From the NY Times:The vision of thousands of students spending the week out of school but still in close proximity was not exactly what city officials had in mind. Marge Feinberg, a spokeswoman for the Department of Education, said they had hoped that students whose schools were closed would stay at home.
“We really are encouraging them to keep up with their schoolwork,” Ms. Feinberg said. “We hope that they follow the curriculum that we’re providing.”
That curriculum, posted on the department’s Web site, is divided by grade level and provides 80 pages of material for each student to read.
First graders, the curriculum suggests, could watch “educational” television programs like “Clifford the Big Red Dog” on PBS. Eighth graders were prodded to write “a letter to President Obama about a topic that interests you,” or “ short story, poem, or lyrics to a song.”
“Even though your school is closed, you can use this time to continue learning,” the document said.
8 comments:
Ever since America got hell-bent on forcing the cost of labor down and forcing married women into the workplace, we were on a collision cost with real problems.
My stay at home mom would have had those reading primers and flash cards near at hand for a little drilling at the kitchen table.
Who has time now? Families are busy just trying to survive. I expect the revival of child labor anytime soon so that we can produce as cheaply as China or Mexico.
You are SO right!!!
While we're at it, why don't we force women to wear burqas, not let us drive and not let us talk with any men other than family members?
That's right, women going into the workforce ruined humanity. You are SO right.
"Let's not educate children but train them to pass tests."
M. Bloomturd
No, I am not talking about women choosing to work, I am talking about women not having any choice economically. I am a woman. I know that the "factory girls" in Lowell, MA and the "shirtwaist makers" in Triangle shirtwaist always existed.
But we worked hard to produce enough plenty so that every man, woman and child did not have to have their hand to the till.
I have known women who had crippled children, mentally and emotionally disturbed children or just very young infants, where their personal presence would have been life saving.
America has gone money-mad and no one care who it hurts.
I'm not saying that a woman's place is in the home, but it's a lot better for all when she can be there up until the time that her kids are all in school. Unfortunately the way things are today, that's next to impossible for most families.
One of the benefits of being a city teacher is you get the "right of return" to your school up until your youngest child is 4 or ready for full-day Pre-K. If no full-day Pre-K is available, you get to extend your child care leave one more year. So there are teachers out for up to 10, 12 years sometimes.
The women who have the most trouble are the ones working in private industry or ones who work long hours. They're the ones who need nannies or enlist the (sometimes reluctant) grandparents to help out.
What I've noticed is that women who stay home feel guilty for not working. Women who work feel guilty for not staying home. Big dilemma nowadays.
Everyone should have the protection that teachers have. I sincerely hope that the UFT cuts the heart out of some of these greedy businessmen and feeds it to them.
However, most of us have no such protection and America is in a real race to the bottom.
Do they have this curriculum in Pollish, spanish, etc on their website? I ask this because this is the first I have haerd about itand I am sure the D.O.E. didn't bother to tell the students nor the parents...
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