reservoirdog1 Posted January 28, 2008 Posted January 28, 2008 Anybody have experience with this? XW is concerned that D(10) isn't getting well taught at current school, the teacher isn't very good, etc. She's not failing or anything, but there are a few areas she's struggling in. Fair enough. D knows that a school switch (she's going into grade 6) is likely. She doesn't really want to switch schools (she just switched 2 years ago when XW moved to a new home), because she's made friends at the current school. However, recently D has indicated that she's started to accept that it's going to happen. XW has said she thinks it could be a good idea to move D to the new school, if possible, during spring break, in time for the last couple of months of this grade. Reason being, it would avoid D spending the next several months worrying about the upcoming change and just get it done ASAP. This sounds like a questionable idea to me. The last four years haven't been the easiest for D, what with the divorce of her parents, new living arrangements in both homes, etc. It seems to make sense to let D finish out the school year where she is, rather than yanking her out of school mid year. It's not as though lives hang in the balance at this point, or that there's a specific urgent need. My concern is that D's life is suddenly, radically disrupted in mid-year for no good reason. Anybody else dealt with this, in situations where there ISN'T an emergency reason to switch schools mid year? How did you child cope?
sally4sara Posted January 28, 2008 Posted January 28, 2008 I went to nine different schools growing up. I vote letting her finish out the year. The last month of school is full of fun activities she will enjoy more with friends she is already comfortable with. If she changes with two months to go, some kids won't bother making friends knowing school is about to end for the year. Then the next year starts as though its your first day all over again. Is she already in middle school or about to start middle school next year?
swansong519 Posted January 29, 2008 Posted January 29, 2008 I went to nine different schools growing up. I vote letting her finish out the year. The last month of school is full of fun activities she will enjoy more with friends she is already comfortable with. If she changes with two months to go, some kids won't bother making friends knowing school is about to end for the year. Then the next year starts as though its your first day all over again. Is she already in middle school or about to start middle school next year? I'm with sally4sara...let her finish out the year and start fresh next year. At least then she stands a good chance of not being the ONLY new kid.
annieo Posted January 29, 2008 Posted January 29, 2008 I'm a teacher and a mom. My kids have had great teachers, mostly, but there was one year where my d had a teacher that did not, in my opinion, make their classroom the best learning environment. My attitude was that as long as the teacher was not specifically picking on her, then she (and the rest of the class) just had to learn how to deal with his "different" teaching style. Let's face it, we all end up with crappy bosses at one time or another, and this experience can be helpful in learning how to work with difficult people. And if you think she needs extra support in the academics, provide at home or with a good tutor. There is no guarantee that another school will have nothing but wonderful teachers. There might be another teacher there that she has trouble with. She will learn how to work through this if you support her, not give her the option of running away. I think the social/emotional costs of moving her outweigh any potential benefits academically.
blind_otter Posted January 29, 2008 Posted January 29, 2008 I think she should at least finish the year... I occassionally struggled with various subjects when I was growing up, but ultimately it didn't have much to do with the teachers...just my ability to catch on. My parents, instead of makin gme switch schools (since I was in a private school already, and there are only 2 in my area) chose to give me additional schooling through after school programs like with Sylvan learning center. There, I was able to work one on one with tutors who had degrees in education. I excelled to the point where I took the SAT when I was in 7th grade and was admitted to a special summer program for gifted kids. Personally I am a firm believer in enrichment. When you get into HS and college, you often encounter what can only be described as ****ty teachers...especially in college/university (you get professors who are only there to do their research, who could care less about their classes/students). It's important for students to learn how to cope with different teaching styles.
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