Who educates our children?

I like to listen to Ralph Bristol while driving into work at 5 am every morning.  The past several days there has been a story about the poor performance of Detroit area students on national standardized tests.  Mr. Bristol has put forth the teachers in the Detroit area should be held responsible for this failure to educate Detroit's youngsters through fines, law suits or some form of punitive measures.  His point being that we pay our teachers to teach; therefore, our children's education is their responsibility.

I agree with Mr. Bristol about most things but this particular view of education is one of the problems with the educational system in the US today.  The public school teachers are most emphatically not responsible for educating our children.  We as parents are!  I pay my doctor but he isn't responsible for my health.  I am.  I pay for my local police but they aren't responsible for the security of my home.  I am.  I pay teachers but they aren't responsible for my child's education.  I am.

We pay the teachers to present information and give our children the opportunity to learn.  The key there is that it is an opportunity.  Teachers can't force a child to take advantage of the opportunity.  That is the responsibility of the parents.  Unfortunately a large number of parents don't take this responsibility seriously.  They don't look at their child's homework, don't enforce good study habits, don't regularly meet with their child's teacher or anything else that should be the bare minimum involvement in their child's education.  If the parents can't be bothered to care, why should the teachers?

The strange thing about Mr.Bristol's attitude is that it seems so at odds with his conservative leanings.  It seems to say that since we pay taxes the government should educate our children.  Should we then suppose that since we pay taxes that the government should be responsible for our healthcare, our retirement and our ability to get and hold a job?  It seems a rather liberal stance to be taking.  Personally, I don't want the government usurping my responsibility for my children.