REAGAN GOMEZ: PARENTS NEED TO BE MORE INVOLVED WITH THEIR KIDS
Actress Reagan Gomez and her daughter Scarlett watch Captain EO at Disneyland.
This morning, Reagan woke up to news that more than forty Detroit public schools will be closed in June of 2011. Robert Bobb, Detroit’s Financial Manager, says the decision is due to the shrinking student population and ineffective teachers.
Many parents, including the actress, are outraged.
“The teachers are not the problem! Obviously, there are bad teachers. But they’re the scapegoat instead of the [messed] up system, lack of money, politicians who ignore the problem, and uninvolved parents add to the problem. Everyone wants to blame the teachers. [But how can teachers teach when there is] no heat/no ac, 45 kids to teach, kids don’t have books, no involved parent. How are u supposed to teach?,” demands Reagan.
What are your thoughts? Do you agree with Reagan?
Follow Reagan and her tweets at Twitter.com/ReaganGomez
36 Comments to “REAGAN GOMEZ: PARENTS NEED TO BE MORE INVOLVED WITH THEIR KIDS”
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I soooooo agree with you, Reagan! As a former Detroit Public School teacher, I have always felt that teachers were constant “whipping posts” in the education system….
We were ALWAYS blamed if the child came to school without supplies or didn’t turn in their homework, if there were no books, if they failed standardized tests, if they misbehaved in class and the list goes on & on & on….
We have set African-American children up for failure! And when they grow up and have to function in the real world, everyone’s going to be sitting around scratching their head, saying “what happened?” It’s all a hot mess!!
And THAT is why I have retired from teaching!!
(in my Madea voice) HALLELUJAR!! : )
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Amend. It starts at home. We are our childrens first and number one teachers. Parent need to take responsibilty teachers can not do everything by themselves we as parents must reinforce what is taught and learned. Former Florida public school teacher.
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That first picture at the top is simply adorable. I follow her on Twitter…she is funny and real.
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Regan speak the “Truth” and some of the parents are not involved is sometimes because they are lazy but you also have parents who are uneducated, grandparents raising them etc. And get these kids off FB, twitter and Myspace and put a book in their hands.
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I completely agree with her. While it doesn’t necessarily help at this point to place blame on anyone, the parents are not eduacating their kids at home (which is where education is suppose to begin). Parents are not involved in their childrens education. What we fail to understand is this…education is a privilege not a burden! It’s so sad that the children are the ones that will suffer from it!
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her and her man make a cute couple…
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Regina’s husband is so fine does he have a brother hee hee…. her daughter is so beatiful!!!
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I live in Detroit and my kids schools are on the list to be closed. It’s due to the fact of parents not being involved enough and a long history of corrupt people in charge of the financial department. I am mad that their schools are closing but, I have to say that the new financial manager Robert Bobb is not playing. He has uncovered alot of shady people and is trying to help our children. As a parent I make sure that I’m at every meeting listening and voicing my opinion. I talk to my kids teachers and let them know that I’m available to help in class if they need me and I send extra supplies to help out. I go over their homework with them as soon as they get home and if they don’t have any I make up something for them to do! As a parent it’s our responsibility to help our children!
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Now I see where the little girl gets her eyes and eyebrows from. They are a nice looking family.
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I totally agree with Regan, but its funny when I say this or hear other say this…those same parents will STILL find a way to place the blame on the teachers, which just blows my mind. Some teachers are good, some are not..just like some bus drivers are good and some are not. But if you don’t know YOUR CHILD (I mean really know your child) how can you say it’s ALL the teacher’s fault?? Most teachers can’t teach because they’re too busy being psychologist to the kids! Or the teachers are too busy teaching SOMEONE ELSE’S CHILD, why it’s not polite to touch things that don’t belong to them, respect is a MUST not just at home but in the class room and in the world, and/or explaining to someone’s daughter that she doesn’t need to dress like she’s 25 when she’s only 13. Some teachers are doing what the parents should do, and that’s raise their kids and be all up in their business. Now, if it takes a village to raise a child, how in the heck is a teacher supposed to do it with a class of 35+?! C’mon parents, take back your kids, let them know it’s OKAY to be intelligent and that you EXPECT them to be great because they CAN!
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I remember her husband was in that movie with Tyrese and Megan good “Waist Deep”
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I agree with Reagan 100%, the same thing is happening in Alabama and everyone knows where Alabama ranks in the country as far as education.
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I love Scarletts hair!
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I totally agree with Reagan! I am an inner-city teacher and for whatever reason teachers are becoming the easy scapegoat. Politicians can not control parents so they are scapegoating teachers to show they are doing something! I have children who tell me they do not care if I call their parents so right there the parent controlled what happened in the class. How can I convince a child that education is important if they know their parents do not care or will not do anything to them if they get in trouble. If I call a parent about interventions etc, I rarely get support, but if I take a cell phone they are there the next day…THAT is what is wrong with urban schools(where most of the failure is occurring). I am busting my butt to help my students and their parents do not do their part. I have parents lie to me and tell me they are doing what I ask to be done at home, then the child will confirm that it is not happening. Parents have to see education as their child’s number one priority or NOTHING will change in education. It is not as if failing schools just happen to get bad teachers…NO WAY!!!!!!! The problems are deeper than that! I would like a teacher exchange when teachers in a failing school go to a performing school and if the kids at the performing school start to fail or the kids at the failing school start to achieve then I will conceded it was a teacher issue…I would BET MY LIFE that will not happen!
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I appreciate Reagan standing up to voice her opinion. She is a native of Detroit and just as Bill Cosby came here to get involved in saving these schools and most importantly our youth, it would be great to see Reagan return here to get involved.
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AMEN to: Sean, Giggles & Pink Princess!!!!
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You know how some folks are – when it comes to problems with THEIR children, it’s YOUR fault. As if we’re the ones who gave birth to the kid in the first place.
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Her husband looks just like my brothers.
Crazy.
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ALL I HAVE TO SAY IS “IT ALL STARTS IN THE HOME”! A LOT OF PARENTS OR SHOULD I SAY A PARENT, BECAUSE NINE TIMES OUT OF TEN IT IS A SINGLE PARENT HOME! BUT THE PARENT MUST TAKE A ACTIVE ROLE IN THEIR CHILDREN’S SCHOOLING. A LOT OF PARENTS LIKE TO SAY THAT TEACHER IS NOT TEACHING MY CHILD–BY THE TIME A CHILD STARTS SCHOOL HE OR SHE SHOULD KNOW HOW TO COUNT AT LEAST TO TWENTY, COLORS, THE ALPHABET ETC. MOST PARENTS ARE TOO LAZY OR STRESSED OUT TO WANT TO BE BOTHERED WITH THE KID…BUT THAT IS WHY SOCIETY AS A WHOLE IS GOING TO THE DOGS! LESS VIDEO GAMES AND TELEVISION WATCHING AND MORE BOOK READING AND CONVERSATION!
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Champagne…you are correct….it is estimated that the developmental span in many kindergarten classrooms is anywhere from 2-8. Therefore, if a parent has done nothing before school starts, no one teacher can make up years of neglect in one year. The real lack of achievement starts before kids every meet a teacher!
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I learned how to read and write before I went to school from my mother who was a computer programmer. This latter detail brings me to 21st century learning which is no longer basic ABCs, 123s…it’s critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork/collaboration, creativity, and new media literacy skills. I’ve working in the public schools since college (over 15 years) and while I don’t negate the parent/guardian role in academic success I have seen young people dumb down until their just plain asleep in class because the teacher either lacks the skills to engage them (w/new literacies) OR the school’s network infrastructure filters out even the good resources or both. Not to mention overcrowding and outmoded teaching methods…and teaching to the standardized test(s), not to succeed as a productive member of society.
I blame the teachers AND the parents AND the legislators for No Child Left Behind that actually left plenty behind over nearly a decade.
Let me get off the soap box for now…this topic really makes me mad.
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Of Course there are bad teachers..but in most urban schools they are not the problem. They are beat down to no end. Support is missing from administration and parents. Teachers are human beings as well and I think people forget that. They have their own families to care for as well. Therefore, to ask them to do more for someone’s child than the parent does is outrageous. If you are cursed at daily and told by the child to leave them alone…what exactly is the teacher to do?
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I AM a teacher and I’ve been teaching urban kids for several years. I do know kids who do not know how to behave in the classroom but the reasons are several. I’ve also taught suburban kids and there are always students who do not know how to behave due to poor parenting. The environments and allocated resources are different which makes parenting and the reasons behind the acting out different.
I’m known as the teacher who can connect with the troublemakers and misfits. One time I was offered a position in another state to teach kids others would not. In urban classrooms, more often than not, the “bad” ones are the leaders who are not being shown how to bring out their leadership abilities in positive ways. Even in larger, overcrowded classrooms teachers can do this without taking away from the others.
I also don’t pin blame on anyone one group. It’s all our faults. Done. Now let’s CHANGE things.
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I disagree with you, it is not my fault when I come prepared and face children who do not want to receive it! When parents curse me out for calling them….that is NOT my fault or any other teacher! Since say you are great and people want you to come to their district then I applaud you…and just for the record, I have mass control of my class and we accomplish a lot but the barriers that are present are not due to ME!
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When I am in a classroom it’s never about me. Whenever I am being challenged by a student, parent, or even another teacher I ask the question: What is it that this person needs? What are they missing that is preventing them from success? Sometimes it’s fixable by me but most of the time I am referring them elsewhere to get the help they need, especially the resistant ones! Curses don’t break me down and I’ve found when the approach is student-centered the resistance falls away eventually. I have tons of anecdotes.
Again, when barriers are present it’s not about what I need. It’s about what I can do to help others overcome those obstacles.
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I AGREE 100% with you on this one ReaGan! you are soo riiighT. Her daughTer is just tOo adorabLe Lookin Like daddy with her mamas compLexion. they are such a cute coupLe toO! he Looks kind of Asian. lol..
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Wow, this post makes me feel so old! I remember Reagan Gomez from the 90′s show “The Parent Hood”. I loved that show!
I got to say, her comments are on the mark. There has been a SERIOUS lack of attention paid to many inner-city school systems, especially concerning African-American kids. I don’t know how many times I’ve read of schools where the children are reading outdated text books, where just across town, there are schools with excellent school materials and wonderful programs…the public school system is severely flawed, if you ask me. I also agree that the parents NEED to be involved with their children’s education. Teachers shouldn’t be treated like babysitters or substitute parents.
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I am dismayed by the fact that over 40 Detroit Public Schools are closing. My daughter attends one of the “fortunate” schools that are not closing, however there are already 30-35 kids per class. How are teachers supposed to deal with these kids, most of which are getting little to no attention in the home. This is ridiculous. Teachers are not the only people to blame. I think the entire community should be held accoutable starting with the parents.
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I think her husband came out on the movie
“Waist deep”
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@Hana…I think you are speaking in a idealistic world that is not reality…people need to stop sugar coating this……PARENTS are the reason for failing schools. Period!
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aww i’m sure the lil one enjoyed captain eo!
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Her DAughter Is a cutie pie
Shes look so much like her daddy!
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Did any read about the Entire Senior Class Of All-Black, All-Male Chicago School Accepted To College? This is a postive story showing that young men are serious about their education. I bet their parents and family members are proud of them.
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Yes, I read that story. Both parents and teachers need to work together to educate children and to ensure success.
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I agree! Both of my parents are teachers and it seems like the parents, and board members blame the teachers!!
Crazy.
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SCARLETT LOOKS JUST LIKE DADDY CUTE.
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