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Are parents or schools to blame for low high school graduation rates?
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| Parents | 61% | 504 votes | Total: 822 votes | |
| Schools | 39% | 318 votes |
Parents
by Jay Snyder
Created on: December 23, 2008
The graduation rate in American high schools is appalling. The minute this makes news, there are people pointing fingers at teachers and administrators. Politicians impose standardized tests that are based on standards, but have little relevance to what is really learned and to what is transferrable to the marketplace or college. If teachers are doing their job, which the majority are, and school administrators are doing their job (again, the majority are), then the situation of having falling graduation rates falls upon the parents for a number of reasons.
First, children are supposed to learn proper behavior from their first teachers, which are their parents. If parents do not instill a sense of discipline and respect in their children, then it follows that the children will not exercise any self-discipline or respect when they get into the classroom. I have witnessed plenty of children who argue with their parents and basically have control over their parents. When these children enter a classroom, they believe they can do the same to the teacher who is, in essence, their surrogate parent for the school day. The teacher then must attempt to teach while also having to discipline the children. More time is spent having to enforce school and classroom rules making less time for the subject matter. Students who already have self-discipline suffer the consequences as they must wait for the teacher to get the unruly students under control before learning can continue.
The next area where parents are to blame comes from the value they place on education. Many parents do not instill in their children a sense of value toward education. If the children do not feel school is worth their time, then they will not put forth the effort required to learn and graduate. A case in point is that of parents who allow their children to skip school or pull their children out of school for a vacation in the middle of the grading period. This sends the message that school does not matter over more pleasurable pursuits. Along with this is the issue of homework. Too many parents do not make their children do their homework, especially at the high school level. Perhaps they feel that their child is responsible enough to do their work without being told. But this is not the case. Teenagers, especially in this day and age, are bombarded by other things to occupy their time and beleive they are more important than their education. When a parent does not emphasize doing homework over, lets say playing a video game, then the student will not focus on their work, but instead play the game. Parents need to enforce rules stating there are no video games played or television watched until the homework is finished.
If one looks at the value placed on education in Europe and Asia in particular, one sees that education is placed right after family and religion in importance. The students who are regarded as successful are those who earn good grades. If you look at the American educational system, and in particular, the parental values in education, many times you see athletic abilities or having good social skills being more important than grades. It is no wonder that our graduation rates are so low. Many Americans want their child to be a professional athlete or have many friends, yet will complain when their child does not graduate and place the blame on the schools, when in reality the student is simply meeting the parental expectations of athletic or social success over academic success.
Another problem area is that parents are too busy, or act too busy, to be involved in their child's education once they reach the high school level. Many parents stop being involved in their child's education thinking the student can handle it themself. What they do not realize is that high school today is not like high school when they attended. The curriculum in high school now is more rigorous than ever. Our students face challenges that are inherent in a global economy that did not exist when they were in school. Students need their parents to help them stay focused. They need their parents to work with their teachers to provide them with an education that helps them to meet the challenges they face whether they are challenges to finding a job after graduation or getting into a good college and attaining the degree that will make them competitive in a global marketplace.
Parental involvement includes being actively involved in the political decisions made with regard to education. Too many parents do not see the need to hold elected officials, from the local school board to the President of the United States, responsible for ensuring the public educational system is well-funded. If budgeted monies are always cut from education, then students suffer. Parents must be advocates for educational policy and funding. They need to look beyond their pocket books and wallets to see that tax money spent on education will help their students and the country as a whole. When they ignore political decisions made about education and educational funding, they indirectly impact the chances of their student graduating. One only needs to look at No Child Left Behind and its emphasis on how students perform on standardized tests rather than on how the students can use the knowledge they have acquired to see how this has affected graduation rates. There are intelligent students who earn high grades, can use the information they have learned, but do not perform well on standardized tests. These students, in many states, cannot graduate simply based on a test score rather than their abilities.
To conclude, if parents do not teach their children self-discipline and respect for others, do not place a high value on education, and do not stay involved in their child's education at the school level through the national level, then they are to blame when the high school graduation rate falls. It takes parents, teachers and students to ensure every child graduates with the knowledge they need to succeed in today's world.
Learn more about this author, Jay Snyder.
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Schools
by 'Rick Gray
Created on: August 12, 2010
In addressing the problem of low high-school graduation rates, there is plenty of blame to go around. There are enormous distractions in the lives of today's teens – from cell phones to on-line gaming to real-world part-time jobs. There are serious societal problems, including drugs, alcohol, and gangs. There are personal issues, including teen pregnancy and early parenthood.
But all too often, the question of whom to blame falls upon one of two groups – the schools themselves or the parents of those students who drop out.
In all honesty, the parent-vs.-school debate is a simplistic way of looking at a complex problem. It does, however, have the advantage of focusing our attention upon two important influences about which something can be done. We can't easily change the world in which our children grow up. But parents can change their behaviors, and schools can change the ways in which they operate. Thus, for all its simplicity, the parent-vs.-school debate is one worth having.
As a veteran public school teacher, it would be easy enough for me to lay the blame at the feet of the parents. And clearly, parents play a vital role. Parental support and encouragement can go a long way toward helping a struggling student to stay in school. Parents who spend time helping their children study, or who spend the resources necessary to obtain tutors, can make a huge difference.
Moreover, it's clear that parents play a decisive role in the elementary years. Parents who encourage reading, asking questions, completing homework, etc., lay a solid foundation for achievement at higher levels. Parents who help children associate high self-esteem with doing their best work in school are far more likely to watch their children collect high school diplomas.
But the drop-out problem is essentially a problem of the high school years. And, as students grow older, the schools themselves play an increasingly important role, while the role of parents declines.
Young people in their teens are learning to think for themselves. They will naturally evaluate the importance and relevance of what they are taught and measure the quality of the education they are receiving against their own developing sense of who they are.
Young people can be immature. Their sense of what is important or relevant may be misguided. Still, they do think – and they do make the decisions which lead to graduation or dropping-out. Once a student enters his teens, there is only so much a parent can do to persuade him to continue striving in a school that he feels is letting him down.
Teen students know when their teachers are incompetent, burned-out, or frustrated with teaching to a standardized test. They know when the subject they are required to study is inherently uninteresting or unlikely to be of any real value in their lives. They know when they can earn passing grades with little effort, or when a class is moving too rapidly for them to keep up.
In short, if our high schools fail to offer students an education in which they can find some value, most of them will turn off. Some, often because of parental support or insistence, will hang on and graduate. But others will drop out – and for these students, the decisive factor is almost inevitably their perception of the school itself.
This is why any serious effort at educational reform at the secondary level must focus on increasing student choice. If students have a choice among smaller schools – or schools within schools – which offer specialized instruction and different disciplinary and learning styles, students will feel a greater sense of commitment to their own education, and a greater stake in graduating.
If students were allowed to proceed at their own pace – moving ahead rapidly to earn a credit in less than a year, or taking as much time as they need to achieve mastery of a difficult subject – their would be fewer dropouts due to boredom or frustration.
If there were special night schools, which welcomed students disenchanted with the world of high school and allowed them to complete their final two years while working a full-time day job, a lot of drop-outs would decide to drop back in.
In the final analysis, it is always rather harsh to debate who is to "blame" for any social problem. It's generally more constructive to ask where changes could be made.
But however you phrase it, the role of the schools increases as students grow older – and the role of parents diminishes. If we really want to do something constructive about high school graduation rates, the place to focus our energies is on the schools.
Learn more about this author, 'Rick Gray.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
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