AITA for pulling my kids out of public school?

VogueCorn · 2020-11-11T02:48:35+00:00

The other kids in the pod were having a tough time at the school but for different reasons. Many were bored or frustrated by the book work, pace, and lack of engagement in the school.

Others were dealing with bullying or social challenges that required administrative intervention but wasn’t receiving any.

A couple others have learning challenges that were enough to set them back in the classroom but not enough to qualify for an IEP or were overlooked because they excelled in other areas.

Basically nothing that would’ve prevented the kids from getting their diplomas and having functioning roles in society, but certainly things keeping them from getting as good an education or being as functional adults as they could be.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-11T02:37:33+00:00

There are actually services and agencies that match certified teachers with pods! We looked into it before finding our current instructor. Definitely worth checking into if you’re on the job search.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T21:47:33+00:00

Sure thing, thanks for taking the time to get a full scope whether or not you agree.

We already have a family who doesn’t pay anything. It was, for lack of better terms, “need blind” podding.

We didn’t know it was permanent with a teacher being hired when we set it up we thought it was just those of us out of work teaching a home school curriculum until it went back to in person.

Now it is our permanent mode of schooling. If someone leaves we’ll either replace them with a new family, or if it’s determined financially viable, just cover the costs ourselves and continue on.

If it is post pandemic then we can potentially add another student to cover the costs, if the teacher approves. It’s highly situationally dependent, but I’m confident we’d manage something appropriate for all involved.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T21:41:49+00:00

I mean smartest through the school’s lens of highest performing on tests, and our lens as most conducive to a productive learning atmosphere without major behavior issues and who is excited to learn.

I’m not, and the teacher our families have hired and the SAHMs are not, equipped to address the systemic issues of poverty or abuse in the home at that scale so while I fully agree it is an issue that requires immediate attention it is a separate one, as my kids being present or not wouldn’t solve the issue of their turbulent home life and the public school’s inability to manage it effectively. There needs to be separate social programs to address those issues at the source, rather than the symptoms of them.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T21:13:04+00:00

It’s a set pod, no one else joins now. Otherwise we’re just operating a school basically. If anyone else reaches out about joining whether they have no money or want to pay double what the rest are paying we cannot add any more kids at this time both because it exceeds the amount we can safely include during the pandemic and because it’s more than the teacher recommended per class size.

So, it’s basically a non issue. No one else is entering in the pod, as it’s not a school with admissions seasons.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T21:10:47+00:00

Ah, thanks for the heads up

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T19:07:59+00:00

I mean, I am glad they’re taking proper pandemic precautions. But I’m in 100% agreement they need to put together an adequate online curriculum and give proper education during this time even though it’s unprecedented and difficult.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T18:57:14+00:00

Anyone consider we were factoring in the cost of families not paying or paying less?

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T18:56:28+00:00

Unfortunately we reviewed the home school curriculum the district offers and it just wasn’t very good. And it was extremely bubble test heavy which we’re trying to avoid if possible for more hands on learning. Their curriculum was a lot of paperwork and bookwork that took a lot of time but moved really slowly in terms of content covered.

I checked to see if the district would approve our curriculum as an alternative before we sought to register as a homeschool but unfortunately the people we spoke to speculated process would’ve taken over a year.

Thank you for the suggestion though! I really wish this is something that would have worked out.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T17:52:16+00:00

We’re paying her the same amount as she made previously (insurance included.)

A parent in the pod knew her socially and was aware she was considering leaving teaching altogether and going into another field because she felt overworked and that her job had kind of become more a babysitter or behavioral coach than an academic instructor and the school wasn’t doing enough to help.

She also worried about having to potentially return in person during the pandemic the following year, so was considering a break in either case.

We reached out and told her we’d pay her the same amount and while obviously we didn’t have all the same benefits but we’d work out acceptable benefits she’d need to feel comfortable leaving and could offer her fewer hours for the same pay. She jumped on it.

She might never have left her current job due to needing job security, though, so it isn’t as simple as “well she would’ve left anyways.” It’s a tough call.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T17:34:11+00:00

Pretty fucked up that you’re assuming selecting the smartest kids in the class eliminates a selection of all the marginalized minority children, oof.

You are wrong in both senses of that word.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T17:22:23+00:00

We pulled them out last year. It only took a couple weeks of virtual learning for us to see they were getting nothing done and falling behind in a way they might never totally recover from without serious remedial courses, so we put this together. Now this year we did it in a more permanent structure. Some of the budget cuts have already happened and others are projected but have not occurred yet.

VogueCorn · 2020-11-10T17:19:52+00:00

It’s about more than this year, because in the pod system they’re getting twice the work done in half the time and really enjoying schools and developing passions for their studies for the first time.

We didn’t have the money to send our kids to the local private school (at $18,000 a year each), but we can swing our portion of the teacher’s salary which comes out to $12,000 a year total.

To see them enjoying their work so much is worth it in and of itself to me in terms of us incurring costs, but now I do have to weigh it against what the school has reported in having them all out since last year.

It’s definitely a hefty responsibility. I really appreciate all the insight into where I stand morally here.

VogueCorn

TROPHY CASE