middle school english

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“Advanced English for All” is an utter failure & a farce. There are many students in my kid’s class who are limited English speakers or who can barely write a coherent sentence. It’s not fair to lump everyone together and it helps no one in the end. MCPS tracks for math. Why are they doing this in English? It’s disastrous

Any suggestions for supplementation/enrichment?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Advanced English for All” is an utter failure & a farce. There are many students in my kid’s class who are limited English speakers or who can barely write a coherent sentence. It’s not fair to lump everyone together and it helps no one in the end. MCPS tracks for math. Why are they doing this in English? It’s disastrous

Any suggestions for supplementation/enrichment?

Read and discuss books. Have them right an essay if desired.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Advanced English for All” is an utter failure & a farce. There are many students in my kid’s class who are limited English speakers or who can barely write a coherent sentence. It’s not fair to lump everyone together and it helps no one in the end. MCPS tracks for math. Why are they doing this in English? It’s disastrous

Any suggestions for supplementation/enrichment?

Read and discuss books. Have them right an essay if desired.

Get a writing tutor. You can search the archives for some recommendations.

[Anonymous]

The reason middle school English in MCPS stinks (and has for the past few years) is because of the HORRID curriculum they paid a shit ton of money for--it's called StudySync and all parents should be writing to the Board of Ed to tell them to get rid of it as soon as the contract is up (if not sooner). Really crappy 'curriculum' and teachers are being forced to teach it 'with fidelity', and at an insane pace, which is why some schools/teachers struggle to fit novels in. It's really sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The reason middle school English in MCPS stinks (and has for the past few years) is because of the HORRID curriculum they paid a shit ton of money for--it's called StudySync and all parents should be writing to the Board of Ed to tell them to get rid of it as soon as the contract is up (if not sooner). Really crappy 'curriculum' and teachers are being forced to teach it 'with fidelity', and at an insane pace, which is why some schools/teachers struggle to fit novels in. It's really sad.

I think the goal is to help with test taking. I can’t speak for StudySync but it sounds similar as the elementary school benchmark curriculum, which involves lots identifying evidence, inferencing, comparing short passages and articles, writing about similarities or differences between several sample texts. I think it’s impossible to teach both literature and test strategy in the limited time that’s given.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“Advanced English for All” is an utter failure & a farce. There are many students in my kid’s class who are limited English speakers or who can barely write a coherent sentence. It’s not fair to lump everyone together and it helps no one in the end. MCPS tracks for math. Why are they doing this in English? It’s disastrous

Same at our MS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The reason middle school English in MCPS stinks (and has for the past few years) is because of the HORRID curriculum they paid a shit ton of money for--it's called StudySync and all parents should be writing to the Board of Ed to tell them to get rid of it as soon as the contract is up (if not sooner). Really crappy 'curriculum' and teachers are being forced to teach it 'with fidelity', and at an insane pace, which is why some schools/teachers struggle to fit novels in. It's really sad.

Time for Curriculum 3.0!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The reason middle school English in MCPS stinks (and has for the past few years) is because of the HORRID curriculum they paid a shit ton of money for--it's called StudySync and all parents should be writing to the Board of Ed to tell them to get rid of it as soon as the contract is up (if not sooner). Really crappy 'curriculum' and teachers are being forced to teach it 'with fidelity', and at an insane pace, which is why some schools/teachers struggle to fit novels in. It's really sad.

Unfortunately current BOE is clueless and total waste of taxpayer dollars.

[Anonymous]

I'm ambivalent about writing this curriculum off. As an English undergrad and lawyer who analyzes all day and traffics in persuasive writing for a living, I don't think the lack of number of full length novels is a big deal.

My 7th grader has a book every quarter but also has chunks of smaller passages to practice analytical skills. Yes, I would like to see those analytical skills get written down some time. But the actual writing is not as important as finding your own voice and analytical skills. It is a ladder and can't be rushed. The analytical skills are more important. Even if the kids read the same passage for two weeks, if real analysis is happening and the class is learning how to unpack the text and put their own spin on the the piece, then we've got them hooked to be lifelong critical thinkers. I don't need a 20 page research paper that regurgitates facts. The analysis and stamina for really complex and lengthy writing is not the end-all for middle school. That's what 9th grade is for!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm ambivalent about writing this curriculum off. As an English undergrad and lawyer who analyzes all day and traffics in persuasive writing for a living, I don't think the lack of number of full length novels is a big deal.

My 7th grader has a book every quarter but also has chunks of smaller passages to practice analytical skills. Yes, I would like to see those analytical skills get written down some time. But the actual writing is not as important as finding your own voice and analytical skills. It is a ladder and can't be rushed. The analytical skills are more important. Even if the kids read the same passage for two weeks, if real analysis is happening and the class is learning how to unpack the text and put their own spin on the the piece, then we've got them hooked to be lifelong critical thinkers. I don't need a 20 page research paper that regurgitates facts. The analysis and stamina for really complex and lengthy writing is not the end-all for middle school. That's what 9th grade is for!

I agree with you. But the best word I have to describe this curriculum is RUSHED, which is the opposite of what you want. It's all breadth and no depth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The reason middle school English in MCPS stinks (and has for the past few years) is because of the HORRID curriculum they paid a shit ton of money for--it's called StudySync and all parents should be writing to the Board of Ed to tell them to get rid of it as soon as the contract is up (if not sooner). Really crappy 'curriculum' and teachers are being forced to teach it 'with fidelity', and at an insane pace, which is why some schools/teachers struggle to fit novels in. It's really sad.

Unfortunately current BOE is clueless and total waste of taxpayer dollars.

Based on their salary, not much of a waste.