Your daily reminder that expecting parents to teach their kids at home is super inequitable

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

I know! The county should be reading your kids for you that's why we pay taxes!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

I know! The county should be reading your kids for you that's why we pay taxes!

Agree. But the parent that can only manage the bare minimum shouldn’t complain when their kids don’t make the cut into specialized test-in are schools/programs, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

Perhaps, but no public school is going to fill in the gaps so if you don't do it it won't get done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

Perhaps, but no public school is going to fill in the gaps so if you don't do it it won't get done.

Will even a private school fill in the gaps?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

Perhaps, but no public school is going to fill in the gaps so if you don't do it it won't get done.

Will even a private school fill in the gaps?

Depends on the private school. There are good ones and bad ones. But no school will be everything to every kid. The schools will do as much as they can, but some kids will fall through the cracks even at the so called "good" schools. Maybe the kid is lazy. Maybe they have trouble staying organized. Maybe they fell in with the wrong crowd. Maybe they have a bad teacher. Could be a bunch of reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

Perhaps, but no public school is going to fill in the gaps so if you don't do it it won't get done.

Will even a private school fill in the gaps?

Depends on the private school. There are good ones and bad ones. But no school will be everything to every kid. The schools will do as much as they can, but some kids will fall through the cracks even at the so called "good" schools. Maybe the kid is lazy. Maybe they have trouble staying organized. Maybe they fell in with the wrong crowd. Maybe they have a bad teacher. Could be a bunch of reasons.

I agree. No private school covers enough either. There will be some gaps in any education, if left 100% to the school. It is the job of the parent to find these gaps/deficiencies and do your best to fill them.

[Anonymous]

Parents: immediately cease all enriching experiences. Cease contact with family and close friends. No travel except for pop up parking lot carnivals. Plop your kids in front of the tv or your iPad. Show no affection. Do not engage with your children. Also, no discipline or routine. Let them be raised freestyle, without boundaries.

Treat them like robots and send off to kindergarten with the expectation that it takes a village and that the school will essentially feed, clothe, house and “educate” your kid. Off to work you go, then. Use school as daycare. Complain bitterly if you ever need to pick up your sick child at school. In fact, stick it to the man and make it impossible for the school to reach you; keep your voicemail full or “not set up” or maybe change your number and don’t tell the school! That’ll show ‘em. The principal can ride along in the ambulance.

Become exasperated if you are contacted and then go on a tirade explaining how you work and there’s no way you can pick up/be available for a conference/talk to the counselor/principal.

Rebuff any requests for interventions or referrals. Your kid doesn’t need a thing. Refuse to share any information about your child’s medical condition and certainly keep everyone guessing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Parents: immediately cease all enriching experiences. Cease contact with family and close friends. No travel except for pop up parking lot carnivals. Plop your kids in front of the tv or your iPad. Show no affection. Do not engage with your children. Also, no discipline or routine. Let them be raised freestyle, without boundaries.

Treat them like robots and send off to kindergarten with the expectation that it takes a village and that the school will essentially feed, clothe, house and “educate” your kid. Off to work you go, then. Use school as daycare. Complain bitterly if you ever need to pick up your sick child at school. In fact, stick it to the man and make it impossible for the school to reach you; keep your voicemail full or “not set up” or maybe change your number and don’t tell the school! That’ll show ‘em. The principal can ride along in the ambulance.

Become exasperated if you are contacted and then go on a tirade explaining how you work and there’s no way you can pick up/be available for a conference/talk to the counselor/principal.

Rebuff any requests for interventions or referrals. Your kid doesn’t need a thing. Refuse to share any information about your child’s medical condition and certainly keep everyone guessing.

Yawn. That's a lot of words and time spent on a poorly-constructed strawman.

[Anonymous]

I don’t understand why people keep twisting OP’s point. She is not telling parents they can’t supplement. She is saying it is bad that schools expect this to happen and/or that the go to solution for all school gaps is for parents to do it themselves. There are things schools SHOULD be doing and expecting them to is not asking too much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand why people keep twisting OP’s point. She is not telling parents they can’t supplement. She is saying it is bad that schools expect this to happen and/or that the go to solution for all school gaps is for parents to do it themselves. There are things schools SHOULD be doing and expecting them to is not asking too much.

As a matter of public policy, we can't expect much from many parents because they are unable or unwilling to do much. But we should have no problem telling parents that they cannot expect their kids to reach their full potential without supporting their education at home. So long as parents are ok with that, we should be ok with parents doing the bare minimum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand why people keep twisting OP’s point. She is not telling parents they can’t supplement. She is saying it is bad that schools expect this to happen and/or that the go to solution for all school gaps is for parents to do it themselves. There are things schools SHOULD be doing and expecting them to is not asking too much.

As a matter of public policy, we can't expect much from many parents because they are unable or unwilling to do much. But we should have no problem telling parents that they cannot expect their kids to reach their full potential without supporting their education at home. So long as parents are ok with that, we should be ok with parents doing the bare minimum.

Well, how do you define “supporting their education”? I would define it as ensuring the child’s physical and mental and social-emotional health, reading with them, helping with homework if they’re having trouble, or with a subject they’re not testing well in.

I would NOT define it as having to heavily supplement my average or above-average child in order to fill in the gaps of a poorly done school curriculum. But that is what UMC are expected to do these days, and the only reason UMC-heavy schools are doing well.

[Anonymous]

Schools don’t expect you to create your own curriculum and teach your kids at home. They expect you to read with your kids, require them to do their homework, and reach out to the teacher if your child doesn’t understand the work that is sent home. When has a teacher ever told a parent to teach their child anything at home? Never. If a parent has a strong conviction that their child “should” currently be learning something that isn’t in the curriculum, that’s totally on them and they certainly have the option of teaching it at home. Parents don’t get to decide the standards that the teacher is responsible for covering. That’s not how school works. You’re confused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is directed towards posters who retort “teach them yourselves!” when parents complain that their school doesn’t teach phonics, handwriting, spelling, grammar, multiplication tables, etc.

The *only* thing parents should be responsible for is ensuring their kids are well fed and rested, and mentally and physically ready to learn at school. If there are not enough hours in the school day to do everything, teachers should be sending explicit instructions to the parents about what to do at home (eg please have your child drill these times tables until they’ve memorized them). This is also known as “homework”.

I enjoy exposing my kids to new ideas and helping them develop their interests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand why people keep twisting OP’s point. She is not telling parents they can’t supplement. She is saying it is bad that schools expect this to happen and/or that the go to solution for all school gaps is for parents to do it themselves. There are things schools SHOULD be doing and expecting them to is not asking too much.

As a matter of public policy, we can't expect much from many parents because they are unable or unwilling to do much. But we should have no problem telling parents that they cannot expect their kids to reach their full potential without supporting their education at home. So long as parents are ok with that, we should be ok with parents doing the bare minimum.

Well, how do you define “supporting their education”? I would define it as ensuring the child’s physical and mental and social-emotional health, reading with them, helping with homework if they’re having trouble, or with a subject they’re not testing well in.

I would NOT define it as having to heavily supplement my average or above-average child in order to fill in the gaps of a poorly done school curriculum. But that is what UMC are expected to do these days, and the only reason UMC-heavy schools are doing well.

The majority of UMC really don't do this. They may do enriching supplements that their kids are interested in but not things to fill gaps in the curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand why people keep twisting OP’s point. She is not telling parents they can’t supplement. She is saying it is bad that schools expect this to happen and/or that the go to solution for all school gaps is for parents to do it themselves. There are things schools SHOULD be doing and expecting them to is not asking too much.

As a matter of public policy, we can't expect much from many parents because they are unable or unwilling to do much. But we should have no problem telling parents that they cannot expect their kids to reach their full potential without supporting their education at home. So long as parents are ok with that, we should be ok with parents doing the bare minimum.

Well, how do you define “supporting their education”? I would define it as ensuring the child’s physical and mental and social-emotional health, reading with them, helping with homework if they’re having trouble, or with a subject they’re not testing well in.

I would NOT define it as having to heavily supplement my average or above-average child in order to fill in the gaps of a poorly done school curriculum. But that is what UMC are expected to do these days, and the only reason UMC-heavy schools are doing well.

The majority of UMC really don't do this. They may do enriching supplements that their kids are interested in but not things to fill gaps in the curriculum.

My kid attends mathnasium with a lot of classmates from their well regarded very UMC public and and kids from some very expensive privates. I think, at least on the math side, supplementing is more common than you thing