jujube
SF VIP
The Spousal Equivalent has his master's degree in "Instructional Technology". In other words, different ways to teach things. There's no "one-size-fits-all" in teaching/learning.
If a kid funks a grade, should he redo the grade or be advanced?
- Thread starter fuzzybuddy
- Start date
David777
Well-known Member
- Location
- Silicon Valley
By that Texas measure, I started 1st Grade in Cupertino California at age 5.8. California now has a similar September 1 starting date with options. Thus was 4.8 when I started kindergarten and throughout following grades, was always the youngest person in every grade, a significant disadvantage because I was also the smallest male. At that time individual districts decided when kids would start and Cupertino was one of the few earliest. There were neighborhood friends a bit older than me that were in the grade below mine. I, an oldest child without others to talk to, had social and speech problems so didn't catch up with others mentally until the 4th Grade, and by the 6th Grade was put in with advanced students.
In California since 2022, those born between September 1 and December 1 have the option to not start in normal kindergarten but rather a special transitional class mainly to become socially experienced. The next year they enter normal Kindergarten. I would have been far better socially off had I not been put into classes with older kids. 200,000 4 year olds in California are now in that program.
As for the passing those kids who fail grades instead of holding them back, many have issues @Warrigal mentioned while others have disruptive social and attitude issues that at times reflects poor home life and parentage. A web search shows a long list of recommendations on helping such students. I expect not many are helped so maybe due to resource issues, especially in smaller rural areas. Authorities may have more success if such kids were put into regimented schools with dress codes etc that would provide motivation to escape that situation.
Last edited:
MACKTEXAS
Well-known Member
I get the points you made regarding your experience and difficulties with starting school younger than some, and thanks for taking time to express them.
The only reason I posted that there is no kindergarten requirement in Texas, is because I found it of (some) interest to the subject at hand, but that inadvertently gave the impression that my daughter didn't attend kindergarten. That would be an oversimplification. She started kindergarten in September of the same year that she turned 5 in August, which was (borderline) young.
Unfortunately, problems in school were only part of her predicament. I just didn't take the time or space to go into all of it - but, at 17, she was diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder (ASPD). This helped explain much of her behavorial / learning issues that our family had been struggling with unsuccessfuly through the years. We tried everything we knew to help her after learning of her diagnosis / disability, or whatever it should be called, including maxing out mental health benefits on my insurance plan, but nothing changed anything.
At 18, she got involved with a man in his mid-twenties and left the state. At some point back then, she told us she got a GED. She actually mailed me a copy to prove it! I don't know what good the GED did her, since she's never held a meaningful job for any length of time. Her only success in life has been in doing a great job of messing it up. I finally had to let go of her situation in order to keep my own sanity intact.