Ok, in part one I went over how the poor academics in public schools start in elementary school. 30 kids all on different levels with different talents are forced to all learn the same way. Consequently the curriculum must be tailored to the slowest of the group. The bright students get bored. Part two, we decided that if young boys are not able to learn the same ways as little girls, by sitting still for long periods of time we are going to drug them with Ridilin and force them into submission, rather than embracing their learning styles and catering to those. I understand… there are just not enough resources to cater to or embrace those different learning styles. But that doesn’t change the fact that the kids don't get to learn the way they personally need to learn.
Part 3 is going to take us from elementary to junior high education. The fast finishers from elementary school are typically the straight A students in junior high. They understand the concepts, catch on quickly, and are easily able to manipulate the system to get good grades. I was one of these, and as I have said before, I never focused on learning, just on getting an A. I could easily get an A by memorizing answers, or cheating, or breezing through the busy work hardly any effort. Yes, the fast finishers breeze through their middle school years typically without notice. They are usually only challenged if they have honors classes, which are thankfully available at this point in time.
Those who were behind in elementary are still behind in junior high. The problem that I am seeing as a sub is that in junior high a child is given even less time to grasp a concept than in elementary. Typical periods in junior high last anywhere between 35 and 50 minutes. This isn’t really long enough for a teacher to explain a new concept and make sure each child has got the hang of it before then bell rings. Concepts usually build on each other, so those who fall behind once and don't get the help they need to catch up are quickly left behind and they have little hope in themselves to catch up and they quickly give up. These are the students (a huge majority of them male) who can barely read. They are the ones who in 8th grade need to use their fingers to add up numbers like what is 7+5. They write ‘what is 12 minus 8’ like this: 8-12 and addition and subtraction must be done solely on a calculator. One time I even had an entire classroom of students who could not tell me what 3 divided by 1 equaled. They all reached for their calculators. I told them to not even dare, that they could do it in their heads. They all just stared blankly at me.
Yesterday I was listening to kids read through a play, and the 8th grade boy who was reading couldn’t figure out the word “apparently” he blanked when he saw it, and when he tried to sound it out he botched it. Yes, this is what happens to those students who fell behind just one time. They are bored stiff by just staring into space with a concept completely over their heads, so often times they will just sleep, or they will make trouble with other bored students, sometimes getting them kicked out of class (which I believe is just what most of them want). They are lost to the system that cannot stop to give special attention to them. There are too many requirements put on teachers, too much to cover in the school year and not enough time to help students play catch up. 
Not only do those who fall behind stay behind, but those who are able to keep up and succeed are never challenged, as I have said. I was one of these students. The only class that was ever a challenge to me was my AP English class my senior year of high school. Besides that class, everything else was a breeze. Those who can do more, are not given more. They have to stay behind to close the gap as much as is possible. They are given busy work to occupy their time. It's pitiful. I wish I really could describe the kinds of work I am helping students with as a substitute. It's really sickening that most students are so unintelligent, not from lack of natural ability but from lack of challenge. I wanted to show you the lack of challenge first hand. This is the actual instructions for an actual 8th grade reading class reading log in an actual public school. When I read this I got nauseated. If my child brought this home, I would have thrown a fit. I was very discussed at the pitiful excuse for requirements that we are putting on our children.
“Reading is an essential skill that must be practiced. ALL students must practice this skill, regardless of reading ability. Homework- read 50 minutes per week—10 minutes per day Monday thru Friday; any extra time read will count as extra credit (late reading logs are not eligible for the extra credit). You may read magazines, newspapers, novels, instructional manuals, materials for other classes, or most other types of text. I will not allow you to count text messages, emails, or closed captioning on the TV.”
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!
First of all—TEN MINUTES A DAY! Really!?! TEN! What happened to 30-45? What can a person even read in 10 minutes? 1-2 pages of a book! It would take a year to finish a novel at that rate!
Secondly—Look at what this teacher has said is acceptable reading and not, magazines, (those are 90% pictures) Newspapers and novels are great but Instructional manuals—really!?! What the heck is a person going to learn about a plot and themes narrative voice and comprehension by reading an instruction manual!
Materials for other classes!!! If you do your homework for another class you can count it as your reading for the day? How is that going to teach a person a love for reading at all! Unless one is able to get lost in a writing style and a genre that they love, unless a story is able to take them to a place in their imagination that they could never get to otherwise, unless a person is going to be challenged with new ideas and new concepts, how are they ever going to learn to love reading? What is to become of our next generation if they do not love to read? Who is going to become our future authors? Who is going to be our doctors or teachers or Politians? Reading is one of the most basic skills in life. It is the foundation of all other education and achievements. I am not sure which I feel more about all this-- It's a real tossup between being sad and scared. What is to become of our nation if we continue to give diplomas to people who can't even read them? The public schools are failing our children. There are just not enough teachers out there to get kids through successfully. And as a result students must cater to the imperfections of the system; there is just no way for the system to provide to the children. How refreshing it is to know that home schooled children get the one on one attention specifically catered to their talents, abilities, and needs. There is some hope left for the future.
Materials for other classes!!! If you do your homework for another class you can count it as your reading for the day? How is that going to teach a person a love for reading at all! Unless one is able to get lost in a writing style and a genre that they love, unless a story is able to take them to a place in their imagination that they could never get to otherwise, unless a person is going to be challenged with new ideas and new concepts, how are they ever going to learn to love reading? What is to become of our next generation if they do not love to read? Who is going to become our future authors? Who is going to be our doctors or teachers or Politians? Reading is one of the most basic skills in life. It is the foundation of all other education and achievements. I am not sure which I feel more about all this-- It's a real tossup between being sad and scared. What is to become of our nation if we continue to give diplomas to people who can't even read them? The public schools are failing our children. There are just not enough teachers out there to get kids through successfully. And as a result students must cater to the imperfections of the system; there is just no way for the system to provide to the children. How refreshing it is to know that home schooled children get the one on one attention specifically catered to their talents, abilities, and needs. There is some hope left for the future.
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