It's February, or as it is known in the school business, the halfway point. I sit at home beholding another, over two feet of snow, watching Lawrence Welk on PBS. For those of you old enough to know who Lawrence Welk was, it was a good episode, one of the black and white, old ones. The popular music of the time was on display and it made me think about how different we seemed. Our tastes were so much simpler and yet so much more musical. The orchestra was playing and the beat was there but only in the background. The music and melody were out front. In the music of today the beat is more than prominent, it is another "p" word, preeminent! Oh well, lots of snow, cabin fever. Welk is rocking. Back to the halfway point.
I recently received an invitation to speak at an education conference in D.C.. I would address a luncheon and give my take on "teaching". Among the attendees would be the Secretary Of Education, Arne Duncan, the former secretary, Bill Bennett, and many heads of school districts from all around the country. It felt presumptuous speaking about teaching after so short a time, but celebrity sometimes puts you in unlikely places. I decided to use the opportunity to solicit suggestions from the teachers I work along side of, on what they might say if they had the chance to speak.
You will not be surprised that many teachers consider class size critical. I subbed the other day for a class of thirty and let me tell you, that's a lot of kids. None of the suggestions really surprised me. There was a call for more time for science labs, more connection between school administrations and school districts and more between administrations and the school and teachers. The case for, or against merit pay is pretty much settled among the rank and file, and seeing what a couple of disruptive kids, who don't want to learn, can do to class performance, I think I agree. One teacher did give me a suggestion that seemed a new way of expressing something we have to deal with. The problem is the almost fifty percent dropout rate. That's right, one in two, every year. As we all know, right now there are very few jobs for people in general, let alone those without a high school diploma. Why are they dropping out? Theories abound and probably no one factor is totally responsible, but one thing that would go along way to help is, our parents have to step up. We know they can't do it all themselves and being a parent I empathize. Think about what parents are up against.
Corporations, and they know who they are, that target our kids with products that promote bad behavior, do not help. The culture in this country that "smart" is somehow "elite" or "white" or "un-American" or any other stupid description that helps our kids not to see education as their only chance, is another non-helper. So here's the suggestion I received from that one teacher: while speaking, I should ask if anyone in the audience had dropped out of high school and whether any of their children had dropped out. I don't expect to see any hands go up. The attendees at an education conference come from a different education culture. That is the point the teacher with the suggestion was making, that it is a culture of education that is missing, and without it, teaching the kids is tough.
My parents made me acutely aware of the importance of school. That wasn't the teacher's job. The teacher taught and if you deserved it, they might add to that guidance you received from home. Of course, there are parents who work hard to make their kids understand and I admit that since I have been teaching I have become more sensitive to the constant pounding that our schools and teachers take almost daily.
It does seem obvious that no one factor is all at fault for our problem with drop out rates, and it shouldn't be a blame thing anyway, but Parental involvement, intense parental involvement, is crucial to keeping kids in school and making them take advantage of being there. My father used to say, "we either all buy in or nobody does". I miss my father, smart guy. Unfortunately or maybe fortunately, the speaking engagement fell through. I was given a few reasons why. None of which assuaged my bruised ego but it was a good lesson and an opportunity to listen to teachers and think. Two things we all need to do more of.
T
