The statistics are out there showing the “real” state of education in the US, high dropout rates, declining graduation rates, a growing inability to compete globally under the recent education standards. So, what do all these statistics mean to the single mother, living in West Chicago, with two kids in the local public school and one in daycare? Scrambling to keep her head above water and food on the table, she barely has time to sit down and take supper with her kids before running out to her night job, let alone spending time focusing on their homework.
So, how does this reality play out at school? More often than not, kids living in this setting are not motivated to drive themselves in school. Some kids have an ingrained love of learning or learn quickly and may be able to maintain a solid grade average and succeed. Those that need more assistance outside of the classroom become increasingly frustrated by a system that seems to not only discount them, but by a future that looks less and less appealing as they grow up.
This is not an unheard of or even surprising scenario, as most of us are aware. Many of our kids live in a world where living day to day is almost expected, and parents, single or otherwise, scramble to make ends meet with little time to offer to their kids’ schooling. In a time when we need to dig our heels in and push forward for better education, poverty and regional factors threaten to keep us behind in the global education race indefinitely.
You can help. Now is the time to motivate your children, your parents, your neighbors, and political policymakers to take action on the part of the future of education for our kids.
Posted By: Paul Adams
Friday, July 9th 2010 at 1:40PM
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