Mom is still insistent now a month into school that her daughter needs more. But her performance, her grades, her standardized test scores, her homework and her attitude show that she is very properly placed.
This happens to me about once a week,
CAMom, I'm so glad you are sharing your unique perspective. I love what you have to say. My thought is that if this is happening every week, perhaps a 3-5 page worksheet to give the parents to organize their thoughts and observations is worth generating. I think it's great that you give the end of year tests without debate - so awesome!
My idea is to give parents some kind of rubric that they can follow to convince themselves that they are operating under rose colored glasses or impressions without facts. They you could list some afterschool enrichment activities that are open to all (Math Clubs, Odyssey of the Mind, Chess Clubs etc.) Talent Search Information, Any local Tutor/Mentors in various subject that you might have particular faith in.
As US society becomes more polarized, and the gulf between 'winners' and 'losers' becomes wider, and while jobs are so hard to find, I think we are going to see lots of parental anxiety. As US educational copetitiveness becomes questioned by US parents,and US parents start to get that this matters, I think we are going to see lots of parental anxiety. If we can help channel that anxiety into positive action, then I think that's a good thing.
Should a parent wait for a whole system to be fixed before doing what's right for their child? Is that fair to children whose parents have neither the ability nor interest to take these same actions? Is the unfairness a reason not to do it? This is one of the key questions we have to ask ourselves over and over.
Love and More Love,
Grinity
Competitiveness
The national results in international comparisons have often been far below the average of developed countries. In OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment 2003, 15 year olds ranked 24th of 38 in mathematics, 19th of 38 in science, 12th of 38 in reading, and 26th of 38 in problem solving.[105] In the 2006 assessment, the U.S. ranked 35th out of 57 in mathematics and 29th out of 57 in science. Reading scores could not be reported due to printing errors in the instructions of the U.S. test booklets. U.S. scores were far behind those of most other developed nations.[106] While US teens perform poorly on these Programme for International Student Assessment tests, which emphasizes problem solving, US fourth and eighth graders tested above average on the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study tests, which emphasizes traditional learning.[107]
