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We are planning to move to Hawaii with small school age children. We homeschool. In all of these replies why hasn't this been brought up as a viable alternative?
It might not have been brought up in this particular thread, but it has been discussed on the site. Recommendations for parents who are thinking of home-schooling their children include checking with the DOH/DOE on what is considered to be transferable should the student switch to public school later, and researching what avenues are going to be put in place by the parents to insure the home-schooler has adequate social interaction with their peers (some day they will be out there "in public" for college, or work, etc, and knowing how to interact with the many cultures found in Hawaii is important).
That is total propaganda. Whether you are "happy" or "depressed" is entirely dependent upon YOU. Not your circumstances and not whether you stay at home or not. Funny enough its the "working" women I know (because we ALL work even if were not being paid) who are most stressed and depressed, trying to do everything I do AND work full time. They are more resentful and less patient. And lets say the obvious. Most men are not willing to do womens work (ie. run a household, keep up with laundry, grocery shop etc) and so they just end up with a huge burden of trying to juggle both.
However a dual income isn't a necessity for anyone, you simply live below your means. Its math. Whether that standard of living is "good enough" or worth the trade off of living on one income is your perspective. It is for us. And we are not wealthy. And even with both parents working, I know several families with two working parents who still homeschool, they work differing shifts and divide subjects. In turn they get to spend their free time with the kids. Its always possible. I only say this because there are so many people who may be thinking they *can't homeschool. But you can! I know single parent families that homeschool, two parent families that homeschool, and traditional families. I know grandparents that homeschool their grandchildren. Remember it wasn't that long ago ... that if you didnt educate your own children... then they didnt get educated. And time wise its not nearly as consuming as you would think... you dont have 30 students to teach, you can teach any time of day you choose, however your student learns best. It doesnt take me 8 hours to teach kindergarten I promise. By high school its mostly giving out and discussing assignments.
This is to encourage those families who may want to move to HI, but dont, or are afraid because of the poor schooling options. Most of us cant afford 15k a student per year for private school. People homeschool for all sorts of reasons, it is no longer just religious zealots. I have yet to meet a family that says "we hate homeschooling", or "we really regret homeschooling our children". Always it is the opposite It is my children who feel sorry for the kids stuck behind a desk, shuffled from room to room, learning what is in the curriculum for their grade as regulated. My children get to learn whatever we want and have a love of learning and reading. I am not judging anyones personal education decisions. BUT I would encourage open mindedness. It IS possible. Dont let the poor schools stand in the way of your dreams.
I taught in public secondary schools in California for over forty years. I know people like to blame the schools or the teachers, but what I learned is that the attitude of student is most important. Apathetic or disruptive students are difficult to teach. It takes a stubborn, experienced teacher to break through to them. It can be done, and the results can be wonderful. It does, however, take away time from teaching the curriculum.
If students want to "do something" with their lives, if they have a goal, then they can be successful even with mediocre teachers. Send them to school with the right motivation, and they will do well. Sure, you can pay big bucks or shop around, if you prefer, but spending time with your child on a daily basis, showing them that you really care about them will pay off no matter where they go to school.
I taught in public secondary schools in California for over forty years.....
No offense intended, but the reality is that if you have not experienced Hawaii's Department of Education & Board of Education & legislative process & governor's control of the state budget/spending, then you are limited in what you can offer as relevant advice that covers the statewide Hawaii school system.
Yes, you might know a lot about California, but Hawaii is NOT THE MAINLAND.
Truly, no offense meant. Yes, parents make a huge difference. But the bulk of our public school system's problems are administratively based (including how to deal with students that come from families that have a lack of parental involvement).
I'd guess there are quite a few reasons for Hawaii's schools to not be as good as they could be.
1. Folks mention 20% to 25% of the kids are in private schools, so I'm guessing the top 20% - 25% of the best and brightest students are taken out of the public school system. That's not going to improve the test scores.
2. The tests are mainstream tests, I don't know how well they relate to Hawaii's students. Perhaps our students are bright, but the test scores don't show it.
3. We also have a lot of Pacific islander students as well as other students who's primary language is not English. Not even all of the "English speakers" actually speak true English. Pidgin is still a viable home language for many students.
4. I was talking with a teacher earlier today and she mentioned a student who was bored with the class she was teaching and said it wasn't anything he needed to know. She was teaching a class on how to interview for a job. The student said when wanted a job, he'd get one from his cousin/ohana/family. With the amount of nepotism around here, I'd say the kid's right.
5. The system is statewide so the best choices aren't made for each district but for the system as a whole.
That's just five for starting with, there's still all the other concerns mentioned previously. So, I doubt there is any one answer which is going to fix it, but with enough answers, we can get it headed in the right direction. Now all we gotta do is figure out how to implement them, huh?
No offense intended, but the reality is that if you have not experienced Hawaii's Department of Education & Board of Education & legislative process & governor's control of the state budget/spending, then you are limited in what you can offer as relevant advice that covers the statewide Hawaii school system.
Yes, you might know a lot about California, but Hawaii is NOT THE MAINLAND.
Truly, no offense meant. Yes, parents make a huge difference. But the bulk of our public school system's problems are administratively based (including how to deal with students that come from families that have a lack of parental involvement).
Kids are kids. No matter the system or the limitations thereof, parental attention helps students prepare for the learning experience. This is universal. No offense taken.
Kids are kids. No matter the system or the limitations thereof, parental attention helps students prepare for the learning experience. This is universal. No offense taken.
Yes, that's the truth, parents make a tremendous difference! Now, if Hawaii could just link the involved parents directly into the decision making mechanism, perhaps it would be a fast track to improving the Hawaii public school system. But as it is now, there are layers and layers of administrative positions between the parents and the system. And then add on the legislature's role, and the governor's role, and it being a state-wide system with little local [neighborhood area] input, well, there you have it as it is entrenched in Hawaii.
Hawaii has a ton of public charter schools, so if the regular public schools don't float your boat you should beagle to find a charter school that does.
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It is my children who feel sorry for the kids stuck behind a desk, shuffled from room to room, learning what is in the curriculum for their grade as regulated. My children get to learn whatever we want and have a love of learning and reading. I am not judging anyones personal education decisions. BUT I would encourage open mindedness. It IS possible. Dont let the poor schools stand in the way of your dreams.
