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This will sound ridiculous if you've read this, but last week I was watching some John Rosemond videos I had purchased years ago.
Why, you ask? Well, I wanted something to cross-stitch to ... plus, it's making another good blog post, isn't it?
I think this story he told is very very interesting, and I'm curious what other people have to say about this, especially former teachers. (Or people who were students in the fifties.)
An audience member who I'll call Mary came up to John Rosemond and told him this story about herself:
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In 1952, Mary had been teaching first grade for a few years in a parochial school.
The day before school was about to start, the other first grade teacher in Mary's school had to leave town suddenly and wouldn't be back. Mary was informed that they would have to combine the classes until they found a new first grade teacher.
So ... they combined Mary's 35 students with the absent teacher's 35 students, and Mary had a first grade classroom with exactly 70 first graders and no teacher's aide.
After six weeks, the school observed that Mary (and her students) were having "absolutely no trouble," so they decided to save money and let her keep the 70 students for the entire year.
"And," Mary told John Rosemond years later, "not only did I have no problems, but all 70 students were reading and writing well enough by the end of the year to be successfully promoted to the second grade."
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Rosemond then pointed out that, even though this was an unusual story, it was not that unusual. He claims that in his own first grade class picture, there were 54 students, and one teacher with no aide. That was the norm in the fifties, he claimed.
He used this story to springboard into the idea that today's children are not disciplined enough at home, or respectful enough of teachers, for that to be possible.
Now.
Here are my thoughts and questions:
1) Does that sound even remotely possible? Let's assume all 70 children are complete angels. Could you imagine 70 kids having a bathroom break? What if even half the kids had a single question about their math assignment on a single day? How could a single teacher possibly know -- really know -- how well 70 different kids are reading.
2) Was it, in fact, true that classrooms were huge back then, that there were no aides, that there were almost no discipline or academic problems
3) If so (or if not), what do you think is going on here?
Do you think the woman is lying?
Do you think she thought the kids were all doing well, but was mistaken because she couldn't keep track of them?
Were kids smarter then? Better behaved? Was there a different attitude toward school?
Are we deluding outselves today (as Rosemond seems to insinuate) by claiming some kids aren't developmentally ready to read at age six? Or that some kids have ADD or Learning Disabilities?
Looking forward to any comments on this one ...
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7 comments:
Jennifer,
My mom (and dad) went through Duquesne's teach ed program in the late 1960s and my mom regularly talks about large elementary school classes. The first K class she taught had nearly 40 students (2x's a day) and she did not have an aid. My mom volunteers at my D&K's school and is amazed by how much help the teachers. Most classes have an aid, usually to assist one particular student, but not always. Furthermore, at least at our school, parent volunteers are common, often helping by copying, checking homework or providing additional one on one time to help students who need assistance. Since my mom is in both classes on a regular basis, she has very specific jobs, including working with 4th graders who need additional help and testing first graders on their word recognition.
So...back to your original question, while it may be exagerated a bit, it is certainly possible that it happened.
Opps...I should go back to what I was doing, too many typos in the previous post!
Thanks Kim, that is interesting.
It makes me wonder, then ... why have things changed?
Are schools and classes better now that they have all those parent helpers?
Do we need smaller class sizes today because kids are not as well behaved as they were before?
Jennifer-
Have you read Mr. Rosebond's book, "Parenting by the Book"? I just finished reading it and it was great! I am not a former teacher, nor was I a student in the 50's. But, I don't ever remember having an aide in class when I was in school. There were probably around 30 or so students in all grades. I also don't remember there being that many behavior problems. Mr. Rosemond points out that there are more behavior problems today but it's because people have strayed from God's plan of discipline of children. The book is very interesting....Lori
I can't even imagine what a crowd of 70 children would look like! Anna's basketball program has 5 teams with about 8-10 kids on each team and they seem to completely fill the school gym. lol
I think a lot of the difference is they used to use corporal punishment in the schools. I suppose it is easier to control people if they fear being hit. I know I grew up afraid of my parents. In their eyes teachers could do no wrong, so I was very weary of causing trouble, lest my parents found out and I would have to face the repercussions.
I also think schools used to teach the basics. Now they teach all of kinds of things that aren't necessarily things that should be taught in the schools. They are trying to teach morals in the schools, and not necessarily good ones, IMO. I think the schools are reaping what they have sown.
I also think vaccinations have caused a myriad of problems for youth in the last 20 years. The amount of vaccinations a baby/child receives before the age of 5 has, I think, tripled (if not quadrupled) since I was a kid. I think that has a lot to do with ADD/ADHD/Autism, etc. And because nowadays schools like to integrate all levels of students (they call it mainstreaming) of course aids would be needed. If 1/3 of the class has some sort of learning/processing disability, than 1 teacher can not do it all and expect everyone to learn.
It is a very different world now. Do I wish it was the same as the 50's/60's? No. I think it is better for children to have respect and for their voices to be heard. I think it's ok for children to say no to a teacher if they think the teacher is in the wrong. Teachers nowadays bring girls to planned parenthood for birth control pills. They molest their students (male and female alike). We hear it in the news all the time. The whole world is much more corrupt, IMO, than it was 50 years ago. Or people hid it better back then. I would not want my child to be a number to a teacher. In a class of 70 students, that teacher didn't get to know those kids. So many kids in the school systems come from such messed up families, sometimes a teacher is the only friendly face they see.
I think I am starting to ramble. Maybe you get my points. I homeschool, so most of this is irrelevant to me, although I do feel for those trapped in the system. And my eldest dd plans to go to high school next year. I would hope a teacher or two might take the chance to get to know her a bit, instead of just seeing her as another body that walks through the door.
Rosemund story is true. Parochial school was just as he described in the 50s. Mostly nuns taught a large class consisting of all girls in one room and all the boys in the other.
Respect for all authority was the norm in society. The boys were the recipients of the corporal punishment..the girls were treated better, but the fear element was fostered. We were quiet in the room always as it was expected. To speak a verbal answer or question, a hand raise had to be acknowledged by the teacher. It seems as though society has had its eyes opened and grown up .. so to speak..with the consequences being .... well, you all fill in the blanks. I still have not figured it out..I know the pendulum swings to and fro..and things change. What will the next generation do?
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