Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "BOE- Will You Have the Guts in July?":
If I felt like the education my children receive was of superior quality, I wouldn't feel the teachers' salaries in this district were so off the mark. Sadly, the school my kids attend (Stratford) falls short in so many ways. While I don't want to discredit an entire district by the shortcomings of hopefully only a small few, I cannot help but wonder how a community like Plainview could allow such mediocrity. The percentage of residents who attend board meetings, come out to vote, get involved in effecting change is extremely low. The board, nice as they are, rarely questions actions of the administration. As in most districts in America, they act as the community's "rubber stamp" for the superintendent.
The district lacks a strong leader who takes parent concerns seriously. There do not appear to be anyone overseeing the goings on at the building level. That explains why, for example, the literacy program at Stratford is so varied between classrooms. While academic instruction should be flexible to meet the needs of all children, the policy that the very program your child receives is at the exclusive discretion of the teachers with minimal administrative involvement is almost criminal. As they move from grade to grade, they're regrouped into situations where they're not all starting the year at the same point in regard to levels of achievement, acquired skills, curricular goals attained, etc).
The mentality is such that if you express any concerns, no matter how courteously, you're automatically branded "crazy" and a "troublemaker" and dealt with accordingly. While I disagree with "witch hunts" as I've detected perhaps a small few around town, some even on this blog, the concept of a true partnership between the schools and parents simply does not exist, at least not at Stratford Road.
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Agreed, the literacy program at Stratford is inferior, particularly in the lower grades. Writing is an area that needs serious improvement in addition to reading.
ReplyDeleteWhoever you are, it's well known that th principal there is the wrong fit. The assistant principal is good though. The superintendent's bark is worse than his bite.
I can't say that I've found much problem with the math and science programs. No strong feelings one way or the other on social studies.
A few teachers in the lower grades at Stratford are great for literacy and really do a great job (THANK YOU!!!) but overall most teachers don't follow any program beyond read at home and fill out a log that says you read something. It's up to the parent to take care of helping their kid become a better reader since keeping a reading log doesn't teach kids to read- a person working with kids teaches kids to read. Classes of kids doing a reading program on a computer is not reading instruction either. No one is really helping kids to enjoy reading.
ReplyDeleteIf the kids were taught Science all year on a weekly basis (instead of Chinese) then maybe 4th graders wouldn't have had to cram in science for the past 4 weeks before the state science test My kid did NO math during these 4 weeks, by the way. Where are the pacing maps? ANybody watching this? Anybody care in admin???
ReplyDeleteWhen you come on to this site and voice your displeasure at our schools, you have to look at your self in the mirror and ask: "have I gone up to the school board meetings to find out what is going on? have I gone up to the Board meetings and voiced my opinion ? Most people on this site probably have not. I say this because I have gone to alot of meetings and very few parents are there . If you do not get involved , then you can not complain
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, everyone has the right to share their thoughts. They also have a right to complain. While I agree that community attendance at board meetings is sadly quite weak, it's been my experience from having attended board meetings literally for years that voicing one's opinion there does not have much of an effect either.
ReplyDeletevoicing one's opinion at a board meeting might not have that much of an effect but 100 people voicing there opinion does. I find it difficult to beleive that residents have enough time to complain on this site but do not have the time or will power to go to a board meeting and get up and say something. That is why we are in this mess. You can not make excuses for the masses of residents who do not go to meetings and get up and speak. If the BOE meetings do not work how about the voting booth. The amount of people who voted and who they voted for was nothing short of PATHETIC. I have also attended BOE meetings for years and very few know what is going on. Maybe they do not want to know for fear of making themselves sick
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