I'm sorry, but the other day I heard a kid in my local library tell a patron that he had to go to his Summer Enrichment Math Program. The man was shocked and asked him your Summer what???? The young child said he goes from 9 a.m. to noon everyday so he would be ready for high school in the fall. The patron said "Isn't that called Summer School." I silently chuckled. I was thinking the same thing.
And then he took a step further. He asked the child why he was going. "Didn't you pay attention to your teacher this year?"
It seems that by calling Summer School something else, does that really help kids. When I was in school, Summer School had the connotation of being bad and it was a punishment. I NEVER went to summer school. Why would I want to spend the summer in doors and in school sans friends?
The problem that I now have with the way Summer School has been repackaged is that it serves as a "crutch" of sorts for children who are capable of learning, but can't find the time or make the effort to get their work done the first time.
I know it's an inconvenience for most parents. Moms and dads don't seem to get a break. They have to bring home the bacon and try to balance a summer schedule. It's like their freetime doesn't exist if they have a lazy student. They feel like they are being punished.
I will forever be old school in this regard. Having to go to school in the summer punishes the whole family. Forget about vacation plans. Say adios to lazy, hazy days of summer at a slower pace. And you can say "Hello" to your alarm clock blues.
I guess my question is...if we are paying teachers hefty salaries and our kids aren't learning what they need to survive in our world the first time, whose fault is it really?
Posted By: Marsha Jones
Thursday, July 15th 2010 at 3:23PM
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