Ron Clark of CNN describes the point of view of teachers toward parents in "What Teachers Really Want to Tell Parents." Parents of students, especially those with children who exhibit an apathetic attitude in high school seem to only force their will on the teachers. These caring parents are naturally trying to help their children succeed in school. There is one problem; they are doing it entirely wrong.
Teachers are hoping and praying for parents to "stop making excuses." No student will succeed if that student is not reasonably challenged. If the student is not accustomed to suffering the consequences of failing and simply runs to daddy for help every time he or she gets a bad grade, he or she will suffer in any class. Parents are making excuses for failure. This is not success; even if you formulate some excuse, the student still deserves the bad marking for his failure.
Clark states that the students, through their parents bad habits, will "not {[develop] a strong work ethic." Imagine this: an entire generation of high school graduates with too little or too weak of a work ethic to make any sort of progress in life whatsoever. when that day comes, America is done for. If there is not progress, we are as good as dead. Progress requires work. I know from personal experience the positive side of work. While many of my friends, slackers and distracted individuals alike, are struggling and complaining through secondary school, I've been somewhat taught to have a stronger work ethic. My parents have never made excuses for me, and I have learned from my mistakes. As a result, while many of my friends will not go on to do anything significant with their lives, I am already independently studying Quantum Physics and may have a potentially bright future in the subject.
Ron Clark advocates the point that getting in trouble for your mistakes "builds character and teaches life lessons." Some students sway their teachers and parents so easily that they can skate by through school. I once was very fond of that idea, as it was once very easy for me. As I grew older and matured ever so slightly, my perspective changed. I gave up brown-nosing teachers for better grades and actually began to try. I failed several times, and I deserved every single failure and every single consequence of my failures. It is only right for students to fail, for if they do not learn to get back up after failing, they may never succeed when they face the real challenge: life.
There needs to be a big change in education. Tons of people would agree, but perhaps it would be easier to make minor changes first. The first change is with the parents, either help the teachers challenge your child, or get out of the way. Better yet, could teachers, the educators that are paid to put stress their pupils, as a whole be harder on students? Sure, but how are we going to tell which ones actually care about the difference they are making in the futures of students, and ones that simply are just waiting for the paycheck.
