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public schools questions and answers

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Q: public schools?
in public schools, what is the limit of your length to your hair? my hair is at my waist. i have never been to a public school. do you think they'll tell me to cut it??

A: There is no limit to hair length at our school. The school code just says that hair cannot be a distraction.

Q: What year was it when public schools changed from teaching institutions to babysitters?
The same year that all parents were forced into minimum wage, non-fulfilling, dead-end jobs? I still remember, back in NYC, hearing that all major businesses private schools and universities were closed (due to blizzard conditions)--but NYC Public Schools remained open. So, is the safety of those who work, go to college, and go to private schools more important than the safety of those who go to public schools? Also, when did students lose all respect for teachers--and when did teachers become such doormats?

A: When states decided that children shouldn't be punished by their parents the way they used to be punished. A good belt across the backside. I remember when teachers used to use pointers or rulers to get the message across about who was in charge. Also a lot of kids these days could care less if they get an education or not. As long as they hang out with their buds.

Q: Who do public schools have to answer to?
My former high school is a big joke. Bus drivers often substitute in classes. A lot of the teachers aren't qualified to teach. The test scores are going downhill rapidly and the overall way the school handles EVERYTHING from bad teachers to death threats is just ridiculous and apathetic. The people running this school obviously think that because it's such a small school the rules and regulations of public schools don't apply to them. Who can be contacted to get this situation resolved, to get this school into shape?

A: Each state has its own department of education. All public schools in a given state answers to them. If you contact them, they should definitely be able to do something about that. But if you want something done quickly, you should tip off someone in the media, if you can do that.

Q: Do private and public schools have the same amount of homework?
I've been in the private schools my whole life & I've always wondered if public schools have more, less, or the same amount of homework. & is the homework easier or the same at public schools?

A: Depends on the private and public schools you're talking about. I've been to both private and public schools and I think that in general private school students take more rigorous courses so they get more homework but then there are some public schools that are on par with most private schools and you have to take into consideration that it really depends on what courses the students take. Some public school students go for rigorous AP and IB courses and they get a lot of homework. Some are slackers and take easy classes so they don't get much homework. So it all depends.

Q: Is there other ways to fund public schools other than property taxes?
The government doesnt provide enough school funds for the state of ohio's public school systems. And i am writing a argumentive paper proving this. What are other ways we can fund our schools?

A: Property taxes are based on the value of the property, you could use a Parcel tax which is a set amount per house like $200 per year per house, it could also be based on the number of people in the house or the number of bedrooms in the house. Some, republicans, believe that you could run schools by donations from local businesses. Or by doing something similar to a charter school where parents are given an amount of money from the federal government to spend on whatever school they want, public or private. Where the parents would use that money to send their kids to public school. I'm a proponent of 100% inheritance tax, used mostly to fund education. Where people would not be able to inherit money, it would go to the government. This would level the playing field where every man would be what he made of himself. People would get into college based mostly on their test scores and people that weren't lucky enough to be born into wealthy families would be able to move up if they put in the effort and had the abilities.

Q: What is the difference between public schools (or private) in the city versus the suburbs?
Im thinking that public schools are the same quality, or lack of, but not sure about private. Has anyone switched from either city to suburbs or vice versa? Usually the tv shows portray suburbs for higher income families.

A: Suburban public schools are better in some ways,than city schools. The biggest one being the children that they cater to. The city schools have the same curriculum, but teach it at a slower pace, because of the illiteracy of alot of the students. Whereas, in the suburbs, the children are not exposed to the same learning environment, because they are coming from more stable backgrounds. It applies to public,and private,but no so much in private. In private, the families are able to pay for good education,and so they can expect more.

Q: What are some public schools in other countries and how do I contact them?
What are some public schools in other countries and how do I contact them? I am trying to contact schools all across the world to ask if they would participate in an IB diversity project.

A: the country should have a number of governmental websites, im sure there would be a list of schools somewhere.

Q: Should public schools have the same grading scale as catholic schools?
I think it's unfair that catholic schools have to work harder to get good grades and public schools don't. If you agree, give 3 reasons why.

A: I think the public schools should also move UP to the Catholic school grading system. Our Catholic school has 94-100% = A and 86-93% = B and 78%-85% = C and 70%-77% = D. The local public school has 90-100% for an A and so on, so a Catholic school D is a public school C, and a public school B is most often a Catholic school C. Two things happen with a tougher grading system. First, students all work harder to get themselves up to the "average" or "above average" grades. This helps build a work ethic that will last their whole lives. Second, the students with tougher grading standards perform better on academic testing and are more prepared to enter college. My third reason would be that we should push our young people to be their best, not dumb everything down for them and go for the lowest common denominator. That's my biggest problem with public schools, and that's why I send my kids to Catholic schools. By the way, our Catholic school is very diverse in terms of both ethnicity and income level. Almost *HALF* our student body speaks a different language at home, and right around half are on the reduced lunch fees program (lower incomes). Our test scores are second highest in the whole city (the highest is another nearby Catholic school), and we don't have an English as a Second Language program -- kids learn English in the classroom with our bilingual teachers -- and we don't have the whole No Child Left Behind thing to worry about. Our teachers are free to teach the way kids need to learn, customizing for individual needs as they occur, and our kids are all doing great.

Q: What are your thoughts on public schools?
What do you think about public schools? Are they better than homeschooling? Why? Do public schools properly prepare children for college and life on their own?

A: Depends partly on the school, but on the whole, pubilc schools can never be as good as homeschool since they are designed to teach to a crowd, a large group, rather to the individual needs of each student. These days many public schools are overridden by bullies, gang members, or other hoodlums because schools are more and more afraid to discipline anyone because of lawsuits. Many problems are swept under the carpet in order to look better in reports and such. Most U.S. public schools do not prepare children well for college these days. All you have to do is look at the statistics from colleges on the number of students who have to take remedial classes first--the number seems to be increasing every year--and most of those students are from public schools. As for life on their own, U.S. schools focus mostly on getting students ready for college, not for life; if they are doing poorly in the area in which they focus, how can they be expected to do a good job in other areas?

Q: How do you stop violence in public schools?
I have to write an essay about how to stop violence in public schools. :[ Can you give me some ideas? Thank you so much!

A: Your outline may be: Be consistent: School should have a routine. The students have the right to expect the school to basically be the same everyday. Consequences for breaking rules should be clear and known beforehand. Most important, there should be fairness: the administration must act fairly and treat all l students with respect. This should be reinforced with the way youngsters are spoken to. A school with high expectation of the youngters will have students achieving, (or attempting to) at great success. Expect that ther students will behave always. THIS IS YOUR OUTLINE, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS WRITE THE PAPER. THE HARD PART HAS BEEN DONE FOR YOU!

Q: Is everyone in public schools required to take an IQ test?
I don't ever remember taking one, Is this a problem? I've been in public schools my whole life. Sometimes I hear my IQ is this and that, and I think to myself I have absolutely no clue what my IQ is. I meant to say I hear other people say my IQ is this and that.

A: No.

Q: Do public schools have the right to force a student out?
My brother's school is apparently "forcing" him out. Can public schools do that? They want him to transfer to another school. Do public schools have the right to do that?

A: If he has violated the rules and has a repeat pattern of being disruptive or abusive to staff and other students - then YES. If not - find a good attorney.

Q: Do children who start in Montessori schools have a hard time adapting to public schools?
Montessori schools usually go from preschool through elementary. Once the child transfers to a public middle school, do they have problems with the new environment, especially in light of the no-child-left-behind methodology which assumes all children should develop at the same rate within ridgid scholastic structures?

A: Whenever I hear this question I think about a scene in the movie Mean Girls. Kady, the movie’s protagonist has been homeschooled in Africa by her anthropologist parents. Her first “real” school is a public high school. At first she is shocked and confused by the rules of the school. As she says in a voice over,”Never before had I lived in a world where adults didn’t trust me. I got in trouble for the most random things.” Then she is seen getting up to sharpen her pencil or to go to the bathroom and teachers being dismayed with her. This is the kind of “transition” problem Montessori children have. They have been taught to be responsible and to think for themselves and now they are placed in a situation where they aren’t usually allowed to. Being a Montessori teacher in a traditional school, I can tell you that these are the things that teachers get upset with. My program only goes to 3rd grade, so I get to hear it from the 4th grade teachers everyday. I’m not going to lie to you, they complain. I think it is human nature to be skeptical of things that are different and to try and find fault with them. But over the years I’ve tried to push past the complaints and actually look at the “problems” that my students have when transitioning. First are the MANAGMENT problems. Asking permission for everything. Montessori students are used going to the bathroom when they need to go, they sharpen their pencils when they need to, they get up and get something that they need to complete their work with, they put on chapstick…. The only time I make them ask for permission is during a lesson or if they have been abusing the privilege, so a classroom where they have to ask permission, or just aren’t allowed to do such things during class time takes a little time to get use to. SOCIAL- Montessori students are used to working together and helping their peers. They are used to using conflict resolution skills to work through their problems, they are used to the teacher not only respecting their input and opinions, but encouraging them, and they are use to respecting other children’s needs and having their needs respected. This can cause a problem when children are now in a situation where they are constantly given ultimatums and they aren’t allowed to come up with solutions on their own. ACADEMIC- Montessori children are use to being able to move on to new material when they are ready for that information, not when the scripted program and district benchmark says that they should. They are also used to saying to the teacher, “I’m having a lot of problems understanding this concept, could you show it to me in another way?” Additionally, they are use to having a hand in their education. A common question is “May I study …. a write a report on it for science this week?” Obviously, in a classroom where the teacher follows a script and teaches only what they are scripted to teach, will take some time getting used to. So yes, there are adaptation problems. But you know what? Montessori children are unusually adaptable. They know how to work independently and in groups. They are problem solvers who can make choices and manage their time well. So in general, after an initial adjustment period, they can do adapt quite well. And, at least in my eyes, the skills that they have learned from being in Montessori classroom completely outweigh the problems that they encounter when they first make the transition to a traditional school.

Q: Should public schools do what some universities do and shift money away from athletics to academics?
Some universities have reduced or altogether eliminated sports programs in order to save money and/or shift money to academic programs. Public schools have many needs academically as well as limited class sizes, more schools, newer equipment, higher teacher salaries, etc. Is following the lead of these universities a viable option. If not, why not?

A: Schools have shifted money almost completely. Sports are now relying on school council fundraising to help fund the sports.

Q: Parking in front of public schools when school is not in session?
I live in an area in NYC where street parking is hard to find. I sometimes find spots in front of a public school near my house, where there's no parking from 8am - 5pm on school days. I'm wondering if I could park there, given that it's summer and schools aren't in session. But then again, I don't know if summer school plays a factor?

A: to be safe, just follow the 8am-5pm rule. You don't want to be ticketed. If parking is really hard, try commuting.