Like many things, education is one of those issues that everyone likes to have an opinion about whether they know what they’re talking about or not. My goal is to discuss the problem in education, because there is a problem, from the bottom up. This first discussion will be on, as the title suggests, Family Idiocracy.
“idio-“ from the Greek idios meaning ‘own’ or ‘distinct’; it is private or personal
“-cracy” denotes a particular form of government, rule, or influence
Every kid who walks into my classroom, or your classroom, or any classroom has his/her own story to tell. Something happened at home the night before, that morning, that year – whether they just got accepted to the college of their choice, their parents divorced, they moved to a new school, or they won a state championship. Maybe they have very loving parents who help them with their homework every night and provide a healthy breakfast every morning. Maybe their parents are never home because they are working all the time. Maybe their parents are always drunk, keep them awake all night, or abuse them in one way or another.
On occasion I ask my students to do things. Okay, daily. These are my favorite answers:
“You can’t make me.”
“Noooooo.”
“Why?”
“This is stupid.”
“This is boring.”
“I’ve already done this.”
“I don’t want to.”
Sigh.
Let’s go back to that first one. “You can’t make me.” You need to get to school on time. “You can’t make me.” You need to come to class. “You can’t make me.” You need to get your work done. “You can’t make me.” You need to come to class prepared. “You can’t make me.” Sigh. You’re right. I can’t make you. There is nothing I can do to make you. I can’t even make you understand why you need to what you need to do. But truthfully, it has nothing to do with me. It has everything to do with the student. And it has so much to do with where the student lives.
Let’s take a look at the living conditions of many families in the urban setting. (Since I am most familiar with New York state laws in terms of city life, I’ll refer to those.) Funding for schools comes from property tax. Families who live in downtown Buffalo don’t own property. In fact, many families live in shared housing: three apartments, one house. There are a lot of apartment buildings, as well. The point is, although there is property, because it is so compact with people and living space, the tax is simply not comparable to the property tax rolling in from suburban towns. The families, however, still need good schools, and they realize the problem of the taxes. Solution? They vote for higher taxes, of course. But then families aren’t making enough money to feed their families because they are paying so much in taxes. As a result, parents have to work two or more jobs to compensate. This means less time at home; this may also be a cause for drug dealing: better hours, more money. (The results create the illusion that parents don’t care about their children’s education.) What does this do to the kids? I think we all know the answer. Most students follow in their parents’ footsteps and live a similar lifestyle. It’s what has been modeled for them; it’s a life that they understand. Trying to transition, or even attempt to transition into another culture is never a realistic thought in their mind. Even if the idea is posited, rarely are students in this position told how to go about it.
Different parents, too, have different expectations. Often times the parents want something different than the student. Or maybe they just don’t care. What I’m trying to say is, as much as we want to do so well, change the lives of our students, help them achieve their goals and dreams, it just might not be possible. There is a woman who works as a curriculum and instruction advisor in the district office here. She told me once that she doesn’t encourage students to dream unless she knows that there will be someone to pull them through to see it happen. If it is going to be another failure, another loss, another disappointment in their lives because no one was there to help them, she leaves it alone. It is probably the saddest, most realistic look on teaching I have ever heard. The success of a student relies on the cooperation of all parties: school, family, community, and peers (and themselves, of course). Although some people are able to be successful without the support of one or more of these factors, it is never surprising nor unexpected when those students who lack this circle of support fail, or fall into the generational rut.
The problem that students face when they go back home isn’t exactly something they can just leave at the door. It is something that is on their minds 24/7. It is the thing that is driving them, their advocate for success or failure, something to lean on for support, or move them to success, or fight against them, or crush them. It is but one factor in the world of education, one that cannot be ignored, and is probably the hardest to overcome as a system.
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