S/O: What don't you want your public school presenting to your DC - Page 4

[SunshineJ]

Originally Posted by Kirsten

However, I don't understand the issue with screenings. Why not? If there is a kid with a hearing or vision problem that the parent hadn't noticed yet, isn't it good that the screening caught it?

Yes and no. If it wasn't for the hearing screening at Head Start for dd we'd have never known she was functionally deaf due to allergies, so there can certainly be merit to them. However, on the flip side, they did dental screenings at DS's school and that one screening resulted in our lives being a nightmare for about 9 months. I think it's good to require screenings, but they should be performed by a child's regular doctor and dentist, not the school and not some clinic that solicts new patients by "helping out" at the schools.

[AFWife]

Originally Posted by SunshineJ

Yes and no. If it wasn't for the hearing screening at Head Start for dd we'd have never known she was functionally deaf due to allergies, so there can certainly be merit to them. However, on the flip side, they did dental screenings at DS's school and that one screening resulted in our lives being a nightmare for about 9 months. I think it's good to require screenings, but they should be performed by a child's regular doctor and dentist, not the school and not some clinic that solicts new patients by "helping out" at the schools.

Agreed. I've heard of them getting a hearing test "wrong" (due to poor setup. It wasn't a properly soundproofed room. I could hear the class changes out in the hall...and the BELL) and parents having to scramble to get their child a pass from the doctor.

[EFmom]

Originally Posted by AFWife

Agreed. I've heard of them getting a hearing test "wrong" (due to poor setup. It wasn't a properly soundproofed room. I could hear the class changes out in the hall...and the BELL) and parents having to scramble to get their child a pass from the doctor.

Yup. I had one like that in school. They were doing construction right outside (complete with jackhammers) when they did the test. My parents got stuck taking me to the doctor again for a totally unnecessary hearing test, when anyone with an ounce of common sense would have seen the worthlessness of the screening situation.

[Linda on the move]

Originally Posted by Wildwomyn

Are outside vision exams required? Because those usually aren't part of a standard physical.

outside vision and dental exams are required in our state, but there are state funds to pay for them if the parents don't have insurance and can't afford them.

Part of what our school nurse does is make sure that all parents have the right inforamation to access all services their kids are entitled to. (It's a title one school so many families qualify for services)

I don't have a problem with screenings -- a simple screening at school when I was a child is how my parents found out I had very poor vision and needed glasses. They are imperfect, but the serve a role.

I was neglected and abused as a child and things like screenings from school were an important part of the health care I received growing up.

[frontierpsych]

My son is not school age yet, but I do worry about what might be taught at school, if I choose to send him. I don't worry so much about middle and high school, because by then he will be able to discern fact from opinion, I worry most about the early years, where kids tend to believe whatever grown ups tell them.

However, I do plan to raise my son in a very honest way, and discuss things with him. I want him to be exposed to many varying opinions on subjects, once he is old enough to form an opinion based on his own experiences and values. I don't care if my son has different beliefs than I do on most subjects, and I have no plans on being overprotective about what he is exposed to.

I do have a problem with fear-mongering, though. Like that movie (Mean Girls?) where the teacher says "If you have sex, you WILL get pregnant, and DIE." I want my son to receive honest information so he can make his decisions appropriately. Even with things I fear, I know I have to teach him honestly and accept his actions, and only try to help him along the way. (For instance, he has a strong family history of addiction, but I can not tell him that he will die if he smokes pot. I plan to explain my preferences for him and my reasons for them, but I will not give him misinformation, no matter how tempting it may be.)

Overall, I think the school should have less influence over kids than their parents. Peer pressure is scary. I was a victim to it many times over, so I know how strong it can be, and how it can make you act against your values. I think when parents rely too strongly on the school to be the sole source of their children's educations, the schools get a similar power over the child, and the child will reject family values in favor of those of the school. It is so important to be an active advocate of your values starting early on, instead of waiting for the school to teach something then attempting to contradict it once it has been drilled into your child's head.

[frontierpsych]

Oh, and the scoliosis exams we were given in middle school where girls and boys had to stand in line together shirtless? Not cool. Not cool at all.

[blizzard_babe]

I hope this thread helps demonstrate the difficult positions that schools/teachers are put in. Even a small group of people like the MDC Learning at School posters can't agree on the things that could/should/couldn't/shouldn't be brought up in schools .

What offends one parent is exactly what another is asking for. Short of teaching ONLY reading, writing, and math and then sitting quietly for the rest of the day, SOMEONE is going to be offended by SOMETHING I teach. Science and social studies are far too controversial by their very nature: evolution and historical point of view and political bias and lordy knows what else. PE... "OMG SOMEONE MIGHT GET HURT! MY BABY HAS A BRUISE BECAUSE SHE TRIED SLIDING PLAYING BASEBALL IN GYM CLASS! WHY DID YOU LET HER DO THAT?! AREN'T YOU SUPERVISING?!" Music: most of the renowned music from certain eras/regions is religious in nature. Sex ed: Well, that one's controversial for a reason.

No matter what I do, SOMEONE is going to be on SOME internet forum SOMEWHERE posting about how they can't believe that I would teach their child that. I had a parent complain once because a story we read had a character saying, "Darn it!" Apparently "darn it" is a swear word and I shouldn't have exposed students to a character taking the Lord's name in vain without notifying parents first.

So... we do our best. Some decisions are made at a higher level. Some are decisions we make as teachers. Some are little things we do (among a million other little things we do) on any given day that have repercussions beyond what we could possibly imagine. I have had to accept that no matter what I teach, someone is at some point going to take offense to something. Doesn't make me a bad person, a bad teacher, or a bad ANYTHING. It means that, as a person who teaches the children of more than one set of parents/guardians, I put myself at the mercy of hundreds of differing, and at times directly conflicting, philosophies.

It is what it is. I haven't pissed anyone off TOO horrifically just yet, so I guess that means I'm doing OK .

[Linda on the move]

Originally Posted by blizzard_babe

Even a small group of people like the MDC Learning at School posters can't agree on the things that could/should/couldn't/shouldn't be brought up in schools .

What offends one parent is exactly what another is asking for.

I liked your post!

While I found the sex-miseducation annoying, I know that some of the other moms LOVE it. I really like my kids' school. I take it as a whole big picture rather than getting hung up on one little thing.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by frontierpsych

Oh, and the scoliosis exams we were given in middle school where girls and boys had to stand in line together shirtless? Not cool. Not cool at all.

They always did them in the single sex locker rooms at my junior high.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by blizzard_babe

I had a parent complain once because a story we read had a character saying, "Darn it!" Apparently "darn it" is a swear word and I shouldn't have exposed students to a character taking the Lord's name in vain without notifying parents first.

Oh, you're going to heck for that.

[frontierpsych]

Originally Posted by eepster

Oh, you're going to heck for that.

[blizzard_babe]

Originally Posted by eepster

Oh, you're going to heck for that.

Yup, I've been darned straight to heck, for sure.