The big cities have schools of a wide variety of dismal and deceptive 'performance indicators', but to find a school with 'sound', mature, adults in charge of the shebang or the classroom needs an armed posse. The more 'rural' areas may be on a better footing. There are good teachers and bad, but Gresham's Law affects more than simply the vast amount of 'government' money poured into the system, along with curriculum directives, as some sort of curative. We had a fine American lady teacher in today, brought along by the Tavern's own fine lady. Peggy is rural teacher, known by the community in which she lives, out in the sticks in America. Where the Tavern is, too, is deemed 'rural', so we welcomed a kindred spirit. And she had some insightful observations ! As did an Oz gentleman. Let us start with him. Mark Evans.
Teaching the History of Nothing
Many who emerge with a Bachelor of Arts degree rightly earn and confirm the poor reputation that degree now confers. They come out knowing nothing, and many plunge black into the schools, this time as teachers, to pass on nothing. It is a depressing sort of carousel.
How we teach history
“We are not concerned about the narrative of events, or the retelling of history,” I have heard so many times I have lost count, “we are interested in skills.”
Thus, history teaching is not about content—a dirty word among the ACARA curriculum gurus—but is instead about skills. What good is knowledge to students? Who cares if they can recount the events of 1066, or the fall of the Roman Republic, or the Pacific Campaign? What relevance will it have to their daily lives, to their future role in the workforce?
But skills: now, there’s a word we can get behind. Everybody likes skills. What could be of better utility?
We have become, even among our educated classes, a post-learning society. Ostensibly, the internet has been the vehicle of this shift in consciousness; with information on anything easily obtained, we have no need to carry it about in our own skulls any longer. Of course, information is not the same as knowledge, and without knowledge, wisdom is difficult to obtain.
Sending unformed young minds to the internet for knowledge is like sending them to a sewer for fresh water.
I am no longer startled by the abject lack of general knowledge among everybody under the age of fifty. Once, we might have said they knew a lot about a little, or a little about a lot; now it seems they know very little about very little.
ACARA’s unwieldly response to this shift is to turn learning history into the learning of abstract skills, transferable everywhere—the best response to the interconnected world. It is, in essence, to swallow more of the same poison. The antidote is rigour, but rigour won’t be found in the utilitarian and progressive model of teaching.
He had a great deal more to say after setting the dismal scene on this dismal profession. (follow the link, for more) Part of that 'progressive model' of teaching involves driving men from the classrooms in case they fall into their supposed and mal-anticipated base, patriarchal instincts and sexually abuse the children, and stuffing the staff rolls with young women who 'know their rights'. But very little else.
The Education departments in Oz are fiefdoms run by Marxist-feminist lackies who do not find it difficult to herd all the catty girls who pass as teachers. Those moronic drones are quite comfortable with 'teaching' the most outrageous, anti-scientific, marxist,
gender-drivel in order to turn small boys and girls into small girls and boys at best and intersexed, confused and dismayed 'trans', gay, lesbian, polyamoritic clones of the most rabid voices in our worst Universities, at worst. The worst is winning. The mind and soul wreckers use 'bullying' as a foil to fool. Their aim is nothing to do with reforming badly behaved children, but how to make them even more badly behaved, confused and guilty teens and adults.
They say so themselves.
The
filth mongers like Mz Roz Ward know full well that the materials they devise will be implemented by wishy-washy, morally bereft young female teachers, who will themselves be tittilated and recommend the prescribed 'internet sources'. Too few of those young women will say 'NO', nor even 'what part of NO don't you understand?'. They are in the sisterhood, like it or not. Voices get raised when the drivel comes back to the parents in homework assignments. Then the parents start to grumble: the politicians and ex-pollies stand up, some like Mark Latham to condemn - after the horse has bolted - and some to defend their incompetence and spending profligance. The kiddies do not have to delve into the internet to be poisoned, but directed thereto they are anyway. To homosexual sites. To LGBT-perversion sites which are so pornographic that even a hardened cop fresh from marching in the gay Mardi Gras would blush. The influence of sound lady teachers wanes. But some, like
Peggy Goodrich still speak out fearlessly to an audience that refuses to listen any more. We did though.
The dumbing-down of the intellectual potential of our children is going on hand in hand with dumbing-down their moral potential.
She points out that it not only mum and dad barely see their kids compared to teachers, but that the whole of the decaying society portrayed on TV gets more attention than either. Our kids have little chance.
Changing moralities: World hardening us to accept decaying values as norm. Are you concerned about the moral decay of our time? Think about it.
My grandma never wore trousers.
She might wear an old pair of overalls over her dress to work in the field or pick blackberries, but she was always a lady about it.
During that generation women seldom showed their ankles and never their upper arms. When styles changed to shorter dresses, she always wore hose, no matter how tattered they were. She would be shocked at the way some people dress nowadays. We show upper arms, nearly all our legs and heaven knows what else in public and polite society. Not only the women, but gentlemen could be more tastefully attired.
In early days women dressed up for church or town to do their shopping. They not only wore gloves but a hat. Now nearly every church is open to pant suits for ladies. As long as we are dressed decent, I have no quarrel with that, as I think God looks at the heart and faithfulness and not our fashion sense. What we wear, as long as we are modestly and appropriately attired, does not diminish our attitude of worship.
It seems to me that there are so many shows on television and in the movies that want to shock our senses. Words that we would have gotten our mouths washed out with soap for if we had uttered them, seem to be the norm now. Bad words are being accepted to some now as a normal.
It is my opinion that there is a great deal of trash in our entertainment fields during the day, in prime-time, and definitely after prime times.
The people I know and associate with do not live their lives in such a reckless manner.
There is nothing left to the imagination. The producers and directors of these shows seem to think that everyone lives like their scripts portray, but we don’t.
I am constantly appalled at the way producers take what is a beautiful expression of married love and turn it into something cheap and tawdry, by making it acceptable and commonplace for unmarried, immature couples. Is nothing sacred any more? Am I the only one who feels this is a mockery of something honorable and created by God?
Are we getting hardened to the things that are so acceptable now? Do we ignore some of the actions and words that used to startle or shock us? Have we grown that accustomed to seeing them that we are accepting those values as the norm?
It must be difficult in today’s world for parents to teach their children....
right from wrong and decency from indecency.
By the looks of some young people we see, many parents have failed their job, if they were even trying in the first place. Advertisers appeal to the young, sexy look for little girls barely 10. Many look like 10 going on 30. What has happened to children being children without all the appearances and responsibilities of adulthood?
The thing that concerns me is that we are little-by-little, gradually learning to accept what we see or hear as being normal and natural and appropriate behavior. My wise and wonderful grandpa used to say, “You can get used to hanging if you hang long enough.” In retrospect, maybe that was his way of trying to impress on us about our getting accustomed to and accepting ways we find unattractive or uncomfortable or appalling
I do realize I am old-fashioned.
I think we need to treat our bodies as temples. We should not expose ourselves for the world to see. We should keep our words clean and comforting and kind. We should respect ourselves and others. We should have decency of manners and thoughtfulness.
If we would simply go back to the Ten Commandments the Lord handed down to us, many of our troubles would cease.
And the Golden Rule too, to treat others as we would like to be treated. This is beginning to sound like a sermon, but as I said, I am old-fashioned.
There are so many beautiful words in our language. There are so many beautiful things to enjoy and see. There are so many wonderful things about people, why would we stoop to accepting ugly, tasteless values and words in our lives?
Birds of a feather flock together ... so we need to watch who we fly with. We need to choose our friends carefully.
I love many, many things about teaching at Hillsdale Christian School.
I should point out here that Peggy's school is entirely funded by parents. Peggy is fortunate that the 'Government' does not provide a red cent - and let's face it, 'Progressive' (socialist ) education is mostly red.
Here, Parents Pay and Rule.
America and Oz differ in a number of respects, one of which is government funding and dictat. Another is the American propensity for parents to vent their polite spleen on 'School Boards'. And they do.
One thing in particular that I appreciate is the absence of bad words. Neither the teachers nor the students resort to such language to express themselves. They all have such high moral standards. They are never judgmental of others. They all have such exquisite manners. They are all so helpful and kind. I could go on and on with compliments. They have touched my life and taught me s-o-o-o-o-o-o much.
I don’t think I could teach in public schools as the rules seem more lax there. I know it is very difficult for teachers to keep order as they must deal with so many home habits of their students. What is a shock to some teachers is a norm for many of the pupils who hear and see more than we can ever imagine.
Teachers cannot teach their religious beliefs to their charges nor express right from wrong.
Patriotism is often lost in the shuffle trying to please everybody’s origin. The same with scripture reading and prayer.
I was astonished at a Facebook message regarding the school shootings.
The caption was, “Where were you, God in all this?” His reply, “I am sorry but I was ordered to leave the schools and not interfere with the education system.” So sad.
Thank you Peggy. When she has gone, retired and rested, she will be missed. All the 'sound' older teachers are almost spent now. Treasure them while you may. Drink to them and weep for your kids. And Stand Up to the wreckers. Pax
