Jim

I don't know about the rest of the country but in NYC the public schools act as the minor league for the prisons. It's not a matter of teaching and learning, it's a matter of just trying to survive. Nevertheless, the school board continues to suck up taxpayer's dollars and produce nothing but juvenile delinquents.

anon

Anon, are you sure you're a teacher? You spellings of soulless and forgo are appalling. I truly hope you're not teaching the English Arts.<BR><BR>Uncle Sam, you live in Texas, don't you? Where educational levels have been at an all-time low for the past 10 or so years - correct? No wonder you sent (or are sending) your kids to private schools.<BR><BR>Well, I live in Ohio and send my kids to school in one of the best public school districts in the country. I cannot afford to send them to private school. So I did the next best thing; I moved from a state with an equally dismal educational system as Texas' (Kentucky's) to one with a better one.<BR><BR>You're a Conservative Republican. Cincinnati is surely one of the most conservatively Repulican cites in the U.S. of A. You'd feel right at home here. And you'd have been able to send your kids to decent schools without shelling out a fortune.

anon

Sorry, that'd be "your spellings". Typing a bit too fast, but at least I am not teaching our nation's children.

Roger

In homeschooling, my wife and I get to do the indoctrinating. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle will be taught; Freud, Rousseau and Marx will be condemned. The kids will be immersed in Washington and Jefferson; Susan B. Anthony, Harriett Tubman, WEB DuBois and Robert Kennedy will be sidebars as they deserve. For literature, they will be immersed in Shakespeare, Washington Irving, the Brontes, Hemingway, Richard Wright, Walker Percy and the like; worthless writers like Toni Morrison will not be read. As for alienation, you bet I'm alienated. Who couldn't be alienated with the sewage-drenched popular culture, the 50 % divorce rate, the 33 % illegitimacy rate, the 25 % virtual illiteracy rate, the 1.4 million abortions performed yearly? Knowledge of the world as it is IS vital. However, having one's children stew in the toxic swamp of public schools is self-defeating.

Uncle Sam

Roger,<BR><BR>Outstanding post!<BR><BR>The public schools in this country led by the NEA have managed to:<BR><BR>1. Dumb down our children in math and science.<BR><BR>2. Require an eigth grade education in order to get a 12th grade diploma.<BR><BR>3. Demand more $$$ for less work, just like any other union.<BR><BR>4. Demand and spend far more on "educating" children, while continually producing worse results than private shchools that spend about 1/4 the amount of the $$$.<BR><BR>5. They also spend valuable learning time "clarifying" your child's values, promoting the homosexual lifestyle as just another acceptable and normal choice, assisting your underage daughter in getting an abortion, questioning the validity of the US and Septemeber 11 and my personal favorite...sharing with your chuild how to put a condom on a banana.<BR><BR>And BTW, despite the fact that 40% of the teachers are Republican...97% of their COMPULSORY union dues are given to Democrat or extreme liberal causes.<BR><BR>Do not start on me with the NEA and most of their under educdated, tenure seeking disciples...I've seen enough!!!<BR><BR>US

julescat

We took our two kids to Florence/Tuscany for three weeks last March. Our oldest, a high school soph, paid a pretty heavy price academically-speaking for missing 2+ weeks of school (a portion of our trip was during his spring break). I must emphasize that both he and we (his parents) considered it a worthwhile sacrifice. My professional schedule does not allow trips at totally convenient times during the year. Understanding that school is very important but not more important than irreplaceable family time, we decided to go. We informed his teachers and some of them gave homework, some did not. My son spent a couple of hours a day on average getting stuff done via the internet and e-mailing assignments in to his teachers who were agreeable to that.<BR><BR>The net result was a fabulous family experience and a somewhat damaging academic result. This year we are again going away in March but our son is staying home, only joining us during his school break. We feel that he learned alot last year about balancing important responsibilities. It is his choice to sacrifice some family time for the sake of this very important junior year in HS.

Uncle Sam

This just about sums up the problems with public schools in the US:<BR><BR>Headline in a recent newspaper article:<BR><BR>"Pass All Who Attend"<BR><BR>It quoted a high school superintendant who stated that even though many of the 12th greaders could not read, they should still be allowed to graduate. He suggested that a diploma should be based upon attendance instead of academic achievement."<BR><BR>As Pogo once, "We have net the enemy and they are us."<BR><BR>US

Momof5

My husband received an award from his work where we received an all expenses paid trip to Hawaii for four. We had to use the award at the same time as other awardees and had no choice as to the dates. After much discussion we decided to splurge to take the whole family even though it meant taking the kids out of school for one week (our eldest was a junior in HS). To shorten the story, my kids still talk about that trip four years ago. Yes we got the homework assignments and yes, they are good students. We normally wouldn't do this. But what an opportunity for us. We toured the whole island and saw some terrific things. Most importantly, we were a family doing something together that was beyond what is normally available to us. Just our story. <BR><BR>PS Our two oldest are now in college and doing just fine.

Mom

I took my three children out of school when they were 12,13, and 14 years of age for a week to London. Again took them out of school to Spain and Italy. <BR>I spoke with each of the teachers prior to the trip as well as the administration. The school principal was wholeheartedly in favor of these trips. The teachers worked the children's trips into the curriculum and everything went very well. <BR>The kids did have some catchup work, but, managed to take care of it fairly quickly. They were motivated to travel and motivated to attain good grades. <BR>It is a personal decision based on the time away, the child, and, perhaps, the destination. <BR>Good luck. We were never sorry to have taken the kids. The kids were truly delighted to have gone.

crimes and misdemeanors

3 days = ok<BR>3 weeks = irresponsible<BR><BR>I purposefully missed 3 days of school a month (not all at once) the whole way through. Figure I missed a year overall. Graduated valedictorian as I intended. As an adult with children, I feel the pain. We take our trips in the summer and at spring break. I have the rest of my life when my children are through with grade school to travel, or I can hire a sitter. My children will have to prove themselves worthy to miss any school at all. I had a plan, but I'm not sure if my children or many others have a clue.

Sue

Bravo, StCirq and others!<BR><BR>The key phrases here are "14-year-old freshman" and "especially homework averse," and neither bodes well for a positive outcome to this venture.<BR><BR>When I taught, a motivated student who missed school got homework assignments ahead of time, did them on his/her own, and returned them in a timely manner, organized and complete, thus minimizing both the time I had to spend on them and his/her catching-up process with what was going on in class. An unmotivated student may have gotten assignments ahead of time, usually failed to turn them in or turned in an illegible mess, and was sullen and resentful about being "lost," often using as a rationale: "but I was absent." Yes, while this student was on vacation, we were learning (and don’t kid yourself—it’s a vacation).<BR><BR>Beeper, you seem sincere in your desire to help your kid, so my suggestion is to be sure that your student spends "quality" time on the assignments, does them properly and neatly, and organizes them to be turned in. That’s just the best you can do. But it does mean your involvement.<BR><BR>Also see that he or she is available for extra help after school, but you can’t really expect hours of extra help: the teacher does have other obligations, and no, he/she is not your personal slave simply because you pay taxes. Just be considerate. You might inquire about tutors: your school or school district may have a list. At our high school, the National Honor Society members tutored in the library for free on a daily basis; however, an "official" adult tutor might be preferable.<BR><BR>As for the socialization aspect, it depends on the size of the high school, how many new kids yours will be meeting, how confident your kid is, etc. At our school, pop. 2500, the freshmen seemed quite cowed in the beginning, but perhaps it won’t affect your child at all.<BR>

its

&gt;&gt;Better yet, find me a profession where employees are provided with the amount of time off that a teacher gets<BR> and in addition to their salary most are provided pension contributuions far above that of the average business<BR> worker, if they get a pension at all! &lt;&lt;<BR><BR>Major League Baseball<BR><BR>

demo

Well, let's take a little poll, how many here think Uncle Sam is an idiot? For and against please.

Uncle Sam

Demo,<BR><BR>Interesting approach...don't like the truth so shoot the messenger...you'll go far!<BR><BR>US

xxx.xx

Just the fact that you are asking the questions shows that you have some doubts. If it's not too late try to make some arrangements to leave the teenager at home. Making up work past the elementary level is difficult. If two weeks' worth of work is given and your child doesn't understand the lesson for day 2 you have a problem. Especially for things like math or science catching up can be tough.

Lil

I took my daughter out of school for 2 weeks when she turned 13. As soon as the school year started I met with each teacher. Shc completed all her assignments prior to the trip and each teacher gave her assignments to do while traveling. i.e. travel journal (english), finding out facts about each country (world studies), bringing back menus in various languages to interprete in class to other students (language), explain currency conversation and metric usage (math) Travel in itself is a learning experience. Enjoy and the best of luck with your child. They will remember this adventure the rest of their lives.

Celeb

This is great Lil---but why not do it during the 185 days when the kid isn't in school?

E.J.

I think this is an excellent thread--one of the few where I have read every post. <BR><BR>I think the type of school children attend has a lot to do with how the absences will effect them. I went to a very large, but good, public school. My teachers never really knew anything about me besides my name and my class average, and the administration couldn't have picked me out of a lineup. Missing any time from school for anything other than illness was forbidden by the administration and notes from doctors always had to be provided for an excused absence. This was not long ago--I was in high school in the 90s. <BR><BR>When my family went to visit my sick grandfather one year, I missed a few days of school and had to lie to the principal about where I was going...I forget what I told him. A few times my parents wanted to take my brother and I out of school for a vacation but we always asked them not to. Our fear that we would fall behind outweighed our desire to have fun. My brother and I were good students, too--I ended up graduating with a 3.7 and he with almost a 4.something--it wasn't an adversion to doing work that made us never want to miss school, just the fear of falling behind. Often, teachers would give students extra work when they thought they might be on vacation.<BR><BR>I now teach high school students and it breaks my heart to see a good student struggle and fall behind when he/she has missed a few or more classes for anything--illness, vacation, etc. When missing school can't be helped, because of illness, that is one thing. Maybe if it can be helped, alternate plans should be made. Does anyone ask their children what they prefer? Do they know and understand the possible consquesnces of falling behind and/or having to do work on their vacation? Maybe my brother and I were just strange. <BR><BR>This decision is very personal and so many factors are involved. Please keep posting your ideas so I can read them!