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Funny how common sense eludes school officials..... Some kids show up to school every day and are still failing students, perhaps those students should get the extra attention, not the honors student who miss one class every 6 weeks to go to the orthodontist or misses a few days for a family matter.
Hmmmm, you actually have a school district that QUESTIONS a parent request for an absence? I'm amazed at that.
In LA Unified a kid can be gone for two weeks visiting Aunt Lupe in Guadalajara and it is completely excused. We're supposed to find "make-up" work for the kid. I don't suppose it matters since the kid will never do the "make-up" work anyway and you end up failing him or her. Then again, there are never any consequences for failing since we have social promotion.
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From our school handbook:
[Classwork and Homework During Student Absences
If a child is ill and cannot attend school, we ask you not to request missed assignments. After returning to school, the teacher will assess the student’s needs and make assignments accordingly. If a child is absent for an extended period due to illness or injury, contact the
teacher to discuss a plan for instructional support. Please do not request work in advance due to a planned absence.
Last edited by tgbwc; 09-27-2008 at 09:16 PM..
Reason: Cleaned up html
From which school district is this handbook excerpt taken?
Quote:
From our school handbook:
[Classwork and Homework During Student Absences
If a child is ill and cannot attend school, we ask you not to request missed assignments. After returning to school, the teacher will assess the student’s needs and make assignments accordingly. If a child is absent for an extended period due to illness or injury, contact the
teacher to discuss a plan for instructional support. Please do not request work in advance due to a planned absence.
[Classwork and Homework During Student Absences
If a child is ill and cannot attend school, we ask you not to request missed assignments. After returning to school, the teacher will assess the student’s needs and make assignments accordingly. If a child is absent for an extended period due to illness or injury, contact the
teacher to discuss a plan for instructional support. Please do not request work in advance due to a planned absence.
So what this does is leave the door open for them to punish for absense. If a child is given missed assignments, and he/she does them well, the school can't really dock the grades (since they're up to par), but if the school decides to punish the child for not being there, they can give work they know can't be done because of missed classroom instruction, or not give work at all and just leave the child to struggle to catch up, hence, fallen grades.
It sounds like the 'I'll show you' mentality. If you take your child out of school, their grades will suffer as a result, which really stinks since it isn't the child who has control over that.
So what this does is leave the door open for them to punish for absense. If a child is given missed assignments, and he/she does them well, the school can't really dock the grades (since they're up to par), but if the school decides to punish the child for not being there, they can give work they know can't be done because of missed classroom instruction, or not give work at all and just leave the child to struggle to catch up, hence, fallen grades.
It sounds like the 'I'll show you' mentality. If you take your child out of school, their grades will suffer as a result, which really stinks since it isn't the child who has control over that.
Actually, I believe it is this way for a few reasons:
It takes the pressure of the teacher. He/she doesn't feel like they have to get days or weeks worth of work ready ahead of time.
They don't want to encourage absences, but students aren't punished for being absent.
The thought is that homework reinforces classroom lessons. If you aren't there for the class lesson, the homework isn't needed.
Usually what we will do is have the child keep up with a reading log and keep a written journal.
It takes the pressure of the teacher. He/she doesn't feel like they have to get days or weeks worth of work ready ahead of time.
Usually what we will do is have the child keep up with a reading log and keep a written journal.
All others aside; the teachers are supposed to have plans ahead anyway, aren't they? That shouldn't be an issue.
Please don't be mistaken, I don't think parents should take children out of school on a whim; for vacation or any other pleasure, but emergencies do come up. The OP stated the reason was a dying family member, and doctor appointments. In those cases, any school should be open enough to allow such absenses.
Say a teacher in the same school has a parent on his/her deathbed, and that teacher wanted to take enough time off for travel to say goodbye and wait with other family members during the time of passing. Should that teacher be allowed that time?
Why deny that time to another person because he/she couldn't get children out of school to accompany him/her? Any person going through this experience has enough on his/her mind without worrying about their children suffering lowered grades and other aftereffects because of school, or worrying because they had to leave their children behind to be cared for by a sitter (assuming that's possible).
Allowances should be made for family emergencies.
And the appointment issue shouldn't even be an issue. Not everybody can get a child into appointments easily period, let alone be picky about the time. Next week, I'll have to take my 14 year old out for a couple hours because of a dentist appointment I made for her 6 months ago. I have been homeschooling for years, and she is back to school part time. I did not anticipate that 6 months ago.
Choices: Cancel the appointment and wait another 6 months to get a different one, possibly or likely having to take that next one during the school day; or take her out of school because missing a couple hours 2X yearly shouldn't be a problem.
Even with braces, a student wouldn't miss more than an hour or two every couple months.
Please don't be mistaken, I don't think parents should take children out of school on a whim; for vacation or any other pleasure, but emergencies do come up. The OP stated the reason was a dying family member, and doctor appointments. In those cases, any school should be open enough to allow such absenses.
I might agree with you except that our teachers have vacation days during the school year!!
DH has a 3 day sales conference nearly every year. When we were home schooling we always went with him (we went on other trips too) and they were always educational as we visited nature centers, historical sites, local attractions. Sometimes the kids had to write a special report or we incorporated the experience into our regular class work. A few years ago we went to Orlando (just happened to coincide with Spring Break so no missed school). We spent 2 days at the Kennedy Space Center...what a tremendous learning experience!! I would be sorely tempted to lie and get the kids out of school for such a trip given some of the teachers left early for Spring Break to go to Disney World.
Our school district does allow educational trips as excused absences. In April we took our then 9th grader with us to visit his sister in China for two weeks. We had a meeting with the teachers and GC ahead of time to talk about work to be done ahead of time and just to give them a heads up. My son was worried about missing school but the GC was the one that encouraged me to take him and (rightly) pointed out that he would more in China then he would in his classroom. Juniors and seniors are also allowed to take a few days for college visits.
Overall our district has an excellent attendance record and because they are flexible about non-sick absences I think people don't take advantage of it. This is a public.
I might agree with you except that our teachers have vacation days during the school year!!
DH has a 3 day sales conference nearly every year. When we were home schooling we always went with him (we went on other trips too) and they were always educational as we visited nature centers, historical sites, local attractions. Sometimes the kids had to write a special report or we incorporated the experience into our regular class work. A few years ago we went to Orlando (just happened to coincide with Spring Break so no missed school). We spent 2 days at the Kennedy Space Center...what a tremendous learning experience!! I would be sorely tempted to lie and get the kids out of school for such a trip given some of the teachers left early for Spring Break to go to Disney World.
There you go; homeschooling is ALWAYS better. I do it myself.
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Interesting.
I do it myself.
