The Screen That Ate Your Child’s Education

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So it's not the schools job. It's the parents job. I'm fine with that but it begs the question, what IS the schools job?
Because if we're paying exorbitant property tax to teach our kids about mindfulness moments, jump around to YouTube videos and instill guilt about the Pilgrims stealing from the Native Americans is that the best investment of money?

+1 If we're going to give up on schools teaching reading and math, we might as well save a lot of money by switching out trained teachers for untrained and lower-paid babysitters who are capable of doing the above.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it's not the schools job. It's the parents job. I'm fine with that but it begs the question, what IS the schools job?
Because if we're paying exorbitant property tax to teach our kids about mindfulness moments, jump around to YouTube videos and instill guilt about the Pilgrims stealing from the Native Americans is that the best investment of money?

+1 If we're going to give up on schools teaching reading and math, we might as well save a lot of money by switching out trained teachers for untrained and lower-paid babysitters who are capable of doing the above.

This is already happening. Look at the number of teacher trainees and long term subs. A lot of schools have become glorified daycare centers. There aren't enough teachers to fill all the positions at some schools. No one cares until it happens in their kid's classroom. Of course a 24 year old with no teaching experience and a degree in Art History isn't going to catch it when a 3rd grader is severely behind grade level with reading.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it's not the schools job. It's the parents job. I'm fine with that but it begs the question, what IS the schools job?
Because if we're paying exorbitant property tax to teach our kids about mindfulness moments, jump around to YouTube videos and instill guilt about the Pilgrims stealing from the Native Americans is that the best investment of money?

+1 If we're going to give up on schools teaching reading and math, we might as well save a lot of money by switching out trained teachers for untrained and lower-paid babysitters who are capable of doing the above.

While schools necessarily serve a childcare function in an economy in which both parents work outside the home, we really need them to educate the kids as well, since there just aren’t enough hours in the day to handle all the education in one or two hours after dinner…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it's not the schools job. It's the parents job. I'm fine with that but it begs the question, what IS the schools job?
Because if we're paying exorbitant property tax to teach our kids about mindfulness moments, jump around to YouTube videos and instill guilt about the Pilgrims stealing from the Native Americans is that the best investment of money?

+1 If we're going to give up on schools teaching reading and math, we might as well save a lot of money by switching out trained teachers for untrained and lower-paid babysitters who are capable of doing the above.

While schools necessarily serve a childcare function in an economy in which both parents work outside the home, we really need them to educate the kids as well, since there just aren’t enough hours in the day to handle all the education in one or two hours after dinner…

I agree with this but people seem to say over and over that they are able to somehow work full time and supplement a full elementary education for their kids and put them in multiple sports and instrument lessons. I opted out and sent kid to a cheap no-frills private and our lives feel more balanced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have this acquaintance who always said she works in education and sends her kid to a Waldorf school. Just googled to see she works at one of these edtech/ai companies. Makes sense!
Where I live, the options are no tech Christian schools where it is a MAGA crowd that left public bc they were spooked by trans bathrooms or covid masks. Or public where it’s 1:1 chromebooks. I am torn on how to oroceed.

What age for the Chromebooks? If it’s elementary I would leave.

Where have you been. All elementary kids get Chromebooks now

No, it's usually iPads for little kids. Chromebooks for 3rd, 4th, 5th, or even 6th, depending on the school district. I've never seen computers for K-2nd.

Baltimore City issues them in PreK.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it's not the schools job. It's the parents job. I'm fine with that but it begs the question, what IS the schools job?
Because if we're paying exorbitant property tax to teach our kids about mindfulness moments, jump around to YouTube videos and instill guilt about the Pilgrims stealing from the Native Americans is that the best investment of money?

+1000

Can schools go back to teaching reading and math? Because they definitely used to do that.

Yes!!! My kids have whole specials hour dedicated to “social/emotional” learning. I don’t even understand what this is. WHY? Kids can read and write or do basic math and we are wasting time on computer games and nonsense lessons

Remove them from that system.

[Anonymous]

Social/emotional learning, SEL for short, is blocked in so school can say they are inclusive. Topics include bullying, divorce, two parent or multiple parent families, same sex relationships, body image, and other topics. Mine spent an hour or two each week learning about these yet school did nothing to address bullying. We put kid in a Catholic school that says bullying isn't tolerated and these incidents we have seen happen at public (shoving, tackling, saying curse words, race related taunts) simply do not happen. I am a minority, non-Catholic moderate liberal and did not imagine a Catholic school would be more accepting than a public school in a middle / upper middle class, educated area. I do not recognize the current public school system. Born and raised in a lower-middle liberal public school district and I do not understand what's going on today with teacher education, edtech, SEL, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Social/emotional learning, SEL for short, is blocked in so school can say they are inclusive. Topics include bullying, divorce, two parent or multiple parent families, same sex relationships, body image, and other topics. Mine spent an hour or two each week learning about these yet school did nothing to address bullying. We put kid in a Catholic school that says bullying isn't tolerated and these incidents we have seen happen at public (shoving, tackling, saying curse words, race related taunts) simply do not happen. I am a minority, non-Catholic moderate liberal and did not imagine a Catholic school would be more accepting than a public school in a middle / upper middle class, educated area. I do not recognize the current public school system. Born and raised in a lower-middle liberal public school district and I do not understand what's going on today with teacher education, edtech, SEL, etc.

Oh I forgot to mention that SEL takes the place of blocks that used to be science and geography. As far as I can tell, the kids in our public learn Reading and Math only as core subjects. They they sprinkle in SEL, PE, Spanish, Music, and lots of apps and movies. I give them credit for the Spanish and music, but what happened to the other subjects? I would say English spelling/grammar, geography/history/civics, science/lab should still be included.