Can anyone shed light on what is likely to change at Norwood with new leadership?

[Anonymous]

pp, the school could do better, not "good nuff".
Strive for excellence.

[Anonymous]

also, no one has said that Norwood is a HORRIBLE school. Not one person on this thread. Please do not over react.

[Anonymous]

Reading this spiteful thread has been painful for me as a parent. I hope that people without first-hand knowledge of Norwood understand that the angry poster(s) of the inaccurate information represent an extreme tiny minority of Norwood families. Honestly, I can't imagine that they are written by anyone personally connected to the school because anyone so concerned should be smart enough to transfer to a school that would be a better fit for their child.

I have no idea why anyone would trust these anonymous forums. However, if you want to learn first-hand about what Norwood stands for, and all about their curriculum and methodology, you should come to the Open House this Saturday between 1:00-3:00. There you can talk to parents, administrators, students, faculty, and alumna. Ask them hard questions and see for yourself if Norwood is the community for your family. Attending an Open House was how I learned everything that I needed to know about Norwood and I encourage you to do the same. Don't listen to unfounded gossip and decide for yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Reading this spiteful thread has been painful for me as a parent. I hope that people without first-hand knowledge of Norwood understand that the angry poster(s) of the inaccurate information represent an extreme tiny minority of Norwood families. Honestly, I can't imagine that they are written by anyone personally connected to the school because anyone so concerned should be smart enough to transfer to a school that would be a better fit for their child.

I have no idea why anyone would trust these anonymous forums. However, if you want to learn first-hand about what Norwood stands for, and all about their curriculum and methodology, you should come to the Open House this Saturday between 1:00-3:00. There you can talk to parents, administrators, students, faculty, and alumna. Ask them hard questions and see for yourself if Norwood is the community for your family. Attending an Open House was how I learned everything that I needed to know about Norwood and I encourage you to do the same. Don't listen to unfounded gossip and decide for yourself.

I'm sorry that this has been a painful experience for you, but I wouldn't call this thread spiteful. And I wouldn't write off the "angry" posters' information as inaccurate simply because you may not agree with their opinions. I have been connected to Norwood for quite some time and have seen it go downhill. Again, just my opinion. But if I were thinking of applying, as the OP is, I would want to hear all voices - not just the cheerleaders'.

[Anonymous]

Can you explain why you don't transfer to a school that's a better fit for you? Norwood has always been a school where the arts and other specials are not considered "extras." There are many schools where the core academics are stressed and the whole child approach is not in effect. Your family would be much happier there.

[Anonymous]

This is an interesting thread to me, because on so many other threads people seem to be criticizing "pressure cooker atmospheres" and homework loads. But on this one, one or more people seem to want to ratchet up the intensity (which honestly feels a little weird to me for an elementary/middle school).

My take-away is that everybody thinks they are an expert when it comes to schools and thinks they could do it better than the actual schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you explain why you don't transfer to a school that's a better fit for you? Norwood has always been a school where the arts and other specials are not considered "extras." There are many schools where the core academics are stressed and the whole child approach is not in effect. Your family would be much happier there.

Your post validates some of the very opinions of the so-called "angry posters." In essence, you are saying that we should have to transfer to another school for proper emphasis on the core academics. Norwood should be able to teach the core academics effectively while maintaining a child-centered approach and without compromising the specials. It does not have to be an either/or proposition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is an interesting thread to me, because on so many other threads people seem to be criticizing "pressure cooker atmospheres" and homework loads. But on this one, one or more people seem to want to ratchet up the intensity (which honestly feels a little weird to me for an elementary/middle school).

My take-away is that everybody thinks they are an expert when it comes to schools and thinks they could do it better than the actual schools.

As a contributor to this thread, I respectfully disagree with your take. Or perhaps I just didn't articulate my position clearly. I don't want to ratchet up the intensity (another poster spoke of the issue with her DS & the age-inappropriateness of 4th grade science and how schools sometimes introduce age-inappropriate material in their quest for instructional excellence.) I would like Norwood to tighten up its instruction and curriculum, remove ineffective teachers (but a proper teacher evaluation process first must be put into place), and use the hours of the day more efficiently. Nowhere did I or anyone else say we sought to introduce a "pressure cooker atmosphere," increase the homework load or ratchet up the intensity. (Actually, I imagine a lot of the students whose teachers are not strong would find the pressure/stress decrease if the material were delivered by better teachers.)

[Anonymous]

Ok, i'm a prospective parent. One reason i like Norwood is the real inclusion of "specials". I know my kid is smart, but i want her to like school, and particularly science, art, and music are big interests for her. How is Norwood failing to prepare in the core academics? On my tour, i saw groups of 6 or fewer kids working on reading in K. That seems good. Is it math? Are we talking about kids not being ready for a calculus-track in high school? Or just not accelerating them through to pre-calc in 8th? Because if i wanted a pressure-cooker environment, i would be looking elsewhere anyway. I want a place where my kid feels comfortable, challenged, and valued.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is an interesting thread to me, because on so many other threads people seem to be criticizing "pressure cooker atmospheres" and homework loads. But on this one, one or more people seem to want to ratchet up the intensity (which honestly feels a little weird to me for an elementary/middle school).

My take-away is that everybody thinks they are an expert when it comes to schools and thinks they could do it better than the actual schools.

As a contributor to this thread, I respectfully disagree with your take. Or perhaps I just didn't articulate my position clearly. I don't want to ratchet up the intensity (another poster spoke of the issue with her DS & the age-inappropriateness of 4th grade science and how schools sometimes introduce age-inappropriate material in their quest for instructional excellence.) I would like Norwood to tighten up its instruction and curriculum, remove ineffective teachers (but a proper teacher evaluation process first must be put into place), and use the hours of the day more efficiently. Nowhere did I or anyone else say we sought to introduce a "pressure cooker atmosphere," increase the homework load or ratchet up the intensity. (Actually, I imagine a lot of the students whose teachers are not strong would find the pressure/stress decrease if the material were delivered by better teachers.)

+1. It is about efficiency.

[Anonymous]

BTW, the negative posters are not outwardly saying that everything about the school stinks. It has a LOT of great features. The question is, will the new head take a good school, and turn it into a great school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:BTW, the negative posters are not outwardly saying that everything about the school stinks. It has a LOT of great features. The question is, will the new head take a good school, and turn it into a great school?

+1

[Anonymous]

I am a parent. I have 2 kids. One in lower and one in middle. The lower school has gone downhill. Are the kids happy, yes. Is the music and art great? Yes. I just want effective leadership in the lower school and better math instruction. I am looking to move my lower school student next year, if they get in. Instruction in math is so poor, I think dc might have some catching up to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a parent. I have 2 kids. One in lower and one in middle. The lower school has gone downhill. Are the kids happy, yes. Is the music and art great? Yes. I just want effective leadership in the lower school and better math instruction. I am looking to move my lower school student next year, if they get in. Instruction in math is so poor, I think dc might have some catching up to do.

Said this before, they should have gone with a better curriculum like many other private schools in the area.
They need to relieve some teachers of their positions. They are saying that they will retrain them? Why is my tuition dollar being used to train people who should have shown up already trained? How do you train away laziness, complacency, and cluelessness? Why do they hire incompetence? If that school hires one more mother or spouse of someone connected to the school in any way I will scream!
If the new head does not get rid of a whole chunk of staff, I will know very early on that he is just going to kick the can, and take no risk. Then if he is good, he will do the magic speak with the parents.
That said, I love the school, but it is like watching your good friend screw up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ok, i'm a prospective parent. One reason i like Norwood is the real inclusion of "specials". I know my kid is smart, but i want her to like school, and particularly science, art, and music are big interests for her. How is Norwood failing to prepare in the core academics? On my tour, i saw groups of 6 or fewer kids working on reading in K. That seems good. Is it math? Are we talking about kids not being ready for a calculus-track in high school? Or just not accelerating them through to pre-calc in 8th? Because if i wanted a pressure-cooker environment, i would be looking elsewhere anyway. I want a place where my kid feels comfortable, challenged, and valued.

And BTW, bad teaching and poor management can lead to stress and a pressure cooker feel because things are not being done well. Parents get stressed and look for tutors when they sense incompetence. So don't assume that asking kids to do their best with good skilled teachers will cause burn out. Think of it like having a bad training coach who gets you tired while building up the wrong muscle groups. Down the road there is another trainer who works her clients just as hard but hits the right muscle groups. When you lose the 5K, you're upset because in fact, you worked just as hard as her clients.
The music teachers at Norwood are like the good trainer. They get it right because they know exactly what they are doing. They know what to expect from a certain age group, and ask for no less. The curriculum is as it should be and the kids do not feel over worked. No extreme pressure, just good instruction. The results are great.
No child at Norwood is academically incompetent, the problems are with the school.