My Thoughts on a Discussion About Schooling

I have been having a blast spending my summer working and having fun! I will do a post soon and include pictures of some of the things I have been able to do!

However- today I have kind of a serious, thought-provoking post. Today I took the youth that did not go on a trip to see Toy Story 3. On the way to the movies they preceded to begin a discussion about schools; more specifically, comparing schools. They were 4 boys ranging from incoming 7-10th graders. They begin talking about their schools (3 different in all) and comparing. They went as far to compare standardized test scores and the poverty level at each school.

The latter of the topics really disturbed me. As a teacher, I know that just because a school's poverty level is low does not mean it is a great school. As a woman and someone who wants to be a mother one day, I do not want my child going to the lowest poverty school there is, but I also want them to be exposed to other income levels and not look down on those in other situations. I did not say anything because I was trying to comprehend and organize my thoughts while driving and listening to this conversation.

I came to this conclusion: I have been labeled as 'sheltered' in my life. However- I attended a high school where the income level ranged from low to high middle class, and also knew others my age who were fairly wealthy. My high school was considered average in its test scores. The difficulty of our classes were average. I graduated 3rd in my class of 44, but 25% of us had a GPA over 3.5. Even though I did not attend a school that was considered 'cream of the crop', I know that the teachers cared about us deeply. I know I received a good education that prepared me for my undergraduate degree, and also had some role in my quest for a master's.

I pray that when I have children that I will make the right decisions for my children's' education. I do not want them to become so focused on education that the main topic of discussion becomes a comparison of schools. I pray they will be able to be kids for as long as possible and not applying for college and scholarships in 6th grade (which one of these kids had!).

I am not saying these kids were wrong or judging them in anything they said. They are entitled to their opinions, and the culture here is much different than the rural setting in which I grew up. It was my first real 'culture shock' since moving here, and I am sure they will be many more!