I just read this post regarding the changes the new administration is proposing to reform our education system. Then this post regarding what could be done about it.
Let me just start out by saying I am so grateful to be living in the great state of Texas and for our Governor who refuses to sign on to this program, which from what I have read is due to the federal government overstepping the Constitutional bounds and trying to control something for which oversight has been granted to the states.
I am so against the standardized testing that plagues our public school systems. I understand that some testing can be beneficial, but I think the school systems have gone way overboard. This testing was in fact a major reason that homeschooling looked so appealing to me.
A couple of years ago, I was part a tutoring program to assist the church youth group with troubles that came up in their homework. It ended up being more for the elementary age children, but there were a few of the older students who needed help in math and science. I tutored several students in various subjects including: AP Chemistry, geometry, basic high school math, algebra, early elementary math and some other kids who were preparing to take the standardized tests. The only student who actually wanted to learn what we were working on was a private school student, not subject to the standardized tests. All of the public school students wanted to know was the correct multiple choice answer. They wanted tutoring in how to eliminate the obviously wrong answers and get the choices down to a 50/50 shot at getting the problem right. Math has been reduced to multiple choice. There was no concern as to how to do the problems or the logic behind solving it. They just wanted to know the right answer!
You may be thinking that because I am an engineer that math is easy for me, and it's terribly hard for others. Yes, that may be true...now. I had a period of time in my school career that I struggled with math. I mean really struggled. I had several adults who helped me through that time, including my Grandpa, who would say, "Ok, tell me what you know," and "So, what does that mean?" Those questions were simple enough, but it made me think. Thinking is what helped me to solve the math problem. Later I learned it wasn't about solving that particular math homework, it was about developing critical thinking skills. Those skills have helped me to solve many different problems, not just the math ones!
My tutoring experience was so frustrating for me! I wanted my children to want to learn. I felt then and still feel now, that I am going to be the one to teach them to love learning whether they go to public school, or I teach them at home. Either way, I am finding myself growing more passionate about what is happening in our school systems. I see myself following this situation and fighting for our rights to educate our children and not just conforming to some arbitrary standard that has been set by the government.
With government control of what our children learn, it's not too far of a leap to see that by age 4 the government will be determining who can be engineers and who can be workers at McDonald's and setting their "education" path from there. Does this remind you of a former republic which is no longer in existence?
We are the people who can make a difference! We just have to fight for our rights! Will you join the fight or will you just give in?
1 comment:
I totally agree. I can't stand all the testing. The hoops that our children are required to jump through. This year, Kaitlyn spent several days in "silent mode" in the cafeteria while other kids took their tests -- as if the world completely stops making noise when you have a problem to solve. As a parent, I find this incredibly frustrating and am so glad our girls are both in the GT program where testing won't be their only focus.
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