comes down to discipline and fairness....two totally missing concepts in many if not most public schools today.