Whose Job is it to Educate My Child?

Whose job is it to educate my child?

MINE.

It has always been my job to educate my children. In the old days we parents had to educate our child in every way, all by ourselves.

Then in more recent times, the government gave the people a Free Appropriate Public Education which aided the parent in educating the child.

The purpose of the public education was to assist the parent in doing their job of educating their children, period.

However, just as all things in modern society… We the people thought we could put our job off on someone else. In this case the public school system.

We expect the public school to teach much more than academics to the children now. Schools must teach manners, respect, personal hygiene, nutrition, good sportsmanship, how to behave in public, etc.

The problem is that over the years we as parents have dumped all responsibility of educating our children on the public school system… and that really is a big problem as the public school system cannot handle/teach all the life skills that should be taught as well as the academic skills that were originally intended for the schools to teach.

If you work in the public school system, you hear a whole lot of complaining these days, about how the public school system has let their child down. The reality of it for those complainers is they let their own children down.

I am a grandparent, a teacher, and a counselor. I can guarantee you, if my daughter gripes about her child’s teacher or her school not doing their job year, after year, after year… I am going to tell her if she doesn’t like the results she needs to do something about changing the way she helps her child learn. A child will not receive bad teachers every year, and if you think they are you need to look at yourself; instead of passing the buck and blaming others.

Normal, healthy children, and on their correct grade level will learn no matter how great or how terrible you think a teacher may be. They are like sponges and will soak up everything.

However, if your child is not learning it is your job as the parents to notice and find out what you can do to help your child. Maybe s/he has a learning disability, or is not on her correct grade level.

Do the teachers try every year to retain him; you refuse saying it will hurt his feelings? Maybe you put him in school too early and his maturity is not where it should be academically. (There is a difference between academic immaturity and social immaturity; at times they do coincide with one another).

When your child is taking four hours every night to complete homework that his classmates finished in class, what are you doing? Do you sit with her/him and assist with the work and encourage them along, or are you off in the kitchen cooking supper, doing dishes, playing on the computer, and talking on the phone?

If I don’t have time and energy to help by sitting with my child or grandchild and figuring out the problem, then I will hire a tutor to aid in his/her studies. The tutor will give one-on-one attention and will see very quickly what someone trying to work with thirty can’t see immediately.

Chances are if your child can’t keep up they are in the wrong grade level, have attention problems or special needs that need addressed. Once the problem is discovered you can have some choices in solving the problem.

The person who gossips and complains to friends, co-workers, and family about how bad the teachers are, or how bad a school is will not solve the problem by “bad mouthing.” As always if you are not part of the solution, then you are part of the problem.

Look at your life. Do both parents need to work to make ends meet; maybe you just have “wants?” Do the children really need cheerleading, girl scouts, football, and baseball… so you can’t afford a tutor? I guess we just have to weigh out our priorities.

Public School has never been the “do all right system,” and never will be. When I was a child my mother always supplemented our education making sure we were getting a well rounded education as she knew if we weren’t educated right she only had herself to blame.

Most teachers I know will be glad to assist you, if you are trying on your end. They will love your positive communication, and will welcome you in the classroom to help.

The key words here are the following: The public school system is offered to assist the parent in educating their child. After all who is really supposed to know your child if not you?