Picketing at Mechanicsville School Tommorrow

[mAlice]

I think classroom management has changed so much from when we went to school because society has changed so much.

Exactly. They've become an office supply warehouse using slave labor to move the supplies from home to school and back.

 

[cholo]

I have a question. The teachers are aware that some families will not be sending in the five bucks, or whatever amount, for whatever reason. Why do they continually subject students to humiliating situations, instead of creating a way to meet the criteria without asking for money?

Well I don't think it's a humiliating situation for the child whose parent can't or won't send in the $5. It's not like she's stopping the kids as they come in the door "Johnny, you're three months late on your payments. I'm afraid we have to withhold your snack for this week".

 

[suzeQ]

And by the way, I didn't see much humiliation from the students who never brought money in for anything. The teachers would try to make the 'free lunch' list descreet, but the students would brag about not having to pay. Many of the low income children are so used to not paying for anything, they just assumed it didn't mean them when they were reminded about fees. It's sad and I don't agree with it, but I didn't witness any humiliation over it.

 

[crabcake]

Years ago most students had a parent waiting for them when they got home from school. A very small percentage do now.

Are the teachers riding the bus home with students to wait for parents to get home?

 

[K_Jo]

I'm confused -- did kids just start having to take a bunch of supplies to school? I remember having a HUGE list of school supplies we had to bring in before the end of the first week of school every year. Everyone even had to bring in a box of tissues. That was almost 30 years ago. Didn't everyone else have to do that? Or was that just Catholic school?

 

[suzeQ]

Are the teachers riding the bus home with students to wait for parents to get home?

Sorry, but I didn't mean to imply that. I was just pointing out one way that parents 'used to' be there for the children that they aren't now.

 

[huntr1]

I'm going back on the pill.

Swallow, it's cheaper.

 

[mAlice]

But in the post you made the exact one I was replying to you were concerned with the children being continuously humiliated. I was simply presenting the "lesser of two evils".

You misunderstood my intention. I couldn't care less about their humiliation. These are the same students who's parents are sucking welfare dry and they can learn two things.

1. This is embarrassing. I will do better when I grow up.
2. I can always count on someone else to take care of me.

Someone else was concerned about taking up the slack of the kids that are neglected at home, parent's who don't send snacks or money.

 

[crabcake]

I'm confused -- did kids just start having to take a bunch of supplies to school? I remember having a HUGE list of school supplies we had to bring in before the end of the first week of school every year. Everyone even had to bring in a box of tissues. That was almost 30 years ago. Didn't everyone else have to do that? Or was that just Catholic school?

I don't remember having to do that when I was in school ... it was just the standard -- pencils, pens, notebooks, etc. I mostly used that stuff to write/pass notes to friends and love letters to my boyfriend.

 

[dems4me]

You misunderstood my intention. I couldn't care less about their humiliation. These are the same students who's parents are sucking welfare dry and they can learn two things.

1. This is embarrassing. I will do better when I grow up.
2. I can always count on someone else to take care of me.

or 3. I wish my folks would get off the booze and crack. :shrug:

 

[K_Jo]

Swallow, it's cheaper.

OMG!

 

[mAlice]

I'm confused -- did kids just start having to take a bunch of supplies to school? I remember having a HUGE list of school supplies we had to bring in before the end of the first week of school every year. Everyone even had to bring in a box of tissues. That was almost 30 years ago. Didn't everyone else have to do that? Or was that just Catholic school?

I never did it. All the way through school all I had to supply was paper and pencil, and then it was for me. I wasn't required to buy paper and turn it over to the teacher. If we had a cold, we brought our own tissues or went to the bathroom and grabbed a hand full of toilet paper. Most of the time we copied our assignments from text books that didn't leave the class room.

 

[Dymphna]

I think you missed a splot of baby poop on your sleeve there ... yea, right above your wrist.

That's brown magic marker. It came from trying to scrub the kitchen table where it soaked in.

That reminds me JJ, you out there? Did you ever get that "washable" marker off your table? If so, how? hook me up.

 

[K_Jo]

I don't remember having to do that when I was in school ... it was just the standard -- pencils, pens, notebooks, etc. I mostly used that stuff to write/pass notes to friends and love letters to my boyfriend.

My boyfriend was so dreamy. :sigh:

 

[mAlice]

or 3. I wish my folks would get off the booze and crack. :shrug:

That's what I was wishing, but it was just the booze. Look where I am today. Self sufficient.

 

[K_Jo]

I never did it. All the way through school all I had to supply was paper and pencil, and then it was for me. I wasn't required to buy paper and turn it over to the teacher. If we had a cold, we brought our own tissues or went to the bathroom and grabbed a hand full of toilet paper. Most of the time we copied our assignments from text books that didn't leave the class room.

Damn! My parents had to pay for school AND tissues??? What a crock! And I ain't no smarter than the rest of ya. And I'm a horrible Catholic!

 

[Dymphna]

They have graduated beyond the stage of getting baby poop on your clothes. Now they will even take off their stinky diapers wherever they are (so you can find it with your bare feet while carrying a load of something in your arms and can't see the floor) and run around bare (and poopy) azzed until you can tackle them and slap a clean one on there.

EEwwwww. That's just nasty and I got 'em trained better than that.

 

[crabcake]

Sorry, but I didn't mean to imply that. I was just pointing out one way that parents 'used to' be there for the children that they aren't now.

While that may be the case in many homes, that's not the cause of the changes in the school system. First off, there's crowding ... more kids per teacher than what we had as kids. Now, at my daughter's school, this doesn't seem to be a problem but it is a problem at many schools. Secondly, budgets ... schools are being forced to do more with less money and subsequently -- bodies (which causes the higher student to teacher ratio). With the smaller budgets, you have schools providing less than they used to years ago (supplies, educational "extras", etc.) ... parents are being asked, in turn, to pick up the tab. Personally, so long as my kid is getting a good education from a teacher who cares and puts forth the effort to do her job, I have no problem chipping in to help in that respect. But if I was being asked to do this while my child wasn't getting anything out of it, you bet your sweet ass I'd have a problem with it. I might as well throw my money out the car window instead.

 

[pixiegirl]

That's brown magic marker. It came from trying to scrub the kitchen table where it soaked in.

That reminds me JJ, you out there? Did you ever get that "washable" marker off your table? If so, how? hook me up.

I never did. New table.

 

[crabcake]

Damn! My parents had to pay for school AND tissues??? What a crock! And I ain't no smarter than the rest of ya. And I'm a horrible Catholic!

Nahh, private/christian schools are different. They rely on tuition and parish donations. Even the local ones in St. Marys -- specifically Mother Catherine Spalding -- still require a great deal of "support" from parents ... not only in supplies, but in regular, required volunteer time at the school as well as fundraiser such as bingo. If you don't fulfill your volunteer time, you cough up more money for your kid's tuition.