Root cause of issues at MOCO schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And who does this in MCPS... W school parents.

I doubt any of these activities are unique to W schools..and what percentage of kids have a lawyer involved in their 504 plan?

Probably hiring a lawyer is something that people with more money do more often than people with less money.

And sometimes people with less money can't hire a lawyer even though they need one, and other times people with more money do hire a lawyer even though it's absurd.

Regardless, I don't think it's what people usually mean, when they talk about "supplementing". They're talking about Singapore Math at home, not lawyers.

Supplementing is whatever you need to do that is outside of MCPS to get your child through a crappy school system. If MCPS would have the best intentions for the child, then lawyers wouldn't be necessary. However, many children with disabilities are treated like they are not worth educating so the system is greatly stacked against them. I have seen MCPS at the highest levels intentionally "make mistakes" and make inaccurate statements to deny a child services. When it means your child future, lawyers, private testing, and private educational services are the combined supplements for the child. Sometimes, lawyers can get MCPS to pay for the private services that they should have been provided to begin with.

Collaboration is a two way street but unfortunately MCPS administrators tend to operate as bulldozers and do not focus on what is best for the child. Perhaps W parents are educated enough to know with MCPS is shoveling crap at these "team" meetings.

[Anonymous]

The article is not talking about individually advocating for your child. It's talking about taking up huge amounts of time and resources of the school system fighting boundary changes. I think this is applicable to MCPS, and I think this is one reason MCPS and the BOE will NEVER redistrict "the whole County" as some people advocate. When they restrict the re-districting to one or two clusters, they can handle and limit, to some extent, the factions that develop. I don't know. I thought it was an interesting article, but ultimately, it wasn't about the inequality that comes from supplementing, it was about the waste of resources that comes from protracted fighting with parents who have both a personal interest in fighting about re-districting and the professional credentials to make it a major PITA for the school system.

[Anonymous]

You can always F up so much your school district gets taken over by the state (i.e. Holyoke, Mass)

https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/editorials/2015/04/05/holyoke-schools-have-best-chance-state-takes-over/VDeYaofBU8Ec9JDKfgJRdL/story.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The article lacks data and substance. However given the one unnamed district used as an example, the school system kept their original course of action, ignored parental input, and remade school boundaries. Sounds like how MCPS likes to operate.

?

The article IS data, basically. An in-depth, qualitative study of rezoning in one small, affluent school district.

There is a reason that this article is an opinion piece.....

[Anonymous]

This post really smells like someone from the central office. The root cause of issues in MOCO is no secret - incompetent leadership and staff within the BOE and central office and a culture of no accountability. Starr basically flushed the system down the toilet and its unclear whether Smith is strong enough and engaged enough to plunge it back up. Even if he is, it going to smell bad for a long time.

The constant sex abuse t incidents coming out of MCPS reflect years of poor management practices that supported hiding and ignoring offenders. Some of the most vocal parents that have tried to push MCPS to implement policies that protect kids and follow best safety practices that you see in other districts come from areas outside the W schools. The curriculum disaster is entirely of MCPS own making. Teachers and parents across the county are pissed off about this. The magnet admissions debacle is entirely the central office deciding they could get away with racial profiling. Not testing for lead is entirely on MCPS. I don't remember any parents demanding lead in the drinking water. Overcrowding in some areas could easily be alleviated by allowing voluntary COSAs but the central office blocks this.

There is a pattern to all of these issues and its gross incompetence. Parents from all over the county are disgusted and fed up - not just the W parents. There are plenty of angry DCC and up county parents. Teachers have many of the same concerns that parents and students express but the principals - by direction of the central office -silence their voices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This post really smells like someone from the central office. The root cause of issues in MOCO is no secret - incompetent leadership and staff within the BOE and central office and a culture of no accountability. Starr basically flushed the system down the toilet and its unclear whether Smith is strong enough and engaged enough to plunge it back up. Even if he is, it going to smell bad for a long time.

The constant sex abuse t incidents coming out of MCPS reflect years of poor management practices that supported hiding and ignoring offenders. Some of the most vocal parents that have tried to push MCPS to implement policies that protect kids and follow best safety practices that you see in other districts come from areas outside the W schools. The curriculum disaster is entirely of MCPS own making. Teachers and parents across the county are pissed off about this. The magnet admissions debacle is entirely the central office deciding they could get away with racial profiling. Not testing for lead is entirely on MCPS. I don't remember any parents demanding lead in the drinking water. Overcrowding in some areas could easily be alleviated by allowing voluntary COSAs but the central office blocks this.

There is a pattern to all of these issues and its gross incompetence. Parents from all over the county are disgusted and fed up - not just the W parents. There are plenty of angry DCC and up county parents. Teachers have many of the same concerns that parents and students express but the principals - by direction of the central office -silence their voices.

There are many issues in MCPS. Some of them are related to the story the OP linked to. Others aren't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe you are really saying the root cause of problems in MoCo schools are engaged parents at the W schools. Come on. Although there have been issues, the stats at those schools are well above average and are in no way showing that there is a problem with kids learning. If your goal is to help schools with lower stats by moving the W kids around that is not a problem with the W schools but the home schools.

+1000 the W schools succeed where others are failing because parents supplement their child's education to make up for the real MCPS problems - an untested curriculum, administrators who are absent more than they are present, the drugs in our schools, and school staff who abuse and sexually harass children.

How would supplementation make up for absent administrators, drugs in schools, and abusive school staff?

Supplementation can take many forms. Some ideas to answer questions:

1) tutors to fill in gaps in the curriculum and poor instruction in the classroom

2) club sports instead of school sports for safe sport environment versus coaches who sexually harass and abuse students

3) private educational testing to identify and document a child's learning disability

4) a good educational lawyer to defend a child's rights to accommodations and special education services

5) lawyers are also great when MCPS ignores the IEP or 504 processes

6) sponsor community events to bring awareness of substance abuse issues

7) sponsor and volunteer for student events such as PTA After Prom activity so students have a clean and sober alternative.

8) Vocal and active PTA chairs that donate their time for the entire school community to meet with Central Office staff when school administrators are not present or do not address issues

So when people talk about supplementing on the Md Public Schools forum, what they're talking about is hiring lawyers, organizing community events, and putting their children in club sports? I had no idea.

Club sports got my son into a SLAC, not MCPS, and certainly not his test scores.

Has your son earned his degree?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe you are really saying the root cause of problems in MoCo schools are engaged parents at the W schools. Come on. Although there have been issues, the stats at those schools are well above average and are in no way showing that there is a problem with kids learning. If your goal is to help schools with lower stats by moving the W kids around that is not a problem with the W schools but the home schools.

+1000 the W schools succeed where others are failing because parents supplement their child's education to make up for the real MCPS problems - an untested curriculum, administrators who are absent more than they are present, the drugs in our schools, and school staff who abuse and sexually harass children.

How would supplementation make up for absent administrators, drugs in schools, and abusive school staff?

Supplementation can take many forms. Some ideas to answer questions:

1) tutors to fill in gaps in the curriculum and poor instruction in the classroom

2) club sports instead of school sports for safe sport environment versus coaches who sexually harass and abuse students

3) private educational testing to identify and document a child's learning disability

4) a good educational lawyer to defend a child's rights to accommodations and special education services

5) lawyers are also great when MCPS ignores the IEP or 504 processes

6) sponsor community events to bring awareness of substance abuse issues

7) sponsor and volunteer for student events such as PTA After Prom activity so students have a clean and sober alternative.

8) Vocal and active PTA chairs that donate their time for the entire school community to meet with Central Office staff when school administrators are not present or do not address issues

So when people talk about supplementing on the Md Public Schools forum, what they're talking about is hiring lawyers, organizing community events, and putting their children in club sports? I had no idea.

Club sports got my son into a SLAC, not MCPS, and certainly not his test scores.

Has your son earned his degree?

Not yet but well on his way with internships underway.

[Anonymous]

The article nails the problem and clearly, the county needs to take notions like title 1 to a new level.

[Anonymous]

I agree. None of the taxes should go to W schools, only title 1, focus, esol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This post really smells like someone from the central office. The root cause of issues in MOCO is no secret - incompetent leadership and staff within the BOE and central office and a culture of no accountability. Starr basically flushed the system down the toilet and its unclear whether Smith is strong enough and engaged enough to plunge it back up. Even if he is, it going to smell bad for a long time.

The constant sex abuse t incidents coming out of MCPS reflect years of poor management practices that supported hiding and ignoring offenders. Some of the most vocal parents that have tried to push MCPS to implement policies that protect kids and follow best safety practices that you see in other districts come from areas outside the W schools. The curriculum disaster is entirely of MCPS own making. Teachers and parents across the county are pissed off about this. The magnet admissions debacle is entirely the central office deciding they could get away with racial profiling. Not testing for lead is entirely on MCPS. I don't remember any parents demanding lead in the drinking water. Overcrowding in some areas could easily be alleviated by allowing voluntary COSAs but the central office blocks this.

There is a pattern to all of these issues and its gross incompetence. Parents from all over the county are disgusted and fed up - not just the W parents. There are plenty of angry DCC and up county parents. Teachers have many of the same concerns that parents and students express but the principals - by direction of the central office -silence their voices.

+1000 - Parents speaking up for problems MCPS wants to ignore is not the root cause of issues. If parents weren't speaking up, even going to the media when Central Office ignores complaints, what kind of a sh*t show would the school system be in. Central Office loves to attack parents personally, even call problems a one person crusade, when they know of many other parents complaining about the same issues all across the county.

Here's a thought, if MCPS staff doesn't like the amount of time they need to spend dealing with parents and addressing concerns, why don't they find another job or address the concerns so there are no more complaints.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

+1000 - Parents speaking up for problems MCPS wants to ignore is not the root cause of issues. If parents weren't speaking up, even going to the media when Central Office ignores complaints, what kind of a sh*t show would the school system be in. Central Office loves to attack parents personally, even call problems a one person crusade, when they know of many other parents complaining about the same issues all across the county.

Here's a thought, if MCPS staff doesn't like the amount of time they need to spend dealing with parents and addressing concerns, why don't they find another job or address the concerns so there are no more complaints.

Did you read the article in the OP? That's not what the article is about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

+1000 - Parents speaking up for problems MCPS wants to ignore is not the root cause of issues. If parents weren't speaking up, even going to the media when Central Office ignores complaints, what kind of a sh*t show would the school system be in. Central Office loves to attack parents personally, even call problems a one person crusade, when they know of many other parents complaining about the same issues all across the county.

Here's a thought, if MCPS staff doesn't like the amount of time they need to spend dealing with parents and addressing concerns, why don't they find another job or address the concerns so there are no more complaints.

Did you read the article in the OP? That's not what the article is about.

I was responding the PP - the one you left off on the quote.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would love to know an accurate percentage of families that specifically supplement. I don't mean reading together, math facts quizzes, reviewing hw or museum trips. I mean..we have purchased/created a math and language arts curriculum that we set aside time for to make up for MCPS. ANd I don't think any amount of tutoring can make up for the last two concerns.

How do you get your kids to sit through this? Are you Asian?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would love to know an accurate percentage of families that specifically supplement. I don't mean reading together, math facts quizzes, reviewing hw or museum trips. I mean..we have purchased/created a math and language arts curriculum that we set aside time for to make up for MCPS. ANd I don't think any amount of tutoring can make up for the last two concerns.

How do you get your kids to sit through this? Are you Asian?

DP.. I have bought math workbooks for one DC. Only one really needs it. The other one is in MS and gets straight As without trying much in the advanced math track.

I just tie it to electronic time, which they get plenty of.