Taking this back briefly to one of the twists this thread has taken . . .
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Originally Posted by queentess
fwiw, my little brother and I both went to a public school, and I lucked out and had some amazing math teachers, but by the time he came along, they had left. In his algebra II class he was completely lost (as were most of the other students), so I spent a few minutes with him at home explaining it, and he caught on with very little help from me. The teacher was just that incompetent. It's one thing to understand something (which the teacher did) and another entirely to explain it (which the teacher could not).
On the other hand, in my high school calculus class, the entire class failed two exams. Rather than take it out on us, the teacher would say, "Well, I obviously did a poor job explaining that. Let's go over that chapter again." And we would. In detail. He was more concerned that we understand everything than he was about speeding through the textbook. I was able to pass out of the first two math classes in college because of that man.
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You are so spot on about the difference a good teacher can make. When I was in the 6th and 7th grades my performance at school suddenly headed south. I had always been a very good student, being particularly precocious in my reading level. The problems I was having were more due to social and emotional problems, both at home and school, but my school counselor suggested to my parents that maybe I should be placed in a special education class. Then in 8th grade I had Mr. Parnwault for a class in physical sciences (an introductory mix of physics, chemistry, and astronomy). His teaching of that subject just lit up my life. In a sense academics, and in particular mathematics and science, in my opinion saved my life. All the other problems remained, home life actually got worse all through high school (my parents both became heavy drinkers), but school saw me through to the day I could turn my back on home and start college. I ended up with BS and PhD degrees in engineering from a top university, not bad for a kid that should have gone into a special education track.
Anyway back to the idea of letting children pick their reading material for schooling for being worried about them being intimidated, or for it being over their heads, or for their not relating to the material. Well education is not supposed to be entertainment and pushing students' boundaries should be part of it. Or that's my opinion. There is all sorts of things students are taught in schools that may never be of any direct interest to them or seemingly be of any future use. How many here, speaking to those not still in the education system, have ever had a use for the quadratic formula? For knowing about the three types of chemical bonds? May be I am totally out of date, but I still think all students should be provided a complete education in liberal arts and natural philosophy.
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Originally Posted by Catlady
Shared culture is important.
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At that age who knows what is best for their future and they should be prepared to go through any door.