Jun 15 school board meeting & Return in Fall presentation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a reason these wouldn't be on Fridays? Would that make too much sense?

The slides didnt actually specify a day of the week. I think people just defaulted to talking about Mondays because elementary students used to have half-day Mondays. Supt Garza got rid of them. It's a double edged sword. Families need childcare, but elementary teachers get less planning time than secondary teachers.

Getting rid of half day Mondays is the only valuable legacy left behind by Garza.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, are 1/2 Monday's actually on the table??? Seemed like Cohen and Meran were pushing for this!

One of the options was an early release once a month.

Don’t they basically already have this anyway? There’s always some BS random half day that sneaks up on you on the calendar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a reason these wouldn't be on Fridays? Would that make too much sense?

The slides didnt actually specify a day of the week. I think people just defaulted to talking about Mondays because elementary students used to have half-day Mondays. Supt Garza got rid of them. It's a double edged sword. Families need childcare, but elementary teachers get less planning time than secondary teachers.

Please stop referring to them as half days. They were never half days. A half day would have been a 3 hour and 20 minute school day. It might not seem like much, but the student days were about 1.5 hours longer than that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a reason these wouldn't be on Fridays? Would that make too much sense?

The slides didnt actually specify a day of the week. I think people just defaulted to talking about Mondays because elementary students used to have half-day Mondays. Supt Garza got rid of them. It's a double edged sword. Families need childcare, but elementary teachers get less planning time than secondary teachers.

Please stop referring to them as half days. They were never half days. A half day would have been a 3 hour and 20 minute school day. It might not seem like much, but the student days were about 1.5 hours longer than that.

Ummm FCPS people used to literally call them “half-day Mondays.”

[Anonymous]

The school board did not talk about having half day Mondays next school year!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school board did not talk about having half day Mondays next school year!

Once a month they did.

[Anonymous]

That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

Also the question I had as I listened. They set a calendar—can they just undo all that debate and change it? Adding in early releases/half days/whatever really bungles pacing for secondary teachers on block schedules. Not giving tests/big assignments on all of the O days/the day before O days is already going to limit the number of days teachers realisitically have to assign things. Adding in additional random early releases will just mess with this more. I thought one of the arguments against some of the calendar options was that it didn't provide for enough full weeks of school—this goes against that. The alternatives presented (bringing in subs like once a month for a few hours) doesnt help that continuity of instruction either. I hope they just leave it alone for now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

If you pull up the 21-22 calendar, it still says “draft”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

They are incapable of planning ahead. Brabrand needs to go, many on the board need to be recalled, and we need a better board to select Brabrand’s replacement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: two SOL dates --- which I think is a good idea.

One set in the fall to assess where kids are.

Another set in the spring to see what progress kids have made.

Two SOLs? What does that mean?

It means the fallout from parents screaming their kids weren’t learning is even more money will be shoveled to testing companies to test your kids even MORE than they already were.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: two SOL dates --- which I think is a good idea.

One set in the fall to assess where kids are.

Another set in the spring to see what progress kids have made.

Two SOLs? What does that mean?

It means the fallout from parents screaming their kids weren’t learning is even more money will be shoveled to testing companies to test your kids even MORE than they already were.

Or it means VDOE is actually holding district’s accountable for unfinished learning. Virginia is near the bottom of the country in terms of face-to-face hours kids got in classrooms. I am happy VDOE wants to check the effect of that.

Also maybe FCPS should not have actively encouraged families to opt out of SOLs this year. Then maybe they would have had the data they wanted already.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

If you pull up the 21-22 calendar, it still says “draft”

They continually show a lack of respect for working parents & how far in advance they have to plan childcare for the following year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That’s very different from half day Mondays and it was Brabrand’s idea, not the school board.

Why didn’t this occur to them when they were approving the calendar?

If you pull up the 21-22 calendar, it still says “draft”

They continually show a lack of respect for working parents & how far in advance they have to plan childcare for the following year.

Isn't SACC (which is, admittedly, not an FCPS program) having the same problem by not explaining to working parents how many slots are going to be available where for SY 21-22?

It's absurd. Not everyone can just get a tutor and throw together a pod like Melanie Meren can.