At our faculty meeting we were presented with a list of students ready to move to full English. There were a lot of acronyms and jargon. During that I tried to meditate on world peace. It didn’t work. We were given their grades in English class and the range went from A to F. I have many of these kids on a daily basis. Many of them you could talk to all day and not realize they were supposed to be limited in their English.
What struck me was the reason I see for the difference between an A and an F. It was not language skill. Most spoke well. Some who struggled had the highest grades. It was not intelligence. None of them were dummies. The big difference was work habits. The ones who had high grades came to class with their books and supplies. When it was time to work they would open their books and get busy. They did not spend their time talking to their friends, doing their nails, cleaning out their back pack or counting the leaves on the trees outside the window. They got to work.
We don’t teach work habits any more. We make excuses. One of the definitions I have heard for people that need special education help is someone who is not performing up to the level of their ability. Of course it is never a matter of laziness or entitlement mentality. It is always something that requires lots of forms and high paid experts to work with them.
Not really. It is a matter of sloth. You think the snowflakes marching in the streets to the tune of “love trumps hate” are out of contact with reality, just wait until the next generation is pushed out of the public schools.
homo unius libri
You probably couldn't tell that English was my second language.
ReplyDeleteI always thought that profanity was your second language.
DeleteGrace and peace.
I ask the Lord to give me a reasonably long and healthy life, but to please get me out of here before the country falls apart. I hope He's agreeable with that.
ReplyDeleteI guess that means that we have a few more years left, unless He said, "No."
DeleteGrace and peace.