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09 May 2006 - 20:18
So it's official. a) Irvington Middle School does not teach kids how to write. (source: Irvington school personnel) b) Admission to Irvington High School Honors courses is based largely in student ability to write (source: Irvington school personnel) c) Irvington parents find this out in one of two ways: 1) when somebody else's bright kid gets rejected, or 2) when their own bright kid gets rejected (source: me)
Lucky for us, we're in group 1, which gives me two years to teach Christopher how to write an Honors Application essay. Once he knows how to do that, we'll be in position to proceed with Plan A or Plan B, as circumstances warrant:
Speaking of parents who elbow, Ed and I were told, this week, that more than a few graduating seniors from IHS write college application essays that aren't punctuated correctly.* These aren't your run-of-the-mill Irvington students, either. No, these are your AP-course attending Irvington seniors. Some of these kids also don't know how to address a manila envelope, or where to go to get stamps. (hey - at least they know what stamps are) We were shocked. How does a graduating senior not know where to buy stamps? we asked. The answer was pretty much what you'd expect. the parents "Have you ever heard the expression helicopter parent?" our informant asked.** oh, yeah. been there, done that. My neighbor says we need to get "Helicopter Parent" t-shirts and start wearing them to school events. (update: The person who said this was terrifically helpful, and only mildly - and humorously - disapproving of helicopter parents. He/she eventually told me, unprompted, that my form of helicoptering - vigilance about deficiencies in the school's curriculum - wasn't what she meant by helicopter parenting. She meant the kind of helicopter parenting where, apparently, the kid is so sheltered he's never seen the inside of a post office.)
formative assessment at home So I asked Christopher if he knows where you go to buy stamps. He said "the post office?" like it was a trick question. As of last night, however, he did not know how to address a manila envelope. He knew you had to have a main address, a return address, and where you put the stamps in relation to the address. But he didn't know which way the envelope was supposed to be oriented. Now he does.
Irvington High School grad fills out an application
I'd been hearing these stories for awhile (will keep identities private). Somebody's child, while filling out college applications, kept having to ask his/her parent the definitions of common words. Like, for instance, the word academic. This person's child did not know what "academic" meant. He/she thought it meant "athletics." Or "citizenship." He/she also did not know the meaning of the word "citizenship." I'd been hearing these stories for awhile, without quite connecting them to our own situation. punchline: This child is a graduate of Irvington High School.
I would like to know how this happens This particular family is middle class. They're not your standard-issue high-SES grad-school educated Irvington types. The kid is perfectly intelligent, no learning disabilities, went to the same amount of school everyone else went to, did his/her homework etc. Doesn't know the definition of "academic" or "citizenship." I don't know what this means, but I suspect it means Christopher has to be in the Honors track regardless of the school's view of the matter. If you can get through the entire IHS non-honors track without learning the meaning of the word "academic," that's a Sign.
Exactly how dependent on clandestine teaching by parents and tutors are wealthy suburban schools? Do we know? The answer is no. We don't know. My nieces go to public schools in Narberth, around Ken's way. Lots of reteaching at home, which my brother- and sister-in-law think of as "helping with homework." When you disaggregate the scores, black kids are doing badly, white kids are doing great. Everyone seems to think that what these scores tell us is that the school is doing a dandy job teaching white kids, then falling down on the job with black kids, possibly due to dysfunctional black parents. Well, let me say this about that. The kid I'm talking about isn't black, and doesn't have an "irresponsible," "dysfunctional," or "drug-taking" family. I question how many of the black kids in Narberth have irresponsible, dysfunctional, & drug-taking families. How many of them have perfectly responsible parents who can't teach algebra?
* In addition to teaching myself algebra, I am now teaching myself punctuation. ** Not only had I heard the expression, I said, I am a helicopter parent. Then I repeated this 8 or 9 times for effect. This appeared to be the first time, ever, a parent had said "I'm a helicopter parent" as an Action Plan, not a confession.
helicopter parents, part 1
helicopter parents, part 2
helicopter parents, part 3
helicopter parents at the AFT
news from nowhere, part 6 (AP students)
helicopter parents of the word, unite
helicopter parents of the world, unite part 2a (t-shirts)
MiddleWeb says hovering is good
-- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006 Back to main page.
Please consider registering as a regular user.
Look here for syntax help.
Some of these kids also don't know how to address a manila envelope, or where to go to get stamps. How interesting - a skill that's dying out with the introduction of email. (I used to send lots of letters as a kid). On the other side, kids have been failing to learn basic life skills for decades at least. I got quite a few free meals at uni through teaching friends how to cook, my father left home unable to cook, and neither did my Gran and Grandma. Can Chris sew on a button? -- TracyW - 09 May 2006
I don't think he can sew on a button, although he did take sewing at school. All the kids are required to take sewing. Nobody can take shop, but everybody can take sewing. They sewed some little "kit" thingie, which I'm sure didn't include buttons. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
All kids in NZ of my generation who went to school were required to take woodwork, metalwork, sewing, cooking. (So the girls took all four, and the boys took all four). Yet many of my friends couldn't cook a meal at first when they went flatting. I think it's that thing you, Carolyn and Temple Grandin talk about - context-dependent-learning or something like that. And then lack of distributed practice. Those high school kids may have been told how to address a letter, but they did't practice it regularly, so they forgot. -- TracyW - 09 May 2006
"Nobody can take shop, but everybody can take sewing." I'm actually not especially annoyed by this. Shop is expensive (increased liability, big footprint, expensive machinery), and sewing is less so, at least if you don't require a sewing machine for each student. There's really not so much difference between building a bookcase and sewing a shirt: you cut out the pieces and you attach them together with mildly non-intuitive procedures. The mindset is similar, similar attention to detail is required, and the skills are similarly useful. (I've done both many times.) Now, there is something to be said for giving boys (especially, though certainly not exclusively) a chance to hit things with hammers and cut with really noisy saws and end up with something useful at the end, of course, but I can understand the calculations here. -- DougSundseth - 09 May 2006
I wouldn't mind the "calculations" if the place had the slightest affection or respect for boys and boyhood. Today, in "health," the topic was what to do when someone says something obnoxious to you. Christopher was the only child who said you should have a comeback. The teacher said that having a comeback when someone verbally aggresses against you "degrades your character." GIVE ME SHOP. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
Plus the "sewing," as per custom, was yet another Michael's kit. It was some stupid craft thing, a pillow, I guess. Christopher didn't finish it & I threw it out. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
I couldn't even tell what it was supposed to be. OK, off to the school board meeting. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
Back in the early 90s when my mom taught at a private school, she taught home economics and the students (all girls) actually learned useful skills like real sewing, cooking & cake decorating, and household budgeting. From what I’ve seen of my local middle school “Life Skills” course (Home Ec is “sexist”), it’s basically an arts and crafts class with a bit of basic-cooking-your-parents-should-have-taught-you thrown in. They tie fleece pillows, complete craft kits, cook boxed macaroni and cheese, etc. From what I’ve heard, this seems to be the trend in other schools. I think if they are going to have “arts and crafts” class, they could at least do some projects that would interest boys, such as: woodburning, building a toolbox or birdhouse with pre-cut wood, leatherworking, pinewood derby cars, painting/stenciling, etc. They could possibly even learn some practical skills that may kids today lack such as how/when to turn off the power or water in a house, how to safely remove a broken light bulb, how to install a light switch, how to level/hang a picture, basic first aid, etc. These would be cheaper than an old school shop class, but still enjoyable/useful for boys. -- AndyJoy - 10 May 2006
interest boys Every year, for the last eight years, my class makes teddy bears. They bring in an old shirt, or PJs, or even store bought material. I supply the pattern, the buttons (eyes), felt (nose), the stuffing, etc. The class creates thirty bears using two sewing machines and a less than competent sewing instructor. I am always impressed with their results. It is usually the males who add a bit of personality, or individuality, to their bears. I have this fabulous picture in my "professional portfolio" of the two biggest jocks in the school working on the sewing machine. -- SmartestTractor - 11 May 2006
Yeah, my sister's 6th grade class made porcelein baby dolls and most of the boys loved it too (there were boy and girl dolls available). I'm just saying that in general, a boy's more likely to get excited over working with tools than making a fleece pillow. A few projects here and there that "stretch" them or are unusual for boys are great, but I think overall they are more likely to "check out" of the projects are more "girly." -- AndyJoy - 11 May 2006
"My neighbor says we need to get "Helicopter Parent" t-shirts and start wearing them to school events." You can buy them here... http://www.cafepress.com/buy/helicopter+parent/-/pv_design_details/pg_1/id_10194782/opt_/fpt_/c_/hlv_t -- MichaelBurns - 11 May 2006
I LOVE IT! They're somehow simultaneously subtle and direct. They strike the perfect tone. -- CarolynJohnston - 11 May 2006
news from nowhere part 6
So it's official. a) Irvington Middle School does not teach kids how to write. (source: Irvington school personnel) b) Admission to Irvington High School Honors courses is based largely in student ability to write (source: Irvington school personnel) c) Irvington parents find this out in one of two ways: 1) when somebody else's bright kid gets rejected, or 2) when their own bright kid gets rejected (source: me)
Lucky for us, we're in group 1, which gives me two years to teach Christopher how to write an Honors Application essay. Once he knows how to do that, we'll be in position to proceed with Plan A or Plan B, as circumstances warrant:
- Plan A: Christopher applies to the Honors Program, writes an acceptable admissions essay, and receives a letter telling him he's been admitted to the program
- Plan B: Christopher applies to the Honors Program, writes an acceptable admissions essay, and receives a letter telling him he's been rejected by the program, at which point Ed and I elbow him in against the better judgment and over the protests of The Authorities
Speaking of parents who elbow, Ed and I were told, this week, that more than a few graduating seniors from IHS write college application essays that aren't punctuated correctly.* These aren't your run-of-the-mill Irvington students, either. No, these are your AP-course attending Irvington seniors. Some of these kids also don't know how to address a manila envelope, or where to go to get stamps. (hey - at least they know what stamps are) We were shocked. How does a graduating senior not know where to buy stamps? we asked. The answer was pretty much what you'd expect. the parents "Have you ever heard the expression helicopter parent?" our informant asked.** oh, yeah. been there, done that. My neighbor says we need to get "Helicopter Parent" t-shirts and start wearing them to school events. (update: The person who said this was terrifically helpful, and only mildly - and humorously - disapproving of helicopter parents. He/she eventually told me, unprompted, that my form of helicoptering - vigilance about deficiencies in the school's curriculum - wasn't what she meant by helicopter parenting. She meant the kind of helicopter parenting where, apparently, the kid is so sheltered he's never seen the inside of a post office.)
formative assessment at home So I asked Christopher if he knows where you go to buy stamps. He said "the post office?" like it was a trick question. As of last night, however, he did not know how to address a manila envelope. He knew you had to have a main address, a return address, and where you put the stamps in relation to the address. But he didn't know which way the envelope was supposed to be oriented. Now he does.
Irvington High School grad fills out an application
I'd been hearing these stories for awhile (will keep identities private). Somebody's child, while filling out college applications, kept having to ask his/her parent the definitions of common words. Like, for instance, the word academic. This person's child did not know what "academic" meant. He/she thought it meant "athletics." Or "citizenship." He/she also did not know the meaning of the word "citizenship." I'd been hearing these stories for awhile, without quite connecting them to our own situation. punchline: This child is a graduate of Irvington High School.
I would like to know how this happens This particular family is middle class. They're not your standard-issue high-SES grad-school educated Irvington types. The kid is perfectly intelligent, no learning disabilities, went to the same amount of school everyone else went to, did his/her homework etc. Doesn't know the definition of "academic" or "citizenship." I don't know what this means, but I suspect it means Christopher has to be in the Honors track regardless of the school's view of the matter. If you can get through the entire IHS non-honors track without learning the meaning of the word "academic," that's a Sign.
Exactly how dependent on clandestine teaching by parents and tutors are wealthy suburban schools? Do we know? The answer is no. We don't know. My nieces go to public schools in Narberth, around Ken's way. Lots of reteaching at home, which my brother- and sister-in-law think of as "helping with homework." When you disaggregate the scores, black kids are doing badly, white kids are doing great. Everyone seems to think that what these scores tell us is that the school is doing a dandy job teaching white kids, then falling down on the job with black kids, possibly due to dysfunctional black parents. Well, let me say this about that. The kid I'm talking about isn't black, and doesn't have an "irresponsible," "dysfunctional," or "drug-taking" family. I question how many of the black kids in Narberth have irresponsible, dysfunctional, & drug-taking families. How many of them have perfectly responsible parents who can't teach algebra?
* In addition to teaching myself algebra, I am now teaching myself punctuation. ** Not only had I heard the expression, I said, I am a helicopter parent. Then I repeated this 8 or 9 times for effect. This appeared to be the first time, ever, a parent had said "I'm a helicopter parent" as an Action Plan, not a confession.
helicopter parents, part 1
helicopter parents, part 2
helicopter parents, part 3
helicopter parents at the AFT
news from nowhere, part 6 (AP students)
helicopter parents of the word, unite
helicopter parents of the world, unite part 2a (t-shirts)
MiddleWeb says hovering is good
-- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006 Back to main page.
Comments
After entering a comment, users can login anonymously as KtmGuest (password: guest) when prompted.Please consider registering as a regular user.
Look here for syntax help.
Some of these kids also don't know how to address a manila envelope, or where to go to get stamps. How interesting - a skill that's dying out with the introduction of email. (I used to send lots of letters as a kid). On the other side, kids have been failing to learn basic life skills for decades at least. I got quite a few free meals at uni through teaching friends how to cook, my father left home unable to cook, and neither did my Gran and Grandma. Can Chris sew on a button? -- TracyW - 09 May 2006
I don't think he can sew on a button, although he did take sewing at school. All the kids are required to take sewing. Nobody can take shop, but everybody can take sewing. They sewed some little "kit" thingie, which I'm sure didn't include buttons. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
All kids in NZ of my generation who went to school were required to take woodwork, metalwork, sewing, cooking. (So the girls took all four, and the boys took all four). Yet many of my friends couldn't cook a meal at first when they went flatting. I think it's that thing you, Carolyn and Temple Grandin talk about - context-dependent-learning or something like that. And then lack of distributed practice. Those high school kids may have been told how to address a letter, but they did't practice it regularly, so they forgot. -- TracyW - 09 May 2006
"Nobody can take shop, but everybody can take sewing." I'm actually not especially annoyed by this. Shop is expensive (increased liability, big footprint, expensive machinery), and sewing is less so, at least if you don't require a sewing machine for each student. There's really not so much difference between building a bookcase and sewing a shirt: you cut out the pieces and you attach them together with mildly non-intuitive procedures. The mindset is similar, similar attention to detail is required, and the skills are similarly useful. (I've done both many times.) Now, there is something to be said for giving boys (especially, though certainly not exclusively) a chance to hit things with hammers and cut with really noisy saws and end up with something useful at the end, of course, but I can understand the calculations here. -- DougSundseth - 09 May 2006
I wouldn't mind the "calculations" if the place had the slightest affection or respect for boys and boyhood. Today, in "health," the topic was what to do when someone says something obnoxious to you. Christopher was the only child who said you should have a comeback. The teacher said that having a comeback when someone verbally aggresses against you "degrades your character." GIVE ME SHOP. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
Plus the "sewing," as per custom, was yet another Michael's kit. It was some stupid craft thing, a pillow, I guess. Christopher didn't finish it & I threw it out. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
I couldn't even tell what it was supposed to be. OK, off to the school board meeting. -- CatherineJohnson - 09 May 2006
Back in the early 90s when my mom taught at a private school, she taught home economics and the students (all girls) actually learned useful skills like real sewing, cooking & cake decorating, and household budgeting. From what I’ve seen of my local middle school “Life Skills” course (Home Ec is “sexist”), it’s basically an arts and crafts class with a bit of basic-cooking-your-parents-should-have-taught-you thrown in. They tie fleece pillows, complete craft kits, cook boxed macaroni and cheese, etc. From what I’ve heard, this seems to be the trend in other schools. I think if they are going to have “arts and crafts” class, they could at least do some projects that would interest boys, such as: woodburning, building a toolbox or birdhouse with pre-cut wood, leatherworking, pinewood derby cars, painting/stenciling, etc. They could possibly even learn some practical skills that may kids today lack such as how/when to turn off the power or water in a house, how to safely remove a broken light bulb, how to install a light switch, how to level/hang a picture, basic first aid, etc. These would be cheaper than an old school shop class, but still enjoyable/useful for boys. -- AndyJoy - 10 May 2006
interest boys Every year, for the last eight years, my class makes teddy bears. They bring in an old shirt, or PJs, or even store bought material. I supply the pattern, the buttons (eyes), felt (nose), the stuffing, etc. The class creates thirty bears using two sewing machines and a less than competent sewing instructor. I am always impressed with their results. It is usually the males who add a bit of personality, or individuality, to their bears. I have this fabulous picture in my "professional portfolio" of the two biggest jocks in the school working on the sewing machine. -- SmartestTractor - 11 May 2006
Yeah, my sister's 6th grade class made porcelein baby dolls and most of the boys loved it too (there were boy and girl dolls available). I'm just saying that in general, a boy's more likely to get excited over working with tools than making a fleece pillow. A few projects here and there that "stretch" them or are unusual for boys are great, but I think overall they are more likely to "check out" of the projects are more "girly." -- AndyJoy - 11 May 2006
"My neighbor says we need to get "Helicopter Parent" t-shirts and start wearing them to school events." You can buy them here... http://www.cafepress.com/buy/helicopter+parent/-/pv_design_details/pg_1/id_10194782/opt_/fpt_/c_/hlv_t -- MichaelBurns - 11 May 2006
I LOVE IT! They're somehow simultaneously subtle and direct. They strike the perfect tone. -- CarolynJohnston - 11 May 2006
| WebLogForm | |
|---|---|
| Title: | news from nowhere part 6 |
| TopicType: | WebLog |
| SubjectArea: | IrvingtonSchools, LanguageArts |
| LogDate: | 200605091617 |