[Allheart]

Aw, shucks, Allheart! :o

Thank you, honestly. I try to make my posts interesting, and I try to support my claims. I try not to sugar-coat too!

And you manage to do it in a way that truly is a gift. :)

[speechlesstx]

I agree, there are some good schools here, and some bad ones. Eight high schools (including the one I graduated from) in my county were ranked in the top 5% in the nation by Newsweek, and consistently make the list of "America's Best". The county which neighbors mine also is renowned for having great schools.

Here's the complete list, for anyone who would like to check it out:

America's Top Public High Schools | Newsweek Best High Schools | Newsweek.com

But anyway, not all schools in the States are awful, but there are a lot. Our system needs work, but can you point me to a system which is flawless? We need more equality in our schools, without a doubt, but remember, you only hear the bad things in the news - it's juicier that way! :)

Absolutely, there are good schools. I noticed 123 (almost one tenth) of your top 5 percent are in Texas ;)

[asking]

I agree, there are some good schools here, and some bad ones. Eight high schools (including the one I graduated from) in my county were ranked in the top 5% in the nation by Newsweek, and consistently make the list of "America's Best". The county which neighbors mine also is renowned for having great schools.

My high school is on the list too. :)
And I agree that your posts are great!
Asking

[jillianleab]

89 from Virginia made the list, but we're a much smaller state... so I think once that's accounted for it means we're smarter than you Texans! But the question is, speech... did YOUR high school make the list? MINE did - so I MUST be a genius! No wonder I'm so valued here on AMHD! Mods, can I get a "Genius Expert" title, please? :D

But back to being serious... there are good public schools all over the country, as evidenced by that list. Sadly, schools in the same general area do not rank together, which implies inconsistency. Also, there is corruption in certain school districts, which gives people a negative view overall of our school systems. I wish people would focus more on the positives; I think it would have an impact on the students if they were never told "public school sucks!".

People who home school have a very difficult task, and it's great most kids score well on tests. I'm sure it's a balancing act to give your kid a good education and socialize them with diverse people. Really, it's no surprise to me that home school kids score better; their parents are involved and they are getting more of a one-on-one education. When you compare those students with the masses in public school, you must include the kids who don't care about their performance, which skews the results in public schools. I'd be interested to see a comparison of home school kids and public school kids who have involved parents. I wonder how it would compare?

My worry for home school kids is that they may not get exposed to various subjects because their parent is not able to teach it. Astronomy, for example, is an elective in my high school; I wonder how many home school kids are given the opportunity to study, in depth, astronomy, if they wanted to. Personally, I'd hate for my child to miss out on an opportunity or full knowledge of a subject because I'm unable to teach it, or didn't think to offer it.
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[jillianleab]

This is another good site with information about the demographics of schools in the US. It tells about teacher/student ratio, ethnicity, etc. Pretty neat stuff.

Search For Schools, Colleges and Libraries

[asking]

People who home school have a very difficult task, and it's great most kids score well on tests. I'm sure it's a balancing act to give your kid a good education and socialize them with diverse people. Really, it's no surprise to me that home school kids score better; their parents are involved and they are getting more of a one-on-one education. When you compare those students with the masses in public school, you must include the kids who don't care about their performance, which skews the results in public schools. I'd be interested to see a comparison of home school kids and public school kids who have involved parents. I wonder how it would compare?

My worry for home school kids is that they may not get exposed to various subjects because their parent is not able to teach it. Astronomy, for example, is an elective in my high school; I wonder how many home school kids are given the opportunity to study, in depth, astronomy, if they wanted to. Personally, I'd hate for my child to miss out on an opportunity or full knowledge of a subject because I'm unable to teach it, or didn't think to offer it.
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I agree that there are certain subjects that are just going to be really hard for kids to pick up on their own or from their parents. They might just never be exposed to them at all and miss out on something they might have enjoyed. I think public schools have so much to offer that way. On the other hand, homeschooling gives kids the opportunity to pursue in depth topics they really care about. In most public schools, that just isn't possible. So there are good things both ways. I just homeschooled my son for one year, but I wish I had done the same with my other son and I wish everybody could home school their kids for a year or two.

I also agree that homeschooled kids, almost by definition, have involved parents and parents who can afford to have at least one parent stay home full time. In general, kids from families with higher income (not necessarily rich, but not poor either) score higher on standardized tests, whether they are in school or not. (Test scores are correlated with income more than almost any other factor.) So a family that can afford to have a non working parent and values education enough to consider the kind of commitment that homeschooling requires is going to have kids who score better regardless of whether the kids go to school or stay home.

Families with two working parents (or a single working parent) HAVE to send their kids to school, so they can work and support the family. Those are the people who are too exhausted at the end of the day to do much more than get dinner on the table and make sure the kids have clean socks and sharpened pencils. They can't supplement their kids' education much and have to depend on teachers.

You can get bad teaching in school or at home. But you can also get great teaching in both contexts. I would love to see more emphasis on how we can best support our kids' learning--whether at home or at school.

Hey, Jillian. My sister taught high school in northern Virginia for 30 years. Maybe she was one of your teachers. ;)

[jillianleab]

Hey, Jillian. My sister taught high school in northern Virginia for 30 years. Maybe she was one of your teachers. ;)

Really? What county did she teach in? You can PM me if you don't want to make that info public.

[speechlesstx]

89 from Virginia made the list, but we're a much smaller state... so I think once that's accounted for it means we're smarter than you Texans! But the question is, speech... did YOUR high school make the list? MINE did - so I MUST be a genius! No wonder I'm so valued here on AMHD! Mods, can I get a "Genius Expert" title, please? :D

Jillean, saying you must be a genius because your school made the list is about like saying I'm a Dallas Cowboy because I've been in their locker room :D

Sadly, no my school is not on the list and get this, I never graduated (I did get my GED however). I can say that 12 elementary and 1 high school in our city made the 2007 Texas Monthly’s Best Public Schools list, and my school's girls wrestling team just won their 5th straight state title for whatever that's worth. ;)

But back to being serious... there are good public schools all over the country, as evidenced by that list. Sadly, schools in the same general area do not rank together, which implies inconsistency. Also, there is corruption in certain school districts, which gives people a negative view overall of our school systems. I wish people would focus more on the positives; I think it would have an impact on the students if they were never told "public school sucks!".

All true, but even if we don't tell our kids "public school sucks" we still have to hold the schools accountable.

I'd be interested to see a comparison of home school kids and public school kids who have involved parents. I wonder how it would compare?

Absolutely, it can make all the difference in the world when parents are involved in their education.

My worry for home school kids is that they may not get exposed to various subjects because their parent is not able to teach it. Astronomy, for example, is an elective in my high school; I wonder how many home school kids are given the opportunity to study, in depth, astronomy, if they wanted to. Personally, I'd hate for my child to miss out on an opportunity or full knowledge of a subject because I'm unable to teach it, or didn't think to offer it.

There can certainly be limitations but there is so much in the way of resources available that most any subject can be explored in depth.

[jillianleab]

Jillean, saying you must be a genius because your school made the list is about like saying I'm a Dallas Cowboy because I've been in their locker room :D

Wait - I don't see the problem here... :confused:

:)

All true, but even if we don't tell our kids "public school sucks" we still have to hold the schools accountable.

Correct. Communities need to hold their schools accountable for certain standards, and when those standards aren't met - the people in charge need to get the boot.

There can certainly be limitations but there is so much in the way of resources available that most any subject can be explored in depth.

With the parents groups, internet and libraries, yes, most subjects can be explored rather well. I've heard a lot of home school parents use Rosetta Stone language software to teach their children foreign languages; that gives a much better education than a parent who isn't fluent teaching from a book. My cousin is a guitar teacher and has several home school kids who take lessons because that's the only way they get exposed to playing an instrument. Again, him teaching a student to play guitar is better than a parent who can only play three chords teaching. But, as I said, some subjects might never be explored because they aren't thought of, and it is still dependent on the parent seeking the proper resources for their child to learn (Wiki articles only teach so much!) on any and all subjects. It's a limitation, not one necessarily to use to say home schooling is bad, but it is there. That being said, public schools certainly have their limitations as well.

[speechlesstx]

Wait - I don't see the problem here... :confused:

Well hey, I have been in their locker room so call me a Cowboy and give me a healthy contract ;)

[jillianleab]

Well hey, I have been in their locker room so call me a Cowboy and give me a healthy contract ;)

My brother in law is a HUGE fan - will you autograph a football for me to give him for his birthday?? :D

I'll get working on that contract thing, after all, I am the genius of the bunch!

[speechlesstx]

My brother in law is a HUGE fan - will you autograph a football for me to give him for his birthday??????? :D

I'll get working on that contract thing, after all, I am the genius of the bunch!

Your brother-in-law is obviously a smart dude. Once the contract is done I'll get him anything he wants. :D

[Fr_Chuck]

Holding your school accoutable is not as easy as it soiunds.
Here in the Atlanta area, we have one school district that is close to losing its standing, yes, a public school that will not longer be acrediated.
The Governor can not get rid of the school board, some of the board members have hired attorneys to be sure they can stay in office from what the radio said.

The public can not do anything, they can at the next election vote for new members but they have been voting the bad ones back into office time and time again.

[jillianleab]

Chuck, that's why we need to tell people from a very, very young age how important it is to vote! If people in the community had been involved in the voting process and actually paid attention to what goes on and what they can do about it, the situation probably wouldn't have gotten as bad as it is now.

I don't know about anyone else's community, but in my county school elections are pretty quiet. There are a few signs on the street corners, but never anything on TV or the radio. There aren't even signs saying when the election is. Maybe the schools send letters home to the parents now, or post something about it on the school website?

It's a shame more parents don't get involved in their child's education - it's the start of the rest of their life, and it's so, so important.

[speechlesstx]

I don't know about anyone else's community, but in my county school elections are pretty quiet. There are a few signs on the street corners, but never anything on TV or the radio. There aren't even signs saying when the election is. Maybe the schools send letters home to the parents now, or post something about it on the school website?

I doubt most people in our community have much of an idea about current and prospective school board members. These elections are that quiet and often they run unopposed.