![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
And another disturbing/sickening letter to the editor
I don't know why I even bother reading comms anymore, they depress me too often.
First of all, let me say that I did not vote for George W. Bush and his "No Child Left Behind" garbage. I am not even sure if the original intent was what it has turned into.
Neither did I. I'll put my penny into the "Bush's idea is stupid" jar.
He said that every child was supposed to be able to read and write by the third grade, but if you have a normal child that needs tutoring in either of those subjects, you are not eligible under that law until you're in the third grade.
Notice the word normal.
So if your child needs help, you better get a private tutor.
I'll agree, the situation sucks. But let's go on.
The thing that has me really mad and disgusted with what is going on in our schools is like what Ross Perot said when he was running for president: "There is too much money being spent on mentally and physically challenged kids, and not enough being spent on gifted kids. The challenged kids will never contribute anything and the gifted kids will be our future leaders."
Perot was an idiot. First off, lumping physical and mental disabilities together is stupid. Secondly, this is one of the more hateful things I've ever read. And stupid, on all counts. Did I say stupid enough times yet? Stupid!
I agree with what he said totally. The parents of these kids are going to the schools and telling the administration that they want these kids in school and in classes with normal kids.
Because they know their kids aren't being properly educated in the special ed classes, and that they can do more work than they've been expected. These parents know their kids better than you do.
Well, here we go. As if teachers do not have enough on their plates with 20-30 students in a room. Now we have "inclusion" kids and God knows how many aides.
And the aides are harmful how, exactly? I'll agree that the class sizes are too large, but they aren't being expanded just because the definition of a class is changing.
No wonder our teachers have a tough time trying to teach.
Well, they certainly won't teach well if they bring your idiotic ideas into the classroom.
This is nothing more than glorified babysitting for the parents and an expense for property taxpayers.
Riiiiight. This reminds me of something, I'll get to it later.
These vans and drivers are paid with our tax dollars. The bus company must be paid and what has the child learned? Nothing. Not today or any other day.
Well, *your* kid has learned to be a little less prejudiced. Bet you don't like that. And the kids in wheelchairs have learned how to read, or do math, or whatever else they teach in elementary school. And the autistic kids have no doubt learned the same, and... well, I'm not going on like this, it gets tedious.
By the way, these kids do not have to be in school. They are there because the parent or guardian has asked that they be taken to school. They have a free babysitter so they can do what they want for the day.
These kids *do* have to be in school. THAT IS WHERE CHILDREN BELONG. In school, or in a homeschool program. Schools do function largely as babysitter/prisons, but that's the same for your kid as well.
If they work full or part time, they don't pay for child care.
And why should they? Even if we were to accept your ludicrious idea that these parents shouldn't expect anything of their kids (apparently, you don't get out much), they still shouldn't have to pay for childcare during the day when other parents don't have to.
Most people that work have to pay for child care and babysitting out of their paycheck, plus travel to work.
Not for eight hours out of the day, when they send their kids to school. D'oh!
Our tax millage keeps going up and I've just stated some of the reasons.
Yeah, people don't want their kids educated. Or something.
There are some families that have a hard time making ends meet today and paying property taxes, and yet money is being spent in our schools on "inclusion" because the parents don't want their kids to be different.
Or possibly because they want their kids to get a decent education. Hm... Anyway, isn't inclusion cheaper than building separate schools and whatnot?
Well, let's face it, they are different and the average child is suffering because of it.
Really? Man, I *so* want to talk about Stuy right now, but that'll wait until the end. Hold on...
I believe if enough people agree with me, and I think they are out there, then we can make a difference if we get after our legislators. That's the first step.
Oh great.
I think that teachers who have a degree from IUP are some of the best and brightest, but a teacher can only do so much under certain circumstances I call "educational obstacles."
You call it that, because if you said what you thought you'd be outing yourself as a bigot.
The real educational obstacles, of course, are lack of funds. And that's because taxes don't go towards the school, they go towards the military.
If you want to know how teachers feel about what is going on in our schools, ask them. You will be amazed at what they will tell you.
They'll probably tell you just what I said.
This No Child Left Behind is a disaster. The majority of schools do not have a gifted program. The reason is "no money."
Listen. I was in gifted programs. My whole life. My limited experience with non-Gifted programs was that the kids in those programs continually get shafted. They get worse materials, worse teachers, and larger classes. And even if they do well, they can't get into the gifted classes, which are filled with people whose parents have money to spend on tutors to put their kids there, or parents who can pull in political favors. Kids suffer more from not being in a gifted program in a school where they exist than from being in an "inclusion class".
Every child is precious, but let's not try to make them into something they are not. And by the way, I happen to have teachers in my family, so I know whereof I speak.
No you don't. Unless your family is made up of more idiots like you.
Right, I was going to talk about Mattvey. Or Matvey, I can never remember how to spell his name. He was at Stuy with me. He had CP, or something. Elevator pass, unclear speech, couldn't write, the whole thing. The one time I did a project with other people in my class (including Mattvey), one of the parents, while driving me to the train station, asked "whose brother is he?" and then got upset when we tried to tell him that, no, Mattvey was in our class. He never actually said why he was upset, but it was clear he'd made his snap judgment from Mattvey's speech that Mattvey was retarded. And therefore couldn't be at Stuy.
And the OTHER thing I was going to say about Stuy is that that school warped your mind. I remember listening to people insult the students at BMCC, next door to us (because it's not a *real* college), I remember somebody in my drafting class dressing up as white trash for Halloween (pillow in the stomach, beer can, "bun in the oven" shirt, unlit cigarette), I remember snide jokes about Brooklyn Tech. The fact is, we were horrible snots and there was a real superiority complex hanging around most of the people in that school. Forget the education, that's exactly the attitude hanging around this woman (who, of course, believes her kids belong in the gifted class), and it makes me sick.
Edit: I forgot to say this. My sister used to work in a very Jewish neighborhood. We got a cat, Shabbos, from that neighborhood. I'm still miffed at Shabbos. That cat wet the bed and made all the other cats sick. Anyway, moving on, Jenn worked with a woman, Aviva, who had adopted two girls with Downs syndrome.
And the older one could read. English and Hebrew. I couldn't read two languages at eight, but she could.
So shut the fuck up about "not learning anything", you bitch.
I'd put that in the right place, inside the cut, but I don't want to read that garbage again.
First of all, let me say that I did not vote for George W. Bush and his "No Child Left Behind" garbage. I am not even sure if the original intent was what it has turned into.
Neither did I. I'll put my penny into the "Bush's idea is stupid" jar.
He said that every child was supposed to be able to read and write by the third grade, but if you have a normal child that needs tutoring in either of those subjects, you are not eligible under that law until you're in the third grade.
Notice the word normal.
So if your child needs help, you better get a private tutor.
I'll agree, the situation sucks. But let's go on.
The thing that has me really mad and disgusted with what is going on in our schools is like what Ross Perot said when he was running for president: "There is too much money being spent on mentally and physically challenged kids, and not enough being spent on gifted kids. The challenged kids will never contribute anything and the gifted kids will be our future leaders."
Perot was an idiot. First off, lumping physical and mental disabilities together is stupid. Secondly, this is one of the more hateful things I've ever read. And stupid, on all counts. Did I say stupid enough times yet? Stupid!
I agree with what he said totally. The parents of these kids are going to the schools and telling the administration that they want these kids in school and in classes with normal kids.
Because they know their kids aren't being properly educated in the special ed classes, and that they can do more work than they've been expected. These parents know their kids better than you do.
Well, here we go. As if teachers do not have enough on their plates with 20-30 students in a room. Now we have "inclusion" kids and God knows how many aides.
And the aides are harmful how, exactly? I'll agree that the class sizes are too large, but they aren't being expanded just because the definition of a class is changing.
No wonder our teachers have a tough time trying to teach.
Well, they certainly won't teach well if they bring your idiotic ideas into the classroom.
This is nothing more than glorified babysitting for the parents and an expense for property taxpayers.
Riiiiight. This reminds me of something, I'll get to it later.
These vans and drivers are paid with our tax dollars. The bus company must be paid and what has the child learned? Nothing. Not today or any other day.
Well, *your* kid has learned to be a little less prejudiced. Bet you don't like that. And the kids in wheelchairs have learned how to read, or do math, or whatever else they teach in elementary school. And the autistic kids have no doubt learned the same, and... well, I'm not going on like this, it gets tedious.
By the way, these kids do not have to be in school. They are there because the parent or guardian has asked that they be taken to school. They have a free babysitter so they can do what they want for the day.
These kids *do* have to be in school. THAT IS WHERE CHILDREN BELONG. In school, or in a homeschool program. Schools do function largely as babysitter/prisons, but that's the same for your kid as well.
If they work full or part time, they don't pay for child care.
And why should they? Even if we were to accept your ludicrious idea that these parents shouldn't expect anything of their kids (apparently, you don't get out much), they still shouldn't have to pay for childcare during the day when other parents don't have to.
Most people that work have to pay for child care and babysitting out of their paycheck, plus travel to work.
Not for eight hours out of the day, when they send their kids to school. D'oh!
Our tax millage keeps going up and I've just stated some of the reasons.
Yeah, people don't want their kids educated. Or something.
There are some families that have a hard time making ends meet today and paying property taxes, and yet money is being spent in our schools on "inclusion" because the parents don't want their kids to be different.
Or possibly because they want their kids to get a decent education. Hm... Anyway, isn't inclusion cheaper than building separate schools and whatnot?
Well, let's face it, they are different and the average child is suffering because of it.
Really? Man, I *so* want to talk about Stuy right now, but that'll wait until the end. Hold on...
I believe if enough people agree with me, and I think they are out there, then we can make a difference if we get after our legislators. That's the first step.
Oh great.
I think that teachers who have a degree from IUP are some of the best and brightest, but a teacher can only do so much under certain circumstances I call "educational obstacles."
You call it that, because if you said what you thought you'd be outing yourself as a bigot.
The real educational obstacles, of course, are lack of funds. And that's because taxes don't go towards the school, they go towards the military.
If you want to know how teachers feel about what is going on in our schools, ask them. You will be amazed at what they will tell you.
They'll probably tell you just what I said.
This No Child Left Behind is a disaster. The majority of schools do not have a gifted program. The reason is "no money."
Listen. I was in gifted programs. My whole life. My limited experience with non-Gifted programs was that the kids in those programs continually get shafted. They get worse materials, worse teachers, and larger classes. And even if they do well, they can't get into the gifted classes, which are filled with people whose parents have money to spend on tutors to put their kids there, or parents who can pull in political favors. Kids suffer more from not being in a gifted program in a school where they exist than from being in an "inclusion class".
Every child is precious, but let's not try to make them into something they are not. And by the way, I happen to have teachers in my family, so I know whereof I speak.
No you don't. Unless your family is made up of more idiots like you.
Right, I was going to talk about Mattvey. Or Matvey, I can never remember how to spell his name. He was at Stuy with me. He had CP, or something. Elevator pass, unclear speech, couldn't write, the whole thing. The one time I did a project with other people in my class (including Mattvey), one of the parents, while driving me to the train station, asked "whose brother is he?" and then got upset when we tried to tell him that, no, Mattvey was in our class. He never actually said why he was upset, but it was clear he'd made his snap judgment from Mattvey's speech that Mattvey was retarded. And therefore couldn't be at Stuy.
And the OTHER thing I was going to say about Stuy is that that school warped your mind. I remember listening to people insult the students at BMCC, next door to us (because it's not a *real* college), I remember somebody in my drafting class dressing up as white trash for Halloween (pillow in the stomach, beer can, "bun in the oven" shirt, unlit cigarette), I remember snide jokes about Brooklyn Tech. The fact is, we were horrible snots and there was a real superiority complex hanging around most of the people in that school. Forget the education, that's exactly the attitude hanging around this woman (who, of course, believes her kids belong in the gifted class), and it makes me sick.
Edit: I forgot to say this. My sister used to work in a very Jewish neighborhood. We got a cat, Shabbos, from that neighborhood. I'm still miffed at Shabbos. That cat wet the bed and made all the other cats sick. Anyway, moving on, Jenn worked with a woman, Aviva, who had adopted two girls with Downs syndrome.
And the older one could read. English and Hebrew. I couldn't read two languages at eight, but she could.
So shut the fuck up about "not learning anything", you bitch.
I'd put that in the right place, inside the cut, but I don't want to read that garbage again.
no subject
So, the inclusion kids she's kicking out are things like:
kids with ADD/ADHD who need an aide to keep them on task
blind/deaf kids who need Braille/ASL translator or other accomodations
kids in wheel chairs etc.
kids with cognitive disabilities such as dyslexia (and many others) that need work ina different format or more time or whatnot
Yes, it takes more work to teach in a diverse class and learn how to make accomodations, but the correct solution is not to kick the kids out, but to decrease class size and better educate teachers. Duh.
I was tracked in gifted programs throughout almost all of my education, but my parents didn't get my private tutors or even assist me with my homework or check to see whether I did it. I just got in because I was smart.
But anyhow, I do agree that there are serious problems, and the problems are not inclusion.
And for kids who have severe learning disabilities like mental retardation, well, it depends on the degree.. but if it's serious, they'll often be in other classes. My high school had a Life Skills program for people with serious disabilities (I know one student had Down's syndrom, not sure about the others). They learned very basic skills like table manners, dressing themselves, etc. but they also were able to be in the school play and participate in some of the other benefits of a large school. And it seemed to work well. And even though the curriculum was different, they were still getting an education.
no subject
no subject
And yes, NCLB is crap. Total, utter crap.
But anyhow, a "normal" kid can read before third grade. So, face it, your kid is abnormal in some way. It may not be a bad thing. It may be an easy to deal with abnormality. But your kid is abnormal... and may just possibly be better off with an IEP and a "special ed" label.
no subject
If the education is decent. Let's allow for some schools having really shitty teaching methods.
no subject
Yes, with a bad enough school most kids won't learn to read at all. But a lot of them will learn with no particular help. And many will learn with just a little parental assistance. I had trouble learning to read, so I needed a good teacher. But a lot of kids don't. So, well... the average kid in a more or less adequate school is going to be reading in third grade. Maybe not as well as you want, but reading.
Really, a lot of it is motivation for a lot of kids. And that's more up to the parents anyhow. What got my nephew to make a huge leap in reading ability was wanting to be able to play with Yu-gi-oh (sp?) cards. Then *poof* he started to be a good reader.
But obviously some kids are going to have real obstacles, attention issues, dyslexia, even uncorrected vision problems, and they need to be caught and helped. But stigmatizing helping the "different" kids won't get any extra help for her claimed to be "normal" kid.
no subject
no subject
If a child can't read by third grade, absent a learning disability on the child's part, it's squarely the fault of the parents for not teaching the child. I could read before first grade because my grandfather sat me on his lap and read anything in reach to me: kids books, adult books, funny pages, Reader's Digest, VFW magazines ... and he had me follow along instead of expecting me to sit passively.
no subject
So, the inclusion kids she's kicking out are things like:
kids with ADD/ADHD who need an aide to keep them on task
blind/deaf kids who need Braille/ASL translator or other accomodations
kids in wheel chairs etc.
kids with cognitive disabilities such as dyslexia (and many others) that need work ina different format or more time or whatnot
Yes, it takes more work to teach in a diverse class and learn how to make accomodations, but the correct solution is not to kick the kids out, but to decrease class size and better educate teachers. Duh.
I was tracked in gifted programs throughout almost all of my education, but my parents didn't get my private tutors or even assist me with my homework or check to see whether I did it. I just got in because I was smart.
But anyhow, I do agree that there are serious problems, and the problems are not inclusion.
And for kids who have severe learning disabilities like mental retardation, well, it depends on the degree.. but if it's serious, they'll often be in other classes. My high school had a Life Skills program for people with serious disabilities (I know one student had Down's syndrom, not sure about the others). They learned very basic skills like table manners, dressing themselves, etc. but they also were able to be in the school play and participate in some of the other benefits of a large school. And it seemed to work well. And even though the curriculum was different, they were still getting an education.
no subject
no subject
And yes, NCLB is crap. Total, utter crap.
But anyhow, a "normal" kid can read before third grade. So, face it, your kid is abnormal in some way. It may not be a bad thing. It may be an easy to deal with abnormality. But your kid is abnormal... and may just possibly be better off with an IEP and a "special ed" label.
no subject
If the education is decent. Let's allow for some schools having really shitty teaching methods.
no subject
Yes, with a bad enough school most kids won't learn to read at all. But a lot of them will learn with no particular help. And many will learn with just a little parental assistance. I had trouble learning to read, so I needed a good teacher. But a lot of kids don't. So, well... the average kid in a more or less adequate school is going to be reading in third grade. Maybe not as well as you want, but reading.
Really, a lot of it is motivation for a lot of kids. And that's more up to the parents anyhow. What got my nephew to make a huge leap in reading ability was wanting to be able to play with Yu-gi-oh (sp?) cards. Then *poof* he started to be a good reader.
But obviously some kids are going to have real obstacles, attention issues, dyslexia, even uncorrected vision problems, and they need to be caught and helped. But stigmatizing helping the "different" kids won't get any extra help for her claimed to be "normal" kid.
no subject
no subject
If a child can't read by third grade, absent a learning disability on the child's part, it's squarely the fault of the parents for not teaching the child. I could read before first grade because my grandfather sat me on his lap and read anything in reach to me: kids books, adult books, funny pages, Reader's Digest, VFW magazines ... and he had me follow along instead of expecting me to sit passively.