Should 'social ettiquette' classes be taught in our schools to help our kids be more polite?

Question

In this age of internet, text messaging, no-one writes 'thank-you' letters anymore, we forget to say 'please' "I'm sorry" everything is fast food, bombarded with advertising we don't need which makes our children more selfish, impatient and unrealistic. Should simple 'social graces' and the art of conversation be taught in schools to 12 year-old children? I think they should.....

Answer 1

Yes, they should be taught. We worry about their math scores, and grammar, and not about what we used to call "home training." Our kids are now selfish, and rude, and we just allow them to do it. The Japanese and Chinese, are able to come over and get the high paying jobs, and they DO teach Social Ettiquette in their schools and you see what results they are getting. The mark of a "great nation", is being able to see what is working in someone else's world and seeing if it can be incorporated to make us better.

Answer 2

Ideally social etiquette should be taught in the home starting from the age of two. Unfortunately today's parents have no time or are as clueless as their kids in some areas.

Age twelve is too late. If you are going to do it in schools, start in kindergarten. Play acting, tea parties, and such are the best way to teach manners.

If you are going to teach an older group of children, I suggest you start a little club. Have a British high tea. Later on stage a formal dinner where the girls set the table properly, cook the food, then dress for dinner. Point out the advantages of knowing HOW to handle themselves in social situations. Good career move.

Answer 3

Probably since the parents aren't doing their job in that department any longer. My students are taught to write thank yous and notes of apology and I will not accept anything but ma'am attached to a yes or no. I teach first graders. By the time they are 12, they've already offended too many people with their rudeness. The younger a child forms a habit of politeness, the better.

Answer 4

Definetely, I'm a highschool student but i have foreign parents, and when my friends come over they don't really understand that they need to always greet my parents and show alot of respect when their over, so it's frustrating for me. After they leave my parents get upset and angry at me because they think i have bad friends. My friends are just great, most of them are very good students too, but sometimes i get embarrassed because i want to tell them their doing it wrong, but they don't know any better. My parents taught me proper ettiquette and it would make my life much easier if my friends learned some ettiquette also. It would be a wonderful idea.

Answer 5

YES, YES, and YES. I have been saying the same thing for years. I also feel that parents themselves should be more on top of teaching their children ettiquette. One day I went to the mall and a little boy maybe 8 years old held the door for everyone behind him and I thought, "Now that is a boy being raised properly!"

Answer 6

Sounds good to me.

And their parents should be required to sit with them.

Another thing that kids and adults need to/should learn is table etiquette. No elbows on the table, eat with your mouth closed, small forkfulls instead of half a cow at once, which fork or spoon to use for what course.

Can you imagine some of these kids in the future at a table for a business lunch or dinner with Fortune 500 executives?

Answer 7

Absolutely. I think it will benefit the students and the parents will be very greatful. It's pretty customary to say ma'am, sir, please and thank you where I live--in Texas, but regardless, there are a lot of things that students don't learn. I've had friends embarass me and my family by acting like a buffoon in public because they were never taught any better. I wish I would have had it, even though my parents raised me with proper etiquette.

Answer 8

kids need to learn more about social etiquette, but those are lessons that need to be taught at home and reinforced in schools. i remember we had an etiquette week at school where we used fancy napkins and whatnot in the cafeteria. we had to use proper manners and engage in appropriate conversation.

i think we adults have gotten too wrapped up in our own lives and forget to teach our children the basic lessons of being a good person.

Answer 9

I think we need to leave the parents with at least 1 area of responsibility, the schools are expected to teach the kids just about everything else.
The idea is good - but it's more of a burden on the schools.

Answer 10

Sure. There would obviously be a lot that would need to be looked into before doing something like that, but unfortunately, we have to prioritize and get the basics taken care of first. I'm tired of the U.S. ranking towards the bottom of the worlds education standards and levels.