Newsweek 2009 top 1500 schools (Deer Park, Centereach, Medford: school district, costs, activities)

[dman72]

Originally Posted by WJFM

Interestingly, I find that the more work you put in when you are younger, the less work you have to do later in life. If you put in a lot of work to get into the best college, and after that, life will be easier since it opens doors and helps you get better jobs by automatically proving a credential etc. A lot of them do lead comfortable happy lives with strong families.

But its a fine balance between pushing your kid too hard, and encouraging your kid just right. I am sure there are parents who just push kids and expect too much. But if a parent is supportive and loving at the same time, its not really pressure anymore. Even multiplication tables can be family time.. and fun.

Bingo. My parents were so thrilled that I got into college when they only had high school diplomas, they thought all the work was over. I goofed off my last 2 year of school..I probably could've gotten into a much better school than I did considering my ACT and SAT scores, but because my academic record was mediocre, I ended up in a state school. My parents didn't push me NEARLY enough.

[I_Love_LI_but]

Originally Posted by djdairyp

I am angry and have a chip? why because I disagree with you. If you look through your posts they are rife with caps and exclamation points. Mine are generally full of data and backup and calling for facts from people making points off the cuff. You call foul on people and the stats they post but if the same is done to you it is out of anger?

This is what you wrote to me:

Do you work at all or do you just make angry posts all day.

You weren't calling foul on any stats I posted. You were personally attacking me. Nor do I recall myself ever personally attacking you if I disagreed with you as you accused above.

I also see in a subsequent post you wrote this to someone else:

Now enjoy yourself in North Carolina and stop trying to settle some ex teacher grudge of yours.

Are you a teacher? You just seem to be taking this all way too personal.

As for your interest in stats, I am interested in them too and I would like to thank you for the links you provided.

One thing you often do get incorrect is where you accuse everyone else of "wanting teachers to live in poverty" if they object to commonplace six-figure salaries for teachers and being hypocrites because "then they turn around in another thread and say it takes six figures to live on LI."

What we mean is it takes six figures total household income, not six figures for each spouse/partner, to support a family.

So please stop accusing people of this. It's getting very old.

Thanks.

[I_Love_LI_but]

Originally Posted by dman72

You think.

I pulled the information off salary.com. Public school teacher. enter zip codes. Zip codes in Nassau: 63K. Zip codes in Bethesda, 62K, both at the 75th percentile. Again, for what reason, other than a preconceived notion, do you think the data is skewed at under-reporting Nassau Cty salaries, but over-reporting those in Maryland? Give me a break.

I never said they were over-reporting anything in Maryland nor under-reporting anything on LI. I was just wondering HOW MANY teachers are making the 75% percentile rate of salary in each area and how many are making more or less.

I am not a big fan of salary.com and don't use it anyway. Once when I put my work zip code in they think I should be making less than what I do. Have you tried your own profession/work zip code on salary.com? If other people think they are correct most of the time, maybe my finding is a fluke. If anyone out there has tried salary.com on your own location/job, how did it turn out?

[dman72]

Originally Posted by I_Love_LI_but

I never said they were over-reporting anything in Maryland nor under-reporting anything on LI. I was just wondering HOW MANY teachers are making the 75% percentile rate of salary in each area and how many are making more or less.

I am not a big fan of salary.com and don't use it anyway. Once when I put my work zip code in they think I should be making less than what I do. Have you tried your own profession/work zip code on salary.com? If other people think they are correct most of the time, maybe my finding is a fluke. If anyone out there has tried salary.com on your own location/job, how did it turn out?

If you take my TITLE, and put a "2" next to it...it's pretty accurate. They have "I, II, or III" for the same position. If you take my actual position (the person who I replaced when they left had a title corresponding to a higher level..but I'm doing the same exact job!!), then it's very low. That's private industry for you.

I think that the site tends on the low side, but what a lot of people on this site are trying to sell you is that the numbers aren't accurate for one geographic area relative to another...with nothing to substantiate that position, only that they wish it to be so because the data as is does not support their agenda. They know who they are.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by WJFM

Interestingly, I find that the more work you put in when you are younger, the less work you have to do later in life. If you put in a lot of work to get into the best college, and after that, life will be easier since it opens doors and helps you get better jobs by automatically proving a credential etc. A lot of them do lead comfortable happy lives with strong families.

But its a fine balance between pushing your kid too hard, and encouraging your kid just right. I am sure there are parents who just push kids and expect too much. But if a parent is supportive and loving at the same time, its not really pressure anymore. Even multiplication tables can be family time.. and fun.

It is a fine balance, very true!

Someone told me "Water finds its own level" which is true with children. What works for one child might fail on the next. A child should be introduced to the staples as well as other interests in order to find what works best, what drives and motivates them. A child might excel in physics while his sibling sees the beauty of a fractal and wants to recreate it on canvas. Forcing a child to do well in things that don't fuel their minds is no better than forcing lefties to become righties.

The child who is pushed will either burn out, rebel, or resent his parents.

I don't condone slacking off or allowing the easy way out, but do appreciate when people notice that not everyone is the next Einstein, Shakespeare or YoYoMa (sp?). It's best to discover and nurture a child's strengths while helping them become stronger in their weakspots.

[dman72]

Originally Posted by OhBeeHave

It is a fine balance, very true!

Someone told me "Water finds its own level" which is true with children. What works for one child might fail on the next. A child should be introduced to the staples as well as other interests in order to find what works best, what drives and motivates them. A child might excel in physics while his sibling sees the beauty of a fractal and wants to recreate it on canvas. Forcing a child to do well in things that don't fuel their minds is no better than forcing lefties to become righties.

The child who is pushed will either burn out, rebel, or resent his parents.

I don't condone slacking off or allowing the easy way out, but do appreciate when people notice that not everyone is the next Einstein, Shakespeare or YoYoMa (sp?). It's best to discover and nurture a child's strengths while helping them become stronger in their weakspots.

Ah, that hippy-dippy crap is what has the Asians burying us!! Drill everyone on calculus until they are blind!!



I kid, I kid.

[OhBeeHave]

Originally Posted by dman72

Ah, that hippy-dippy crap is what has the Asians burying us!! Drill everyone on calculus until they are blind!!



I kid, I kid.

Calculus is so 3rd grade. We are onto nuclear physics already.

[azzurrony]

OhBeeHave

I couldn't have said it better myself. Each child is different and expecting them all to be Rhodes Scholars is counter productive.

I think a lot of parents are trying to live vicariously through their kids. It's sad. If a child has a proclivity towards math, then great, encourage them to focus on math. If a kid loves studying words, then enter him/her into the Spelling Bee. What annoys me is that many of these parents have their kids career planned out for them when they are 5. "You will be a doctor". "You will be a lawyer." etc.

I'm a lawyer...I have news for parents. Our profession and Doctors are traditionally the LEAST satisfied and least happy with their jobs. I'm lucky because I chose an area of the law that I love. Unfortunately, most of my colleagues haven't.

The point is that pressuring your kids to "be something", "to earn money", or "to attain status" through academic sledgehammers is misguided.

What you should do is allow your kid to try different things. Let them relax once in a while. Let them be a kid. Then when you see what their interests and passions are, help them to build on those.

Ramming textbooks down your kids throat is the wrong way to go in my opinion. There's nothing more pathetic than watching the National Spelling Bee as child after child crumbles under the weight of their parent's expectations.

[zulu400]

Originally Posted by azzurrony

There's nothing more pathetic than watching the National Spelling Bee as child after child crumbles under the weight of their parent's expectations.

You are over reacting.... and you are jumping into conclusions too.

I think we know what you mean in general, but I'm afraid you do not have evidence to prove that all parents at Spelling Bee were living their lives vicariously through their kids. Failure comes in all shapes and sizes.... its the same feeling the parents and their children go thru' when they lose a game in sports or at Spelling Bee.

For the kids, its a learning experience, even if you lose now, you can come back strong. This years winner won on her 4th attempt....
Everyone .... and I say everyone is dissapointed after a loss, and they should be.... If I enter my kid into a contest then I should expect him/her to win.... the most important thing is how do you feel when they don't win.... maybe dissapointed at that very moment.... but maybe proud of the kids efforts....

[WJFM]

??!
Are you going to stop enrolling your kid in little league soft ball because your child might lose? Parents whose children enter the olympics are pathetic??

You can also hurt your kid by being over-protective. Competition is good.. that's how you grow. While I agree it should not crush you.. not encouraging healthy competition is not healthy either. I would rather prefer my child has an healthy academic competition.