Oklahoma Schools 'Race to the Top' for Stimulus Funds

How about letting parents make suggestions? Is that something that could be achieved? I was bored in school and totally unprepared for life in the "real world" mostly because school times are structured for ranchers and farmers to have help. School days need to be longer, more flexible (Kinda like work schedules, not everyone works 9 am to 5 pm and only on weekdays!!!) and students need to have real world experience. We have illegal aliens coming to our shores to work in the jobs that no one wants to work in, how about putting some of those kids in those jobs for a course credit? Now, I'm not talking about the dangerous jobs nor the small children, I'm talking about the teenagers who think they know it all already! Make them EARN credits by actually WORKING!!!(might help them to understand why Mommy and / or daddy have them doing dishes and laundry!) How about modernizing the schools? Most people in the corporate world use computers to do their work, but I still see kids who have no IDEA how to use one! IM's are a fun way to learn how to spell, use grammar, so why not use those to help teach our kids how to communicate with co-workers in a polite way? Maybe I'm thinking above what can be done, but I have three sons, one that HATES school (he's 8), one that wants to learn (but doesn't know how and he's 10) and a 3 month old that is just soaking up the knowledge around him. I share what I can with my kids and do my best to teach them... now it's time to let others do their best to bring them from the 18th century to the 21st century education wise!

What's the catch.........

The first step to the USA problems is the illegal aliens. These people come here not wanting to be US citizens but just to make a living. The actual people who are doing the bad are the ones who hire them for any job from mowing to working on the highways. These illegals are desimateing our system with takeing free health care away from american citizens who actually need the help takeing what money they make and keeping some to live on and sending everything else to their countries of origin. Useing moneys that are going to US schools and causeing more to be spent than is needed because the kids don't speak english.
Tami I think you have some good ideas especially about the kids working to see what its like in the real world