A couple weeks ago, I had to go to a truancy hearing. Joe had been absent from school so many days, and my notes explaining that he had been sick apparently weren't good enough.
I am trying desperately not to go into a tirade... about how Americans in general are too reliant on doctors, about how the schools insistence on a doctor's note perpetuates the problem and puts a strain on certain families, about how ridiculous it is to threaten a parent with jail time due to someone else's definition of excessive, unexcused absences - never mind that the kid is doing well in school...
I explained to the ladies at the hearing that Joe gets sick a lot, that most of the time, I can tell that it is a virus that tends to settle in his chest and taking him to the doc would be a waste of time and resources.
What was their solution? Send the sick kid to school and let the nurse send him home. Can anyone else recognize how asinine that is? [Maybe this is why school districts are shutting down due to widespread flu outbreaks.] Regardless of my thoughts, I figured I could work with this. Although my mothering instinct would rather let a sick kid stay in bed, I have to take Finley to school [I am not comfortable leaving a 6 year old alone for the 20 minutes it takes, and besides, I could get charged for neglect leaving a kid under the age of twelve alone if found out], and can just pop into the nurse's office to prove he's sick.
So Joe got sick over the weekend. I took him into the office this morning, and guess what I forgot? The elementary school shares the nurse with the high school, and she isn't there in the mornings. I could take him over to the high school or bring him back later...
I get what the truancy laws are trying to do, really. But all too often we pass laws and regulations with good intent, overlooking the fact that one size does not fit all.
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