So here I am, working summer school as a ParaProfessional. (That's Teacher's Aide or Instructor's Assistant for those of you not up on your current educational jargon.) It the same kids that are always asleep, late, absent, or just plain playing around during the regular school year. And yet, if things aren't the way they think it should be, then they want to complain about US wasting THEIR time and money. Like they didn't waste OUR time during the regular school year and aren't wasting OUR time now...and AS IF *THEY* were the ones who actually paid the money for summer school! (Granted, sometimes, some of our independent students who are either on their own or have jobs *have* paid for their own expenses, but most of the time some other family member paid the money!)
The "summer schools" I went to were very different. I was not making up credits I had not earned. I was doing enrichment and learning more things and doing fun stuff. I remember the very first summer school I went to was when I was in grade school...5th or 6th grade. I went to Aiken High School for a keyboarding class...some sort of special offer that was extended for free to the elementary students at that time. I was in the class with high school students who did not pass the class during the school year. They were still playing around and not taking things seriously then. I think I did better than most of them in the class and I did not need the credit and had never had any type of computer class prior to that course. The course was easy and I could not fathom how people needed to RE-take it in summer school. Of course, for me, the scariest part was Aiken's huge college-like campus and trying to find the place I was supposed to be at. There never seemed to be enough adults around. I did not try and explore either with all the woods surrounding 3/4 of the campus border. Too many rumors in the neighborhood about crazy homeless people living back there!
I always took swimming classes during the summer...often all summer at several different pools. I recall over my life, taking swim classes at 4 different pools...sometimes simultaneously. I even had my mother's friend's son as an instructor one year. THAT was interesting. I am like a fish in water...even now. I loved swimming...still do when I have the chance. My grandmother used to call me a water buffalo. I was always the first one in every morning and the very last one out at the end of the day...they had to bribe me to get out of the pool with food usually!
Then in Junior High and High School I was involved in M2SE (M"squared"SE = Minorities in Mathematics, Science & Engineering) and I had a unique opportunity to do 5 weeks of math, science and technology classes at the University of Cincinnati with the College of Engineering. The math was not very fun, but it was preparing me for the coming year. Science I enjoyed a little more, but it was still gearing me up for what I was going to be taking. I really loved the technology classes...doing lego robotics projects and programming the computer to send signals to our "robot" and making it do things. Then, the last week of the program, we actually got to LIVE on campus! We stayed in the dorms and had a roommate. We ate in the cafeteria. Not to mention that every Friday we did some sort of fun field trip! I didn't go into that field, but I had fun with the program.
That's the kinds of summer school programs kids should be doing if they don't have year-round schooling...not this lame mess of taking classes over......just my 2 cents for what it's worth....
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