To protect children's self-esteem or deflect complaints by parents, many public schools today automatically advance failing students to the next grade level. In other schools, some students are left back a maximum of one year, then promoted again regardless of their academic skills.
The No Child Left Behind Act tries to solve this problem. The federal government is pressuring public schools to set minimum standards that each student must pass before advancing to the next grade.
However, in spite of these new laws, many states still have semi-automatic advancement based on the student's overall per-formance. Many schools consider a student's "portfolio" of work, attendance record, or other mitigating factors. Based on these factors, the school may advance students to the next grade, even though they do poorly on their tests or read at a previous grade level.
For example, a dedicated California 7th-grade math teacher wrote to Dr. Laura Schlessinger, radio talk-show host, about this problem. She said that about 30 percent of her students did not do their daily homework assignments, but she could do nothing about this. That is because the California Education code forbids teachers from "punishing" students for failing to do their homework.
She also said that students are "not retained" if they fail one class or fail all their classes. "Not retained" is a polite way of saying not left back.
Students may not want to do their homework because it bores them to death, but these kids are smart anyhow. Why should they bother doing homework or studying hard if they advance to the next grade no matter how bad they do in class? That would be dumb, and these kids are not dumb.
When students who should be failing automatically advance to the next grade from elementary school through high school, the problem keeps getting worse. By graduation day, some students who graduate can barely read their own diplomas. In effect, these students get a counterfeit diploma that is nothing more than a twelve-year attendance record.
What does automatic promotion teach children? Many students tend to set their standards no higher than what their teachers or school expects of them. Automatic promotion lets students coast along with little or no effort, knowing they will advance to the next grade even if they never study or do their homework, or receive low grades on their tests. Automatic promotion also tells kids they can succeed in life without effort or perseverance.
Besides creating millions of graduating illiterates, automatic promotion tells kids that mediocrity and laziness are acceptable. It tragically sets children up to fail later in life when reality smacks them in the face -- when they apply for college or a job. These are not lessons that schools should be teaching our children.
Parents can avoid this problem by taking their children out of public school and taking advantage of the great education options Joel Turtel describes in his book, "Public Schools, Public Menace."
Joel Turtel is the author of "Public Schools, Public Menace: How Public Schools Lie To Parents and Betray Our Children." Website: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com, Email: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com, Phone: 718-447-7348. Article Copyrighted ? 2005 by Joel Turtel. NOTE: You may post this Article on another website only if you set up a hyperlink to Joel Turtel's email address and website URL, http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com
executive chauffeured services Bradford .. Madison to Airport carMany research studies have shown the overall effectiveness of stimulant... Read More
"Do not think that love, in order to be genuine,... Read More
One of the implications of the current trend toward smaller... Read More
When parents help their children learn to read, they help... Read More
Night Visits From Your ChildIn the middle of the night... Read More
I don't know how people raise daughters because I have... Read More
My name is Duncan and I'm 2 years old. I... Read More
Mother's Day is important for children.This Mother's Day take note... Read More
Just the other day my oldest son asked:"Daddy, am I... Read More
Do you remember how you first learned the alphabet? I... Read More
Do you have a wild child? Then this article may... Read More
Look around: Your kids are counting sleeps until the last... Read More
It may seem obvious to many people why literacy is... Read More
Unfortunately each year many young children drown in swimming pools,... Read More
Children and teenagers are relentlessly bombarded with merchandise that entices.... Read More
Dexedrine is not prescribed very often for the treatment of... Read More
I love Google and Yahoo. With Google and Yahoo I... Read More
Beyond cases reported to authorities, little knowledge exists on the... Read More
Like anything else in life, there's a method to the... Read More
I WAS AMAZEDI could hardly believe what I was hearing.... Read More
Just the other day, I was talking to some other... Read More
1 "Law of Belonging": The greatest need of teenagers (after... Read More
Salon visits can be scary experiences for small children: They... Read More
There are times when my ideas of raising a child... Read More
Arabella Greatorex, owner of The Natural Nursery, reports on the... Read More
O'Hare Chicago prom limo ..My name is Duncan and I'm 2 years old. I... Read More
As thinking, acting human beings we have the ability to... Read More
You have just received a call from your child's teacher... Read More
Does music need to be "dumbed-down" for kids? The answer... Read More
I still remember the scene vividly. I was getting out... Read More
How many times have you flipped through the pages of... Read More
The legend and myth of the Tooth Fairy is a... Read More
There is nothing quite like hiking with small children. The... Read More
Have you ever experienced one of those days when you... Read More
What are the easiest things citizens can do to prevent... Read More
Vacations are fun ! Weekends with the family are nice.... Read More
Night Visits From Your ChildIn the middle of the night... Read More
While most fathers aspire to become the best Dads they... Read More
Gift shops are a kid magnet and often a trip... Read More
So, the thing is? I am feeling a little guilty.I... Read More
Incest is sexual activity, ranging from fondling to intercourse, between... Read More
Raising a pre-teen or teenage daughter (or son) is not... Read More
Q. What's the right age to start giving a Bible... Read More
If I had a dollar for every time I persuaded... Read More
We want our children to do the right thing, especially... Read More
'Whose room is it anyway?'If you have a teenager, you're... Read More
Here's a scene: A parent "might suddenly grab a happliy... Read More
If You're Having Twins..is it double the headache, or double... Read More
It's the first day of the summer holiday. Five year-old... Read More
There's a new kind of fun and calm out there... Read More
Parenting |