How to fit school days into Gov Larry Hogan's ridiculous policy on school start and stop dates

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

That is why I like Hogan. Otherwise my daughter would have had to turn down a summer internship to start field hockey on Aug 2nd this past summer, which is ridiculous. My older kids need the longer summers for jobs and 8wk internships.

Nobody has to play field hockey. Your daughter would have had to decide which was more important, a summer internship or field hockey. What's ridiculous, in my opinion, is the expectation that the school calendar should be based on allowing high school kids to have summer internships that don't interfere with high school sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

That is why I like Hogan. Otherwise my daughter would have had to turn down a summer internship to start field hockey on Aug 2nd this past summer, which is ridiculous. My older kids need the longer summers for jobs and 8wk internships.

Nobody has to play field hockey. Your daughter would have had to decide which was more important, a summer internship or field hockey. What's ridiculous, in my opinion, is the expectation that the school calendar should be based on allowing high school kids to have summer internships that don't interfere with high school sports.

Sports dates did not changed when Hogan changed the start date so that argument is totally irrelevant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Chevy Chase, was strongly against the purple line, and would vote for Governor Hogan based solely on his calling MoCo BOE on their bullshit. This BOE's hand-wringing over how to create a school schedule is ridiculous. The email is a ploy to raise ire, which has and will backfire on them.

I've lived here long enough to see their patterns of incompetence, they canceled an excessive amount of school days one year at the mere appearance or forecast of a snowflake and when the state would not grant them a waiver that year, they straightened up the next and were judicious in their selection of snow days. I can't tell you how many times my children have come home and when asked what they did in school replied "nothing, we have a Wednesday off and a half day so the teacher said she does not want to start something new because we'll forget it by Monday" they would do busy work or read quietly in classes.

The reason this school system does well is that well-educated parents make up for the shortcomings of the school. We both have advanced degrees, if my children don't understand something, we can explain it or can easily find it on the internet. This is not true for immigrant families or ones without a formal education.

If you want to close the achievement gap, start having whole weeks of school and provide Math and English books and a curriculum that doesn't consist of error-filled worksheets. I came from an immigrant family, smart people but they could not help with homework, I had books with specific examples that I could reference at home, those don't exist in our schools. Even with a computer a non-english speaker is going to have a difficult time sorting through the 100's of hits for homework help. At my child's elementary school teachers spend more time making worksheet copies than grading, on the very little work that comes home, there are no meaningful grades or comments.

If Governor Hogan is able to do something about the ridiculous half days I will volunteer to go door to door for him. They do nothing on half days either, there's not enough time, but they have lunch so it counts as full educational day. It's yet another complete waste of an opportunity to educate.

Again, the children of affluence have parents with the knowledge and resources to make up for the shortcomings of the school system, but that is not true for all. Some children really need the full instructional day/week and are really hurt by the hodgepodge rhythmn of the school year and while it is nice to offer religious holidays, it's not necessary.

I didn't vote for Hogan, but I will next time, it's about time an adult was put in charge.

The BOE's manipulative play about making up snow days during spring break is akin to a child throwing a temper tantrum when they get a boundary placed on their behavior.

+100! Well said!

[Anonymous]

Sports started on August 9th, Earliest Day Ever this summer. In the past it wasn't until after August 15th. And with the summer season, which nod nod wink wink have nothing to do with the schools, going until the end of July, that gives families one week and two days to go on vacation if their kid play sports. I suppose camp and a family vacation is out of the question. Yes it's a choice for your kids to play sports, and/but it could get your kid a scholarship, and/but it could be something your kid wants to do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

That is why I like Hogan. Otherwise my daughter would have had to turn down a summer internship to start field hockey on Aug 2nd this past summer, which is ridiculous. My older kids need the longer summers for jobs and 8wk internships.

Nobody has to play field hockey. Your daughter would have had to decide which was more important, a summer internship or field hockey. What's ridiculous, in my opinion, is the expectation that the school calendar should be based on allowing high school kids to have summer internships that don't interfere with high school sports.

What’s really ridiculous is all of you PPs who are falling for the BOE’s ploy and getting all worked up about the calendar. And even more ridiculous that the BOE is trying to make this a political issue. Such a turn off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in Chevy Chase, was strongly against the purple line, and would vote for Governor Hogan based solely on his calling MoCo BOE on their bullshit. This BOE's hand-wringing over how to create a school schedule is ridiculous. The email is a ploy to raise ire, which has and will backfire on them.

I've lived here long enough to see their patterns of incompetence, they canceled an excessive amount of school days one year at the mere appearance or forecast of a snowflake and when the state would not grant them a waiver that year, they straightened up the next and were judicious in their selection of snow days. I can't tell you how many times my children have come home and when asked what they did in school replied "nothing, we have a Wednesday off and a half day so the teacher said she does not want to start something new because we'll forget it by Monday" they would do busy work or read quietly in classes.

The reason this school system does well is that well-educated parents make up for the shortcomings of the school. We both have advanced degrees, if my children don't understand something, we can explain it or can easily find it on the internet. This is not true for immigrant families or ones without a formal education.

If you want to close the achievement gap, start having whole weeks of school and provide Math and English books and a curriculum that doesn't consist of error-filled worksheets. I came from an immigrant family, smart people but they could not help with homework, I had books with specific examples that I could reference at home, those don't exist in our schools. Even with a computer a non-english speaker is going to have a difficult time sorting through the 100's of hits for homework help. At my child's elementary school teachers spend more time making worksheet copies than grading, on the very little work that comes home, there are no meaningful grades or comments.

If Governor Hogan is able to do something about the ridiculous half days I will volunteer to go door to door for him. They do nothing on half days either, there's not enough time, but they have lunch so it counts as full educational day. It's yet another complete waste of an opportunity to educate.

Again, the children of affluence have parents with the knowledge and resources to make up for the shortcomings of the school system, but that is not true for all. Some children really need the full instructional day/week and are really hurt by the hodgepodge rhythmn of the school year and while it is nice to offer religious holidays, it's not necessary.

I didn't vote for Hogan, but I will next time, it's about time an adult was put in charge.

The BOE's manipulative play about making up snow days during spring break is akin to a child throwing a temper tantrum when they get a boundary placed on their behavior.

2 years ago, as soon as Hogan told MCPS BOE (who was the only county who didn't even attempt to use their contingency plan) to shove their snow waiver up their ass (well he didn't say that but it would have been better if he did) I told my husband he has my vote next election. Then he told them to better handle their budget instead of asking for more money all of the time? HEAVEN

He had my vote when he called MCPS on not being forthcoming about answering questions about the 14-year-old child that was gang raped and sodomized at Rockville HS.

Dead silence from my radically liberal W school co-parents on that issue because illegal immigrants were involved. It's very convenient to look the other way when you know immigrant kids will never be able to attend or interact with kids in W schools.

Extend summer by ONE week and ask for a reasonable school schedule and the sky is suddenly falling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

He had my vote when he called MCPS on not being forthcoming about answering questions about the 14-year-old child that was gang raped and sodomized at Rockville HS.

Dead silence from my radically liberal W school co-parents on that issue because illegal immigrants were involved. It's very convenient to look the other way when you know immigrant kids will never be able to attend or interact with kids in W schools.

Extend summer by ONE week and ask for a reasonable school schedule and the sky is suddenly falling.

He had to take that back, though, didn't he.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

He had my vote when he called MCPS on not being forthcoming about answering questions about the 14-year-old child that was gang raped and sodomized at Rockville HS.

Dead silence from my radically liberal W school co-parents on that issue because illegal immigrants were involved. It's very convenient to look the other way when you know immigrant kids will never be able to attend or interact with kids in W schools.

Extend summer by ONE week and ask for a reasonable school schedule and the sky is suddenly falling.

He had to take that back, though, didn't he.

DP - take what back? He didn’t have to take anything back. What are you talking about?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Sports started on August 9th, Earliest Day Ever this summer. In the past it wasn't until after August 15th. And with the summer season, which nod nod wink wink have nothing to do with the schools, going until the end of July, that gives families one week and two days to go on vacation if their kid play sports. I suppose camp and a family vacation is out of the question. Yes it's a choice for your kids to play sports, and/but it could get your kid a scholarship, and/but it could be something your kid wants to do.

It would have started Aug 2nd if MCPS BOE had it's way

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

That is why I like Hogan. Otherwise my daughter would have had to turn down a summer internship to start field hockey on Aug 2nd this past summer, which is ridiculous. My older kids need the longer summers for jobs and 8wk internships.

Nobody has to play field hockey. Your daughter would have had to decide which was more important, a summer internship or field hockey. What's ridiculous, in my opinion, is the expectation that the school calendar should be based on allowing high school kids to have summer internships that don't interfere with high school sports.

Sports dates did not changed when Hogan changed the start date so that argument is totally irrelevant.

You are wrong. MCPS was set to start school on Aug 21st this year with preseason starting Aug 2nd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Chevy Chase, was strongly against the purple line, and would vote for Governor Hogan based solely on his calling MoCo BOE on their bullshit. This BOE's hand-wringing over how to create a school schedule is ridiculous. The email is a ploy to raise ire, which has and will backfire on them.

I've lived here long enough to see their patterns of incompetence, they canceled an excessive amount of school days one year at the mere appearance or forecast of a snowflake and when the state would not grant them a waiver that year, they straightened up the next and were judicious in their selection of snow days. I can't tell you how many times my children have come home and when asked what they did in school replied "nothing, we have a Wednesday off and a half day so the teacher said she does not want to start something new because we'll forget it by Monday" they would do busy work or read quietly in classes.

The reason this school system does well is that well-educated parents make up for the shortcomings of the school. We both have advanced degrees, if my children don't understand something, we can explain it or can easily find it on the internet. This is not true for immigrant families or ones without a formal education.

If you want to close the achievement gap, start having whole weeks of school and provide Math and English books and a curriculum that doesn't consist of error-filled worksheets. I came from an immigrant family, smart people but they could not help with homework, I had books with specific examples that I could reference at home, those don't exist in our schools. Even with a computer a non-english speaker is going to have a difficult time sorting through the 100's of hits for homework help. At my child's elementary school teachers spend more time making worksheet copies than grading, on the very little work that comes home, there are no meaningful grades or comments.

If Governor Hogan is able to do something about the ridiculous half days I will volunteer to go door to door for him. They do nothing on half days either, there's not enough time, but they have lunch so it counts as full educational day. It's yet another complete waste of an opportunity to educate.

Again, the children of affluence have parents with the knowledge and resources to make up for the shortcomings of the school system, but that is not true for all. Some children really need the full instructional day/week and are really hurt by the hodgepodge rhythmn of the school year and while it is nice to offer religious holidays, it's not necessary.

I didn't vote for Hogan, but I will next time, it's about time an adult was put in charge.

The BOE's manipulative play about making up snow days during spring break is akin to a child throwing a temper tantrum when they get a boundary placed on their behavior.

*mic drop*

AMEN

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in Chevy Chase, was strongly against the purple line, and would vote for Governor Hogan based solely on his calling MoCo BOE on their bullshit. This BOE's hand-wringing over how to create a school schedule is ridiculous. The email is a ploy to raise ire, which has and will backfire on them.

I've lived here long enough to see their patterns of incompetence, they canceled an excessive amount of school days one year at the mere appearance or forecast of a snowflake and when the state would not grant them a waiver that year, they straightened up the next and were judicious in their selection of snow days. I can't tell you how many times my children have come home and when asked what they did in school replied "nothing, we have a Wednesday off and a half day so the teacher said she does not want to start something new because we'll forget it by Monday" they would do busy work or read quietly in classes.

The reason this school system does well is that well-educated parents make up for the shortcomings of the school. We both have advanced degrees, if my children don't understand something, we can explain it or can easily find it on the internet. This is not true for immigrant families or ones without a formal education.

If you want to close the achievement gap, start having whole weeks of school and provide Math and English books and a curriculum that doesn't consist of error-filled worksheets. I came from an immigrant family, smart people but they could not help with homework, I had books with specific examples that I could reference at home, those don't exist in our schools. Even with a computer a non-english speaker is going to have a difficult time sorting through the 100's of hits for homework help. At my child's elementary school teachers spend more time making worksheet copies than grading, on the very little work that comes home, there are no meaningful grades or comments.

If Governor Hogan is able to do something about the ridiculous half days I will volunteer to go door to door for him. They do nothing on half days either, there's not enough time, but they have lunch so it counts as full educational day. It's yet another complete waste of an opportunity to educate.

Again, the children of affluence have parents with the knowledge and resources to make up for the shortcomings of the school system, but that is not true for all. Some children really need the full instructional day/week and are really hurt by the hodgepodge rhythmn of the school year and while it is nice to offer religious holidays, it's not necessary.

I didn't vote for Hogan, but I will next time, it's about time an adult was put in charge.

The BOE's manipulative play about making up snow days during spring break is akin to a child throwing a temper tantrum when they get a boundary placed on their behavior.

+1

I could have written the same post as I am also the child of immigrants and agree completely with what you say. (Except that we can’t afford to live in Chevy Chase, but I am somewhat relieved to see that even the wealthier parts of the county face the same issues with crappy worksheets and frustration with the BOE).

[Anonymous]

Are all of you who support Hogan's executive order really okay with not having a spring break?

Frederick County will not have a spring break this year, same with Carrol ( or Calvert, can't remember) County. They will only close for God Friday and Easter Monday. Anne Arundel will have a similar schedule next year.

PG and Howard County will set aside a portion of spring break as possible makeup snow days.

I get that starting after Labor Day is a popular choice, but dictating a very tight school calendar for all of Maryland public school families to help out a beach town is mind boggling to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are all of you who support Hogan's executive order really okay with not having a spring break?

Frederick County will not have a spring break this year, same with Carrol ( or Calvert, can't remember) County. They will only close for God Friday and Easter Monday. Anne Arundel will have a similar schedule next year.

PG and Howard County will set aside a portion of spring break as possible makeup snow days.

I get that starting after Labor Day is a popular choice, but dictating a very tight school calendar for all of Maryland public school families to help out a beach town is mind boggling to me.

I see no reason to have 11 day Spring Breaks that MCPS has had in the past. Sometimes they come so late in April and AP's are in early May. It is just terrible timing and too many days. I would be completely fine with 2-3 days off. If families want to go away longer, than it is a few missed days of school. Family's choice.

That said, the school districts that are doing away with Spring Break have longer winter breaks, full teacher days off, and Jewish holidays. You can't have them all, nor should a school. Too many days off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are all of you who support Hogan's executive order really okay with not having a spring break?

Frederick County will not have a spring break this year, same with Carrol ( or Calvert, can't remember) County. They will only close for God Friday and Easter Monday. Anne Arundel will have a similar schedule next year.

PG and Howard County will set aside a portion of spring break as possible makeup snow days.

I get that starting after Labor Day is a popular choice, but dictating a very tight school calendar for all of Maryland public school families to help out a beach town is mind boggling to me.

It’s fine with me. We’re not Christian so we don’t celebrate Easter anyway. Like the PP said, there have been some really long Spring Breaks. 10 Days? They can give a few days off around Easter if they are required to, but we don’t really need 10 days off.