Richard Montgomery High School teacher complains about chronic absenteeism

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is what you get when you have unmotivated students from poor families. You think this is happening at Whitman or Churchill?

Sooooo my kid goes to Churchill and it's true that kids are pretty on the ball and the classroom culture is pretty conducive to learning. Part of that is that the principal and most teachers actually enforce things like the cell phone policy and wearing lanyards.

But on the rare occasion that I am dropping my kid off at 7:44 or 7:45, there are still a lot of kids in the drop off line. I think 1st period it's pretty typical to have kids roll in 5-10 minutes late. Not good. But it happens.

Part of it is that Churchill has kids with means, for the most part, so they have their own cars or friends with cars or parents who have the time and/or flexibility to get them to school on time. They don't (generally) have to care for siblings or work PT jobs that make them exhausted in the way that physical labor does. So yeah. It's definitely an equity issue.

Was just coming to post this. Having parents with the flexibility to drop off kids and/or means (we've had to Uber our kid a few times) is definitely a piece of this.

In our home, you will not be late or there are consequences. No ubers.

Oh good for you high and mighty home

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is what you get when you have unmotivated students from poor families. You think this is happening at Whitman or Churchill?

What an uninformed comment. Absenteeism at Whitman is up since COVID. Whitman students have more resources to get their work done at home, and less need to be at school to receive free lunch. I agree that it needs to shift and it's going to be a bumpy ride back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

Her going to the media to do what? Tell MCPS and everyone in the nation something they already know. How was that helpful?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

It is. But MCPS only responds to lawsuits and media pressure, so sadly, it's the only way.

MCEA seems to be incapable of doing anything other than advocating for bigger budgets for the school system.

As a parent, I don't get why teachers have not revolted against MCEA leadership yet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

Her going to the media to do what? Tell MCPS and everyone in the nation something they already know. How was that helpful?

If you're asking this question, you're part of the problem, not the solution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is what you get when you have unmotivated students from poor families. You think this is happening at Whitman or Churchill?

Sooooo my kid goes to Churchill and it's true that kids are pretty on the ball and the classroom culture is pretty conducive to learning. Part of that is that the principal and most teachers actually enforce things like the cell phone policy and wearing lanyards.

But on the rare occasion that I am dropping my kid off at 7:44 or 7:45, there are still a lot of kids in the drop off line. I think 1st period it's pretty typical to have kids roll in 5-10 minutes late. Not good. But it happens.

Part of it is that Churchill has kids with means, for the most part, so they have their own cars or friends with cars or parents who have the time and/or flexibility to get them to school on time. They don't (generally) have to care for siblings or work PT jobs that make them exhausted in the way that physical labor does. So yeah. It's definitely an equity issue.

Was just coming to post this. Having parents with the flexibility to drop off kids and/or means (we've had to Uber our kid a few times) is definitely a piece of this.

In our home, you will not be late or there are consequences. No ubers.

Oh good for you high and mighty home

It’s called parenting. I’m not paying for an uber.

[Anonymous]

I don't know Ms. Lyons so I suspect she teaches on level classes? With the stratification that's available in HS, the on level classes have a lot of kids that just don't want to be there and aren't motivated. I think if you teach on level, you just need to accept that and search out the kids that really do want to learn and cater to them. The on-level kids that do want to learn shouldn't be penalized -- if the other kids don't want to be there, that's on them. Teachers can inspire and support kids, but they can't really force teens to do something they don't want to do, and I think the system spends probably too much energy trying to force kids who are almost adults to do things they just aren't going to do -- to the detriment of the kids that do want to learn. When I was in HS, kids could drop out at 16 if they wanted. Anyone with a 16-18 year old knows that you can't force them to do something that they don't want to do.

Also, if we are talking about 1st period, RM has basically no student parking and the bus lines to get there are weirdly inconvenient. So there are lots of kids that are circling looking for parking in what is a fairly urban area -- it doesn't surprise me if they are then late for first period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

It is. But MCPS only responds to lawsuits and media pressure, so sadly, it's the only way.

MCEA seems to be incapable of doing anything other than advocating for bigger budgets for the school system.

As a parent, I don't get why teachers have not revolted against MCEA leadership yet.

This isn’t a Mac issue as their role is to lobby for teachers. This is a student admin issue. Without an excuse note from a parent, they should not be allowed in school that day. If they parent regularly makes up excuses without proof, kids should be suspended.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

It is. But MCPS only responds to lawsuits and media pressure, so sadly, it's the only way.

MCEA seems to be incapable of doing anything other than advocating for bigger budgets for the school system.

As a parent, I don't get why teachers have not revolted against MCEA leadership yet.

This isn’t a Mac issue as their role is to lobby for teachers. This is a student admin issue. Without an excuse note from a parent, they should not be allowed in school that day. If they parent regularly makes up excuses without proof, kids should be suspended.

Mcea

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is what you get when you have unmotivated students from poor families. You think this is happening at Whitman or Churchill?

Sooooo my kid goes to Churchill and it's true that kids are pretty on the ball and the classroom culture is pretty conducive to learning. Part of that is that the principal and most teachers actually enforce things like the cell phone policy and wearing lanyards.

But on the rare occasion that I am dropping my kid off at 7:44 or 7:45, there are still a lot of kids in the drop off line. I think 1st period it's pretty typical to have kids roll in 5-10 minutes late. Not good. But it happens.

Part of it is that Churchill has kids with means, for the most part, so they have their own cars or friends with cars or parents who have the time and/or flexibility to get them to school on time. They don't (generally) have to care for siblings or work PT jobs that make them exhausted in the way that physical labor does. So yeah. It's definitely an equity issue.

+1

This is spot on. The reality is, in order for your kids to be successfully in school, you need at least ONE parent who is either a stay-at-home parent or has a flexible schedule to be able to support kids like this. Too many parents make the mistake in believing that kids need no support from them past elementary school, but that is not the case. The successful kids have parents who have resources and time to provide safety nets and guidance that allow their kids to have the best outcomes from high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

It is. But MCPS only responds to lawsuits and media pressure, so sadly, it's the only way.

MCEA seems to be incapable of doing anything other than advocating for bigger budgets for the school system.

As a parent, I don't get why teachers have not revolted against MCEA leadership yet.

This isn’t a Mac issue as their role is to lobby for teachers. This is a student admin issue. Without an excuse note from a parent, they should not be allowed in school that day. If they parent regularly makes up excuses without proof, kids should be suspended.

It is absolutely an MCEA issue. Teachers are struggling with admin and systemic failures to meaningfully address chronic absenteeism in schools. It literally makes teachers jobs harder. They should be out there criticizing MCAAP and MCPS on this. But they're not. Why is that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First period? Of course! High school starts way too early for teen brains. Science has already told us that teens experience a change in their circadian rhythms during adolescence that makes them fall asleep and wake up later than at other periods of their lives.

It was torture for my sleep-apnea suffering son to wake up on time. It's his worse memory of high school. He finally got an accommodation to skip first period in 12th grade.

My 15 year old DD gets to school on time, but reports that they're all super sleepy in first period. So teachers can have butts in seats, but no one's paying much attention at that time in the morning anyway.

I don’t think Ms. Lyons would be going to the news about it if the chronic absenteeism was only relegated to her first period. I also don’t think the school would be holding makeup days for the overwhelming number of students who are behind.

Isn't it sad that she even had to go to the media ?

It is. But MCPS only responds to lawsuits and media pressure, so sadly, it's the only way.

MCEA seems to be incapable of doing anything other than advocating for bigger budgets for the school system.

As a parent, I don't get why teachers have not revolted against MCEA leadership yet.

This isn’t a Mac issue as their role is to lobby for teachers. This is a student admin issue. Without an excuse note from a parent, they should not be allowed in school that day. If they parent regularly makes up excuses without proof, kids should be suspended.

There’s no reason to compound the problem of a student’s being 10 minutes late to first period by having them miss the entire day. It would make more sense to give detention for unexcused tardiness…except we probably don’t have the staffing for that.

[Anonymous]

I don't see this as particularly shocking or groundbreaking.

Chronic absenteeism has been identified as an issue for a little while now and there has been a focus on it more.

For example:
https://marylandpublicschools.org/about/Pages/DSFSS/attendance.aspx

https://www.facebook.com/baltimoresun/posts/state-education-leaders-will-start-tracking-student-absences-on-a-monthly-basis-/1192432899597884/

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/25-maryland-schools-improved-most-090000690.html

So kind of see this piece as something that will lead into applauding efforts of MCPS trying to monitor and address chronic absenteeism. Whereas there have been several school systems that have already been doing so. And the state is having school systems report them the numbers on a monthly basis to try to get them to monitor it more.