how do i set up a time to talk to my brothers teacher about how crapy a job they are doing?

Question

i wish to go in and talk to my 11 year old brothers teacher to find out their teaching method and why they teach this way. do you have any sudgestions as to how i should go about this?

i am 20 and in college and being the only one in the house to have went to an american school i end up being the one to have to help my brother with his home work. so even though i am an assto him i am willing to try and get him off better than i.

tonight i have found out a major flaw in their teachings! these kids get fake money for some strange reasions that can be used for many things...on thing being paying to take a dump and worse than that they can pay 100 fake bucks to get out of doing their late home work! WTF! also through the years i have found it hard to teach this kid short cuts because his teachers seem to screw him up so much. so how should i go about insulting his teachers with out being too much od anass?

i was a crappy student at 6th grade but i know i was not having as hard a time as he is and i know he is much smarter than i was at his age. also i was in the same system as he is in when i was in secound grade for 5 months and that actualy sent me back from my old school. so when i went back to my old school i had to catch up a lot. i really think this school system need to be shut down and redone.

well cept for crystal b you all could be quite right.

Answer 1

The fake money is used to control behavior and to give the kids a way to earn rewards for good behavior, or when they act up, they have to pay the fake money back. Most schools use this system very effectively.

Using the fake money to give a kid a night off from homework is not out of line. Especially since most researchers lately in the magazines are talking about how too much homework is not a good thing.

It is not up to you to teach your brother short cuts in his homework. He has to learn to do things the long way in order to learn the theories and the "whys". The shortcuts come later.

If you think your way is better, then talk to your parents about homeschooling the child. Otherwise let the school do their jobs, their way and get over it.

Answer 2

No offense, but I think you need to take a step back! Have you been through uni and studied to be a teacher? Alot of people out there seem to think that because they have been through the education system that they are professionals at teaching. Sorry to break it to you, but I would not assume as much. You should tread lightly and ask the reasoning behind such pedagogy (teaching strategies). You may actually find that there is a method to the teachers madness. With teaching, it is not about necessarily teaching shortcuts, it is about first understanding ALL of the concepts and steps to working out an equation or background knowledge of the subject matter. Teaching shortcuts to things actually creates a surface knowledge of the subject matter and may make future learnings of he concepts more difficult for the poor 11 year old. This teacher appears tobe making learning about the concepts of money fun. You must also understand that having 20-30 kids in a classroom is difficult. They probably are always asking to go to the toilet to get out of class (they do this often at this age!). The teacher is making them spend their rewards probably to make them think whether it is really worth their while leaving class.

Also, please note, the child is only 11. He is still only a child. Give him a break, because the more you taunt the teacher, the more you will appear to be taunting your brother's learning. He may take this to heart and believe that he is doing something wrong. Also, you want to have the most positive relationship you can for your brother and his teacher; after all, he does spend about six hours with this person every day!

Answer 3

It's great that you care so much about your brother's education and that you want to see him do well and make the most of his brain. I also find it a bit peculiar that the system includes paying with the fake money to use the restroom, but I see many merits with this kind of system too. For one thing - look how much math he is learning, making change, adding up etc . Sometimes young kids exaggerate a bit. Having to pay to use the restroom might be something he made up to get a reaction, who knows?

Anyway, my first question is do you have any concrete proof of the system, and the fact that is is having a bad effect on your brother? Have his grades in math been slipping? Have his grades improved at all? If the method is effective in improving his grades would you still be against it?

Secondly, the simplest way to find out all about this system is to call the teacher up and say that you have some questions about your brothers progress, and could she make time to meet with you sometime next week? Then, when you do sit down with her, you need to be very open and just ask her in a very friendly tone "Would you mind explaining to me the fake money system he keeps talking about?" Ask her what skills she expects them to gain from this system and exactly how they earn and spend the fake money. Also say "I am concerned that he can pay his way out of doing homework - how can I make sure this isn't detrimental to his progress?" If you go in swinging, with a rude attitude, you will get nowhere and learn nothing. If, after speaking nicely with the teacher you still think the system is ridiculous, ask her/him how long it will be in place, and tell her/him that it concerns you that he can get out of his homework and could s/he make sure he still has some?

I have a feeling if the teacher explains it all to you, it wont seem so ridiculous after all. After all, a teachers main priority is to motivate kids to become self sufficient and proficient learners.

One last thought - teachers and families all need to work together to best educate a child. If you show no respect for your brothers teacher, you are not doing him any favors at all. Express any concerns you have with respect and you will get a much better result.

Answer 4

Go talk to the teacher with an open mind and heart. If the teacher is rude or tries to brush you off then you should let him/her know how you feel. You must remember that you are only seeing one side of the story. Go sit in on the classroom see things first hand and then talk to the teacher after school.