Declining enrollment at APS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can afford not to, but we are staying. I do think about 20% of familes have left. Schools are not overcrowded in the wealthier areas. We used to have 4 classes for each grade, now we have 3 and 2 in some.

Yes but now we have three classes packed with kids instead of for kids over 4 classes spread out. Our class size tim our north Arlington Elementary is larger than last year but we’re down in actual classes. We lost almost 120 kids the past 2 years. Our 5th grade classes are packed and unmanaged from a behavior perspective. I am regretting not leaving.

They just approved the budget for next year which includes reduced class sizes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You women are incredible. You've been complaining for years about bursting enrollment, and now you're whining about declining enrollment. There's just nothing anyone can do to keep you happy.

It’s not “you women”.

It’s an APS hater (who probably doesn’t even have kids in APS) dishing out his latest daily APS criticism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

The APS response to a deadly global pandemic was reasonable and similar to many other school districts. Kids went back in person after adults had vaccine.

Not really. Our elementary school's teachers still objected to teaching in person last spring so the students were in a classroom two short days per week, but being instructed virtually. They even sat at their desks and watched the PE teacher exercise for PE, as moving around would make them breathe harder and create a covid risk. It was a total joke and waste of everyone's time. I know other principals set different standards, but our experience was that those "in person" days were more than 90% virtual.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You women are incredible. You've been complaining for years about bursting enrollment, and now you're whining about declining enrollment. There's just nothing anyone can do to keep you happy.

They are still building loads of apartments and condo projects, so enrollment will grow. The people with options are leaving. The complaint wasn't bursting enrollment, it was about not building capacity. This approach works well for the CB who wants to increase its AH population and reduce school costs (because the demanding parents are all leaving).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the experience varies. We love our elementary (ATS) and our neighbors seem very happy with our neighborhood school, Tuckahoe. Only thing about Tuckahoe is that they have three kindergarten classes instead of four because enrollment is down. Class size seems bigger (still smaller than ATS) but my neighbors seem happy. With ATS is class size is huge and there are five kindergarten classes. Generally that would be a negative but school seems to be handling it well. We haven’t heard of any disciplinary issues and haven’t heard of our neighbors complaining of any either. Then again all our kids are in k-2nd grade so many it gets worse as they are older. I dunno.

HB and ATS parents shouldn't chime in, their experiences are not typical.

And most people don't publicly disparage their schools, because complaining about it makes them look like bad parents for not going private or moving (or getting them in to HTS).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It means much less federal tax money coming in to the school district. Look for staff to be cut.

Federal tax money is by far the smallest component of school funding.

Most districts across the country are funded through local and then state money (to even out the variance).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

The APS response to a deadly global pandemic was reasonable and similar to many other school districts. Kids went back in person after adults had vaccine.

Have you read or seen any of the studies coming out about how kids fared in the districts that stayed closed longest vs. those who opened again sooner? Many schools in other parts of the US were similar last year to what Catholic schools here did locally, which was to open with as much spacing as possible and to require masks. Those kids, overall, did better in every aspect -- academically, socially, emotionally -- vs. the kids in APS. APS' test scores last year plummeted across the board, and it's seen a marked increase in discipline and emotional issues. Local pediatricians have been discussing the mental health crisis here as well, which is very real, and very concerning.

APS' response was only reasonable to those with an inside the beltway mentality who did not know or understand that most of the rest of America managed to open up and do much better. Our approach maybe made sense in August when everyone was worried open schools were going to be a disaster. But by October, it was clear that most of the country that opened was doing just fine. And when APS did "open" it was only a limited basis, and far later than most other places. So no, our response was neither reasonable nor similar to how things were done elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

I mean maybe, but my friends teach at schools that were open last year and the one I know that is having the worst time is teaching kinder. So those wouldn't have been impacted by school closures last year. I know kids in private now that are struggling still even with schools being open last year. I am just saying it is not a fix for everything. Kids went through trauma during the pandemic even if schools were closed. Parents were under stress and kids felt that and it impacted them.

Now all that being said. My kids are in public at APS. We had a bit of a rocky start socially. Academically things were fine and everything is great now and my kids love school, just took a little longer than normal to get into the groove. Yes, there are kids struggling at APS but there are also plenty of kids doing fine.

If people don't like APS that is fine. Feel free to leave. I just think it is weird to ask like those of us who stayed have doomed our kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

The APS response to a deadly global pandemic was reasonable and similar to many other school districts. Kids went back in person after adults had vaccine.

Have you read or seen any of the studies coming out about how kids fared in the districts that stayed closed longest vs. those who opened again sooner? Many schools in other parts of the US were similar last year to what Catholic schools here did locally, which was to open with as much spacing as possible and to require masks. Those kids, overall, did better in every aspect -- academically, socially, emotionally -- vs. the kids in APS. APS' test scores last year plummeted across the board, and it's seen a marked increase in discipline and emotional issues. Local pediatricians have been discussing the mental health crisis here as well, which is very real, and very concerning.

APS' response was only reasonable to those with an inside the beltway mentality who did not know or understand that most of the rest of America managed to open up and do much better. Our approach maybe made sense in August when everyone was worried open schools were going to be a disaster. But by October, it was clear that most of the country that opened was doing just fine. And when APS did "open" it was only a limited basis, and far later than most other places. So no, our response was neither reasonable nor similar to how things were done elsewhere.

I have a kid in private and a kid in public. The kid in private was in person all last year.

Both schools are full of kids who are struggling. It's not because APS stayed virtual.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

I mean maybe, but my friends teach at schools that were open last year and the one I know that is having the worst time is teaching kinder. So those wouldn't have been impacted by school closures last year. I know kids in private now that are struggling still even with schools being open last year. I am just saying it is not a fix for everything. Kids went through trauma during the pandemic even if schools were closed. Parents were under stress and kids felt that and it impacted them.

Now all that being said. My kids are in public at APS. We had a bit of a rocky start socially. Academically things were fine and everything is great now and my kids love school, just took a little longer than normal to get into the groove. Yes, there are kids struggling at APS but there are also plenty of kids doing fine.

If people don't like APS that is fine. Feel free to leave. I just think it is weird to ask like those of us who stayed have doomed our kids.

Exactly. The pandemic had a big impact on everyone. Not just because some schools were virtual.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

The APS response to a deadly global pandemic was reasonable and similar to many other school districts. Kids went back in person after adults had vaccine.

I must admit that I'm fascinated by this point of view, which seems to be held by a rather vocal minority of the population. No matter how much evidence there is of increased depression and suicide attempts, learning loss, declining test scores, increased violence in schools, worsening gaps in minority achievement, declining enrollment, etc., there are many who will say that none of this matters. Teaching kids during the pandemic was impossible, I guess, except for all the places that were able to do it.

[Anonymous]

Many schools across the country who opened were dealing with less populous areas and differenct demographics. It is difficult to compare apples to oranges.

I have one kids who did great and another who is still struggling, but it is also hard to determine if that is due to staying home or just who she is.

It is too easy to blame the school if your kid is having a hard time and not address any issues your kids may be having. This sounds like parent shaming, and that is not my intent, its just that it is hard to determine causality with so many variables.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

+1

This isn’t a public/private thing. Kids are struggling to regulate.

The APS method of “light touch “where teachers aren’t calling out individual children and instead punishing entire classes, sending emails to an entire grade of parents that behavior needs to improve… Does not seem to be working at all.

This is our APS experience as well. It’s not working. The kids no there are no repercussions.

[Anonymous]

It's absurd to declare based on your personal experience with APS and/or your private that one option is all good or all bad. Anyone who does this just reveals they are insecure so need to make broad generalizations in attempt to validate their own choices.

People do what works for their individual kid. Lots of kids are thriving in APS and private school. And some kids are struggling in those environments too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For kids who think public school is horrible this year. I promise (from a teacher perspective at least) private school is also horrible. I have a number of friends that teach at private school and they are miserable this year (2 of them are leaving teaching all together at the end of the year). It is not like private school kids magically know how to behave better than public school kids. And it is not like private school teachers get amazing support from Admin just because they are private. This year has been a lot.

But doesn't this relate to whether schools were open or closed last year? We switched to Catholic which was open close to normal last year, and my kids are having a great school year this year. I'm so glad we didn't send them back into APS, which I think is going to take many, many, many years to recover from having been closed for so long last year. Arlington did so much harm to kids in the way it handled COVID, and we are going to be seeing that for a very long time. And APS still won't admit that it made a huge mistake in how it handled things, worst in the region, I believe, and our region overall was among the worst in the nation.

The APS response to a deadly global pandemic was reasonable and similar to many other school districts. Kids went back in person after adults had vaccine.

Have you read or seen any of the studies coming out about how kids fared in the districts that stayed closed longest vs. those who opened again sooner? Many schools in other parts of the US were similar last year to what Catholic schools here did locally, which was to open with as much spacing as possible and to require masks. Those kids, overall, did better in every aspect -- academically, socially, emotionally -- vs. the kids in APS. APS' test scores last year plummeted across the board, and it's seen a marked increase in discipline and emotional issues. Local pediatricians have been discussing the mental health crisis here as well, which is very real, and very concerning.

APS' response was only reasonable to those with an inside the beltway mentality who did not know or understand that most of the rest of America managed to open up and do much better. Our approach maybe made sense in August when everyone was worried open schools were going to be a disaster. But by October, it was clear that most of the country that opened was doing just fine. And when APS did "open" it was only a limited basis, and far later than most other places. So no, our response was neither reasonable nor similar to how things were done elsewhere.

I have a kid in private and a kid in public. The kid in private was in person all last year.

Both schools are full of kids who are struggling. It's not because APS stayed virtual.

I mean, there is actual research people. Here's a summary from the NYT:

"The researchers broke the students into different groups based on how much time they had spent attending in-person school during 2020-21 — the academic year with the most variation in whether schools were open. On average, students who attended in-person school for nearly all of 2020-21 lost about 20 percent worth of a typical school year’s math learning during the study’s two-year window.

Some of those losses stemmed from the time the students had spent learning remotely during the spring of 2020, when school buildings were almost universally closed. And some of the losses stemmed from the difficulties of in-person schooling during the pandemic, as families coped with disruption and illness.

But students who stayed home for most of 2020-21 fared much worse. On average, they lost the equivalent of about 50 percent of a typical school year’s math learning during the study’s two-year window."

So yes, there are many kids struggling this year. But kids in districts that stayed closed longer (like APS) are struggling more.