Contempt. Contempt. Now what did the parents do?
I know, a lot of Canadian parents would withdraw their children from school, until the message was remove, a public apology, and a statement explaining why they feel such contempt toward the children and parents. That said, phone up the local media, the national media, to report it, and than bring in the lawyers to sue the school board, and the school for causing harm.

I’m sure you are aware that the so-called “school answering machine” message is an urban legend. It has been around in multiple incarnations, but some history is here:

http://www.snopes.com/humor/iftrue/palisades.asp

No, I didn’t realize it was an urban legend. Shame on me for not checking!

However, the Palisades High School saga and the topic of parental irresponsibility in general are worthy of discussion - so can future commenters please ignore the contempt part and instead deal with school autonomy and the problem of irresponsible students/parents. Thanks.

Message is spelt (!) M-E-S-S-A-G-E. 

That’s a BBC accent.

Someone took notes in the staff lunchroom for a few weeks, just a hunch.

A while ago there was something very similar, but it was the “Mental Health Hotline” answering machine.  (eg “If you are obsessive/compulsive, press 9-9-9-9-9-9…)

Parents do have one serious flaw in their attitude to schools. When the story conflicts between the student and the teacher, the parents, to the detriment of both, tend to believe their child. This delays action on their part usually until it is too late.

This is NOT an Urban Legend:  Truant Parents Get Hefty Fines/Jail

In contrast to that urban legend about the school?s telephone message providing options for parent excuses (to lie about your child?s absence, etc.) this story from the UK (United Kingdom) is real.

?More than 7,000 parents hit by truancy convictions as courts punish soaring levels of school absenteeism.?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1268792/More-7-000-parents-hit-truancy-convictions-courts-punish-soaring-levels-school-absenteeism.html#ixzz0me7EIn1J

In the story a parent was fined 400 pounds for taking her two children on a holiday during term.  This was considered truancy.  Absenteeism is reaching record levels. It is escalating ? more each year.  The punishment for parents is fines (up to 2,500 pounds), community service, or jail (in 2008 11 parents were immediately imprisoned.)

Now, that does sound like an urban legend, seeing as how it?s about Mother England, enlightened and great free country, blah, blah, blah.  But it?s true. 

I read all 57 comments, and though there is some support for the policy, most disagree and have good reasons:  As the Conservative spokesman said:  ?We need to address underlying causes of truancy.?

Most parental reasons for allowing their children to be away are:

1)  Cheaper holidays.  During term breaks, travel with children doubles, triples or 10X someone said.  ?Children from working families have the right to cheaper holidays.? Holidays are a ?bonding? experience.

2)  Rubbish.  ?Too many state schools are such rubbish I?m not surprised the kids don?t want to go.  Given the swinging left indoctrination tendencies ??  ?probing questionnaires about home life??

3)  Not missing much.  Poor performance in state schools is a frequent excuse. ?Curriculum is boring!!?

4)  Bullying.  ?Often schools are centers of bullying rather than education, where the teachers turn a blind eye and children are safer at home.

5)  Poor educational environment.  Drugs, alcohol, arrogance, ?bog standard? (bad sanitation, dirty toilets).

6)  Fund-raising for schools.  It?s amazing how many comments said or suggested there were ?targets? of how many truants were needed.  ?It?s all about money, not child welfare?.

7)  Control.  ?This is just the usual public sector obsession with control, encouraged by the Labour Party.?  From Denver, USA, came this perceptive comment:  ?In a country where everyone can expect (demand) to be supported by the Government, why SHOULDN?T the Government demand that everyone get a proper education?  Not saying that any school over there gives a proper education, but you get the point.?

Really interesting, especially since the May 6th UK election is in a few days (May 6) with an expected victory for the Conservatives who promise ?parent power?, as in Free Schools in Sweden. That is, parents running the schools instead of councils (school boards).

Taking children out of schools for cheap holidays is profoundly ill advised. It should be fined. Parents have even asked me to supply the work daily by fax for their child. Absurd.

I guess if they don’t learn enough in state schools taking them out is the answer. Duh.

Truancy, and fining of parents is happening here in Canada as well. In Ontario the fines start at $200 and maximum to $1000. New Brunswick and Ontario have the strongest laws, when it comes to truancy. Alberta is next, And the rest of provinces fall beneath with much weaker laws.
http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_90e02_e.htm#BK36

As I was searching, most provinces have adopted the same type of model, focusing on unauthorized absents, and authorize absents, starting at the high school level, but in some cases it applies throughout the K-12 system. The focus is on skipping out, and doing other things, but not attending school for the day or the next few days.

In NL, more than 10 days of unauthorized absents, and in Ontario, it is 6 days, where the authorities can step in, and make your life miserable. As far as I know, most provincial authorities are reluctant to fined the parents.

As far as I know, NL does not use fines for truancy, but will inform children services, who will conduct an investigation. In Ontario, it is the use of truant officers at the board level, to ensure that all students attend school, and look after truancy.

Truancy laws, have been reformed over the years, where a student that is absent for one day, is considered truant, unless they have an authorized excuse, such as being sick, with a doctor’s note.

As a parent, I only ran into it once, with the school demanding a doctor’s note, regarding my child’s absence from school for the day. My note was not good enough, and so the following day, down to the doctor’s office, seeking a note from the doctor. The doctor and I had a good chat, on this policy, since I was the 10th person in his day, requesting an excuse note. I suggested to him, to take the matter up with the school board, to end this silly practice, when it is only one day. A few months later, the policy was change, to where if a student is absent for 3 days due to illness, than there is a requirement for a doctor’s note. Much better policy that is not intrusive on parents decisions, nor overbearing by the school. And I do think, a doctor rather see a child, who has been sick for a couple of days, that makes better use of his time.

As for England, a grandfather from NL, was visiting his daughter and his grandson, who lived in London. One day, his grandson woke up with a cold, and it was decided he would stay home, with Papa. Later on in the day, a knock on the door, with a woman demanding to enter the home, to check if the boy was indeed sick. Of course the NL grandfather, would not allow her to enter, and responded, no. Her response, was to tell the Newfoundlander, that under the law, you have no right to denied me access. Maybe so, but it is still a no. Well than, as she was writing on a paper form, was a ticket, fining him 100 pounds,, unless the boy acquire a medical excuse note. The boy at that time, was only 6, going to a private school. Even the private schools, are under this law.

Leave it up to the state, one day parents may have to sign contracts with the state, where parents’ roles are reduced to a mere babysitting role, where parents are fine, based on present day actions, that might harm the child’s future in ensuring a child right to their education, and the state’s authority to provide the child with an education.

Well Doug, going on holidays can be a very rewarding educational experience, and as well as a way for families to recover from an trying ordeal. In high school, I became the classroom expert in North America geography landscape, because by that time, I had been all over North America, by car where my parents took the time to visit the local attractions, museums, and stopped in places, to collect rocks, explored nature, passing knowledge down to their children.

Would you doubt that seeing a herd of wild horses in the American west, on a vista of semi-desert land, the mountains in the background, not an education experience?  I never forget the lead horse, turning around and led his herd very close to myself and my family. to see the magnificence of these majestic creatures. I have never ever forgotten it, and in one word, freedom.

Or what about learning to track, learning how to use a compass, but better yet, learning to orient yourself, without a compass. Lost in the forest, a handy skill, is to find north. Learning how to observe, a skill that is not taught well inside the schools. Learning how to cook over an open fire, and other cooking skills that may come in handy, even in the city, when one has a prolong hydro outage, that last for days. Even going to the beaches in Florida, can be a rewarding educational experience, as it is visiting Labrador, the Big Land. Many do not know why, Labrador is called the Big Land, until you actually go and visit, than you know. An education in our schools, learning from a book, that Labrador is called the Big Land, is not the same as going there, and seeing it for yourself. No explanation, could adequately explain it in a text book, nor a teacher that has never been there.

Schools indeed should be willing to provide the homework ahead of time, so parents can ensure their children do not fall behind. Teachers that do not, are teachers who only see education, confined to the 4 walls of a school.

It has been my observations, teachers like that, have very narrowed views on all things, and live in a black and white world, with rigid ideologies on all things. It is more important to follow the teacher’s dictates, and mandates, than to view the world with an open mind, that there is added-value activities,outside the school’s walls, that no school can provide, the richness, the aha moments….......a outstanding education experience outside the walls of a school.