My daughter wouldn't pick up a pencil to write anything (barely even her name) until she was about 10 years old. She hated writing. She got caught up in the misspelled words or word choice--the minutia. She couldn't see the big picture. Now, at 13, she is quite a prolific writer. She writes pages and pages. The change did not occur because I gave her writing assignments or forced her to write. It was serendipity--the right thing at the right time.
In April of last year, she attended a writing workshop (at my request) held by a dear woman who is gentle, yet firm. Some kids respond to her methods, some don't. My daughter responded--big time. I can point to that workshop as the day she became "a writer." She continues to attend these monthly writing workshops. They are stand-alone workshops with a rare optional assignment given. Today, my daughter's written stories are full of wonderfully descriptive words (many still misspelled), loads of detail and characters with personality. The amount of time she spends on writing ebbs and flows, but I do not give her any direction or "assignments." I am merely a consumer of her writing. I listen when she asks and give ideas when she asks.
She had a similar experience with reading. She did not really read until she was 9. The more I pushed, the more she pushed back. The day she said, "I hate reading," I pulled back. Then, on her 9th birthday, someone gave her a book that she liked and read. From that point on, she considered herself "a reader" and she enjoyed it. Now, she is always reading several books at once and loves to read. It was again, the right thing at the right time.
In school, kids are not allowed the luxury to wait for the "right thing at the right time." If they are not progressing at the normal/approved rate, they are labeled and everyone starts working on a "plan" to get them up to "grade level." Of course, this approach alerts the child to the fact that they are not progressing "on schedule" and there is something wrong with them or they are not smart enough.
I know that some kids have real learning struggles and I am not dismissing those that need special help in crossing hurdles. However, I do think that people are individuals and have different schedules for when they "get" things. Will it hinder my daughter in her life that she became a reader at 9, rather than 6? It doesn't seem so. However, would it have hindered her life if she had been surrounded by people telling her that she was "slow" or people who kept pushing her every day to read when she wasn't ready--making her feel dumb? I think so.
All the pushing in the world does not make the "right time" come any sooner. If kids are allowed to blossom at their own rate, I feel they will have the self-confidence they need to be successful.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Closing schools and getting rid of "bad" teachers
I read yet another article about school reform that was about closing schools and getting rid of "bad" teachers. This seems to be a trend and mantra in the current wave of education "reform." Both of these strategies seem very flawed to me. I'll address "closing schools" in this post.
Why are we closing schools? Doesn't that mean kids will have to travel farther from home to go to school? I doubt they are closing the wealthy, high-performing schools, so most of the kids affected are probably from neighborhoods with "poorly performing" schools, ie poor neighborhoods. There seem to me many reasons to put our resources toward ensuring all kids have a quality school within walking distance of their house.
1) Family Time
With family time dwindling, shouldn't we be finding ways to give families more time together? Increasing a child's commute to school does not do this. Kids must get up earlier (which makes them even more sleep deprived than they already are) and endure long bus rides to and from school (up to 3 hours a day, I've heard!). The school already chips away at family time by filling evenings with homework. When is a family supposed to just hang out together? To have that "quality" family time, you must first have some "quantity." If kids lived within a short walk to school, they could even go home for lunch--like they used to in the past (and like they still do in some European countries).
2) The Environment
Aren't we trying to decrease greenhouse gases? Why are we increasing the need for buses and cars to get kids to school? I have personally witnessed long lines of idling cars on a cold day waiting 15-30 minutes to pick up kids from school.
3) The Cost
That gas isn't cheap and running the extensive system of school buses isn't either.
4) Neighborhood Cohesion
With no school in the neighborhood, or most kids "choicing out," kids don't go to school with their neighbors. This means families in the same neighborhood might be less likely to know and interact with each other (playing after school, attending school functions, etc.). Neighborhood cohesion can affect all sorts of "indicators" for a health community: crime and safety, neighbors helping neighbors, goods and services in the neighborhood, etc.
5) Parental Involvement in Schools
"Parental involvement" is always mentioned as an indicator for school success. It seems to me that the farther a school is from a family's home, the more difficult it would be to get the parents "involved."
6) Children's Health
This seems like a no-brainer to me. Isn't it healthier for kids to walk 10-30 minutes to school instead of riding a bus for 1 1/2 hours? Please, First Lady Obama, see the connection and work for strong neighborhood schools to combat childhood obesity!
7) The Next Step
Hopefully, the next step is changing the way school is "done." Keeping kids in the neighborhood, I believe, is a good first step. Allowing principals, teachers and parents to work together to create the school that is right for their neighborhood is what, I hope, will follow.
I'll talk about those "bad" teachers later.
Why are we closing schools? Doesn't that mean kids will have to travel farther from home to go to school? I doubt they are closing the wealthy, high-performing schools, so most of the kids affected are probably from neighborhoods with "poorly performing" schools, ie poor neighborhoods. There seem to me many reasons to put our resources toward ensuring all kids have a quality school within walking distance of their house.
1) Family Time
With family time dwindling, shouldn't we be finding ways to give families more time together? Increasing a child's commute to school does not do this. Kids must get up earlier (which makes them even more sleep deprived than they already are) and endure long bus rides to and from school (up to 3 hours a day, I've heard!). The school already chips away at family time by filling evenings with homework. When is a family supposed to just hang out together? To have that "quality" family time, you must first have some "quantity." If kids lived within a short walk to school, they could even go home for lunch--like they used to in the past (and like they still do in some European countries).
2) The Environment
Aren't we trying to decrease greenhouse gases? Why are we increasing the need for buses and cars to get kids to school? I have personally witnessed long lines of idling cars on a cold day waiting 15-30 minutes to pick up kids from school.
3) The Cost
That gas isn't cheap and running the extensive system of school buses isn't either.
4) Neighborhood Cohesion
With no school in the neighborhood, or most kids "choicing out," kids don't go to school with their neighbors. This means families in the same neighborhood might be less likely to know and interact with each other (playing after school, attending school functions, etc.). Neighborhood cohesion can affect all sorts of "indicators" for a health community: crime and safety, neighbors helping neighbors, goods and services in the neighborhood, etc.
5) Parental Involvement in Schools
"Parental involvement" is always mentioned as an indicator for school success. It seems to me that the farther a school is from a family's home, the more difficult it would be to get the parents "involved."
6) Children's Health
This seems like a no-brainer to me. Isn't it healthier for kids to walk 10-30 minutes to school instead of riding a bus for 1 1/2 hours? Please, First Lady Obama, see the connection and work for strong neighborhood schools to combat childhood obesity!
7) The Next Step
Hopefully, the next step is changing the way school is "done." Keeping kids in the neighborhood, I believe, is a good first step. Allowing principals, teachers and parents to work together to create the school that is right for their neighborhood is what, I hope, will follow.
I'll talk about those "bad" teachers later.
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