Any teachers out there?

Hi, Stacie-

First, I want to say that I think it is great that you are taking such initiative for your son's education and for your son's school. I really hope progress will be made for your son and all those other kids!

Second, I'm just throwing in my support for what Veronica said about visualization and reading comprehension. Last year I had a college professor ask my doctoral seminar to draw a picture representing a concept we had been discussing in class. I thought he was insane, but I did it anyway. I found that it actually solidified some ideas that I hadn't connected before. I also often use pictures in studying for exams. I find that if I can't remember a word, or phrase, or idea, I can call up a picture.

Keep it up and best of luck making changes!! :)

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Originally Posted by stacie

I'm curious, which would you choose? Private school is out. I bargained on magnet schools and lost. I was assured we would get in if I took certain steps which I did.
Beautiful custom made Independent Fabrication Crown Jewel will be collecting dust it seems. :(

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I find the above statement an interesting statement of your priorities. You say you want a good education for your child, but then you seemed to have chosen to purchase a custom bike for yourself rather than pay for your son to attend a high quality school. You mention working part time, why can't you work full time? I am a mom that chose to work hard, and forgo custom bikes in order to send my kids to high quality private schools. Its not that I don't think that all kids deserve high quality public education, its that I can't fix a broken system as a single person, but I can choose how hard to work, how to spend my money, and how to educate my kids. I know my comments are harsh, and I know I don't know anything about your personal finances, but I just feel very strongly that the most important thing a parent can do for a child is provide a good education.

I'd like to second what Lyca and Veronica said about drawing and visualizing. As a college English prof, I often have my students do a sketch of a difficult poetic image; the physical act of drawing can help one remember something (as can saying something aloud, reading aloud or silently, hearing something). It also helps us understand how the image is working so that we can discuss it better. It sounds hokey, but I started doing it in classes because it helps me as a reader; it's one of the strategies I use to learn.

I am glad that you understand, Stacie, what I was trying to explain. The reason that heterogeneous grouping doesn't work a lot is because it is not done the right way. Why? Because it is hard and it takes a lot of work, monitoring, re-teaching, assessing and having tiered levels of assignments and assessments for every concept you teach. I don't want to bad mouth an entire group of people, but the school I last taught at was a lot like you are describing. Fortunately, the administration, over a 10 year period was able to get rid of a lot of the offending teachers. When I was hired, I had 22 years of experience and the other teachers saw me as the devil... I just kept doing what I had been doing and eventually, after about 5 years, I was surrounded by colleagues that were doing things the way i did. High expectations for all does work, but very few schools are willing to make the effort to do this.
It is great that you finally got them to listen. However, you very well may have to work full time to afford private school if things do not work out. I worked the whole time my kids were growing up and they certainly did not suffer.
As for the visualization, yes, it is the first strategy to use for comprehension. But, make sure your son is exposed to all of the strategies as i think Veronica listed. They are taught in order of the amount of inferential reasoning needed.

... and don't forget that we're a diverse bunch of humans in the world. I, for one, don't visualize.... though just *working* at it helps sometimes. (I think in words. You should see me working on my bike!!! I mean hear me... I *have* to converse with it...)

Yes Robin, I see how heterogeneous classes can work. I still argue that it could never happen with this team of teachers. Now, if he had you for a teacher, we wouldn't be having this conversation.
My only point here is that it's important to know what is going on in our children's classes. If I had listened to the administration, my son is making straight a's in all advanced classes. I am shocked at the speed things are happening at this school and it makes me hopeful for the future. Still, Will my son be there next year? Doubtful.
Triskel, I"m not sure how you took this wild leap that I chose to buy a bike instead of educate my son. I own the bike because I can afford it. My son is not in private school because I wanted him in a magnet school. We toured many schools and based our decision on our experiences. We were assured, incorrectly, that we would be enrolled at our first choice school. The school we are attending was highly recommended by the two teachers I most respect. Had things not changed at the last minute, my situation would be different. Many things happened at the school to put us in this situation. Transferring to a private school is not an option because the best schools are full this time of year especially for 6th grade. Sure there are openings at other schools. However, I don't believe they are better than the options I presented. Private does not necessarily mean better.
Will I plan differently next year? You bet. We'll apply for the magnet again because we really like the programs offered there. You can bet I"ll have a deposit down at an appropriate private school as well.
The interest in whether I work full time, part time or at all is just strange. Whether I work at all is irrelevant and has no effect on where my son goes to school unless I choose the homeschooling option which is why I mentioned my part time job I believe. Your smugness that because you choose to work makes you a better mother, harder worker, and more organized in your personal finances, make me laugh. Thanks for the levity. :) Stacie

Stacie, I think that Triskel. was just wondering why you chose the public schools over private, and given the other stuff you mentioned, I can see how she wanted to ak you those questions. Sometimes, it's hard to interpret exactly what someone means in writing as opposed to having a face to face conversation. Personally, I kept my kids in public school when they were getting a boring, rote education because I preferred to help the public schools sort of in the way you are doing. I also thought it would be hypocritical for me as a public school teacher to send them to private school. When I wrote a letter to the local paper many many years ago, in favor of passing an override to fund the school budget I said something like "I would work 5 part time jobs to pay the extra taxes, to ensure my kids get a good education." Man, I got slammed both in print and on my answering machine. My older son still has the tape that says "Why don't you rich, liberal snobs get the hell out of town..." That was very nice for a 9 year old to hear.
I have had 25 years of the mommy wars. Please, let's not start this here! I could have never stayed home, but I know most people do not feel like I do.
I hear this cultural divide is now extending to whether you dye your hair or keep it gray. Well, not to get off the topic of education, but you will never see me with gray hair!

I'm a new high-school English teacher. I accepted a position in an inner-city school in New York. I have heard the worst stories you could possibly imagine regarding our schools. They're terrible. Teachers are so tormented they give up. Most students only attend school to keep their parents on government assistance. They curse you out, attack you, etc. I've heard of girls getting raped in the stairwells. Literal socio- and psychopaths attend the public schools around here. Some of these kids will knock you over the head to steal a $5 bill from you. I have a master's degree but find the rents in NYC to be so high I can't even afford to live alone in a semi-decent neighborhood. So why do I teach here?

The good news is not all public schools are like this. We try to challenge our kids. The school I chose to work in has no metal detectors. All of the problems I have listed above are not present in my school. Are the kids angry? Disadvantaged? In gangs? Hurt? Lazy? Violent? Yeah. We're not perfect. But we don't have fights. Teachers are called by their first names, and students are generally happy to be here, probably because they don't have to live in fear that someone will knock them out for no reason. Many still fail out or discharge themselves, but I have seen a few shining stars move on to higher education.

Our public schools are more and more designed to look like prisons. These kids have no impulse control, mental disorderst, etc. and they just bump them through the system. You're lucky if you can get a parent on the phone, especially one that understands English. I think it's a shame that we have to put our tax dollars towards a school system that sets our kids up for failure. It really is a shame. Every day I thank God I was able to attend a Catholic prep school, which I believe is the reason I excelled in college (or even got in!) My parents were never around, so I had to rely on the school itself to be good.

Staci, these are not stories to scare; they're just reality. I think that your child can find his way, because there are public schools that exist that are good. So what if you have to drive an extra 1/2 hour (unless it interferes with work)! I wish all of my students parents cared enough about their child's future. I would say to keep supplementing with outside actitivies. I'm sure it will be difficult socially for your son, who probably won't fit in, but as long as he has places of warmth and love, then things will eventually work themselves out. Camp is a good idea. Enrichment schools and summer programs are a great idea. Good luck, and keep us in the loop as things progress.