I have friends who work with their kids all the time, and naturally they are high achievers. I have my own time/resources limitations right now, so there’s only so much I can do….That’s the fact of life…There’s no such thing as an even playing field…deal with it…
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flu,
French recognize this injustice and are working to level the playing field between parents who work with their children and parents who don’t 🙂
He doesn’t think it is fair that some kids get help from their parents at home while children who come from disadvantaged families don’t. It’s an issue that goes well beyond France, and has been part of the reason that some Americans oppose homework too.[/quote]
I think MS and HS students today get way too much homework. Especially if enrolled in AP classes. And they get a ridiculous amount of “busy work” if enrolled in an IB program (on top of their AP classes). Of course, the AP grades are worth one point more when these students’ GPA is calculated for college entrance purposes and the successful IB program graduates get guaranteed admission to a CSU campus (space available). Those are the only reasons these kids are going thru this h@ll, IMHO. They don’t even have time to watch their favorite TV show which was recorded 1-3 weeks ago!
If CA universities weren’t accepting so many foreign students with perfect grades (they’re broke so desperately need the out-of-state tuition), I don’t think it would be so ridiculously competitive to obtain admission to these schools. It’s even getting hard at SDSU for “locals” with a 3.5+ GPA to be admitted!
I don’t agree that “disadvantaged families” are unable to help with homework. If “disadvantaged” means one or both parents are unemployed, this gives the unemployed parent(s) more time to help their children with homework. I know “unemployed” parents who have college degrees and who would be much more financially well-off if they were actually employed FT but choose to stay home to be with their kids after school (or have not been able to find another job after losing one). The ability of a parent to “help with homework” has nothing to do with being “disadvantaged.” The CA A-G HS requirements for graduation today are such that if the parent hasn’t graduated from HS or college recently (in the last ~15 yrs or so), they can’t possibly help with most or all of it. That “unqualified” parent may be making GREAT money doing what they do best!
I’m a parent of a HS student. I realize this is a “subjective” remark here but I consider myself “reasonably intelligent” :=0. I wouldn’t be considered “disadvantaged” by anyone standards. I can help with English grammar, composition and Spanish. My kid’s dad (with 4 to 7x my income, depending) can help with Spanish. That’s it! Everything else is better left to the pros. Having attended HS ~40 years ago ourselves, how could we possibly understand the subject matter taught today in HS? The truth is we don’t. That’s why we have teachers and tutors.
Why should old parent-dogs try to learn new tricks at this late date when their old way has served them very well all of their lives? Doesn’t everybody already have enough to do?
I see public schoolteachers slammed on this site and others but there is a LOT to the job. Have you ever seen a HS math teacher fill three 12′ long whiteboards in 15 minutes and talk at the same time with their other hand behind their back holding a pointer? Are the Piggs coordinated enough to do this??
