Children's education - a discussion.

[Rapunzel]

I live in a relatively deprived area where lots of families are on benefits.

Now some families on benefits are lovely and great with their kids and I don't want to tar everyone with the same brush, so please take what I say here as a general comment and not as an absolute, which I know it is not.

A lot of the families who attend out school are on benefits. Quite a few of those families have large numbers of children. Some have 5 kids, quite a few have 7, one family even has 10 kids.

They often don't have the time or the energy or even the will to help their kids with reading or homework, they often don't even encourage the kids to try. One little girl told me "Mummy says she never bothered at school and she says I don't have to bother either". Such a helpful parental attitude!

So how do you encourage the children to WANT to learn? You can ask them what they want to be when they grow up and then encourage them to want to achieve it. Yet so many will say they 'can't be bovvered'. You can make classes interesting, which actually takes a lot more effort than just preparing a lesson, yet so many times they just waste the opportunity.

How do you encourage kids to want to learn and to want to do their homework and to make them see that they don't need to just live on benefits all their lives?

I think I'm just feeling a bit burned out here. I just need some fresh ideas, fresh coping strategies, new ways to give positive encouragement.

(NB. Negativity and punishments are NOT allowed in our school.)

[Clodhopper]

I think I'm just feeling a bit burned out here. I just need some fresh ideas, fresh coping strategies, new ways to give positive encouragement.


Imo, that's why the holidays are a necessity, not a luxury, for teachers. That aside, I'm not sure there's much you can do but keep giving them opportunities. One of the best teachers I ever knew reckoned that one really good lesson per class would keep them interested for about a fortnight. Obviously that doesn't mean the other lessons can be rubbish but maybe that can give you a way of pacing yourself? After all, a term is a marathon, not a sprint...

Without parental support, I don't know what can get them to do homework in your sort of school. Sorry.

Kathy Ellen might well have some useful ideas on this.

[G#Gill]

My brother taught mathematics to ESN children ages 11 - 16. He was beating his head against a brick wall trying to teach 12 year olds about decimals. He decided to make the lessons a lot more fun and devised a story about Dilly Dot. Don't ask me how, what or story content, but strangely those children quickly warmed to this strange woman called Dilly Dot and all her antics, and needless to say most of them learned about the decimal point, much to the surprise of visiting school inspectors !

Another thing that my brother was a firm believer in were the multiplication tables. The inspectors tried to convince my brother that those multiplication tables were not used any more in schools and that he should bring his lessons into the 20th century. However, my brother stuck to his guns, saying that the basis of all maths was knowing the multiplication tables! He was told that he was 'behind the times', and they would keep their eye on him ! Needless to say, the mathematics standards in those ESN classes improved beyond everybody's wildest expectations !

I've no doubt that my brother's success with ESN children was his quirky imagination and his story-telling abilities.

All children love to get involved with stories, so if a story can be devised that involves the subject that is needed to be taught, progress may be made ! :-6 :yh_wink :yh_bigsmi

[Snowfire]

I'm quite clearly the wrong candidate for giving any advice on education and teaching. My years at school were wasted and no-one was to blame but me. I think I am reasonably intelligent at least not entirely stupid but even with my parents' encouragement and concerns, I'm ashamed to say that I left school with just one, narrowly passed English "O" level. I'm sure Rap, given the extra burden of the parents you talk of, it must be soul destroying.

Do you think such parental attitudes stem from a real concern that there is little or next to nothing for these kids to look forward to when they leave school ? Do these parents think their kids are destined for a life of unemployment or at least low payed, low esteem jobs. Its a tragedy if that is the attitude but hardly suprising.

I always felt, looking back, that it was the teachers that held my focus, that had the biggest impact on anything I retained upstairs and that probably stays true today. One physics teacher had an amazing sense of humour that was legendary ( to go with his regimental strictness in the classroom) It worked. He always held our attention. A chemistry teacher in the same school never had control of the class, ever. Meek and weak, however highly trained and however much he obviously new about the Sciences, he should never have been a teacher. He was incapable of engaging a group of young boys and he was run ragged.

Its a tough job for sure. Even tougher if you really care about the kids you teach, as you clearly do

[chonsigirl]

Well, when my kids were in school, we all did our homework together. (since I went to school too some nights)

For my students, they learn over time that it is expected to complete homework and try your best in class. No homework is a 20% grade reduction, it is a school policy. So I do my best to help them, review some questions before turning it in the next day, and have a class incentive weekly to inspire them.

[fuzzywuzzy]

hmmm You know what helps .....and don't blow me down here. I've seen it work. It'll sound weird but I knew a teacher who implemented Manners in the classroom . Everyone had to say please and thankyou and excuse me and such . Normal things that we grew up with right? Well it doesn't seem so today (but that's another discussion) His theory was not every student can be good at everything or be able to be taught everything. But everyone can learn manners. He made them feel special when they learnt a new polite way and they were rewarded . Once the kids thought "wow I'm special" their grades picked up. Somehow school was different from home (in a deep psychological sense and the children eventually saw school as an important place to be .......so they were important.

and just a side note, Child care centres are not allowed to encourage manners anymore ...........how sad is that eh?

[fuzzywuzzy]

Chonsi, my 15 year did homework the other week, the first time he's done it at home in about a year. He had a week to do it and sat and did it in one night. Why? Because the boy who says Science bores him ...in one ear straight out the other. His homework was a series of tests, Boiler making, woodwork safety, Fibreglassing, and 7 others. All of which takes a certain amount of scientific understanding. Just put it to him in a different way and he's interested again. God I wish the education department would learn.

[along-for-the-ride]

There are some good suggestions on this website:

Tips For Helping Kids and Teens With Homework and Study Habits (Child Development Institute)

[chonsigirl]

fuzzywuzzy;1326264 wrote: Chonsi, my 15 year did homework the other week, the first time he's done it at home in about a year. He had a week to do it and sat and did it in one night. Why? Because the boy who says Science bores him ...in one ear straight out the other. His homework was a series of tests, Boiler making, woodwork safety, Fibreglassing, and 7 others. All of which takes a certain amount of scientific understanding. Just put it to him in a different way and he's interested again. God I wish the education department would learn.


Ah, they should send home helpful homework. I send home something appropriate to what we learned that day, or for the lab the following day. I believe in lots of hands-on activities in science, or it wouldn't be fun.

[jennyswan]

What about finding out about previous students who have since left the school and made a good life for themselves. You could have them come in and talk to the kids and let them see that with a good education anything is possible. Also maybe introduce rewards into the classroom. For example the kids who get A's get one night homework free or something and post the list of the kids who get A's in the classroom as good example and let the kids be proud and want to get on the list.

[K.Snyder]

I think all children are extremely unique when it comes to their preferences therefore it's extremely hard to lump 25-30+ kids together and expect even half of them will be intrigued is a bit much.

When schooling is predominantly compulsory that means the money available to educate them is from taxes which means cutting as many corners as innately possible to save as much as the gov can. Then you have people refusing to pass school levies which destines their own children for mediocrity or less.

I'd say 1 teacher per 6 specifically selected students for those individual interests(Area of study) would suffice to create a very very intelligent society paving the way for even greater innovation ultimately creating more wealth for everyone. No one's willing to invest the money now, which is necessary, to see a greater outcome later.

Parents need to stress the importance of education very early in life. Education is all anyone has anymore. Regardless one cannot build a multimillion dollar company out of selling hotdogs on the streets anymore. Education is power.

I think finding what a child enjoys and allowing him/her to commit to that is what's important. Far too many people try and force their kids into enjoying a particular field and it's atrocious.

[OpenMind]

Exactly what age group are you talking about, Rap?

[mrsK]

We have a day a week & go out in the community.

Social skills are a big hit with the class.

The students have to earn the right to come with us though.

Homework is part of that.

You will be amazed at how many will want to come & they don't realise it is part of their education.:sneaky:

We have a treat for them at the end of each month by having a trip to the local park.

They can have their recess & a play on ths swings etc,we stay for an hour.

We are heading to the bank this week & they will get to see the vault.

The following week we are heading to the local Police Station we can tie the bank visit in with the police visit:yh_rotfl

[K.Snyder]

mrsK;1326415 wrote: We have a day a week & go out in the community.

Social skills are a big hit with the class.

The students have to earn the right to come with us though.

Homework is part of that.

You will be amazed at how many will want to come & they don't realise it is part of their education.:sneaky:

We have a treat for them at the end of each month by having a trip to the local park.

They can have their recess & a play on ths swings etc,we stay for an hour.

We are heading to the bank this week & they will get to see the vault.

The following week we are heading to the local Police Station we can tie the bank visit in with the police visit:yh_rotfl


I agree children always love field trips. This is good. Every week would have to be met with activities that are inexpensive. I know that one can sue another for swatting a bee onto another person by mistake calling it "Intent of extreme malice" in which "extreme" is an "understatement!"!

The "hard work" being met with "reward". I know that here all students would have to have a signed waver for each and every trip so it would tend to be tedious. From my observations, convenience is the virtue of America and on top of the fact this would influence children to do more of their school work because of this it wouldn't happen here because it makes too much sense