[speaker001:] Do you see anything wrong with public school systems?
[speaker002:] Well, yes, I do. Um, I think I'm concerned about the large number of children that each teacher is expected to, to deal with in some quality way. I think maybe we've given our teachers a almost impossible job.
[speaker001:] I agree.
[speaker002:] Do you? Do you have children in the public school system?
[speaker001:] Yes, and I taught for fourteen years
[speaker002:] Is that right.
[speaker001:] before we moved to Texas, and the, the one thing I see is changing is I was held accountable so much I had to document and create a paper chase for all of my students, and instead of spending my time coming up with creative learning stations and things like that I was filling out all these forms
[speaker002:] You were a bookkeeper [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] for all the children
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] everything had to be documented, and I had file cabinets that weren't filled with neat stuff for kids, it was filled with documentation
[speaker002:] Oh, no.
[speaker001:] yes.
[speaker002:] Well, um, I'm, I have three years toward a teaching degree and am trying to get headed back, and, and I'm just really in a dilemma if that's what, you know, I love to work with children and
[speaker001:] Me, too.
[speaker002:] to teach them, but I'm really having questions if, if I can deal with that system and, and have a good conscience about, you know, what I do. I don't think, I don't think it's the teachers, I think it's the system
[speaker001:] I think so too.
[speaker002:] but, um.
[speaker001:] They're so worried about lawsuits and the scores the children get on tests now
[speaker002:] Right.
[speaker001:] and teacher competency, you know, and it's not like the teacher can just get in there and do her best, she's always worried who's looking over her shoulder and,
[speaker002:] What child's going to say something
[speaker001:] That's right.
[speaker002:] some parent's going to overreact to
[speaker001:] I know.
[speaker002:] that's, that's true. Well, it's, it's hard on the children too, I think, you know, because the, um, the teachers are overworked and just like a mommy that's overworked
[speaker001:] That's right.
[speaker002:] you're not at your best, you know, um.
[speaker001:] Do you have children in the system?
[speaker002:] I have two, I have, in the system one is in ninth grade and one is in seventh grade, and them, um, I'm home schooling my kindergartner this year.
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] We, um, live in a district that has open classrooms, and I wasn't particularly comfortable with that for her.
[speaker001:] Yep. Are you in Plano?
[speaker002:] Yes.
[speaker001:] Yep, I am too.
[speaker002:] You too.
[speaker001:] And I have one in ninth grade at Clark and one at Hendrick this year, and he, my nin-, my, uh, sixth grader came from an open classroom at Matthews, and the very first year I taught back in seventy-three, we had open classroom and it didn't work then
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] and when we moved down here, I was just appalled that they were still doing
[speaker002:] Still at it.
[speaker001:] it here,
[speaker002:] Well the explanation [NOISE] I was, was given about, you know, they, they seemed to admit that it wasn't working, but they didn't have the money to restructure, but looks to me that it wouldn't take really that much money to at least come up with, I mean, some kind of partitions
[speaker001:] Partitions
[speaker002:] you know,
[speaker001:] or just to face the children different directions or to do something
[speaker002:] Just, yeah.
[speaker001:] I know last year my son had to eat in the classroom because there was no cafeteria at his school
[speaker002:] Oh, goodness.
[speaker001:] so he spent all day
[speaker002:] Oh.
[speaker001:] in this one large open area, so, I didn't really care for that. It seems like the schools in Michigan were much better than they are down here.
[speaker002:] Were they?
[speaker001:] That was our last tour, in Michigan.
[speaker002:] Well, we were from North, um, Carolina, and of course North, North Carolina has a terrible reputation as far as education. I think they rank about forty-ninth
[speaker001:] Oh.
[speaker002:] but our children got a very good education there
[speaker001:] Uh-huh.
[speaker002:] they were in the magnet school program, and a lot of their classes, from the time they were about third grade, they, they changed classes several times during the day, which has its pros and cons, but a lot of their classes there were only eight or ten children in their classes
[speaker001:] Oh, wow.
[speaker002:] and it was wonderful
[speaker001:] Yes.
[speaker002:] so, you know, I'm coming to, to Plano thinking, Well, gosh, it's going to be really great, it's ranked so much better [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] Yes, that's right. We heard wonderful things about it until we actually got in the system.
[speaker002:] Isn't that interesting, I, I, I don't understand how they get this, this reputation unless it's just that they spend a lot of money, I don't know.
[speaker001:] Probably so, on publicity and letting realtors know and key people how wonderful the schools are
[speaker002:] I guess so.
[speaker001:] so.
[speaker002:] Well, my son is at Clark this year too, so, uh, we're
[speaker001:] As a freshman?
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] Yep.
[speaker002:] And, uh, [NOISE] he's pleased with his classes. I, I, I don't guess I've been in [NOISE] the high school long enough [NOISE] to, to know what to expect really
[speaker001:] Yeah.
[speaker002:] you know, how to judge it.
[speaker001:] My daughter seems to be having a good time, she was absent with strep throat the last three days, and I ran over and picked up her report card, and she did very good, so
[speaker002:] Well, that's good.
[speaker001:] and she seems to be studying and has just about the right amount of home work I would expect
[speaker002:] Yeah.
[speaker001:] for a freshman to have. She's not bogged down, but yet she has some every night.
[speaker002:] Well, Eric seems to have quite a few nights where he doesn't have any, so, that's interesting, but, he, his grades, I haven't seen them yet, but supposedly they're good, so,
[speaker001:] Yes, you always hear how good. Now my son's at,
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] junior high and says that his grades are going to be wonderful but,
[speaker002:] [LAUGHTER].
[speaker001:] who knows what he's going to bring home.
[speaker002:] That's right.