(Mom, thanks for the tip!)
In the Trenton Times: Fighting School Daze.
A couple of quotes:
"I truly believe that most schools are police states," Glazer said. "They are the only places in the world where you need a pass to pee."
"I don't believe that every first-grader should learn about the stars and the planets or every second-grader about volcanoes and Brazil," Glazer said. "I believe they need to pick their own content area and even if there is a list of requirements, children should have choices."
People wonder why kids become "rebellious" when they get into their teenage years. Nobody ever gets to the core of the problem, though, which is that a teenager is rebellious by definition just for attempting to exercise any level of autonomy. See: hall passes for going to the bathroom. It starts when they're in kindergarten, and it doesn't stop until they graduate high school. By the time they start trying to think for themselves, they're fed up with being pushed around by "adults" who claim to have their best interests in mind. I guess that's where ritalin comes in.
ReplyDeleteI agree about the pacing issue as well. I've never been able to understand the idea that everyone should learn everything at the same time and at the same pace. When we push everyone along at the same pace, half the kids will be bored because it's too easy, and half the kids will be frustrated because they'll be left behind. Nobody wins. That is, unless we dumb down the content. Then everyone's bored -- which is apparently better for self-esteem than frustration. Once again, though, nobody wins.
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ReplyDeletePsychMom says:
ReplyDeleteI want to read that book. I looked on Amazon...not there yet..
I totally agree, Stoz. The idea that rebelliousness and alienation are natural phases that all teenagers go through just serves to relieve us of any responsibility for creating the conditions that alienate people and make them rebel.
ReplyDeletePsychMom adds:
ReplyDeleteIt also gives parents excuses for not trying to bridge the gap and try to get closer to their teen. Parents often come down very hard on their teens simply because they're acting like teenagers, that is, confused, overwhelmed, unsure, tired, etc...
When those same kids were 5 and they had meltdowns, parents could easily understand fatigue and low blood sugar. But suddenly when their kids are 15, the kids are being "rebellious".