I think some are worried about addition of APs drawing from resources to staff a robust IB program. (That shouldn't be an issue if leadership can attract, retain, and pay good staff.) A more real worry seems to be the school not investing in staff capacity to support IB implementation, with fewer full time roles than in prior years. Neither of these seem as problematic as staff being unhappy enough that they will leave. Yes, accountability is good and should be expected. But, if it's being carried out in such a way that morale is bottoming out and teachers keep leaving, it doesn't matter what courses you offer on paper. One example, an upper level INS class taught in English most of the year because the subs couldn't teach in Spanish. |
| Unfortunately educator vacancies are pretty common so if a teacher is unhappy it’s pretty easy to jump ship and get another job. I am a teacher and we have teachers leave midyear every year. This will be a problem for DCI if they are turning away staff. |
You seem very confident for someone who wasn’t there. The middle school was in testing, so the walkout was limited to the high school. Anyone who was actually present knows almost all students walked out and there was representation from across grades, programs, backgrounds, and friend groups… not just “the usual suspects.” More importantly, you’re missing the point. Whether it was 300 students or 500 students, that’s an extraordinary event in the life of a school. Students generally don’t leave class, risk disciplinary consequences, organize petitions, testify publicly, and spend months advocating because they’re upset about employee badge swipes. And since we’re talking about leadership, it’s worth noting that while students were outside making their concerns known, Rosskamm exited through the back of the building rather than facing the students directly. Many people viewed that as emblematic of the broader concern: when confronted with difficult feedback, the response has too often been avoidance rather than engagement. |
If the parent protestors are against AP classes for the kids that want them then I am 100% against them and pro Rosskamm. I want my kids to have access to AP exams as well if only to make them look attractive to colleges. IB schools offer AP all the time for kids to take as freshman and sophomores or for those kids who choose the career track. This is ridiculous. |
JFC. If you think our concerns are AP classes you have not been paying attention. |
I get that they’ve let go of teachers you like and some teachers (all maybe?) are “not confident” in Rosskamm. Sure. But I care more about AP courses for kids and I care more about stability for the school. Also, I want teachers to be on time and accountable. If that makes them unhappy and they leave, oh well. This dci parent petition is insane and I won’t be signing it. |
Good for you. Hundreds of other parents have. |
How many students are not returning next year? That is more of a metric for there displeasure than a silly walkout. |
+10000 |
Your question was reasonable and for a moment you seemed a reasonable person. The you characterized the walkout as "silly" and -POOF- credibility gone. |
Not really. Most of the kids at DcI have no better option. |
People vote with their feet, and the vast majority think the school is on the right path by that measure. You know they could solve this by cleaving LAMB from the charter. I mean sure there might be some drama, but most would be gone and test scores would go way up. |
NP. Sorry but you are wrong. We turned down private and Latin. Know families who turn down Basis and Walls. Know families who chose DCI over their IB Deal. |
So isn’t bad enough to go to DCPS which can be done on Monday, but the school leadership and the board need to be replaced because they are ruining the school. So the parents and kids decide to ruin the reputation of the school they won’t leave because DCI makes the teachers show up on time and won’t involve students in personnel decisions. |
You can really tell what side of the argument the lawyers are on on this one, in part because the evidence against the board is so weak and in part because the people arguing for change really suck at marshaling evidence and negatively polarize anyone who has to write persuasively for a living. You get to the point where you just frame the other sides argument in the least charitable way possible so the other side can at least give you something solid to work with, but bad news PP, you’re gonna get either some 5 paragraph gpt emotion dump pretending to be argument OR a “but the kids and you have to listen to the kids and treat them seriously but not so seriously that you interrogate their argument” bull. |