| Do teachers do too much for their students? Do | | | | homework without doing it for them are teaching |
| parents do too much for their children? Are we | | | | their children about being responsible. These are |
| interfering in their development of a sense of | | | | the students who usually excel at their studies. |
| responsibility? Having taught at both the the high | | | | They often have the best test scores and pass |
| school level and the elementary level I have | | | | in the best assignments. Of course there are |
| noticed over the years that more and more | | | | exceptions to everything, and there are those |
| students are not taking responsibility for their own | | | | students who do not have much support at |
| learning. It seems that if they encounter some | | | | home, yet they take responsibility for their |
| difficulty then they almost give up, and in fact | | | | studies. Students that fall into these two |
| many do give up. Why? They know that the | | | | categories are learning about responsibility. |
| teacher will usually tell them the answer or mom | | | | Why has our system gone so far in the wrong |
| or dad will do it for them at home. Too many | | | | direction? Students being promoted without having |
| students do not take the responsibility for their | | | | a sufficient foundation in the basics. They have |
| own learning. | | | | difficulty reading, writing and many don't have the |
| As a teacher it is not difficult to see which | | | | basic math skills. Why? Because we have failed to |
| students are developing a sense of responsibility. | | | | have them take responsibility for their learning. If |
| These are the students that seem to have a | | | | things are difficult they usually give up and wait |
| genuine desire to learn. They take learning | | | | for someone to give them the answer. Either the |
| seriously and realize that to learn something it | | | | teacher, the parent or even another student. |
| may take some extra effort. These students | | | | The desire to learn and being responsible for your |
| always give that extra effort. | | | | own learning is becoming a thing of the past. |
| Why do some have this desire to learn and | | | | Today, many students know that doing only the |
| others do not? In my opinion, this desire to learn | | | | minimum amount of work is all that they need to |
| is cultivated in the home. The role of the school | | | | be "successful". We have to stress that students |
| teacher is to augment this desire within these | | | | need to be responsible for their learning. This has |
| students. Help them along as they take | | | | to become an important part of our educational |
| responsibility for their learning. | | | | system if we do not want our children expecting |
| Parents who help their children with their | | | | someone else to do things for them. |