Save Public Schools?

Question

If you could suggest one thing to America's Public schools that would improve them what would it be? I'm looking for some new ideas. I have my own ideas. But I want to hear what you have to say. The Public Schools in Albuquerque stink. How could we improve them? Or any place else?

Answer 1

The schools in a given community are a reflection of the area they serve. End of discussion.... not really, hang with me, then throw rocks. If you want performance out of your child's school, get involved.......it is possible.

The perfect analogy is your home. If you did not mow the grass, paint the exterior. repair the roof, and address other maintenance issues.... your home would start to show signs of wear. It would no longer be the spectacular show piece, you bought new a few years ago.



Further, after a few years of deferred maintence, you then put your biggest investment( besides your kids) see where I am going with this? on the market and expect top performance $$$ from the "**** in the punch bowl" on the block. What will your outcome be????

Ever wonder why companies don't locate to areas with poor
performing schools????

I am waiting for the answer........?????

Expand that thought to the community level!! Concern for public education is critical, btw, a strong school district will help you sell your house. your home value can suffer as well as a result of this issue l...ask a realtor.(not one btw)...

If communities do not support reasonable funding for schools and GET PARENTAL and COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT... yes, standards are required... but that’s a different question though, then schools suffer.

Please, do the due diligence and make the education system in your community great. The first thing you can do is vote...but it doesn't stop there.

You pay taxes...You deserve answers. Cutting and running, away from problems in public education, i.e. home schooling, vouchers, yada yada... is not the solution.

It may work on a micro level....

I don't care what your religious convictions say, oh, wait,
I do remember something about "render unto Ceasar, something something...."

That's NOT how this great nation was built, but it could be a great contributor to its downfall. Hey.... I worked in a civics lesson on that answer.

It's just a hypothesis, not a theory.... get it?...nudge nudge..
No senses of humor???....

Answer 2

First of all, the governments would have to start truly understanding that people are individuals and that dictating what someone should master by what age can cause more harm than good. The craze with testing and meeting standards... Things have gone down hill since it all began. Kids aren't being treated like human beings--they're being treated like little robots that can be programmed. It's one thing to test to truly see a child's improvement over the years; another to test and to use the results as a blame on the child, the parents, the teacher, the school... The tests should be about assessment, not about meeting some outside authority's desires. (Okay, granted, tests to meet standards for a high school diploma are understandable!)

Second, the whole system needs to be restructured. This would have to be done after the focus on standards and meeting things by a certain age is gone. Things like multi-age classrooms, allowing kids to go their own pace, even if it means letting them use the gr. 7 math book when they are in gr. 5--or letting them use the gr. 3 math book because they haven't mastered it yet when they are in gr. 5. I know what I'm proposing is difficult in today's mentality of how schools should be, but multi-age and multi-level classrooms were the norm for so long! They worked. There are alternative schools out there that follow such a model and they work--and without having kids in a series of benches/desks like in the old days. But these alternative schools are focused on the children and not on meeting standards.

Third, or perhaps first, is that society would have to change. Someone in here said that the school is a reflection of the community in which it lives. Until society in general sees how schools are so improperly structured and focused, the children will all still continue to be raised among the lines that support the current model. But it's also about the general way that kids are raised--how they are raised gets played out in school which does affect how good a school can be. I roll my eyes at the frequent parenting articles and tv spots for things like "how to get your child off his iPod and have some real fun". The kids bring all this to school. The teacher is one adult with 30 kids. Who's going to likely have the most influence?? Certainly not the adult whose voice is outweighed by the many same-aged peers who all think the iPod and other gadgets are THE thing and there's nothing wrong with being on them all the time. When society's focus turns to truly helping kids develop well, then changes in the school system will actually have a hope of being an improvement.

Answer 3

The biggest problem with public schools is the parents. On the one hand, you have helicopter parents who make sure their kids never "fail". On the other hand, you have MIA parents who couldn't care less if their kids fail.

Schooling begins at home. If the parents don't see the benefit to an education, why would the child? If the parents don't discipline the child, how can the schools? If the parents don't teach manners and respect, is that really the school's job? If the parents are pushing their kids (too hard) to succeed, what can the school do to stop it (and should they)?

Unfortunately, as Glurpy pointed out, this will require a MAJOR shift in our culture. Too many people think our one-size-fits-all education system is the answer to all of our problems (teen sex? add a health class. racism? hold diversity week.) Used to be if you got in trouble at school, you were MORE afraid of what your parents would do (because they were concerned about what the neighbors would think). Now, if a student gets in trouble at school, the parents accuse the school of (pick one): racism, brutality, profiling.

It's time for parents to take back the reins and raise their children to respect others (adults and kids alike) and value their education for what it can get them (if the child puts in some effort). When parents step up to the plate, then you'll see a change. Until then, nothing the government does will "fix" the schools.

EDIT: OK, I've been thinking about this question some more and one POSSIBLE solution is to create more schools, especially at the junior and senior high level (I don't necessarily mean BUILD them, there are plenty of vacant buildings that could be made to work). Build communities through the school.

When you have a school with 4000 or 5000 students, it's easy to blend in and not get noticed when you drop-out (or commit a felony). My high school had 800 students (not just my class, the whole school) in grades 9-12. Everyone knew everyone, everyone knew everyone's parents, everyone knew everyone's siblings, everyone knew everyone's business. Makes it tough to do something wrong when "everyone" is watching you.

Remember the schools of old (think Little House on the Prairie). If Johnny got in trouble at school, his parents already knew when he got home (heck, the whole town knew - and they didn't have cell phones back then). His parents had to discipline him because the whole town was watching and expected them to. When you take away the privacy, you take away much of the ability to do wrong (because others can place you at the scene of the crime because "we know who you are" :) ).

Answer 4

Contrary to reports in the media that the problems with public schools are a recent phenomena, public schools started out bad and have gotten worse over time. The educational "experts" have been trying to fix the public schools for 150 years and I don't think that I or anyone else can do so.

The best course of action would be to scrap them altogether. We should return to a fully privatized education system. Like the one we had when Americans were the best educated population in the world.

Answer 5

Some faculties earn a living from physical games, others have already reduce them. They reduce the artwork and tune departments years in the past. Schools are areas to study, and physical games, arts and tune are all aspect of studying distinctive talents. But once we lack cash and are instructed to get armed guards for faculties then physical games could have got to pay for itself, via bake income, guardian bills, or auto washes. The taxpayers with out children is not going to have got to take at the burden of the extras.

Answer 6

Teach in diversified ways. There is more than one way to teach Math or English.

Teach real world.

Make Teachers get an MA or MS

Make the schools safer

Move the horrible, bully students to some detension camp on Guantanamo bay or something.

Answer 7

Why? With all the increased funding, teachers only got 2% and it shows.

The only way I can see to help public schools is to have a voucher system that would bring in the pressure of a market economy. If your school isn't producing?? Go to one that is.

Nothing like fighting for customers to force a better product!

Answer 8

I applaud you for your energy, and optimism, however there comes a time where you have to know when to cut your losses.

The schools do not want your idea's, or efforts to change/improve them; they are still under the illusion that all they need is more money to solve all their problems.
Has it worked yet?

Answer 9

Keep the same teacher with the same students for all of elementary. Let them be responsible for getting them ready for middle school. They will have from K-5th grade to prepare them.

I think this is part of the success of home school: The same teacher every year.

Answer 10

I wish public schools were like a public library.... You use what you want and leave the rest. You could sign up for this class or that activity, and what you don't need, you don't use.