School. My son is Failing some subjects. Should I worry?

Originally posted by Pedro4077

He began Aboriginal Art Dealing when their were no Aboriginal Art Dealers. The boom happened in the 80s/90's.

He is the Instructor, who taught other dealers

Aboriginal Art is not just a bunch of dots and lines, there are stories behind each painting, we have known these stories since childhood - he did not learn this from other art dealers.

Ok so the guy had skills/intelligence etc to get ahead in life with just a little education... There are people that special, so one question.....I wonder just what success he might have had on top of that with formal education too. You seem to have a falsity that this guy max out his capabilities of what he could have achieved in life and he might have just brush the surface....I guess we will never know.



I'm sure Einstein would have been successful with a high school/8th grade education, but then he would never have been THE Einstein....

Yes all these subjects are important. Even more important is the lessons you teach him politically, home, work, money.

By giving your children diversity in History, Math, ect. It gets them to think! It gives them different perspectives.

It is very true that most racist ate Un-educated.
It is true that most thugs, are Un-educated.
And it's very very true that most people in prison have a 9 th grade education and under.

Children by nature are VCR's. They want to learn. The problem these days is that a lot of kids are bored and not pushed into the correct activities....sports....ect. That falls on the adults to help in any way they can to give their children the tools they need to have a positive start in the community and life.

A lot of people say why do I need to know Algerba. As long as I know the basics, I'm fine. One thing I've learned over my years...Math is soooooo important and has actually Un-locked many many a puzzle. I'm a natural pool player. I'm good. Very good. But what got me to excellence was understanding math and the table. Math is helping to Un-lock the god -partical. Math can actually tell a story.

Anyways....all these subjects in school helps your child to think out situations in life and hopefully they'll always have that desire to learn...after all, we never stop learning, or at least I haven't....

reply to post by Xtrozero


What I'm saying is that a report card with A's and B's is not the "be all" and "end all" recipe for success.

If you can read - you can learn. Many success stories are to be told here.

I'm not saying that it's the right thing for everybody, but if my son leaves school at 15 - he starts work at 15.

You can always go back and re-educate yourself for a different position online, in college, or at university.

Don't think you just have one option.

They need to spend more time on the things that people actually NEED to get buy in life and less on the stuff that they just throw in there for what ever reason. Bottom line tell your son get in there push through it and get that diploma that is truly all that matters. And he wont get anywhere without it.

reply to post by Pedro4077

The problem of a KID failing a Class should be blamed on the TEACHER! If I am a Mechanic and I can't fix a car properly...I am either Fired or if it is my business...it fails. If I am a Welder and I can't form a proper weld...the same...if I am a Salesperson and I can't sell...who's fault is it? MINE!

But if I am a TEACHER...and my students are failing and my job is to TEACH...WELL THEN...it's not MY FAULT! It must be the KIDS fault or the Parents fault or the fault of the Government for not wasting more money on a problem that blames everything and one else but ME!

There is an OLD SAYING...those who are good at something...do it for a living...those who are not...TEACH IT!

The reason your kid is not doing well is that the Teachers force kids to memorize things without giving them the reasons of what to do with the Knowledge. If a kid has to memorize a bunch of Geometry Theorems...it would be more interesting if the Teacher showed the KID...that if you understand this...you can build a Bridge or Building...or you can use it in Engineering or Understand why a piston has to be moving in a specific pattern because the timing allows for a cars engine to run properly.

It is the total lack of association of what they are learning to what they can do with the knowledge. Plus much more time needs to be spent on Math and Science as Memorizing what some 17 Century Poet REALLY MEANT...IS WORTHLESS. Split Infinity

Originally posted by rickymouse
reply to post by PurpleChiten

 

I know or knew many people who own or have owned businesses that barely finished highschool. They made a well enough living on it to bring up their families and send their kids to college without government assistance.. A college education isn't needed to own a business.

www.college-startup.com...

edit on 6-9-2012 by rickymouse because: (no reason given)

In the past, no, in the future, YES

It's not the school's job or the teacher's job to raise your child. They are there to educate them. They are there to provide the knowledge and help them learn it. If the child and the parents are unwilling to comply and don't care about it, there isn't a whole lot the teacher can do when they have 29 other students who DO want to learn.
It is the job of the PARENT to provide for their child and ensure that their child is ready to learn. The schools and teachers have to take every child and attempt to educate them. There is a minimum baseline. If your child refuses to put forth effort because his/her parent tells them it isn't important, then the parent is the one at fault.
If another child, with less ability and less brainpower comes in and puts every ounce of their effort into it, they will do better than your child who puts in zero effort. The child with less ability and brainpower will be more successful than the child who may be brilliant but don't have any motivation of any kind. The parent has a responsibility and it's the largest responsibility. That's part of being a parent.
You can't whine and cry on one hand about not wanting the government to control you, then whine and cry on the other hand saying the schools are failing you because you aren't upholding your end as a parent. It's not an all or nothing" situation. Unfortunately, students aren't "fired" from school for poor performance, but they will definitely be fired from jobs for poor performance. .... maybe they should be fired from school and have to reapply, it would probably improve things a great deal.
In life, it's 90% atttitude and 10% aptitude that determines altitude. If Albert Einstein hadn't had any gumption and hadn't put forth any effort, we wouldn't have the theory of relativity. He was brilliant AND motivated so he went far. Charles Manson was brilliant, but look where it took him.

If you want your child to be unmotivated and don't express the importance of education, then the result is on your shoulders.

Originally posted by SplitInfinity
reply to post by Pedro4077

 

There is an OLD SAYING...those who are good at something...do it for a living...those who are not...TEACH IT!

Actually, that's just something that is said by people who are incapable of learning or teaching to try to downplay the career since they aren't capable of being part of it.
These days, those who HAVE DONE IT, now TEACH it. Education isn't what it used to be, it's not lecture, lecture, lecture, it's hands-on, it's group oriented, it's focused on application, not memorization. Haven't you heard all the people on other threads whine and complain that "that's not the way I learned it" or "I don't understand the homework they send home to my third grader". That's because things have changed. They aren't taught rote memorization anymore, they're taught application. They're taught that acronyms change in businesses every couple of years, they're taught that you can't put all your faith into buzzwords, they're taught how to do a process and not worry about what somebody wants to name it that week. They're taught to be versatile and expand their knowledge across many fields and they're taught to seek out solutions, not problems. Most of the parents/grandparents who graduated 20, 30, 40 or more years ago would be completely lost in today's classroom.... although it might do them a lot of good. Those who "hate education" so much because they didn't "get it" or felt it didn't apply to them years ago would actually LOVE what goes on today if they took the time to find out what it was. It's more geared toward the student instead of toward the guy who thought it up. It's like the difference of "listening to boxing on the radio" like our grandparents or great grandparents did and getting a live streaming of it via the internet. The difference is astronomical.

reply to post by PurpleChiten


Congratulations, you have been conditioned well. Chitens are gullible because they have a Gizzard

You need drive and determination to start a business and you don't learn that in college. People with drive and determination tend to go to college more though but often the businesses they start aren't even in the field they studied in college so the college really didn't help.

We need workers in this world. We need employers in this world. We all need to make a living. College diplomas aren't needed to succeed in life, they also don't mean someone is intelligent. College does boost confidence but confidence without experience is very dangerous as is evident in the fragile state of our Economies of the world.

If you are happy with what you do, I am happy for you. I have much experience in everything and wouldn't trade that for a billion dollars but I will give it away to others for free. I taught quite a few people what I have learned and will continue teaching for free to those who want to learn........ I usually pay people to learn when they work for me....... The same with most other employers.

well, I've done everything from farming to manufacturing cars to working on rockets that went into space. You name it, I've done it. Now I teach the next generation.
There are many fields, where the higher paying careers are, that do need a college degree and the learning that takes place in getting the degree is very valuable.
If you want to dig ditches for the rest of your life or work you body as hard as it will go until you die, you don't need an education and we do need people to do the grunt work. If you don't want to get an education, don't get one. There will always be menial jobs that have to be filled. Not everyone can work in the top positions.

Originally posted by Pedro4077
reply to post by Xtrozero

 

What I'm saying is that a report card with A's and B's is not the "be all" and "end all" recipe for success.

If you can read - you can learn. Many success stories are to be told here.

I'm not saying that it's the right thing for everybody, but if my son leaves school at 15 - he starts work at 15.

You can always go back and re-educate yourself for a different position online, in college, or at university.

Don't think you just have one option.

At some point you might want to rethink all this....

So your son finishes a GED then works on a online degree let's say from Phoenix college. What do you think his outlook is? You are betting that he is exceptional, and I agree exceptional people do well, BUT exceptional people also go to MIT and do incredible things that influence the whole world, as example.

If your son is so exceptional that As are an easy thing and a 2200 plus ACT score is a very doable THAT makes him AVERAGE at best for MIT... can you see my point?

Your son might be a successful lumber yard owner and live a good life, BUT he will not do exceptional things. School k thru 12 and first four years of college are just building blocks for reaching exceptional levels. He will not reach those exceptional levels...period... with your attitude....I don't care what you think or hope for... it doesn't matter in the end.

Your son could be the greatest brain surgeon on the planet and he will never know unless he is push to his maximum potential, and getting a GED, self study and doing some crappy online degree will not help him reach his potential.

You can argue this point all day and the facts will not change...I'm sorry...

reply to post by Xtrozero


Wow, I wouldn't mind owning a lumber yard but it takes a lot of bucks for the inventory. I know a guy who was the head engineer at the local mine making mega bucks and he bought a lumber yard when he retired.. He liked the lumber yard.

Originally posted by rickymouse

Wow, I wouldn't mind owning a lumber yard but it takes a lot of bucks for the inventory. I know a guy who was the head engineer at the local mine making mega bucks and he bought a lumber yard when he retired.. He liked the lumber yard.

I agree, BUT the OPs kid will never reach his TRUE growth potential.... AND if he doesn't have that "special thing" he is only going to work for a lumber yard and not own it...lol, but he could be above average and with the right education owning a lumber yard might be his true potential. Either way whether he is gifted or not he will not reach his TRUE potential with his Mom's mind set.

reply to post by Xtrozero


Don't be rediculous, it's who you know that counts, everyone knows that. I could have borrowed a half mill to start a business through a economic grant from my home town just because of the people I knew. These people also knew I would have made the business succeed by working hard. I wasn't interesting in building a molding factory back then, I wanted to start a small business for my brother and I so we could supply the local stores, I already owned an old warehouse in a little side town. I would have had to build a big building within the city limits to get the money. That was back in the early eighties when a half mill was a lot of money. The interest was so low I could have borrowed the money, invested it, and used the profits to make the payments, I brought that up at the meeting and they kind of chuckled, they said I couldn't do that even though it would have worked. I had to build a business and create jobs..

reply to post by PurpleChiten

No...that is said by people who are successful. I am a TEACHER of a very specific Skill Set. When I was young...I taught many things...Winter Survival...then various other forms of Survival. I taught inner city youths how to swim, camp. cook, sail, canoe, different ways to use, swamp and recover and use several oar techniques in a row boat...various edible and medicinal plants...how to start a Fire without matches or a lighter...how to build a temp. shelter.
I also taught business at a very young age as I started working at one of my Dads businesses at 5 years old...taking out the trash for 50 Cents an Hour. I taught various Musical Forms and Music Theory...I taught our Higher Level Employees how to avoid needless meetings with Consultant Groups. And for a while I was a Professorial Assistant.
What I teach now is a person to REPLACE ME...as I sometimes do a Job which is High Risk-High Return and Dangerous.

I KNOW HOW TO TEACH! What passes for Teachers today is a JOKE! They have no work ethic and always blame something or someone else for their failure. That failure being a complete and total inability to do their job...TEACH! Split Infinity

reply to post by rickymouse


I bet the lumberyard didn't argue with him like most people argue with engineers? lol

I always had trouble with math..It never got any better. I tested almost completely out of college levels for reading and writing when I started college but I was stuck in a basic math class that I basically didn't belong in. It was low, but my math skills were horrible. They never got better really. And lack of ability to do math pretty much held me back in a lot of things I really wanted to do.

If you want your kid to go to college? Yes. I think you should worry.

Originally posted by Xtrozero

Originally posted by r2d246
Well 200 yrs ago 99% of people were self employed and 99% of them had zero formal education. So what's our problem? ummmmhhh lets see.... THE SYSTEM

Wow..99% of America was self employed...I guess if hunting and growing your own food for survival, and one bad season from starvation is a good thing then you are right....

Better to die in freedom than live in slavery

Originally posted by r2d246
Better to die in freedom than live in slavery

Lol, sounds like a statement from someone who has not needed to survive...

Think about spending every waking moment surviving in some way...no play time, no vacations, no sitting back and cruising the forums, no hey I want to eat, so I'll just go out to eat or pop something in the microwave....

We can even go back 80 years and a normal work week 12 hour per day 7 days a week, I'm not sure if I call any of that freedom in any shape or form.

The human race has never had so much "free time" in human existence as we have today, your statement makes zero sense....

Originally posted by PurpleChiten
well, I've done everything from farming to manufacturing cars to working on rockets that went into space. You name it, I've done it. Now I teach the next generation.
There are many fields, where the higher paying careers are, that do need a college degree and the learning that takes place in getting the degree is very valuable.
If you want to dig ditches for the rest of your life or work you body as hard as it will go until you die, you don't need an education and we do need people to do the grunt work. If you don't want to get an education, don't get one. There will always be menial jobs that have to be filled. Not everyone can work in the top positions.

The truth lives here. You nailed it.

Trying to imagine your career path.

I like that part about working you body as hard as it will go until you die. Got my attention

Some people like hard work though. I'm not one of them mine you but there are people who really like coming home tired knowing they made changes in things today. Made changes in a real way, moved stuff around.

I think where the OP missed the point on this education thing is the requirement for discipline, and developing discipline is a good use of time.