More on the Public School Thing....and An Upcoming PERK!

Yesterday I posted on the awesome (and when I say awesome I mean down right gut-wrenching horrific) school system Missouri boasts. I know my words got a little heated, and I apologize to any school teachers I may have offended. I know there are GOBS of well-qualified, talented, dedicated teachers in our Missouri school system. I don't think it is fair that the teachers are taking the brunt of the bad publicity. I don't believe it is entirely the teachers fault. But, I don't think it's fair to say no teacher is guilty of providing less than quality education. My big beef is with the entire school system and the way our society views education. Parents spend more time choosing which toilet bowl cleaning solution to purchase than choosing where their child will go to school. Maybe if bathroom cleaning solution was free, they wouldn't agonize over which is the best investment and does the best job. Education is not exactly free, though. We pay for it. With our tax dollars. Chris and I pay for public education, although we don't use it. Our parents paid for public education, although they didn't use it. Our grandparents paid for public education, although they didn't use it. Never once have any of us complained that we were spending money for something we don't use. We chose to pay for school twice (and on the private end it's much more expensive then just our tax dollars). Why do we do this? Because we value our children's education. I want my children to go to a school that reinforces what we are teaching them at home. We want our children to be challenged by the curriculum. We want them to be taught be teachers who can actually teach the subject matter not just discipline all day long. We looked at school as an educational facility not as a babysitter. That is why we have chosen not to send our kids to public school.

So, then, why should I care about the public schools? Because these are going to be my children's colleagues, healthcare providers, fire fighters, police officers and my grandkids' teachers. The public school kids need to be educated just as much as the private and homeschool kids. The children are the victims. They should not be jipped on their education because of poor governmental decision making. They should not bear the burden of their parents stupidity.

Also, I'm paying tax money to these schools. To see the debacle of what is called a school system produce such horrendous results is a slap in my face and all other tax payers. They are wasting our money. AND because of these disgusting results in teacher quality, Missouri stands to lose federal aid which means that I and the rest of the tax payers will pay more money to compensate for the loss of federal aid. It just doesn't seem right. Thus, our society.

On a lighter note, I just booked an AWESOME resort for our two-day jaunt to the Lake of the Ozarks. Grace is the flower girl in our "neighbors with the beautiful backyard" daughter's wedding at the end of the month. The reception will be at this resort so we won't have to commute very far to get to and from events. Plus the amenities (especially the kid zone) ROCK! Now, all we have to do is bribe a tweenager from the reception to take Alex and Eva back to our room for bed so we can continue with the party. I will definitely be checking into the resort's childcare as a back-up plan.