Sunday, November 15, 2009

Four More Reasons

In light of some recent events, and to add to my already large list, herein lies four more reasons why I choose to homeschool:

Reason #1. I am convinced that if my son was in school, his teachers would want to put him on Ritalin. I have discovered that he is almost completely unable to sit still while doing his work; instead standing ON his chair, standing BESIDE his chair, KNEELING on his chair, eventually ending up on the floor to dance a few little "jigs". This cycle is repeated continually throughout his school work. I in no way believe he has ADHD, he is just a normally active little boy. Neither do I see a reason to suppress his motion since it does not disturb anyone else. He is suppressed in church and at other occasions where his activity will disturb someone, so if he chooses to stand on his head to complete his school - as long as he gets it done - it's fine by me.

Reasons #2 & 3. In recent weeks while driving the school bus, some new revelations have come to light. First, in spite of the fact that I love the darling little kids from the refugee camp that I spoke of in a recent post, they reaffirm that there is no language barrier too big to learn how to SWEAR. Yup. The worst four-letter word manages to creep its way into their weak English vocabulary. Which goes to show what other kids are teaching them at school, and reinforces why I do not want my kids in a regular classroom at public school.

Secondly, I have been shocked to observe an enormous lack of supervision by the teaching staff of my school. Since I have to make two small loops on my route, taking some kids home in one loop and then returning to the school for the second set of kids, there are anywhere from 30 to 60 kids waiting for my return, which is a 10-15 minute wait. There have been at least a half dozen times when these kids are left unsupervised and running wild. One time when I pulled up I noticed a lady supervising the kids that I had never met before, only to find out that she was a "concerned citizen", who happened to be driving by the school and almost hit a kindergartner who was OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. She very kindly took it upon herself to supervise these kids while waiting for my return.

On one other occasion, Dave and I were picnicing with our kids during a school day in late September at a park close to a school. Since we were there at lunch time, we observed the kids coming out after their own lunch to play for the remainder of their break. There were two teachers supervising that I noticed, but I was amazed at how many kids were hiding in places that the teachers couldn't see and realized how easy it would be the kids to escape the bell when it rang. It would be impossible for the teachers to know exactly how many kids were on their watch, since they were from all grades and the number would vary day to day.

I would have no problem with Hannah in the supervisory care of a teacher in these instances because I trust her and she is cautious. But there is no way in this lifetime I could trust Seth. I could easily see him being the boy in the middle of the street and him hiding on the teacher thinking it was funny.

Reason #4. This is the biggest reason of all. I recently learned of a situation (from a very reliable source) where a mom dropped her 9-year-old daughter off at school and realized she forgot her lunch. She told her daughter that she would return later with her lunch. However, the mom was late in dropping off her lunch. As a result, a teacher called in social services (without permission/knowledge of a parent), a social worker questioned the girl (without permission/knowledge of a parent), asked questions that eventually led to the inevitable, "do you ever get a spanking?" (which she does). As a result, the parents are being subjected to home assessments and have been told that if they fail they are at risk of losing not just their 9-year-old daughter, but their BABY BOY!

ALL THIS BECAUSE A MOM DID NOT MAKE IT BACK TO THE SCHOOL IN TIME WITH HER DAUGHTER'S LUNCH! ALL BECAUSE OF AN OVER-ZEALOUS TEACHER!

I don't know about anyone else, but this absolutely enrages me. Ironically, I drive the school bus to inner city schools who PROVIDE LUNCH FOR THE CHILDREN BECAUSE THE PARENTS ARE INCAPABLE OF PROVIDING FOOD FOR THEIR CHILDREN.........!!!!! I have also listened to countless stories - by the children I drive - of arguments and physical abuse, as well as see their dilapidated homes. And these children continue to be allowed to live with their parents.

I realize I don't know everything about the above story, but I do not believe a teacher should have the right to call in a social worker to question a child without authority from a parent. If a child looks abused or neglected, then call the police. But this child was not. This child has two parents who love her, and whose mom was.......a little late. That's it.

I'm sure in a little while I'll have four more reasons why I homeschool. At least.

8 comments:

Laura said...

I'm once again in the AMEN corner!! I know of very few teachers whom I will say are "called" to teach. Who are more concerned about the children then their paycheck. I think besides Mrs. Wizzle, there is one other for sure who I would say that about...and she just retired this year!

Darla said...

I don't know Laura. It just keeps getting worser and worser......

Anonymous said...

I just love it when you get on your soapbox!! I'm sure Dave reinforces it often for you... Teasing!!

I am VERY thankful for the school by our home that the girls attend. It may not be the best for everyone, but right now, it works for us. The staff all know us and take good care of us all. They are ok with my over attentiveness to my girls' work and progress or lack thereof. They listen to my concerns and address them. I do realize that not everyone has this blessing, and therefore, am thankful for mom's like you that are able to do something about it.

And, yes, the whole world is getting worser and worser. One of my favorite soapboxes is about unwanted children. I won't get started.

Keep up the great work!! Homeschooling is obviously something God has called you to do. Maybe I'm just not listening very well...

Love you!!
Rachel G

Darla said...

Actually, Rachel, Dave & I usually have very different soapboxes. And yes, I sure do love to get on them! I pretty much have to have a soapbox (or two...) at least every couple of months or something just doesn't feel right....

Laura was blessed to be able to work well with the girls' high school when she re-instated them into the public system. They pretty much always respected her wishes and notified her in advance of any upcoming things she had specifically requested her girls not to participate in. I think this is a large reason why she kept them there. If it was not that way, I would guess that there would have been a fairly good chance she would have pulled them out. Personal experience does weigh heavily in these types of issues when it comes time to make a decision.

I'm waiting for some new pictures and news on your blog, by the way.

Love ya.

Laura said...

Darla and Rachel G.: I was very fortunate and blessed with the high school the girls both attended. We worked well together and not only did the teachers/staff respect our wishes and convictions as parents, they went one step further and allowed the girls the same privilege. If they were not comfortable about something in a classroom, they could get up and leave. I even had one teacher tell me that they didn't even have to explain why, they could just walk out. Of course they didn't abuse this, so in return, they gained the respect of the teachers.

I think the biggest guarantee in success when integrating your children into the public school system coming from homeschooling, is how we, as parents handle it. Shannon and I didn't barge in there with a list of demands, but asked if they could work along with us and when there is co-operation, and they see a mature, levelheaded, intelligent adults, they are more apt to comply to your request.

So there is my soapbox. This is a subject that is dear to me. I strongly believe in homeschooling but I also believe that done properly and monitored, public school can also be a success story.

Rachel R said...

Good for you! Your kids will be grateful and love you for it in years to come. :)

Anonymous said...

I'll have news and pictures on Friday. I haven't been for a sonogram or seen my midwife in a while. But as active as these guys are, I'm not really worried. I'll do my best to update Friday after the appointments, but I may have to wait until Monday. Pure Life (the church Douglas and I are starting) is having a Thanksgiving dinner for the community this Sunday and I'll be working on that this weekend. I'll do my best. Thanks for thinking of us (all 59!!).


Love,
RG

P.S. Laura,
Public school does not work without the cooperation of parents and teachers. As long as the teachers are aware of where the parents stand on issues and are willing to work with the parents, it seems to work. Well, so far.... And, as long as the parents aren't jerks about their convictions... Tends to work both ways.

RG

Rachel R said...

Rachel G - do you have a blog? Please send me the link if you don't mind sharing it! :) racheljoy@email.com