what if your kids' private school went broke?
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jrjo
Gone Fishin
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Location: Lake Wobegon, MN
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 Posted: 02/26/04 - 11:02 Post subject:
There is also a small religious school here in Wobegon that has tuition of $1500/yr for elementary... no state or church money, just run on tuition.
I know school administrators are in a rut because of the "establishment" they've created. But really, not to use a cliche', but we gotta think outside the box.
I got an earful from a buddy of mine about his wonderful school district outside of St Paul. It's an amazing school because each and every classroom has 4-5 parents in it constantly. It is nearly a cross between public and homeschooling.
Having 'volunteers' involved in education?! Ya know, I think that's the answer. Economists say that nearly half of working families 'theoretically' don't need to be double incomes. If more people really put their money where their mouth was and cared about education, they'd do like this buddy's school of mine did and move to part-time jobs and get into the schools and help solve the problem.
I'm a big believer in much of whatsamatter isn't solved by money.. it's solved by time. A lot of people's time. 
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Gogirlgo
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 12:04 Post subject:
Private schools here are about $12,000 a year. For kindergarten. 
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thegman
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 12:19 Post subject:
We considered putting our boys in the private school where we went to church. During our research on the programs, I interviewed with the head of school, and specifically asked about the financial stability of the school since it operated under a separate set of books from the church. I was assured it was in fine shape, because it operated using tuition and commitments from the parish.
We were in the process of completing the applications when our rector retired. Within weeks it was discovered that the financial condition of the parish was not what it appeared, and the church did not have the revenue to honor its commitment to the school. A plea for $175,000 was issued to the parishoners to keep the school open.
The school closed.
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elkid
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 12:32 Post subject:
| jrjo wrote: | | Having 'volunteers' involved in education?! Ya know, I think that's the answer. |
Unless said 'volunteers' were schooled on how to educate, I couldn't disagree more. Today's teachers needed special schooling and testing to get to be teachers. I'm going through this process and it's very tedious - after getting a BA with a double major + 27 master's credits, when I started this program I was still looking at another 48 classroom credits across multiple disciplines and another 6 through student teaching. This on top of a minimum of 4 standardized national tests.
Just because a person know a subject does not mean s/he can, or is qualified, to teach it. Surely everyone has attended a seminar, meeting, or training class that clearly demonstrated this. Instead that person does a greater disservice to children - not only did they learn something wrong or poorly, but they now they have to unlearn it to relearn it. This is my problem with the homeschool programs that lack certified helpers, the ones where parents (who have not been taught how to teach) think they can do a better job than those who have been certified to teach and do it all themselves. What a terrifying concept, particularly when looking at the geographical regions where this "teaching methodology" is prevalent. I'm not saying that public education is even close to where it should be, but when you take away standardization of ability, mandated continuing education, and certification, you're undermining the very system you set out to overhaul.
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Cappy
Excelent
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:30 Post subject:
| elkid wrote: | | Just because a person know a subject does not mean s/he can, or is qualified, to teach it. |
and just because a teacher is certified doesn't mean they can teach.
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elkid
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:32 Post subject:
| Cappy wrote: | | elkid wrote: | | Just because a person know a subject does not mean s/he can, or is qualified, to teach it. |
and just because a teacher is certified doesn't mean they can teach. |
Very true. But at least they went through a process that tried to qualify that ability. Hence student teaching. If a person can't teach, it should be picked up there and they should not receive their certificate.
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ShannonG
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:33 Post subject:
Indeed, knowing the curriculum when it comes to educating children isn't enough. I have long held that you 'either have it or you don't' when it comes to working with children, and that includes educating them. It's an intangible, a sense of your own inner child that enables you to relate to them and make things real that may be foreign.
Up here too many people are going into teaching because it's good money with good benefits. They have no 'feel' for it.
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Noley
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:42 Post subject:
| ShannonG wrote: |
Up here too many people are going into teaching because it's good money with good benefits. They have no 'feel' for it. |
That's too bad really. 
It doesn't help the kids.
I went into teaching to make a difference in children's lives and to educate them to reach their highest potential in learning. I never went into it thinking I would rake in the money. I had many try to discourage me from teaching because of the money.
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Pug
The Movie Geek
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:43 Post subject:
| ShannonG wrote: | .
Up here too many people are going into teaching because it's good money with good benefits. They have no 'feel' for it. |
Wow. In my area (and from newsreports) many people are not going into teaching because it is poor money with poor benefits.
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jrjo
Gone Fishin
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:43 Post subject:
I live in a community with one of the best pubilc school districts in the state. Minnesota is known for always topping the test scores nationally academically, so that says something. But you know what? I can tell you that in the past two years, every parent I've talked to in this district and others wherever I go (with the exception of my above mentioned buddy) use my homeschooling topic as an opening to gripe, moan and groan about the public education their students are receiving.
Elkid, you have on numerous occasions talked about what numbskulls you are going to school with. There's been nothing but story after story. And NOW you're telling me these fellow students of yours are going through some stringent testing and qualifying making them immeasurably more qualified? C'mon. I'm not going to put down teaching, but as a parent, I'm a 24/7 "teacher" and if teaching is indeed your calling, the first rule you're going to have to learn is "the parent is always right".
/rant
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elkid
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 13:53 Post subject:
| jrjo wrote: | | Elkid, you have on numerous occasions talked about what numbskulls you are going to school with. There's been nothing but story after story. And NOW you're telling me these fellow students of yours are going through some stringent testing and qualifying making them immeasurably more qualified? |
I never said that the people I'm going to school with are going to become teachers; in fact, most of them are not. That's yet another assumption you made. I'm taking "fill in the gap" classes at multiple learning institutions to get the classes I need to get my certificate. As such, I'm taking undergraduate and graduate courses where most people are simply pursuing BAs and MSs. That said, yes, a lot of them are numbskells. But so is a large portion of society at large.
| Quote: | | the first rule you're going to have to learn is "the parent is always right". |
From an educational perspective, no.
But socially in a parent's mind, yes. Yet when I look at kids today v. those of 10, 20, 30 years ago and I see an increasing lack of respect, discipline, control, and integrity, you gotta look to parents "teaching 24/7" and think WTF is going on here? Add to this the denigration of the American Family Unit as a whole and we've got serious problems. This is why I'm amazed, shocked, and awed to see a well-behaved, polite child. So few, so far between.
And btw, high district test scores do not mean that your district is well-educated. It just means they take tests better.
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Cappy
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 14:04 Post subject:
While I don't necessarily agree with the homeschooling process per se, I do think that as a parent, we have the right to educate our children how we see fit.
A parent is the best teacher around.
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coachmarkos
my boys could swim
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Posted: 02/26/04 - 14:10 Post subject:
| Cappy wrote: | While I don't necessarily agree with the homeschooling process per se, I do think that as a parent, we have the right to educate our children how we see fit.
A parent is the best teacher around. |
If I've said it a hundred times, I've said it a thousand. To each his own. For those who feel it's right, more power to you.
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