Day 17 - Private Vs Public? What's Your Say?
Hello All. I do apologise to my regular readers out there for not updating my blog more frequently this week. It has been proven to be quite a hectic week as I have found myself with the wonderful task of reviewing / marking student projects. I’ve discovered I have a love/hate relationship with assessing student work. I love seeing excellent work produced by the students (it’s really exciting to see them apply the skills that I’ve taught in my lessons!).
I don’t like the bit where I have to assess poor quality projects because part of me feels like it’s a reflection of my ability to teach, but I also acknowledge that the student’s ability and motivation greatly influence the quality and quantity of work produced. There are students who have learning difficulties, but I know that as a teacher, it is my role to recognize and accommodate for these students, in terms of the work I assign to them, how they are assessed, and even how I relate to them. I admit that catering for varying degrees of ability has proven to be one of the most challenging aspects of teaching.
At the same time, I do admire students who persist. There is nothing that can replace the character of persistence. There are students who, at first glance, do not appear to be able to achieve anything of significance, yet, with persistence, they prove you wrong. Then there are those who appear to have a natural bent for a particular subject, yet without discipline, they squander away their opportunities to excel.
My husband asked me the question whether I think student success is ‘genetic’? Can a kid excel in school because his parents were blessed with ‘healthy’ brains? I think it’s naïve to suggest that it all boils down to the student. I ask myself what is the recipe for student success? I’m sure it’s a combination of factors, such as:
- having quality teachers
- supportive parents
- access to resources (this is where socio-economic status obviously comes into the picture).
- student’s character (i.e. qualities such as resilience, perseverance, determination and values)
To be honest, I haven’t really made my mind up on this issue about what makes for ‘quality’ education and how student success is made to happen. I guess the Private vs Public School debate is really at the crux of this discussion. Part of me says, “I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it” (i.e. when my kids are ready to go to school, I’ll research my options then!) J
I’ve known kids who have come from affluent, well-to-do schools, costing $15,000 per year, who’ve ended up as ‘floaters’, not pursuing the high-flying careers you (or your parents) would expect them to pursue. What must their parents think?
Then there are those stories with a rags-to-riches theme, where students who don’t have the luxury of attending a private, fee-paying, school with ample resources, end up excelling academically and eventually go on to successful jobs.
The following link is a forum which provides a great discussion about the private VS public debate. http://cracker.com.au/viewthread.aspx?threadid=8504&categoryid=11241
Curious to see where people stand on this issue!!!! :-)
posted by Mama Maria @ 12:33 pm
4 comments
4 Comments:
I think the crowd the student hangs out with also influences the application of natural ability or otherwise.
Hi Maria,
Your blogs are interesting and thought provoking.... so here is my thoughts!
what does the word success mean??? It does not mean you have to have 'good brains' or be smart be a high acheiver at school, uni, or work! Success can be measured in different ways...what one person calls success may not be what sucess means to another person. Anyway here what I beleive (it is something I have stuck on my fridgedoor)!!
"To laugh often and much. To win the respect of intelligent people and affection of children. To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition. To know even one life has breathed easier, because you have lived, this is to have succeeded".
By Ralph Waldo Emerson.
ciao 4 now! Tijana xo
Private or Public?
Equally as important is the input from the homefront. A family I know pushed aside dreams for a fancy house and opted to settle in an ex-commission house in the poorer side of town and go big on extra-curricular activities for their four children. Over the years, character building activities such as sports, music, leadership training through church youth groups, even orthodontic straightening of crooked teeths were put forward as priorities. The result to the children's performance was sweet because all four have finished VCE with very good results.
The Old Blogger
Private vs Public... Shouldn't this be rephrased rich vs poor? I highly doubt well off parents will place their children in a public school. I believe most parents attempt to provide the best education for their children. However, most parents believe paying a higher priced tuition fee constitutes to a better education for their child. Does a private school provide a better education system than a public school? Personally yes, since it attempts to hire more qualified teachers who have gained experience or attained high academic records. There is a bit more to this but I will not elaborate. As for myself, I have been fortunate to experience both sides of the coin here. I've noticed my learning exponentially increase once enrolled into a private boys school. However, this only applies for children who have a willingness to learn.
Determining academic success is a controversial one to measure. Here are 3 reasons:
1) Some children cannot perform in a social context from the pressures of peers and society. Wouldn't it be interesting as a parent how your child will perform in a non classroom environment? Will his or her academic records change if lesson were taught in isolation?
2) Some children learn based on experience and not by books. Even though books contain an abundance of knowledge some children do not see the need to acquire all the details to life. These children tend to enjoy it.
3) Some children learn at different paces. Some require the teaching to be slow and others fast. Some children aren’t listeners however expressive. Some children may not be motivated by the subject since they are far advance in their years or simply it does not interest them.
Therefore children are possessed with different qualities and difficult to measure. These are one of the joy of watching children grow. Children who attain high academic records only provide a gratification to their parents on the money spent on their education. It provides a level of comfort on the progress of child.
I’ve recently attended a course in 'Managing Interpersonal Relationships' which understand people natural behaviour. This opened my eyes in how successful people succeed with others. This course basically categorises people behaviour into four quadrants. I will not name them. Basically, I asked the instructor so which quadrant are the most successful people. He replied with a grin 'None. Successful people are people who have high versatility. I thought about this for awhile and eventually agreed with his response. This is why I agree with him. If you have ever travelled overseas, let’s take the example of france, do you tell the french man in english where the eiffel tower is. The man will respond by simply ignoring you and walk away. You’ll will say these french are so unfriendly. What is wrong here? The best solution is to attempt to ask the French man where the eiffel tower is in french. At this point the french man knows you are trying to communicate with him. He will point to your map where the best route to the Eiffel tower is. He may even call a taxi for you. You have successfully achieved your objective by being versatile. What you’ve done is taken yourself from you comfort zone to a non comfort zone. Successful people tend to move around the quadrants with ease.
What does this story have to do with education. Nothing. However, it provides an ingredient of success. There are other parameters to be included to define success but this is the key.
Therefore does a child with good academic record successful. From different sources the response will be different. George Bush admitted he was a C grade but now the leader of a powerful nation. Bill Gates quit school but now one of the richest men. Oprah Winfrey had a tough upbringing and poor education but is repected by a lot of woment. I believe bottom line it’s the child/adult eventually determines if he or she want to be successful academically or not.
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