Is Oyster pushing out special Ed students?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

O-A is not the neighborhood school of many special ed students; in fact they ended up there precisely because the previous principal and DCPS, with little justification and inadequate planning and resources, had them transferred/ enrolled away from their neighborhood schools.

I'm not sure if DCPS is now evaluating accommodating the kids with most severe needs in their neighborhood schools or, as a previous PP noted, moving them to a new one. In any case, there is still a large group of special ed kids happily integrated with the rest. Oyster has 10% special ed kids; Janney only 6% and Eaton 7%.

I really don't get why an overcrowded school would add students to the roster who won't benefit from the program at that school. I knew of a few OA parents who shifted to other schools, often Eaton, when their child couldn't master the dual language, and these weren't special ed students. What is the rationale to send a child across town to a language specialty school when the child can't and likely will never communicate in the target languages?
I remember a big outcry when Yu Ying decided some kids would follow a monolingual track, to ensure mastery of English basics, people asking what was the point of Yu Ying for those kids....

Good questions... Anyone?

What if these children's only or their parents language is Spanish?

[Anonymous]

There is a meeting at the cafeteria at Oyster Campus at 5 pm on Thursday.

The administration will address the "recent incident" with a kid with special needs, as well as the school's plan regarding Special Needs.

The meeting was called in at the last minute yesterday, after a few emails started circling around on Monday night.

[Anonymous]

The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

Oyster has a higher percentage of students with IEPs compared to other WOTP schools, but 10% is about the rate of persons with learning disabilities in the general population, so it's not that high. Agree they should be able to manage it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a meeting at the cafeteria at Oyster Campus at 5 pm on Thursday.

The administration will address the "recent incident" with a kid with special needs, as well as the school's plan regarding Special Needs.

The meeting was called in at the last minute yesterday, after a few emails started circling around on Monday night.

Pls report back here after Thursday's meeting. We will not be able to attend. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

This is my first year at Oyster so I cannot compare this principal to the previous one or to any other principal for that matter, but I have to say: Her communication skills are terrible. I heard from several parents already who emailed her with questions/concerns, and she doesn't even bother to answer any of the emails. Is this normal? (is a serious question, like I said our first year navigating DCPS)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

No, I don't want the principal to leave. Perhaps another bilingual school's (i.e., Marie Reed, Powell, Bancroft) principal is interested in having their school become a model of inclusion. It doesn't have to be Oyster.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

No, I don't want the principal to leave. Perhaps another bilingual school's (i.e., Marie Reed, Powell, Bancroft) principal is interested in having their school become a model of inclusion. It doesn't have to be Oyster.

Why no Oyster? Why create a new program in a new school when there is one in place at Oyster already? Are there people currently at Oyster who are actively against inclusion and want to get rid of the program? Is that what I am reading?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

No, I don't want the principal to leave. Perhaps another bilingual school's (i.e., Marie Reed, Powell, Bancroft) principal is interested in having their school become a model of inclusion. It doesn't have to be Oyster.

Why no Oyster? Why create a new program in a new school when there is one in place at Oyster already? Are there people currently at Oyster who are actively against inclusion and want to get rid of the program? Is that what I am reading?

I'm not against inclusion at Oyster, but I cannot speak for everyone. That said, I have no problem with Oyster remaining an inclusion school, but why can't other schools (immersion and monolingual) also become model schools? Why should Oyster bear all of the pressure, while dealing with a huge budget cut. If parents/DCPS wants Oyster to have an effective inclusion program, then DCPS better provide ALL of the money to support it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

O-A is not the neighborhood school of many special ed students; in fact they ended up there precisely because the previous principal and DCPS, with little justification and inadequate planning and resources, had them transferred/ enrolled away from their neighborhood schools.

I'm not sure if DCPS is now evaluating accommodating the kids with most severe needs in their neighborhood schools or, as a previous PP noted, moving them to a new one. In any case, there is still a large group of special ed kids happily integrated with the rest. Oyster has 10% special ed kids; Janney only 6% and Eaton 7%.

I really don't get why an overcrowded school would add students to the roster who won't benefit from the program at that school. I knew of a few OA parents who shifted to other schools, often Eaton, when their child couldn't master the dual language, and these weren't special ed students. What is the rationale to send a child across town to a language specialty school when the child can't and likely will never communicate in the target languages?
I remember a big outcry when Yu Ying decided some kids would follow a monolingual track, to ensure mastery of English basics, people asking what was the point of Yu Ying for those kids....

Good questions... Anyone?

What if these children's only or their parents language is Spanish?

All of the inclusion students in my child's class have bilingual/English dominant parents.

[Anonymous]

Two letters were sent out by the administration yesterday.

The first letter letter speaks of an ongoing investigation but is very vague. It says that first grade students and staff are being interviewed by DCPS investigators.

The second letter, which inexplicably was not sent school-wide, spoke of the principal's philosophy in regards to Special Education at O-A and the challenges faced by the school and announced a meeting to address concerns this Thursday, one day before the last day of school. Not sure how big a change of vision this is for O-A, if at all, but am hopeful that the meeting will be helpful to the O-A community.


I assume that this meeting is open to all parents at O-A, but because it wasn't sent to all parents I have to ask: Does anyone know if it is open to all O-A parents or just to families with children in the special needs program?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

This is my first year at Oyster so I cannot compare this principal to the previous one or to any other principal for that matter, but I have to say: Her communication skills are terrible. I heard from several parents already who emailed her with questions/concerns, and she doesn't even bother to answer any of the emails. Is this normal? (is a serious question, like I said our first year navigating DCPS)

Monica was a little better, though not miles better. I'm sure there are some who are worse but in comparing notes with parents at some other WOTP schools, she's comparatively a mess.

Whether it's the DCPS norm or not, students and parents deserve better. She's a terrible communicator. Teachers aren't thrilled with her and I know many parents who were fed up even before her recent bungles.

Not saying she's a bad person or has no potential. She's just wildly under-qualified. She's about 5 years out of her master's program, having taught for a couple of years and been an assistant principal for a couple of years. You wouldn't hire someone five years out of school to run a company the size of this Pre-K - 8 school. Hiring her was ridiculous and she's been proving that consistently all year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two letters were sent out by the administration yesterday.

The first letter letter speaks of an ongoing investigation but is very vague. It says that first grade students and staff are being interviewed by DCPS investigators.

The second letter, which inexplicably was not sent school-wide, spoke of the principal's philosophy in regards to Special Education at O-A and the challenges faced by the school and announced a meeting to address concerns this Thursday, one day before the last day of school. Not sure how big a change of vision this is for O-A, if at all, but am hopeful that the meeting will be helpful to the O-A community.


I assume that this meeting is open to all parents at O-A, but because it wasn't sent to all parents I have to ask: Does anyone know if it is open to all O-A parents or just to families with children in the special needs program?

When is the administration planning on letting everyone in the school know about this meeting? I had no idea that there was an ongoing investigation or a meeting this Thursday!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

This is my first year at Oyster so I cannot compare this principal to the previous one or to any other principal for that matter, but I have to say: Her communication skills are terrible. I heard from several parents already who emailed her with questions/concerns, and she doesn't even bother to answer any of the emails. Is this normal? (is a serious question, like I said our first year navigating DCPS)

The principal of our EOTP elementary school (pre-s-5th) told me he gets upwards of 300 emails per day (every day), he told me. How they could possibly answer them all, I have no idea. Our principal tries his best to funnel information to the head of the PTA to answer common questions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school has tried for a long time to be a model of inclusion, and in my opinion it should remain so. They just have to get better at it.

Research shows that bilingual education is actually quite beneficial to many students with cognitive or behavioral disabilities when done right. The key is to have enough resources. As a poster said, O-A has a higher percentage of special education students than some of the other WOTP schools. It also has several times as many English language learners and far more economically-disadvantaged kids.

In my opinion this is not necessarily a barrier to success but it will require more focused leadership.

Unfortunately this new principal is not it. Either DCPS should offer more resources and guidance or we can hope the principal soon recognizes that she's not up to the job and her tenure becomes an unfortunate blip in the school's otherwise impressive history.

No, I don't want the principal to leave. Perhaps another bilingual school's (i.e., Marie Reed, Powell, Bancroft) principal is interested in having their school become a model of inclusion. It doesn't have to be Oyster.

Why no Oyster? Why create a new program in a new school when there is one in place at Oyster already? Are there people currently at Oyster who are actively against inclusion and want to get rid of the program? Is that what I am reading?

I'm not against inclusion at Oyster, but I cannot speak for everyone. That said, I have no problem with Oyster remaining an inclusion school, but why can't other schools (immersion and monolingual) also become model schools? Why should Oyster bear all of the pressure, while dealing with a huge budget cut. If parents/DCPS wants Oyster to have an effective inclusion program, then DCPS better provide ALL of the money to support it.

All of the immersion charters are inclusion schools. Tyler is as well. Not sure of the other DCPS schools but I think they are too.