BOE reconsidering the Virtual Academy, Leader in Me, and Innovative School Year Calendar

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Virtual Academy should not be using money in the budget. If you don't want your kids in school pay for home schooling yourself. Such an obvious solution.

One could say the same thing about in person. The in-person schools are getting funding for the MVA students so the simple solution is to pull that funding and give it to the MVA. They shouldn't be getting money for kids not in the schools.

If we made that the rule, then we could cut funding for Kennedy in half.

What are you talking about? Right now the MVA gets a grant through covid money. The actually MCPS funds go to the home school, even though they aren't providing any education or services to the kids. So, they are getting paid money for students that aren't actually going to their school.

I don't get your Kennedy comment.

I think the PP was making a cruel joke at the expense of Kennedy because the chronic absenteeism rate at Kennedy is over 50%, hence the remark about cutting funding in half, since you wouldn't pay money for kids who are chronically absent.

Maybe we should start with the parents, starting with that poster.

[Anonymous]

I think we should keep VA open but also use it for the kids who are too disruptive/violent to be around other kids. Instead of shuffling them to other physical schools put them in VA where they cannot physically touch anyone. If they are disruptive on screen, the teacher can mute them or turn their camera off.
Short of reopening the school for violent students, this seems to me to be a very good option for offering education to students who cannot be trusted to be around others safely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

You don't think it's strange and suspicious when parents don't let their kids go to school? You don't seem to read the news very much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our school uses the virtual academy to provide compacted math, I wonder how getting rid of that would change things.

With a different, freely available web service maybe??

[Anonymous]

Get rid of the million dollar bus tracker too. Until there are enough special education teachers every ounce of this waste is an affront

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think we should keep VA open but also use it for the kids who are too disruptive/violent to be around other kids. Instead of shuffling them to other physical schools put them in VA where they cannot physically touch anyone. If they are disruptive on screen, the teacher can mute them or turn their camera off.
Short of reopening the school for violent students, this seems to me to be a very good option for offering education to students who cannot be trusted to be around others safely.

How would that work as if they have behavior problems, part of it might be the parents who would not enforce them going to school. Those kids need to be in special schools, not virtual or a regular school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get rid of the million dollar bus tracker too. Until there are enough special education teachers every ounce of this waste is an affront

Much better idea. If a parent wants a tracker, they can put a tracker on their kid. NO reason to pay for bus trackers and that doesn't seem safe to advertise exactly where a school bus is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

You don't think it's strange and suspicious when parents don't let their kids go to school? You don't seem to read the news very much.

They are going to school. Don't you think it's strange you are so upset over MCPS having a virtual school. You want your families needs met but yet, you don't consider someone else's needs may be different than yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

You don't think it's strange and suspicious when parents don't let their kids go to school? You don't seem to read the news very much.

They are going to school. Don't you think it's strange you are so upset over MCPS having a virtual school. You want your families needs met but yet, you don't consider someone else's needs may be different than yours.

The real mystery here is why you're not more concerned about meeting your children's needs. Why are you so afraid of letting them go to school? You know they're going to move out of your house at some point, don't you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait they are thinking of bringing Leader in Me back?!

No, they're thinking of getting rid of it altogether. (Some schools still have it.)

Well, that is a good thing. They should get rid of that trash. I didn't realize some schools still have it.

You're being generous. Trash isn't actively harmful like Virtual Academy has shown to be.

How is the Virtual Academy actively harmful?

I would think it would be tremendously valuable for students who are homebound for extended periods. If a child’s medical condition keeps them from attending school for a while, we shouldn’t expect the family to have to homeschool on top of everything else.

It seems like it provides useful differention to some students as PPs have described.

If it is somehow harmful, can the content be modified while maintaining the flexibility the format offers?

It's harmful the same way a charter school is harmful. It pulls money away from everything else.

Well you sold me.

I’ve long felt that Montgomery County desperately needed charter schools. It suffers the same problems as most monopolies, it provides poor service for a high price.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Our school uses the virtual academy to provide compacted math, I wonder how getting rid of that would change things.[/quote]

With a different, freely available web service maybe??[/quote]

What web service are you referring to? Khan Academy or another service? Would MCPS give full credit for work done under the supervision of an independent provider? I’ve heard good things about Khan, but do they effectively teach a rigorous curriculum (something I feel MCPS lacks)?

Could they provide individualized instruction in other subjects as well?

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Our school uses the virtual academy to provide compacted math, I wonder how getting rid of that would change things.[/quote]

With a different, freely available web service maybe??[/quote]

What web service are you referring to? Khan Academy or another service? Would MCPS give full credit for work done under the supervision of an independent provider? I’ve heard good things about Khan, but do they effectively teach a rigorous curriculum (something I feel MCPS lacks)?

Could they provide individualized instruction in other subjects as well?[/quote]

No, they will either teach it at the school or not offer it and kids get what is offered.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

You don't think it's strange and suspicious when parents don't let their kids go to school? You don't seem to read the news very much.

They are going to school. Don't you think it's strange you are so upset over MCPS having a virtual school. You want your families needs met but yet, you don't consider someone else's needs may be different than yours.

The real mystery here is why you're not more concerned about meeting your children's needs. Why are you so afraid of letting them go to school? You know they're going to move out of your house at some point, don't you?

What on earth are you talking about? Kids can thrive in virtual. Not all kids thrive in person. How do you not get that? There are more opportunities for kids to socialize outside of school or are you against activities too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP again, it's IIS Interim Instructional Services.

That is not even close to being a proper education. IIS only has the core courses that meet for 1.5 hours a week each. That’s 6 hours a week. It’s for extremely fragile children that just need to keep a line of learning open. No homework; no tests; no quizzes; no real work. The VA is a tremendous benefit to those who can handle a full course load but may need the flexibility of being at home for a variety of reasons. Many kids are thriving there. Don’t throw “data” back. A child’s needs go deeper than a number. No one is harmed by it being open. It’s just one more program in MCPS; it’s just controversial because some people choose not to keep an open mind.

If your kids are well enough to handle a full courseload, then why aren't they in school?

Ok? They are in school.

No, they're not. Why are you afraid to let them leave your sight? You must know how suspicious that looks.

What makes you think that?

You don't think it's strange and suspicious when parents don't let their kids go to school? You don't seem to read the news very much.

They are going to school. Don't you think it's strange you are so upset over MCPS having a virtual school. You want your families needs met but yet, you don't consider someone else's needs may be different than yours.

The real mystery here is why you're not more concerned about meeting your children's needs. Why are you so afraid of letting them go to school? You know they're going to move out of your house at some point, don't you?

What on earth are you talking about? Kids can thrive in virtual. Not all kids thrive in person. How do you not get that? There are more opportunities for kids to socialize outside of school or are you against activities too?

Do you let your kids do those activities? Or only if you're able to supervise them at all times?