Changes in MCPS in the last 15 years

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's the textbooks!!! No textbooks? Are you kidding me? My kids come home with "worksheets" with no explanation and that's supposed to take the place of textbooks???? They don't know how to learn. They don't know how to review. They don't know how to study. They are going to FAIL when they get to college.

This all started 7 or 8 years ago with curriculum 2.0, when they decided that math was like a blossoming flower and needed to be imagined in kids' heads instead of memorized. This is the only generation on earth that will NEVER need to know math -- they will ALWAYS have a calculator on hand -- and yet MCPS has decided to teach them "concepts" of math, in their heads, from every angle instead of simply teaching them to memorize math tools like multiplication tables.

Insane. .MCPS is so so so so bad now. I'm also a product of MCPS and have older kids who went through it before they changed everything. My youngest is really being shafted. Very disappointed in MCPS now.

Are there online resources you found helpful? I guess memorizing 12x12 multiplication table can be done at home but I didn't want to try and show my sis new ways of doing stuff and confuse her. She's keeping up okay but I do want to make sure she get solid basic math foundation before all the fun stuff gets added on.

My parents' English isn't too great and they are pretty out of the loop on the nuances of public school so any pointers would be appreciated!

Teach her multiplication at home! You need to have your multiplication tables down in order to go on to higher order math, IMO.

My 6th grader was never tested in multiplication at school. They showed her the idea behind what it means to multiply. But not the tables.

Get some flash cards and do it with her every day this summer.

[Anonymous]

The best online math resource is the Khan Academy website. It's helpful at all levels.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The best online math resource is the Khan Academy website. It's helpful at all levels.

Agreed.

Since there are no textbooks, it has been what we use when my kid comes one confused about a concept.

OP, your sister is lucky that she has you! You’ll remember what you learned in school and can help teach her.

[Anonymous]

Will try to be brief, but ever since Weast left and Zuckerman seems to have staying powers it has been a disaster and going down hill fast.

- curriculum 2.0
- no discipline or consequences
- no autonomy for teachers, who have to teach to the tests and stay on schedule
- less professional development and planning time for teachers, who are already having to teach, parent, be a social worker and more, so that even the good ones are overwhelmed and burning out
- no resources for ED and not enough for other SN issues (the home school model does not serve all well)
- by making Advanced programming available to all, you're actually making it available to none. Having everyone in 8th grade take algebra, is a lofty goal, but somewhat will not be ready. Other Advanced programming has become watered down to the point of ridiculousness
- severe overcrowding because MCPS cannot seem to get the forecasts/projections right
- overcrowding means everything from not enough classroom space to not enough counselors to instruments being taught in closet space to a copy machine that is always broken because ESs only get one (doesn't matter if there are 350 or 1,000 students, ESs get one copy machine - just an example of a policy that is past its prime)
-facilities that are a disaster (no sprinklers, not ADA compliant, mold because of leaks that arent repaired properly or at all, portables that should have been put out of commission a long time ago and are held together with duct tape, roof tiles flying off buildings, plumbing that overflows and clogs on a regular basis, bathroom stalls without doors and on and on and on)
- MCPS seems to have mastered pitting schools and school clusters against each other over fewer and fewer resources
- MCCPTA in the past few years has made the above worse, by pitting wealthy schools and lower socio-economic area schools against each other. They also have ignored their own bylaws, and have abdicated power in the past few years.

I could go on and on, but that's enough for one night.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's the textbooks!!! No textbooks? Are you kidding me? My kids come home with "worksheets" with no explanation and that's supposed to take the place of textbooks???? They don't know how to learn. They don't know how to review. They don't know how to study. They are going to FAIL when they get to college.

This all started 7 or 8 years ago with curriculum 2.0, when they decided that math was like a blossoming flower and needed to be imagined in kids' heads instead of memorized. This is the only generation on earth that will NEVER need to know math -- they will ALWAYS have a calculator on hand -- and yet MCPS has decided to teach them "concepts" of math, in their heads, from every angle instead of simply teaching them to memorize math tools like multiplication tables.

Insane. .MCPS is so so so so bad now. I'm also a product of MCPS and have older kids who went through it before they changed everything. My youngest is really being shafted. Very disappointed in MCPS now.

DP.
This is my greatest fear, also. My 5th grader has been an A student with 99% MAPs and 5s in PARCCs, but she has no study habits, because the school DID NOT REQUIRE HER TO STUDY! I was hoping things would improve in MS with different subjects and different teachers, but, from what I hear, it is the exact same shit show!

[Anonymous]

They also got rid of final exams in high schools, moved the start time back by 15-20 minutes, and started after Labor Day for a couple of years (thanks to Gov Hogan).

Lots of new buildings and additions. It’s like they’re in the construction business rather than education (not their fault - has to be done).

Let’s see, what else? Full day kindergarten, changes to magnet testing to be more inclusive (but which turned out to seem discriminatory against Asians). SAT for everyone on a school day.

They have restorative justice now, so presumably less suspensions. Oh and drill after drill for various doomsday scenarios. And then wellness activities to help with the anxiety that causes.

But overall - still providing an outstanding education, at least to those who want it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mcps was not that great 20 years ago but at least we had textbooks.

I started teaching in the early 90s. It was OK then. I had a great support system b/c principals had autonomy to what was best for their community school. And that autonomy trickled down to the classroom level.

not the case any longer

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the change is that there are a lot more poor brown people now, much like the rest of the US, and many don't like it.

This is it. We moved here 30 years ago and raised three kids in MoCo/MCPS. It's not like people don't like "brown" people, the increased number of latinos and blacks affected the school system, many view negatively.

It's a hard pill to swallow but this is the root cause

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the change is that there are a lot more poor brown people now, much like the rest of the US, and many don't like it.

This is it. We moved here 30 years ago and raised three kids in MoCo/MCPS. It's not like people don't like "brown" people, the increased number of latinos and blacks affected the school system, many view negatively.

It's a hard pill to swallow but this is the root cause

Some people even are "brown" people.

But yes, there is a part of the DCUM demographic that wishes it were still 1975 in Montgomery County (and the world), and that's reflected in the MD Public Schools forum.

Plus people like to complain on the internet.

[Anonymous]

If DCUM goes back that far — to 15 years ago when you were in school — I’m sure you will find there were people complaining then too. DCUM is a place for people to go to complain about everything. There have always been complainers. Now they just have a very public forum. It has little to do with how the vast majority of kids experience school.

[Anonymous]

As a teacher, who has been in the system about 10 years, Il would say certain school districts have changed a lot more than ever. The achievement gap has created a situation whereby a whole lot of kids are doing great and do great no matter what, but a whole bunch of other kids are way behind. As a result there is “no middle”. It is very very difficult to find a lesson plan or curriculum that can easily work in this situation. No matter the lesson it feels like there is a disservice to a group in class where thing are either too easy or too hard. This is especially true in middle school where most class are heterogenous and they don’t like to track.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Will try to be brief, but ever since Weast left and Zuckerman seems to have staying powers it has been a disaster and going down hill fast.

- curriculum 2.0
- no discipline or consequences
- no autonomy for teachers, who have to teach to the tests and stay on schedule
- less professional development and planning time for teachers, who are already having to teach, parent, be a social worker and more, so that even the good ones are overwhelmed and burning out
- no resources for ED and not enough for other SN issues (the home school model does not serve all well)
- by making Advanced programming available to all, you're actually making it available to none. Having everyone in 8th grade take algebra, is a lofty goal, but somewhat will not be ready. Other Advanced programming has become watered down to the point of ridiculousness
- severe overcrowding because MCPS cannot seem to get the forecasts/projections right
- overcrowding means everything from not enough classroom space to not enough counselors to instruments being taught in closet space to a copy machine that is always broken because ESs only get one (doesn't matter if there are 350 or 1,000 students, ESs get one copy machine - just an example of a policy that is past its prime)
-facilities that are a disaster (no sprinklers, not ADA compliant, mold because of leaks that arent repaired properly or at all, portables that should have been put out of commission a long time ago and are held together with duct tape, roof tiles flying off buildings, plumbing that overflows and clogs on a regular basis, bathroom stalls without doors and on and on and on)
- MCPS seems to have mastered pitting schools and school clusters against each other over fewer and fewer resources
- MCCPTA in the past few years has made the above worse, by pitting wealthy schools and lower socio-economic area schools against each other. They also have ignored their own bylaws, and have abdicated power in the past few years.

I could go on and on, but that's enough for one night.

This is SPOT ON. Everything this poster says is true.

[Anonymous]

"It's the textbooks!!! No textbooks? Are you kidding me? My kids come home with "worksheets" with no explanation and that's supposed to take the place of textbooks???? They don't know how to learn. They don't know how to review. They don't know how to study. They are going to FAIL when they get to college.

This all started 7 or 8 years ago with curriculum 2.0, "

IT DID NOT START 8 YEARS AGO. 2.0 was not the beginning. Weast retired in 2011 but that was not the beginning.

I don't know what event triggered it but I know that as early as 2006 in MCPS textbooks had been removed from many classes.

I agree that not learning how to study is the problem but that isn't new nor is it limited to MCPS.

We had the problem back in the early 80s in my little New England town and it sure seems like a big section of the country has it now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the change is that there are a lot more poor brown people now, much like the rest of the US, and many don't like it.

This is it. We moved here 30 years ago and raised three kids in MoCo/MCPS. It's not like people don't like "brown" people, the increased number of latinos and blacks affected the school system, many view negatively.

It's a hard pill to swallow but this is the root cause

Like it or not, this is true. The demographic changes have put different pressures on the school system as a whole, and on teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Will try to be brief, but ever since Weast left and Zuckerman seems to have staying powers it has been a disaster and going down hill fast.

- curriculum 2.0
- no discipline or consequences
- no autonomy for teachers, who have to teach to the tests and stay on schedule
- less professional development and planning time for teachers, who are already having to teach, parent, be a social worker and more, so that even the good ones are overwhelmed and burning out
- no resources for ED and not enough for other SN issues (the home school model does not serve all well)
- by making Advanced programming available to all, you're actually making it available to none. Having everyone in 8th grade take algebra, is a lofty goal, but somewhat will not be ready. Other Advanced programming has become watered down to the point of ridiculousness
- severe overcrowding because MCPS cannot seem to get the forecasts/projections right
- overcrowding means everything from not enough classroom space to not enough counselors to instruments being taught in closet space to a copy machine that is always broken because ESs only get one (doesn't matter if there are 350 or 1,000 students, ESs get one copy machine - just an example of a policy that is past its prime)
-facilities that are a disaster (no sprinklers, not ADA compliant, mold because of leaks that arent repaired properly or at all, portables that should have been put out of commission a long time ago and are held together with duct tape, roof tiles flying off buildings, plumbing that overflows and clogs on a regular basis, bathroom stalls without doors and on and on and on)
- MCPS seems to have mastered pitting schools and school clusters against each other over fewer and fewer resources
- MCCPTA in the past few years has made the above worse, by pitting wealthy schools and lower socio-economic area schools against each other. They also have ignored their own bylaws, and have abdicated power in the past few years.

I could go on and on, but that's enough for one night.

This is SPOT ON. Everything this poster says is true.

Excellent summary
Would add that the school system has elevated social and political goals above educating children