tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post300659921797396984..comments2024-03-13T21:26:03.011-07:00Comments on Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher: How Much Money Was Spent On The Exit Exam?Darrenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-75629503304357973472015-10-12T18:19:41.092-07:002015-10-12T18:19:41.092-07:00I didn't know Math With Bad Drawings was from ...I didn't know Math With Bad Drawings was from an American in Britain! Love that site!Darrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-5693248773453269042015-10-12T08:04:06.888-07:002015-10-12T08:04:06.888-07:00From an American teaching in Great Britain:From an American <a href="http://mathwithbaddrawings.com/" rel="nofollow">teaching</a> in Great Britain:Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14120291298880107271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-12422893808126830332015-10-11T19:52:26.028-07:002015-10-11T19:52:26.028-07:00Wow, Joanne, I don't think I've ever seen ...Wow, Joanne, I don't think I've ever seen you be so blunt!Darrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-74852432114787050792015-10-11T19:24:02.822-07:002015-10-11T19:24:02.822-07:00Parents who think their children will not have to ...Parents who think their children will not have to learn skills they don't find interesting or "pay their dues" to rise in their career are (a) idiots and (b) doomed to support their kids forever. Joanne Jacobshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06801487780819716845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-83230363137707235642015-10-10T19:54:45.550-07:002015-10-10T19:54:45.550-07:00We're a society in decline. Nothing matters e...We're a society in decline. Nothing matters except our own comfort.Darrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-15315658198597272822015-10-09T18:48:07.342-07:002015-10-09T18:48:07.342-07:00I hear educrats wringing their hands in dismay tha...I hear educrats wringing their hands in dismay that American kids aren't beating kids from just about every other country in the world. Methodology of testing aside, this is not a problem of educating kids, but of not doing so with rigor and demanding excellence. Americans were aghast at the techniques of the self-proclaimed "tiger mom", but in a way she is right. We have gone so far in propping up kids' self esteem that they think every product they make is golden. <br /><br />While in a parent meeting with an AP student who was not doing quality work, I expressed the opinion that in art-as in life-the more skills you bring to the table, the more employable you will be. This particular student only wanted to make cartoons. The student is capable of a high standard of work, but somehow has gotten the message that the only work that needs to be produced is this limited style of art. When I said that I had worked as a graphic designer, copywriter and art director and that sometimes you have to take on jobs you may not like the student's response was "Well as an artist I can turn down those jobs can't I?" When I reiterated that sometimes in order to move up, you have to take on jobs outside your comfort zone and that it was called "paying one's dues" her mother chimed in "Well that's the way you were raised. We've raised our children that they can do and be anything they want to be." I guess the parents should be happy their student didn't want to design steam locomotives or possibly venture into designing a new type of buttonhook for shoes. <br /><br />I wish I was exaggerating, but this is the mentality of parents and as a result, schools capitulate any control. The answer to any request is always yes. UNLESS-you are a student who doesn't fit into one of the desirable categories for promotion. I guarantee you that children in China are not learning to multiply looking at a calculator. I promise you that children in Japan are not learning to write by just printing because "cursive (or formal Japanese calligraphy) is too hard." I will tell you that they use old methods that may not have the lyricism of common core but which work because sometimes rote memorization, repetition and hard work is not just required, it is important. Being born is a struggle that is necessary for the baby to become a breathing human-and that struggle never ends. Why are Americans continuing to support education methods that not only value social agenda over education, but that actively handicap our children? If this seems to be a rant, so be it. Frankly after today I am thinking of getting out of education altogether. Ellen Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02845981491726296767noreply@blogger.com