--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was very, very unhappy with even the…" description: "\"I was very, very unhappy with even the so-called very elite schools. The one thing I've always done every day with my children is to watch what they do..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/marva-collins-12407_academic_i-was-very-very-unhappy-with-even-the-so_1515469.jpg" --- # I was very, very unhappy with even the so-called very… ![“I was very, very unhappy with even the so-called very elite schools. The one thing I've always done every day with my children is to watch what they do at school, and I was always a bit unhappy with the academic program. It was a kind of hit and miss.” quote by Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/marva-collins-12407_academic_i-was-very-very-unhappy-with-even-the-so_1515469.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/marva-collins-12407_academic_i-was-very-very-unhappy-with-even-the-so_1515469.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac0/marva-collins-12407_academic_i-was-very-very-unhappy-with-even-the-so_1515469.jpg) > “I was very, very unhappy with even the so-called very elite schools. The one thing I've always done every day with my children is to watch what they do at school, and I was always a bit unhappy with the academic program. It was a kind of hit and miss.” [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She expresses disappointment with elite schools and emphasizes daily monitoring of children's education to ensure quality. **In simple terms:** Unhappy with elite schools; watches children's schooling daily. Key Takeaway Monitor and engage with your child's education. Themes education parenting school quality monitoring disappointment Mood concerned determined Type advisory reflective When to use this quote - Choosing schools - daily school check‑ins - addressing curriculum gaps Key Concepts Pedagogy school choice parental involvement Questions to Reflect On - How can parents effectively assess school quality? - What alternatives exist when schools fall short? A Different Perspective Schools may lack resources despite reputation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic/) [Bits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bits/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Elite Schools](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elite-schools-5489629/) [Elites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elites/) [Every day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/every-day/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Missing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing/) [My children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-children/) [One thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-thing/) [Program](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/program/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Schools Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/schools-thing-3483508/) [Unhappy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy/) [Unhappy Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy-academic-5588599/) [Watches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/watches/) ## Related quotes > [For wealthy or privileged students, applying to Ivy League schools or elite schools is sort of expected of them. 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These are dangerous people who make dangerous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-hyde/the-anger-i-felt-when-the-aclu-tried-to-disenfranchise-me-because-my/) [Henry Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-hyde/) > [Above all, the listener should be able to understand the poem or the song, not be forced to unravel a complicated, self-indulgent puzzle. Offer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucinda-williams/above-all-the-listener-should-be-able-to-understand-the-poem-or-the/) [Lucinda Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucinda-williams/) > [The majority of Arab people would side with Russia and China, not with the West. And they'd throw their 'elites' groomed in and by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-vltchek/the-majority-of-arab-people-would-side-with-russia-and-china-not-with/) [Andre Vltchek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-vltchek/) > [This is the culmination of a lot of people's vision. 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Then as now, all elite opinion was against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/the-idea-of-a-bowed-and-terrified-liberal-minority-during-mccarthy-s/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [This is what I say about the scorn of the media elite: I wear their scorn as a badge of honor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quayle/this-is-what-i-say-about-the-scorn-of-the-media-elite-i-wear-their/) [Dan Quayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quayle/) ## More by Marva Collins > [Praise is essential in developing the right attitude toward learning and toward school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/praise-is-essential-in-developing-the-right-attitude-toward-learning/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [Kids don't fail. Teachers fail, school systems fail. The people who teach children that they are failures, they are the problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/kids-don-t-fail-teachers-fail-school-systems-fail-the-people-who/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [You can't find me 20 children in Chicago, I don't care which section you go in - you can be on Michigan Avenue or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/you-can-t-find-me-20-children-in-chicago-i-don-t-care-which-section/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [A person cannot all of a sudden become good at what they do just by switching streams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/a-person-cannot-all-of-a-sudden-become-good-at-what-they-do-just-by/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [There isn't a certain time we should set aside to talk about God. 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They don't need more Federal funds, grants, and gimmicks. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/students-do-not-need-to-be-labeled-or-measured-any-more-than-they-are/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [One of the things that even wealthy children need is an education, and I think the problems I saw really have nothing to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/one-of-the-things-that-even-wealthy-children-need-is-an-education-and/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [I don't have to be accountable to some authority, which is why I don't take federal funds. I don't want anyone's monies unless they're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/i-don-t-have-to-be-accountable-to-some-authority-which-is-why-i-don-t/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [There is a lot of money to be made from miseducation, from the easy to read easy to learn textbooks, workbooks, teacher manuals, educational…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/there-is-a-lot-of-money-to-be-made-from-miseducation-from-the-easy-to/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [Trust yourself. Think for yourself. Act for yourself. Speak for yourself. Be yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-collins/trust-yourself-think-for-yourself-act-for-yourself-speak-for-yourself/) [Marva Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-collins/) > [Our children learn the phonetic method, which is why they're very good spellers, I suppose. 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Good sleep they sought for themselves, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/now-know-i-well-what-people-sought-formerly-above-all-else-when-they/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Because my graduate academic training at law school was not one that included most of the intellectual traditions I find useful for understanding the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-spade/because-my-graduate-academic-training-at-law-school-was-not-one-that/) [Dean Spade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-spade/) > [An academic discipline, or any other semiotic domain, for that matter, is not primarily content, in the sense of facts and principles. 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