| | I went to public school from Kindergarten to 12th grade. I learned a lot of useful things, and my grammar/spelling/writing is pretty far above average thanks to the teachers I had throughout my public school days. I had amazing teachers every single year at my school. While I can acknowledge that a lot of public schools are lousy, I'm compelled to defend the notion that public schools are not destined for failure as such. And if one public school is capable of excellent education, it could be reasonably argued that any or all public schools are capable of excellence.
Public school is like anything else in life. You get out of it what you put in. Many parents use school as a babysitter instead of encouraging their children to get the most out of their lessons. My parents weren't necessarily "hard" on me, but they were committed to my future, and they expected more out of me than a lot of lousy parents expect of their kids.
I'll defend public schools as long as I see them working for some people. Some of the most successful people I know come from public school backgrounds. I also know failures who spent their time in private schools.
If parents are involved in the lives of their children and show an interest and encouragement toward excellence, said children, consistent with their nature, will strive to excel.
Blaming public schools for failures in life is just one more step Americans have taken from their responsibilities as adults, and as parents. When junior hits 18 and has no idea how to live his life, it's easier to blame a school than blame yourself.
Basic schools aren't in place to teach you how to prepare a meal, or fix a car, or any of that. That's what parenting is for. For thousands of years people have been taught the basic essentials for life... BY THEIR FAMILIES. I don't want my daughter's school teaching her how to fix a car. That's a lesson I will cherish teaching her myself. And when she cooks meals later in her life, I expect them to be the same recipes her mother and grandmothers have used for decades.
Why the hell do so many people want to divorce parents from parenting??? Furthermore, why are those same people so quick to condemn academic institutions for failing to parent? It's not any school's job - public or private - to parent our children! Damn anyone who thinks it is, and damn anyone who thinks it's anyone's job but his own to parent his child!
JHM
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