Indy to Phx...MAYBE!

[YAZ]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

Cool, my parents bought a brand new Crane house back in 1981. I lived right across from Surrey park.

We're at Peoria & 39th ave.

A cool old subdivision with plenty of charm. I hear that MVHS is one of the better schools in the city now.

Go Rockets!

[cmist]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

We clearly disagree here. I went to Moon Valley high school, and graduated in 1993. As you can see, I have horrible grammar. Not only that, there was so much incompetence there that I had no chance getting a higher education. I am sorry, but truthfully the public education in the Phoenix metropolitan area sucks. I know that since I am a victim of it. I went to Chaparral for elementary, Desert Foothills for 7th and 8th, and Moon Valley 9th through 12th. All were terrible.

If it makes you feel any better LVD, I just proofread your whole post here and I did good in English class! It appears to be good grammar with proper spelling, punctuation, and capitalization too. If you used spell check... SHHhhhhh!

Not trying to undermine your argument about Phx schools but you may not be the best example of poor education.

I went to school out here too from 3rd grade on. Plenty of classmates went on to college in different states or even in state, and ended up with decent jobs and live a normal life, strangely though not many of them live here anymore. Hence the normal life? (I joke. sorta)

I agree when someone writes in and says the "most important" thing is a good education, they ought to be aware that education is by no means at the top of the Phx or AZ priority list. Other places are better statistically, but they have rain, snow and humidity!!! Oh well... screw the kids if you can't handle the weather of your home state!

[fcorrales80]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

Fcorrales80,

You are clearly mistaken. I went to substandard schools. I, as well as my sister, were gifted students always making the honor roll. The PUBLIC education is lacking there, no ifs, ands, or buts.

I have plenthy of family from Phoenix and Arizona that have attended universities in-state and out and have succeeded after schooling. I think excuses are the order of the day here and for some out in the world.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

We clearly disagree here. I went to Moon Valley high school, and graduated in 1993. As you can see, I have horrible grammar. Not only that, there was so much incompetence there that I had no chance getting a higher education. I am sorry, but truthfully the public education in the Phoenix metropolitan area sucks. I know that since I am a victim of it. I went to Chaparral for elementary, Desert Foothills for 7th and 8th, and Moon Valley 9th through 12th. All were terrible.

Your personal experience at three schools ending sixteen years ago does not give you the foundation to slam the present state of all of Arizona's schools, or even just those in the Phoenix metropolitan area". You truly have no idea what is out there. I'm not saying that there are not substandard schools, and poor teachers, in Arizona's school system, as there likely are in every other state. I don't think you liked school much, and a lot of that may have come from the individual teachers you had. That's a pity.

And, if you made the honor roll all the time, you were not "kept from" a higher education. You could have been accepted at ASU then, I expect, and if you didn't go that route you certainly could have gone to a community college. You can't tell me your elementary and high school experience "kept you" from getting a higher education. That's a lousy excuse for just not going and doing it. You were just likely sick of school, which happens to a lot of people an is only partly the schools' fault.

A good teacher can make kids love coming to school regardless of how much he or she is getting paid. There are plenty of good teachers and good schools here in the metro area.

And, your grammar , and spelling, is fine compared to what I see posted here from people who are from other states that people here say all have better schools than AZ.

[krock1dk]

I was born and raised in Indianapolis and would choose Indianapolis ANY DAY over Phoenix. Lived in Phoeonix for 5 years and cant stand it. I love Indy and am impressed with the way it has turned around since the mid 90s. Phoenix doesnt impress me in the least--no jobs, grossly overinflated cost of living, oppressive heat, MEAN people with big egos and small minds, too much traffic and I dont like the desert. Indy is the best place I've lived while AZ is the worst place I've lived. That is a fact.

[krock1dk]

Originally Posted by itismemonica

The schools are BAD in Indy! I was unclear in my post and referring to the better schools in the Chandler area. Thanks a bunch for the link!

WRONG! I went to school in Indy thru High School and although their schools arent the best (no urban district is) the schools in Indianapolis are a thousand times better than ANYWHERE in AZ. That is a fact. I would raise my kids in Indianapolis.......not in Pheonix!

[las vegas drunk]

Originally Posted by observer53

Your personal experience at three schools ending sixteen years ago does not give you the foundation to slam the present state of all of Arizona's schools, or even just those in the Phoenix metropolitan area". You truly have no idea what is out there. I'm not saying that there are not substandard schools, and poor teachers, in Arizona's school system, as there likely are in every other state. I don't think you liked school much, and a lot of that may have come from the individual teachers you had. That's a pity.

And, if you made the honor roll all the time, you were not "kept from" a higher education. You could have been accepted at ASU then, I expect, and if you didn't go that route you certainly could have gone to a community college. You can't tell me your elementary and high school experience "kept you" from getting a higher education. That's a lousy excuse for just not going and doing it. You were just likely sick of school, which happens to a lot of people an is only partly the schools' fault.

A good teacher can make kids love coming to school regardless of how much he or she is getting paid. There are plenty of good teachers and good schools here in the metro area.

And, your grammar , and spelling, is fine compared to what I see posted here from people who are from other states that people here say all have better schools than AZ.

One thing I can tell you is I took Algebra 1-2 in my freshman year at Moon Valley back in 1989. The teacher was so incompetent that every single student of her class failed the competency test at the end of the year. When I took Algebra 3-4 my sophomore year, I was so behind that I had to drop out of it and become a teachers aid for my Freshman English teacher. This also caused me to have to drop from an advanced diploma to a general diploma. My parents also were very upset with my public education in Phoenix. They both said they would have put me in private schools if they could have afforded it. I stand by my original statement. Education in Arizona has always been lacking, and the current studies confirm nothing has changed recently either.

[cmist]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

One thing I can tell you is I took Algebra 1-2 in my freshman year at Moon Valley back in 1989. The teacher was so incompetent that every single student of her class failed the competency test at the end of the year. When I took Algebra 3-4 my sophomore year, I was so behind that I had to drop out of it and become a teachers aid for my Freshman English teacher. This also caused me to have to drop from an advanced diploma to a general diploma. My parents also were very upset with my public education in Phoenix. They both said they would have put me in private schools if they could have afforded it. I stand by my original statement. Education in Arizona has always been lacking, and the current studies confirm nothing has changed recently either.

I can share this about my own kids. They often get sent home with math homework that the teacher didn't cover in class. I just had to spend a few hours with them researching how to divide fractions the other night.

To be honest, this is a pretty bad thing because they say to me... "SEE dad, why does school matter if you don't even remember anything you were taught?"

How do I answer that? It only took me a few minutes to remember you flip the fraction on the right and multiply to divide them, but how often does anyone really divide fractions in real life? Once I showed them the basics they were off and running. Why were they handed a ditto with no examples and just expected to read the instructions at the top. What were they teaching in class?? If I wasn't there to show them what they ought to have covered thoroughly in class, they would have failed the assignment.

The natural reaction is to say that my kids didn't pay attention, but I have 2 of them in the same grade with the same experience. One of them is on the honor roll even. If you don't have the time to help your kids through the rough spots, expect grades to be lower.

This is supposedly some A+++ school too! What does that even mean?? So many schools are judged by newness, fresh paint and "nice" teachers. As far as test scores, they do "cram" sessions to prep for the testing rather than a gradual deep learning process. My kids are not dummies, but we are very involved with them after school, and I don't feel they come home learning what they needed to complete the tasks assigned.

So as I usually say, if you are going to have the time to be involved regularly, you will get by just fine, but I don't believe you can depend on the school system alone.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by las vegas drunk

One thing I can tell you is I took Algebra 1-2 in my freshman year at Moon Valley back in 1989. The teacher was so incompetent that every single student of her class failed the competency test at the end of the year. When I took Algebra 3-4 my sophomore year, I was so behind that I had to drop out of it and become a teachers aid for my Freshman English teacher. This also caused me to have to drop from an advanced diploma to a general diploma. My parents also were very upset with my public education in Phoenix. They both said they would have put me in private schools if they could have afforded it. I stand by my original statement. Education in Arizona has always been lacking, and the current studies confirm nothing has changed recently either.

So you had a bad experience with algebra at ONE school in this state twenty years ago (1989). I still say you cannot indict the entire Arizona school system NOW based on that. (I had a pretty weak algebra teacher too, but rose above it and learned the material)

There are good schools and bad ones. I'll hazard a guess that's true in many states. Yes, funding generally is abysmal. But funding doesn't automatically guarantee good teaching. It IS out there. Yes, parents have to do their homework to find the best schools. And just talking about "studies" (beyond the funding ones) doesn't say much. They are all over the place, you can find a study (or construct one) to say whatever you want.

And cmist is absolutely right. Involvement by the parents with the nuts and bolts of their children's education is critical, and involvement with the school as a whole to the extent possible.