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Strollerderby
Do charter schools cherry pick their students?
Charter schools can be a godsend to kids in failing public school systems. They’ve proven time and again that they can take students and give them a solid education, bringing them at least up to grade level in most subjects while their peers in traditional neighborhood schools fall further and further behind.
But are they really playing on a level field? An interesting NYT article looks at the ways charter schools may cherry pick their students to inflate their success rates. Some families contend that their kids have been pushed out of charter schools because they didn’t fit in or had special needs.
Public school: for something so wholesome, it sure does stir up a lot of controversy. There are constantly battles being waged about what to teach, how to teach it and how much money is needed to do it right. Everyone has an opinion, whether they have kids or not.
For parents, there’s a much more immediate concern that comes up when considering public schools: will you send your kids there? The choice between public, private and homeschooling is one a lot of parents wrestle with. Admittedly, it’s a privileged choice: most parents don’t have the resources or time to homeschool their kids, or the disposable income for private school.
For those lucky enough to be faced with a decision, deciding what to do about your child’s schooling can be agonizing. It was for Stella McCartney and her family.
Tutors and test prep for preschoolers?
An article in the Chicago Tribune last week outlines the growing practice of preschoolers cramming with tutors for entry into the top public schools in the city.
It’s a practice that cities like New York know well, but it’s new and growing in Chicago and other increasingly competitive school systems in the country.
In Chicago, 3,337 applications have been filed this year for 500 seats in Chicago Public School system’s classical and gifted kindergarten programs for this fall. As the Tribune says:
“..with low-performing neighborhood schools an unattractive option and the cost of some private schools out of reach, many parents see CPS’ selective enrollment programs as the best public education option in the city.”
Is a preschool tutor a good idea?
Here’s what testing includes: Continue reading »
Is summer vacation a waste of valuable educational time?
Do American students need a longer school year?
Speaking to Matt Lauer on NBC’s “Today” show on Monday morning, President Obama said that among the reforms he’d like to make to the U.S. public school system is to extend the school year by a month.
Because all children do not learn at the same pace, teachers are generally forced to follow a curriculum that teaches to the lowest common denominator. While this method may indeed meet the needs of the kids who need more time to master a particular skill, it can slow down and even frustrate a child who is ready to move on to the next challenge. But in a classroom full of students of varying abilities, it’s the only way to ensure that nobody gets left behind. Or is it? Continue reading »
For reasons I have never fully understood, each state in the union is charged with determining what their public school children should learn and when they should learn it. While one state may be teaching kids to add fractions in the third grade, another may not touch that subject until the fourth. In language arts, the timetable for mastering skills varies from state to state as well.
This, of course, results in an inequity in education based solely on where a student happens to live. Why should this be? It shouldn’t. And soon, it won’t. Continue reading »
When our children hit a certain age, most of us pack them up and send them off to school. We do this because it is expected and necessary. How else are they going to learn the things they need to know to succeed in life? Of course, not all parents are willing to put their children’s futures into the hands of paid strangers. And estimated 1.5 million children in the U.S. are homeschooled, learning their lessons in the comfort of their own homes with mom or dad leading the way.
But what if there were a third option? An option that didn’t involve lessons at all? What if we just let our kids stay home and do their own thing, choosing what they want to learn, when they want to learn, and even if they want to learn? For an estimated 100,000 kids in the U.S., that is exactly the type of education – or non-education – they are getting.
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