Oakridge Principal

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don’t kid yourself, people. People with resources have their kids do extra work (after school, on weekends, or at least during the summer) even if there isn’t homework assigned by the school. Especially private school kids. You know, the other kids your child will be competing against when applying to college.

The gap keeps widening and widening…

And keep in mind, APS isn’t ending homework because it is never beneficial. No-HW policies are aimed at narrowing the achievement gap.

Their homework is to read for at least 30 minutes. Always has been. Totally appropriate, too. As an Oakridge parent, I also appreciated the flexibility. If we had a busy night, I’d have mine skip it and read for an hour the next.

The folks that get upset about the no homework never make their kids read and let them have iPads all night. Then they complain and blame it on the school when they’re not successful.

Wrong. Some of you on here I think have elem kids and haven't been to middle school and are SO smug that your are following the science with no homework. Well good for you, but maybe be more open to what you don't know.

I was upset about the abrupt change to no HW in elementary for my second kid. This is because the school had no explanation for how my executive function challenged kids was supposed to go from zero homework in 5th to heavy homework in 6th. I already knew about how heavy the HW was in 6th from my older one.

No HW in younger elem is great. No HW in uppper elem leaves them totally unprepared for middle school.

+1

I think the idea was that all schools are moving to no homework because of trends toward equity, and elementary is where it’s least necessary, so let’s start there. But no, not all schools have gotten rid of homework and sixth graders are expected to magically adjust. It was hell for my sixth grader, especially because she had ADHD but I didn’t know it because she never really had to do work in elementary school.

I think they are going to keep doing this: reducing academic standards in accordance with an ideal that doesn’t exist, which serves them horribly as they keep progressing to the next phase of life. And I’m pretty leftist and I even buy into the idea that a lot of our school expectations come from arbitrary cultural standards, but for now if you want to survive in capitalist America you’d do well to learn to turn things in on time.

Are you saying our society will be better when it’s not capitalist and everyone/-thing is late?

[Anonymous]

https://www.arlnow.com/2023/06/28/parents-call-on-aps-to-address-slow-academic-growth-teacher-turnover-at-oakridge-elementary/

More smoke coming out of Oakridge….

[Anonymous]

The comments in the ArlNow section are certainly enlightening.

[Anonymous]

The comments brought back memories….
Ah yes, being summoned to the office for a scolding via the loudspeaker system. Good times working at Oakridge.

[Anonymous]

Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

The school isn’t considered bad just because the Apex kids go there. The Apex kids are dragging down a really good school due to APS’ refusal to educate and discipline students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

The school isn’t considered bad just because the Apex kids go there. The Apex kids are dragging down a really good school due to APS’ refusal to educate and discipline students.

And by APS, you’re really referring to this school’s administration, right?

[Anonymous]

Here is one comment from the article:

Friends have told me they have arranged meetings to speak to the principal about their kids needing an IEP, or their kids being bullied in the classroom, only to have the principal not show up to the meeting. Some folks say the principal flat-out denies their child an IEP even when all evidence supports the kid needing one. Earlier this year, students came home saying the principal was interrogating entire grade levels of kids to find out who was smearing feces on the bathroom walls for weeks on end. No communication about the fecal smearing was sent to parents. Kids have come home crying because they say the principal is coming to their classrooms to yell at them, and then yelling at them more for crying "like babies."
This doesn't even come close to things I've heard from families whose elementary schools have acquired our former teachers who fled. Oakridge teachers leave en masse (we lost several entire grade levels last year, as well as our librarian, music teacher, reading specialist and assistant principal. Halfway through this year, we lost our brand new assistant principal with no communication from the school or explanation why she left. Many teachers indicated this year (some said directly to their students) that they weren't planning to return next year. Families from other APS elementary schools tell us the former Oakridge teachers are basically fleeing a horrible work environment and coming to their schools as refuge. I believe it. There was an email sent to families this year to "clear up rumors" in the school hallways about a teacher being fired. Well, that rumor started because students witnessed the principal screaming at a young teacher in the middle of the hallway, making the teacher cry and go home early. This is the culture at the school, which is ironic considering the principal keeps promoting The Kindness Project. She stood up at the first PTA meeting of the school year and openly admitted that students didn't learn science or social studies last year, but that they learned kindness. She said she as a principal did not focus on academics last year...but the kids learned kindness! And yet, bullying abounds both at the student and the admin/staff level while academic achievement falls short.

[Anonymous]

Plus this:

As to the fight at the 5th grade promotion ceremony? It's not a good look, I'll grant you, but the two families involved were those whose kids were part of the Outdoor Lab incident (which ArlNow also covered). The mother articulated as much at the ceremony so it's common knowledge. I imagine any one of us would have had some choice words (and possibly something more physical) if our child had been intimately assaulted on a school trip, and the school admin put our child's assaulter back in the same classroom with him just a few days later. Bad, bad decisions and bad behavior just seem to occur all the time at the school now.
As a parent whose kids are either gone or nearly gone, I keep asking myself, "Why is our school, the same elementary school then-Senator Al Gore once had his kids in during the 1990s...so bad? And what can be done to help it?"
Personally I think leadership change is the only resolution, but I don't think APS has the will or chutzpah to do it. So, in the meantime, meaningless action plans keep being promised that result in no actual change, and our kids continue to suffer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

The school isn’t considered bad just because the Apex kids go there. The Apex kids are dragging down a really good school due to APS’ refusal to educate and discipline students.

New here - What do Elementary students need to do in order to qualify for the Apex program?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

The school isn’t considered bad just because the Apex kids go there. The Apex kids are dragging down a really good school due to APS’ refusal to educate and discipline students.

New here - What do Elementary students need to do in order to qualify for the Apex program?

Apex is an affordable housing complex.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t we talk about how the influx from the Apex is the root problem?

Can we talk about how a school shouldn't be considered bad just because it has poor kids in it and maybe we should figure out a way to address the needs of the community and educate kids that aren't rich, white and from educated parents.

The school isn’t considered bad just because the Apex kids go there. The Apex kids are dragging down a really good school due to APS’ refusal to educate and discipline students.

New here - What do Elementary students need to do in order to qualify for the Apex program?

Apex is an affordable housing complex.

Thanks - mistakenly thought it was like New Directions for elementary school.