Dcps new ELA curriculum

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are a parent, please contact DCPS and your council members about this. I’m a teacher and our complaints are ignored by central office and admin. The curriculum issues extend into every subject.

I don't think central office listens to anyone. They don't care what parents think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you are a parent, please contact DCPS and your council members about this. I’m a teacher and our complaints are ignored by central office and admin. The curriculum issues extend into every subject.

I don't think central office listens to anyone. They don't care what parents think.

This is so depressing and also feels true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s not like the previous curriculum was great either. In 8th grade at Deal last year they spent the year “reading” the four novels or plays out loud, with little substantive discussion or writing. They didn’t actually even read To Kill a Mockingbird — they listened to audio summaries of each chapter. And then they watched the movie Just Mercy, which my kid says was the most compelling thing they did all year. It inspired her to read the book Just Mercy on her own. My current 7th grader at Deal says CommonLit is extremely boring and repetitive. It’s basically like CAPE prep all year long. The teacher seems to hate it too.

It sounds like nothing is going to change from central office. Depressingly I just think this is what ELA education in dcps is going to be now and you can bet it’s going to be expanded district wide and to high schools. For those students that go onto AP English and lit classes (which I assume you have to read books for, but who knows anymore), how will they possibly be prepared for those having had this curriculum in MS and 9th grade?

[Anonymous]

That absolutely sucks. As a former teacher, I will say that CommonLit had far and away the best readings--actual literature by recognizable authors, some of it funny and scary and meaningful. But I agree that the questions feel like DC-CAPE prep. Which are somewhat useful, but I don't think Wordsworth wrote, "I wandered lonely as a cloud" so that some put-upon seventh grader could have to answer, "5B. Which stanza MOST conveys the theme you identified in question 5A?"

[Anonymous]

Have you read all the “community” 7th grade readings? The kids openly mock how little they learn from them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just when you think DCPS can’t lower their expectations any further

They can go lower to ZERO books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just when you think DCPS can’t lower their expectations any further

They can go lower to ZERO books.

Don’t give them any ideas!!

[Anonymous]

It bothers me that in my kids 7th grade classes they do all the reading during class time, never at home. This means there is almost little to any real discussion on themes etc during class time. I’m not sure how much easier DCPS will make middle school, I guess until every single kid is making straight As

[Anonymous]

Seriously, who at DCPS central is in charge of these curriculum pilots and changes? They are either wildly corrupt and giving their buddies business or just plain dumb.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, who at DCPS central is in charge of these curriculum pilots and changes? They are either wildly corrupt and giving their buddies business or just plain dumb.

I’m leaning towards corrupt. No one is stupid enough to have chosen the science curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, who at DCPS central is in charge of these curriculum pilots and changes? They are either wildly corrupt and giving their buddies business or just plain dumb.

Just plain dumb. They don’t actually know how to teach and how kids learn. Don’t forget that an entire generation of educational professionals decided it was OK to just stop teaching phonics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It bothers me that in my kids 7th grade classes they do all the reading during class time, never at home. This means there is almost little to any real discussion on themes etc during class time. I’m not sure how much easier DCPS will make middle school, I guess until every single kid is making straight As

Honestly, it depends on the teacher. We had one ELA teacher in a DCPS middle school who gave so much homework and was a very strict grader. My kid is an amazing writer now. There were a lot of discussions during class time and she had office hours that kids would use to get extra help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Seriously, who at DCPS central is in charge of these curriculum pilots and changes? They are either wildly corrupt and giving their buddies business or just plain dumb.

Why not both?