The first student member of the MCPS Board of Education presented public comment at today's BOE meeting, but now from the position of a parent.
What will be "done for current students" taking these exams in just a few weeks?
It is "likely the school system's failure."
"Self-inflicted wounds that the school system is giving to its own students."
David Naimon is correct regarding the probable non alignment of curriculum and assessments. However, past county protocol, as far as placement into math classes also plays a large part in why a significant percentage of these students have failed their math finals. During Weast's tenure, he insisted that a certain percentage of students be bumped into higher level classes, beginning with elementary school Math A classes. Teachers were forced to place students into Math A classes based on a percentage handed down to us by Weast. Every year the percentage increased. It did not matter that the child was not ready for Math A and was not capable of doing the work. The elementary schools were forced to honor the percentage given to us by Weast. Some students never received Math 5 instruction. These students were skipped from grade4 to Math 6. Teachers all over the county complained about this, but Weast would not back down. In the last year or two, we have been told that the plan backfired and that we should not promote students to classes they are not ready for. In conclusion, many students who are failing are the result of Weast's plan.
ReplyDeleteStarr has gone to the other extreme of Weast. We have been told that we are to go deeper in our teaching, but for the students at the elem. level who ARE ready to move on to more challenging math concepts, they will be held back by Starr's new policy and 2.0. The expectations of Starr and the BOE toward teachers in this county are ridiculous. They've set up a curriculum that is not ready to implement. MCPS admitted at recent board meetings that they are not able to obtain the resources needed to teach the curriculum. The expectation is that the teachers will come up with alternatives/resources to teach as they attempt to plow through the new 2.0.
Doug Prouty/MCEA answered our complaints by offering us a seminar during the summer to come up with how we could help ourselves and our colleagues to fix the existing problems with 2.0. Thanks Doug for putting MCEA/central office failures back on the teachers. Meanwhile, MCPS makes their money off the Pearson deal while staff and students take a back seat.
Preach it, David Naimon. We are with you. How can we get YOU on the board again?
ReplyDeleteMCPS math is crazy. What the person who commented in the comments section above tells us is news to many parents: they were told their children were near geniuses! They NEEDED the higher math instruction. A lot of times parental vanity was tapped to make the acceleration happen. Sadly, many believed it, and now do not understand why their students can't do the math at hand. Others, in more affluent parts of the county, simply paid out of pocket for real math instruction after school, via tutoring programs or places like Kumon.
We have been told time and time again that the universities find MCPS students lacking in basic math instruction when they arrive at math classes freshman year, despite the fact that these same students were in the highest levels of MCPS instruction. And teachers in private schools in the area will tell you that they get a lot of transfer students who arrive from MCPS with no math skills whatsoever, despite being told that those same students were in the highest levels of instruction.
Its all been a sham. Some of us saw it a long time ago. I feel so sorry for the students. Shame on you, Weast -- although I doubt you care now. And shame on MCPS. The board should be outraged. Instead, they just hope it will go away. Shameful. But it seems a lot like that principal who remains in place despite being charged with doing all manner of things to students. Still here. Still stinks.
What will it take to make this board act up on behalf of the students?
Start by replacing the Board.
DeleteMore specifically, replace the board with non-Apple Ballot members
DeleteApple Ballot nominees are chosen for their compliant natures.
This makes them ill equipped to question the superintendent since backbone tends to get you passed over for the almighty Apple.
For 30+ years the MCEA has had a hammerlock on the School Board and where does it get us?
Excellent compensation packages for teachers, support staff, and retirees, but deception and obliviousness at the helm.
How do we get the voters to look beyond the union endorsement as the sole criteria?
Weast started with his percentage math placement years ago. The percentage math placement is not a secret. We all had to do it. About 4 years ago, when Weast was visiting E. Brooke Lee Middle School, a staff member questioned the percentage math placement, and she informed Weast that she/staff did not feel they could fulfill the percentages he outlined for student placement in the various math classes. Weast became furious with the staff member and told her to "do it NOW"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The results of the math final exams say it all. You should check what the numbers were for passing math final exams prior to Weast's implementation of the percentage placement. On a personal note, it was very sad to see students bumped up a full year knowing all the while these children would probably learn little. The anxiety of being in over your head is overwhelming for most children. Put simply, when you don't have a firm background/firm conceptual understanding and then moved to an even higher level, it just won't work. Weast did a nasty thing with his forced percentage math initiative, and the children are failing because of him.
ReplyDeleteThe math final failure rate is a symptom of MCPS's unwillingness to face facts. Students have huge differences in preparedness, including differences in ability, motivation, and background. While it is admirable to encourage motivation and to offer students opportunities to ameliorate unfortunate backgrounds, it is unrealistic (and unfair) to pretend that all students can have their needs met at the same curricular pace. Or even, as the percentage-math-placement fiasco demonstrates, that one can simply legislate away differences in motivation and background. Forcing students into math classes they are not prepared for does not serve them, just as forcing students to sit bored in math classes they have outpaced does not serve them. MCPS remains committed to doing both of these things.
ReplyDeleteOnce again we see teachers pushing off responsibility on to someone else. Not their fault. Pearson's fault. Weast's fault. Teachers complained? That's news to all of us parents and our children. No, teachers did not complain. You shut up, closed ranks, and supported your union leadership. According to the one anecdote, you pushed children who were not ready into math classes they could not hope to master. When concerned parents spoke up, you told them to shut up. Or organize 'work groups.'. Even now you refuse to acknowledge that the 'Curriculum 2.0' is really a Pearson commercial product. What exactly will it take for teachers to stand up and speak out? Shame on you.
ReplyDelete