[Third Order]

Doesn't help when the parents don't speak English either. Kinda hard for the small kids to practice reading when their parents can't help.

[Squawk 8888]

Doesn't help when the parents don't speak English either

I don't think it's a factor either way and can actually be turned into an advantage. My old neighbourhood had a lot of immigrant families with parents who couldn't speak English and no services were available in other languages, so the kids acted as interpreters for them. They got lots of practice at reading because they had to read a lot of their parents' mail for them.

[Dustbunny]

My father and his sisters had little problem learning English while they attended school, he was 13 when they immigrated.

Children are very adaptive if allowed to be.

[Clemenza]

Well, both of my grandfathers grew up in non-English speaking households. One entered the family construction business and thrived as a contracter. The other became a master machinist and union leader (until he discovered how corrupt the union was and that he was just a figurehead).

Again, even adverse circumstances can push the less fortunate to thrive. Unfortunatly, public schools and mass culture push the "thug life" which ensnares even the brightest of underpriveledged kids.

[old republic]

Doesn't help if kids are in bilingual classes that are slowing everyone else down either.

The government should stop using schools for their social engineering projects too...

[moog]

Good points.

[wintertime]

To Third Order:

That parents don't speak English can not account for lower performance. Immigrants from some countries do very well with their children winning academic awards while the children of immigrants from other countries don't do as well.

While I agree that home environment will make a very big difference, only private schools can have a influence on the home and parents.

Government schools can not hold parents accountable in the same way that private schools can. A government school must accept any behavior that the parents wish to impose on the school. A private school can make demands of the parents.

Also....a private school has the freedom to teach the morals, ethics, manners, culture, and etiquette needed to survive in the middle class world. It can instill the values that foster two parent homes and discourage single motherhood. A private school is free to teach parents good parenting skills. Government schools can't do this because all of these values are not politically correct and would get a government teacher or principal fired.