That's about right. After teaching in a public school for10 years my opinion is parents "talk the talk" but don't "walk the walk". Ten to 20 parents visit on "Back to School" night?

Why o why o why?

Kaufman also said districts have an incentive not to raise participation in tutoring because if the money earmarked for tutoring goes unused, districts can allocate it for other programs for poor students.

*DING DING DING DING* we have a winnar!

This doesn't surprise me. If the parents gave a shiat the kids wouldn't be failing in the first place.

So apparently, well-educated, affluent parents who are heavily involved in their kids' schooling tend to have better-educated children than low-income, uneducated parents who often don't have things like a car to visit the school, or might be working two jobs to fend off bill collectors?

NO WAI!!!

Maybe the parents couldn't read the letter the school sends out letting them know about this service.

eddyatwork

This doesn't surprise me. If the parents gave a shiat the kids wouldn't be failing in the first place.

DING DING DING!!! We have a winner! All discussion past this point is...well, Fark partisan, racist, liberal, facist, godwin, ORLY, I LOL'd goodness.

Unpossible!

eddyatwork: This doesn't surprise me. If the parents gave a shiat the kids wouldn't be failing in the first place.


That's a terribly simplistic view that just happens to be pretty much on the money :D

Dear Parents: Can you please force your kids to get enough of an education to keep this country going until I die of old age. Or, at least until all that red meat I eat does me in? And, would a little entertainment be too much to ask?

Thank you.

P.S. Keep them the hell off of my lawn.

Gee...so do you think that maybe we could back off of the teachers and place the blame where it belongs? You know, now that we can prove that it's the parents?

/obvious tag also approved for this message

They know better than to use tutors. Jesus will make them smart.


/Stupid Christians...setting back the world for the past 2000 years....

tararose: Gee...so do you think that maybe we could back off of the teachers and place the blame where it belongs?


George Bush?

:D

Sorry...I just had to...

Maybe the parents aren't able to read the newsletter that was sent home?

Its not free. Someone is paying for it.

Stop using the word 'free'.

I teach high school. It's because parents don't care. Trust me.

Icky Sticky is Yummy Yummy: /Stupid Christians...setting back the world for the past 2000 years....

Come on...did they actually mention religious people here? It seemed to me they were just talking about your average morons, religious & heathen both.

2006-10-01 08:08:09 PM TheNWG

Maybe the parents aren't able to read the newsletter that was sent home?

Seconded!

The #1 cause of stupid, illterate kids?
Stupid illterate parents.

I bet they'd get a lot more milage out of an adult literacy program in that community.

rodr3: Its not free. Someone is paying for it.

Stop using the word 'free'.


They're not taking advantage of it anyway. Maybe they should say "100% off"

eddyatwork, IXI Jim yep, and the truth is simple sometimes. Is the sad tag on vacation or something? Surely asinine could've filled in for it. My first reactions were just that yes, there are some pathetic people who are terminally lazy and apathetic. Now I think to myself, whose responsibility is it to get these kids to do something? If the schools/ government don't, and nor do the parents, then there'll be ramifications down the line, when these little farkers start carjacking or pimping to make a living.
Or... gunning down highschools or universities to make a point... :/ that on reflection is not a cozy thought.

/anyways, my $0.02

The parents are Nazis.

/That's right!
//Godwinn'd!

"Parents very often don't know what it is they're receiving and they don't understand there is an actual deadline,"

So I guess they have to add a "Hey doofus, there's a deadline. Don't lose this letter in your sock drawer under your Hustler mags" in there somewhere...

No child left behind.

I got a better idea. Teach these kids things that they need to know. Not teach them how to take those tests.

Is teh Bush fault!

Hey, as long as they aren't dressing in clothing adults don't approve of, what's the worry?

/gag me

El_Maestro: If the schools/ government don't, and nor do the parents, then there'll be ramifications down the line, when these little farkers start carjacking or pimping to make a living.
Or... gunning down highschools or universities to make a point... :/ that on reflection is not a cozy thought.


Well...as long as it's stupid people shooting stupid people, I guess I wouldn't feel too sad about it.

"Well, the world needs ditch diggers too."

Ahh, yes, the no child left behind act, that wonderfully idiotic piece of legislation. Hey! Let's not bother improving the education system, let's just implement tons of standardised testing everywhere so that school's will concentrate more on preparing for bullshiat tests instead of actually educating anyone!

/so glad I live in Canada

Its not like tutoring realy will do any goo for these kids. The way todays economy is even if these kids get tutored and become valadictoriams, graduate with honors and even go to a real 50k a semester college nine times out of ten they will end up a chasier at wallmart swimming in debt as the IRS takes every sent to pay off thier masters degree in mythology and folklore*.



Two cookies for the referance

Why is this amusing? It's sad and pathetic.

JenCar: nine times out of ten they will end up a chasier at wallmart swimming in debt


Chasier? They're the ones who go out after the shopping carts, right? ;)

Pfft, who wants to pay to be able to red???

It really is a shame that as a country we deride teachers (as they're so underpaid) and absolve parents of responsibility (as they're a much larger voting base).

Really, I wouldn't have so much of a problem with it if it weren't for the fact that my children and I will have to support the generation of morons this creates.

Why should kids care if they learn anything? They don't need to know anything they learned past first grade until they graduate, more than a decade later. Anyone can learn the dumbed down material available in public schools, the teachers just need to make them care. Unfortuantly, that is near impossible without actually holding the kids responsible for their grades.

Unfortunately that was the best still photo from Idiocracy that I could find...

Purelilac
Why is this amusing?

i dount no, can sum1 reed it allowed 4 mi?

Norgle: Anyone can learn the dumbed down material available in public schools, the teachers just need to make them care. Unfortuantly, that is near impossible without actually holding the kids responsible for their grades.


I suppose telling the kid "Ok...we're going to put your beloved hamster Pookie into the blender if you don't pass this next exam" isn't the way to go?

I guess our children isn't learning

/no child left behind
//WTFever

"Is our children learning?"
Apparently, NOT!

Awesome, Dutchie

:)

TFA:tutoring would be provided by private companies such as Catapult Online or PLATO Learning

Online and software based tutoring. Great.

So, assuming these parents (1) can read (2) give a shiat (debatable as noted above):

How many of these have functional computers (and have internet access)?

I've been beaten to the "maybe the parent's couldn't read the letter..." comments, so I won't make the same comment.

I don't think it's completely the parent's fault. Well, up until the point where they are offered free tutoring and turn it down.

Personally, I think the entire education system needs to be overhauled. We need to end the 'teaching to the test', but also set standards for promoting to the next grade. There is no reason to be in the 4th grade if you can't multiply, divide or read. We also need to change things so that in high school you learn not just stuff like algebra, geomentry, government, economics etc, but other stuff like how to balance a check book and a useful skill/trade so that when you get out of high school you can get a job that is not a minimum wage job.

/my $0.02

I ain't gonna have me no learned kids in this here house! Heck, I ain't even passt 9th grade but i got me a double wide and a chevy. suck on dat edumacation!!

Son of a biatch! I bet the couple had 650 kids for the welfare.

Yeah, I know...

llama42: How many of these have functional computers (and have internet access)?


Does someone else want to make the sweeping generalization that their little geniuses are spending all their time on Myspace and none of their time studying, or should I?

Apparently, President Bush was wrong. "Is our children learning" is mumbled in passing by parents around the country, before they turn their attention back to their third job and or television.

Seriously, they are concerned that "technical jargon" in the letters home might be throwing off the parents? If the concept of "failed consecutive tests" is too difficult for the parents to grasp, I think we might want to consider the possibility that idiocy is hereditary.

hmm, maybe the parents fear being converted by german $scientologist tutors...(3rd green lit link down)

This isn't like it's a new thing. Some people are good at book smarts, and do well in school. Other kids are crappy at school, but have talents in other fields. The sad thing is, is that the vast majority of the comments in this thread are what's wrong with the system and society in general. Just because someone sucks at school doesn't mean they're screwed. Just because someone kicks ass on tests means they're any better than anyone else. The problem isn't that they aren't doing great in school, the problem is that people are assuming they have no future because they don't do great in school. People have been good and bad at school since it all began. Does everyone want the high-stress, high-paying corporate jobs? I sure as hell wouldn't want one, no matter what the salary.

Norgle
Why should kids care if they learn anything? They don't need to know anything they learned past first grade until they graduate, more than a decade later. Anyone can learn the dumbed down material available in public schools, the teachers just need to make them care. Unfortuantly, that is near impossible without actually holding the kids responsible for their grades.

Hang on - if they don't need to know anything they learned past first grade, why should we bother making them care? Sounds like a colossal waste of time. Or did I miss your point?