Reply #79: Children need more than some families provide and schools could [View All]

[SharonAnn]

provide some of it. If they did, it would cost more than we currently spend.

In poor areas, children may not have enough to eat. They may not get enough sleep (irregular family hours, no heating or air conditioning, insufficient beds, etc.) They may not be supervised after school. They may not have a place to do their homework and encouragement to do it. They may have no "educational" interaction with their family: talking with them, reading to them or being read to, educational and recreational outings, etc.

When a child shows up hungry, tired, inadequately clothes, insecure, unparented, stressed and even homeless, we are expecting schools to teach according to the old way in spite of these problems. And then we blame it on the schools if the child doesn't succeed.

And we even have hcildren from affluent families who are well fed but ill-taught at home. They are sometimes disdainful of rules, misbehave badly and parents try to protect them, bully others and escape consequences for their actions. And then we blame it on the schools if the hcild doesn't succeed.

It's like Andy Rooney said a few years ago about the situation. "We don't need better schools, we need better parents."

But until we have better parents, as a society we have to decide if it's in our benefit to help the hcildren. If it is, then we should provide what children need, even if it's through the schools.