| OCR Text |
Show Public schools face different problems By By Dr. L. Wayne Reid Superintendent The nation over is changing its image, its makeup and its personality. Likewise, correspondingly the nation's public schools are doing it also. Because of the mobility of our society, the world conflicts, inflation, intense pressures of a business-packed society all add unique dimensions to the public schools. But perhaps no one area affects af-fects the public schools as much as the advent of one-parent families which in turn affect the children the public schools serve. A first-year report of a longitudinal study co-sponsored by the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) and the Charles F. Kettering Foundation was developed to determine 1) the implications that the growing number of single-parent families have for education and 2) what special role the school can play for children from single-parent families. This report found that children from one-parent families show lower school achievement and present more discipline problems than children from two-parent families. In the elementary schools surveyed, 40 percent of the single-parent children were in the "low achievement" category, compared to 24 percent of the two-parent children. In the secondary school 34 percent of the single-parent children surveyed were in the "low achievement" category, compared to 22 percent of the two-parent children. . In the area of discipline, problems quickly rose to the surface also. Suspensions for elementary children from single-parent families occurred three times as often as for children from two-parent homes. Secondary students from single-parent homes were suspended twice as often as their two-parent peers. Explusion by the boards of education rates for secondary students from one-parent homes was three times that of two-parent students. Dropout rates for secondary students from one-parent homes was twice as high as that of two-parent students. Absenteeism was "higher for"children from one-parent homes; at the secondary level these students were absent approximately eight days more per school year than their two-parent peers. Finally the Bureau of Census has projected that 45 percent of the children born today will spend at least one year living with only one parent. In light of these findings, what can schools do to alleviate the problems that children from single-parent families often have? It is certain that teachers and administrators ad-ministrators need to master techniques to become more fully aware of symptoms symp-toms that indicate stress, such as sudden loss or gain of weight, fatigue, moodiness, lack of concentration, and attention seeking through negative behavior. Parent-teacher conferences will also have to be adjusted because the single parent most often holds a full-time job. Sphnnl rwrcnnnol cVimiIH alert aware of the pejorative language that often surrounds divorce, and they should be careful to avoid it, just as they should avoid the assumption that children from single-parent families will automatically have difficulty in school. The primary consideration is ' that the schools will be able to provide additional support when necessary. ' As Uintah education continues to change keeping pace with the onslaught of new industry, new people and new ideas, the child should continue to be our paramount concern. On thing is for certain; Uintah education will undergo a terrific facelift in the coming years ahead. This change will require teachers and administrators of special talents, skills and also patience. |
