| |
|
|
| Home > FAQs> Are Pete and Pam Wright Enemies of Public Schools? |
|
|
Are Pete & Pam Wright the Enemies Joe writes, "Why are you telling parents how to use No Child Left Behind to fight public schools? Are you against public schools? Do you think people should place their children in private schools or teach them at home?" It's time to tackle the idea that Pete and Pam Wright are the enemies of public schools. Yes, we are frustrated about the education most children in public schools receive. Look at these statistics from the U. S. Department of Education: *
Only 31 percent of 4th graders are proficient in reading Learn how U. S. students rank when compared to students from other countries: Trends in International Math & Science Study 2001
International Comparison of 4th graders Get more information about student achievement in reading, writing, spelling, arithetic, history and science from the National Center for Education Statistics and The Nations Report Card at http://www.nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/nclb.asp From Pam Before I respond, I'd like to tell you a story. In 1897, my grandmother left her family's comfortable farm in Iowa, and traveled by train and stagecoach to Miles City, Montana to teach school. She rode a pony to the one-room schoolhouse, and stoked a fire in the pot-bellied stove to keep her students warm during the long winter days. Grandmother's students were the children of Scandinavian immigrants and Native American children from the nearby Redbud Indian Reservation. Most of her students were not fluent in English. Yet she taught her students to read, write, spell, and do arithmetic - in English. My mother taught English and History to middle school students until she retired. My sister is a Kindergarten teacher. Many of her young students are recent immigrants who do not speak English. Perhaps my sister is following in Grandmother's footsteps. I have high expectations for teachers. I believe my grandmother would be shocked to learn that 69 percent of children are not proficient readers in 2003. I believe schools should teach all students to read. I believe teachers should have high expectations for all students - including poor students, minority students, English language learners, and children with disabilities. I
believe teachers should stop complaining that testing interferes with
teaching and learning. From Pete NCLB was enacted because most children who attend public schools cannot read at grade level and because there is little accountability in public schools. Children
are not being taught to read, write, and do arithmetic because many
public school staff have low expectations for their students, many
public school educators do not have the necessary training and skills,
and because many school districts do not use reading programs that
are effective and research-based. I am one of these students. I
attended Washington D.C. public schools for twelve years, from Kindergarten
through 11th grade. I learned about low expections when my teachers
advised my parents to lower their expectations because I was was not
college material. The
Power of Low Expectations It may be as explicit as buying into the stereotype that some people just are not as intelligent, so why bother? It may take the shape of a misguided sense of compassion that says it's kinder not to give some children difficult material because they will get discouraged and give up. It may even come from the simple fact that the teacher--also the victim of low expectations and poor preparation--has no idea how to fix the problem. But
explicit or implicit, intentional or not, the effect is the same. Our Message We think parents are responsible for ensuring that their children are educated and that parents cannot leave this job to others. To
help parents, teachers and child advocates, we filled the Wrightslaw
and Fetaweb sites
with hundreds of articles, with free access to all. We publish The
Special Ed Advocate, a free electronic newsletter. Are
we enemies of public schools because we expect schools to teach all
children to read? About Pete & Pam Wright Paradise at end of the road - Champion of special-ed children still doing good while having fun. After visiting Pete and Pam, Bill Lohmann of The Richmond Times-Dispatch writes of "a fast-talking, hyperactive, former football player with a photographic memory and a passion for his work" who "fights for children and sails for himself," a man "who struggled through school, like the kids he helps, with learning disabilities," a man who lives in "a slice of paradise" with his wife, Pam. (August 3, 2003) Championing
Children for Whom Reading and Learning Are Difficult. Brent
Staples of the New York Times asked, "Why is Pete Wright
a warrior for children?" Mr. Staples found that "People
who get help after suffering humiliation in school often grow up to
be champions of children who remind them of their younger selves.
This is what happened to Mr. Wright." (June 26, 2003)
Copyright © 1998-2010, Peter W. D. Wright and Pamela Darr
Wright. All rights reserved.
Contact Us |
Press |
Español l Mission l Our Awards l
Privacy
Policy l
Disclaimer l
Site Map |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
