Another county wide boutique program is apparently on its way out.
Summer reading. Who knew?
From the April 27th Whitman Student Newspaper, we learn that the county budget crunch is responsible for the elimination of yet another part of the Montgomery County Public School curriculum. Some of the reasons for eliminating summer reading:
1. Schools do not have enough copies to provide all students in the same grade with the same book. Does this mean that regardless of the class, all students in the same grade read the same material? What happened to differentiation?
2. Teachers think it will be a burden to collect the books at the end of the summer. Is this different from the end of the year when students turn in textbooks?
3. Students won't be able to annotate the copies of the books, so the learning experience isn't the same. Unlike college students, Whitman students must not recycle their books or pass them along to siblings and neighbors.
4. Libraries don't have enough copies of books for high school students.
I am once again amazed how a world class school system spins its money woes into a tale of gloom and doom and makes the students education suffer.
Here is the entire article:
http://bwprint.theblackandwhite.net/print9/Page1.pdf
No more summer reading?
by Victoria Scordato
Summer reading, as we know it, is changing. The English and History departments can no longer require students to buy any of their summer reading books, as a result of the new Montgomery County policy that eliminates student fees.
County officials have given schools two choices regarding summer reading: If teachers want to assign a specific title, the school must provide all students with a copy of that book. However, as a result of the economy and the current freeze on all county funds, schools won’t have the financial capabilities to buy class sets worth of books.
“We don’t have 450 books to give, and getting them all back—it would be simply impossible,” said English department resource teacher Suzanne Doggett.
So, schools must work with local libraries to compile a large list of potential options.
Departments haven’t decided on the changes they will make to comply with the policy, but they have come up with some promising ideas.
“We might have students read different books by the same author,” English teacher Marilee Roche said. “That way, when we read a book by that author in class, students will still have some background knowledge to bring to discussions and assignments.”
Advanced Placement courses will be hit especially hard by the new policy because teachers incorporate the summer reading books into the curriculum, especially during first quarter. The new policy puts her students at a severe disadvantage, said AP World History teacher Susan Olden-Stahl.
“We have our students read over the summer because it gives them a base of knowledge,” she said. “It would make the first weeks of the school year incredibly difficult if they didn’t have that coming in”.
Olden-Stahl also voiced concern about annotating, noting that students need to know this important skill before they enter the course. As a result of the new policy, annotations will essentially be eliminated because students can no longer be required to write directly in their books.
Students are also concerned about the possibility of more work if teachers assign former summer reading books during the year.
“It’s going to slow down the curriculum and make English less enjoyable if we have to catch up on all the summer reading during the year,” junior Vera Carothers said.
Most agree that while the policy is has definite benefits, its impact on summer reading will result in unfortunate consequences for students and teachers alike.
“It’s a shame we’re going to have to water down summer reading, but the county is caught,” principal Alan Goodwin said. “They can’t charge students more fees and there just isn’t enough room in the budget to purchase hundreds of new books for each school in the county.”
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6/14/2009 Update - see http://parentscoalitionmc.blogspot.com/2009/06/wootton-cluster-eliminates-summer.html to read the letter sent out to middle school parents in the Wootton Cluster concerning the rationale behind eliminating summer reading.
Dr. Goodwin should ask other MCPS high school principals how they've managed to get along without a set of summer reading books. At most MCPS high schools, summer reading lists have been the norm forever. Students are given a list of about 40 books that are available from the county library. Each student then selects -- on their own -- several books from various categories on the list and reads them during the summer.
ReplyDeleteUpdate: Blair HS will have summer reading assignments in 2009. Here is the link: http://mbhs.edu/departments/english/summerread.php
ReplyDeleteAlthough the link says 2008 assignments, clicking on the individual classes brings up the 2009 summer assignment.
Isn't this fascinating that a school in the downcounty consortium can manage a summer reading program while a school in Bethesda can't do the same? Hats off to Blair's Mr. Williams and the English Resource Teacher Vickie Adamson for valuing what is best for all kids in their school.