Mom Forces Son To Wear Sign Showing Lousy GPA

Yes, yes, Mame.
Sadly I agree.

Well, according to the article joefromchicago posted, the mother has 6 kids
and they're doing all fine in school, except for the 15 year old one. He was
fine until 7th grade and then started slacking off in 8th grade.

So, it may not be the parents fault.

(Without knowing any more than what I read in the article) it may be completely unfair to solely blame the parents.
It is hard to say, without knowing the boy, his parents, his school & whatever other things might have been influencing him.
But one thing I'd feel fairly certain about: the mother's "punishment" will probably not help matters much at all.

If the mother wears a t-shirt specifying her weight, it's a fair deal.

Hey, don't knock ditch diggers. My brother digs ditches that are a work of art, the concrete companies just love that trencher, to the tune of nearly 6 figures.

I hope I haven't caused any confusion about my references to "high school" in regard to this year 8 student.
In Australia, year 8 (mostly, but not always) is in our high schools (years 7 - 12).
Primary school (mostly with some exceptions) : years 1 - 6.
It sounds like the situation is different in the US.

Only the government has the right to humiliate citizens thusly. I know this because the government tells me so when it creates Johns lists and sexual offender registries which are publicized far and wide.

It seems to work for Geelong Grammer (Timbertop campus) and Lauriston (Howqua campus).
For thos of you who are unfamiliar Those are two of the top (most expensive) private schools in southern Australia.

The campuses are in remote mountainouse areas and emphasis is on self determination. kids are required (under supervision) to live aa more rudimentary lifestyle, clean dorms, cut wood for heating, have experience with agricultural programs they have a student run vinyars and stud cattleprograms, build fences, navigate wild bush country on overnight and 3 day hikes.

However, horses for courses. Not every kid is suited to an academic program. It seems to me the kid in question would be a more usefull member of the community by leaving schools and earning in a low or limited skill job. Maybe he could go to a hands on trade school and work through a variety of manual skills carpentry plumbing or just screwing on wheel nuts in a tyre fitting bay.
Motivation is a key factor. the kid has to be motivated enough to WANT to work or learn. Trick is to find out what HE wants. what motivated HIM.

I dont think standing on a street corner getting honked at is gonna do that.

Additional info
Timbertop campus
http://www.ggs.vic.edu.au/timbertop/

Lauriston
http://www.lauriston.vic.edu.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=19&Itemid=75#howqua-program

Yes, it's different here, MsOlga: elementary years 1 - 5, middle school 6 - 8,
and high school 9 - 12. Now this is in California, every state has different
guidelines, some have elementary 1- 4, middle school 5 +6, junior high 7 + 8, and high school 9 - 12. Private schools might go from K - 8, or K - 12.

What I can't understand is if she can make him stand out there with a sign, how the h*ll can't see make him do his work in school?

I'd almost think the kid has some issues with learning.

You beat me to it

And I take it you dont think a mother who has multiple other kids would know that he does. AND you dont think that the school would pick up on this either.

Your explanation is far fetched.

I said "I'd almost.." as in how is one to know for sure....it could be anything as others have mentioned and as others have mentioned it could be issues with learning.

Why is everyone so sure the kid felt humiliated? I bet he didn't.

It's entirely possible that he thought getting a bad GPA showed how cool he is, and he's enjoying all the attention (TV, etc.) he's getting for being a cool dude.

Bad move on the mother's part either way. But I can certainly understand her frustration.

I thought of that too, and I shuddered. What if the actions of the mother became a self fulfilling prophecy? She may be in for a lot more trouble with this kid than she bargained for.

Could be - and any way at 15 - would this be abuse?

It isn't a smart move in any case - as much as you could understand the frustration - how would this sort of move help?

Oh, she's definitely in for it with this kid. And to add to her frustration, he's the oldest of her kids, so she knows the younger ones are watching him and taking notes. That's why she's trying (ineffectively, but trying) to make sure all of them know that she doesn't consider his behavior acceptable. She's between a rock and a hard place.

I bet this turns it into a pissing contest and a battle of wills. I had a couple of my kids , all of whom are VERY smart, outside of the disabled boy and he is stunningly more functioning than his test scores would indicate, go the "I don't give a **** route, and as a matter of fact that's the route I took in school. I told them the same thing I was told "I love you but if you don't give a **** about yourself then I don't give a **** about you either. Go be on your own." All my kids and I are doing and have done pretty much just fine. Some people bloom in their own time and some need to learn the hard way.

Sounds like it's already a contest of wills. And yeah, most figure it out on their own sooner or later, but how could a 15 year old "go be on his own"? The parents are legally responsible until he's 18, no?