Parent Reportcards...whats your grade?

[kirbyfan]

I thought this was a very thought provoking article and thought it might stir some good debate here. Heres the jist of it and the link:

Parents in Connecticut might be the ones getting the report cards if a proposed plan makes the grade at a Manchester public school district.

Steven Edwards, a Republican member of the Manchester Board of Education who’s up for re-election Nov. 6, wants parents to be evaluated on a handful of what he says are objective measures — including whether their children have done the homework and eaten a good breakfast.

Link here

[ele]

i wish someone did that while i was in school

[Babaloo]

just what we are lacking around here...

...a good debate

[PlayadelSoul]

Will they take the kids away from parents who consistently fail? If not, seems like a fruitless exercise, to me.

[TeeZet]

Originally Posted by PlayadelSoul

Will they take the kids away from parents who consistently fail? If not, seems like a fruitless exercise, to me.

I was thinking what would happen with the parents if they flunked...

[jamesblonde]

I started to read it, but I really hate Fox news. But for the record, I made sure my kids did their homework and they never left home without a hot breakfast. That was every morning. They were "A" students. Then their dad and I divorced. One was a Senior, one a Freshman. No amount of homework checking or hot breakfasts could fix them. So does that give me an "F"? Some would probably think so

[Rissask]

As someone with her B.Ed degree and NO kids- I think it's a stupid idea.

If parents aren't making sure their kids are fed properly and their homework isn't being done, they know it- and they aren't likely to care too much about a 'bad report card' from the school.

And like Mark said, what would happen to them if they were given a poor grade as parents? It's not like you can revoke people's license to procreate.

[PlayadelSoul]

Originally Posted by Rissask

As someone with her B.Ed degree and NO kids- I think it's a stupid idea.

If parents aren't making sure their kids are fed properly and their homework isn't being done, they know it- and they aren't likely to care too much about a 'bad report card' from the school.

And like Mark said, what would happen to them if they were given a poor grade as parents? It's not like you can revoke people's license to procreate.

I also think that it could easily be expanded, as a lot of government ideas seem to be. Opens the door to let the nanny state come on in.

[Opatije]

Speaking of healthy food choices…At the school where my daughter goes daily lunch offerings in the cafeteria include pizza, hamburgers, fried chicken nuggets, and french fries?

[Rissask]

The thing is with schools....taxpayers pay for the education systems and the teachers salaries. The teachers are, in that sense, working for the taxpayer/parents. So when does anyone get to evaluate their boss in life?

About the cafeterias....why does any school even need a cafeteria? My elementary and high schools never had one. If you lived in town you went home for lunch, if you were from the farm you brought your bag lunch.

[Seakony]

maybe it's just to prove that the teachers and schools are doing their job and the reason the kid is failing or have discipline problems is the parents fault. I have always felt that it doesn't matter how many millions of dollars you give a school.. if the parents aren't doing their part, then the kid will fail.

[kayt707]

[quote= It's not like you can revoke people's license to procreate.[/quote]

Oh what a nice idea though.....Seriously, the gene pool needs some chlorine

[MWC]

I think we are all jumping to a bit of conclusion that the "flunking" households might be having other problems ... and it might be those problems that are causing the flunking situation.

But that is not the case. As a substitute and as a Sunday School Teacher, I see kids coming in without having eaten breakfast, without having gotten a good night's sleep, without having done homework ... and it's dual-parent, dual-income, college-educated households. It makes it darned difficult to have blithe cocktail conversation with a lot of these people, when what I'm wondering in the back of my mind is really "What the f*ck goes on behind closed doors at your house?"

I truly wish there were a meaningful way to penalize parents who are sendning their problems into the schools for the school system to fix. Maybe this would make a difference -- but it's more a publicity ploy than anything that will make things change.

[JameyBano]

Gee, I thought it was the SCHOOL'S job to discipline, feed, educate, clothe, and dispense birth control to children?????

[MaripositaII]

Originally Posted by MWC

I think we are all jumping to a bit of conclusion that the "flunking" households might be having other problems ... and it might be those problems that are causing the flunking situation.

But that is not the case. As a substitute and as a Sunday School Teacher, I see kids coming in without having eaten breakfast, without having gotten a good night's sleep, without having done homework ... and it's dual-parent, dual-income, college-educated households. It makes it darned difficult to have blithe cocktail conversation with a lot of these people, when what I'm wondering in the back of my mind is really "What the f*ck goes on behind closed doors at your house?"

I truly wish there were a meaningful way to penalize parents who are sendning their problems into the schools for the school system to fix. Maybe this would make a difference -- but it's more a publicity ploy than anything that will make things change.

You and me both. I'm very tempted to hand in my resignation and find a job at the mall instead