Big proposed class size increases for Title 1 and focus schools next year

[Anonymous]

You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

[Anonymous]

Btw you can be sure if he was proposing a brand new big approach for low income schools he would brag about it. Instead, he is bragging about adding $2.5 million to the "equity add on", which is a very, very small amount that is completely dwarfed by him screwing over Focus schools and Title 1 schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

Right now MCPS is proposing increasing class sizes in low income schools and deceasing class sizes in high income schools. Parents in high income schools seem to be okay with this, and parents in low income schools are not. Big surprise.

[Anonymous]

When you are relatively wealthy and support taking money intended for low income students and having it put in your kid's relatively wealthy school, some people are going to take issue with that. If that offends you, that's a you problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

Most parents in high income schools feel entitled to better schools as they feel that's what they paid for. They generally resent putting extra resources in low income communities because it makes them question their financial decisions and reduces their property values which are only as high as they are because of racial and economic inequities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

Most parents in high income schools feel entitled to better schools as they feel that's what they paid for. They generally resent putting extra resources in low income communities because it makes them question their financial decisions and reduces their property values which are only as high as they are because of racial and economic inequities.

I really do not care about house values. When I see 33 students in my son's elementary school and 30 students in the middle school, then, yes, I begin questioning where is the money? Why do we not have GT programs (like in Howard County?) Why do we not focus more on steam classes? Why do we only read 2 books per semester in middle school? Why do we not provide additional enrichment?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

Most parents in high income schools feel entitled to better schools as they feel that's what they paid for. They generally resent putting extra resources in low income communities because it makes them question their financial decisions and reduces their property values which are only as high as they are because of racial and economic inequities.

I really do not care about house values. When I see 33 students in my son's elementary school and 30 students in the middle school, then, yes, I begin questioning where is the money? Why do we not have GT programs (like in Howard County?) Why do we not focus more on steam classes? Why do we only read 2 books per semester in middle school? Why do we not provide additional enrichment?

So you want to take money from poor kids for these things?

[Anonymous]

Why is it that wealthy parents are both:
- demanding smaller class sizes in their schools
And
- insisting small class sizes don't help poor students?

Do small class sizes only help rich students?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is it that wealthy parents are both:
- demanding smaller class sizes in their schools
And
- insisting small class sizes don't help poor students?

Do small class sizes only help rich students?

Am I a wealthy parent with a house below 1M and and salary below 100k?
We all want the best for our kids, you advocate for more funds for higher FARMS school because you are in such schools. I want smaller size classrooms and more enrichment for my kids. That is not being selfish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is it that wealthy parents are both:
- demanding smaller class sizes in their schools
And
- insisting small class sizes don't help poor students?

Do small class sizes only help rich students?

Am I a wealthy parent with a house below 1M and and salary below 100k?
We all want the best for our kids, you advocate for more funds for higher FARMS school because you are in such schools. I want smaller size classrooms and more enrichment for my kids. That is not being selfish.

No one is stopping you from advocating for more funds for smaller class sizes for your kids. In fact, most of us support it. We're simply suggesting that rather than you happily supporting the idea of MCPS finding the money by increasing class sizes for poorer schools, we work together to ask them to find the money somewhere else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why everything has to be about FARMS schools? Children in other schools also need to be properly educated. My kid is in math class with 33 other students. Yes, I am all for decreasing the number of students at our school even if other schools will have to bump up a bit. I am not in a high FARMS rate school but it doesn't mean I can send my child to a private institution.

Lower income students cost more to education..that's why the state gives MCPS funding based on the number of FARMS students. But MCPS is taking that money and using it to increase resources for wealthy students. You may be okay with that (you care exclusively about your kid and kids similar to your kid) but that doesn't make it okay.

Yes,I care about my children first and foremost.
33 students in our school vs 18 in *poor* schools seem to much of a difference. That's almost doubled the classroom.

1) That's selfish.
2) Why can't parents work together for better things for all our kids, rather than you wanting to make things worse for poorer kids?
3) No elementary school class should have 33 kids-- even in 4th and 5th grade, they get funded for one teacher per 29 kids (although sometimes some of the classes will have 30 kids before they get extra funding, depending on how the numbers shake out.) If your principal is making classes of 33, that's your principal's decision/fault. Also, Title 1 and focus schools get one teacher per 27 kids in 4th and 5th grade so it's only a slight difference to the 29 in other schools.

Of course elementary school classes should not have 33 kids, but in reality some do. You can have a guideline of 29 kids to be in a class, and then there's a last minute enrollment into the school right before school starts or your kids' school is asked to pick up some severe overcapacity issues from a neighboring elementary school, and all of a sudden the class that was 27 last year becomes 33 this year.

And it's not like the principal has magic powers to hire-the principal needs to request permission from Central office to add the new teacher, then post the vacancy, interview and hire and get that teacher to start. By the time that occurs, you'll be lucky if the two classes in the school which have 33 ES kids get a new teacher to reduce those class sizes by end of November. That's a long time for little kids to be in such a crowded class.

I mean, yes, but that happens in Title 1 and focus schools too. And, again, in 3rd-5th grade, the big 30- kid classes you're talking about, the Title 1 and FARMS classes are only 2 kids smaller than yours. So sometimes you're at 33, sometimes we're at 31.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is it that wealthy parents are both:
- demanding smaller class sizes in their schools
And
- insisting small class sizes don't help poor students?

Do small class sizes only help rich students?

Am I a wealthy parent with a house below 1M and and salary below 100k?
We all want the best for our kids, you advocate for more funds for higher FARMS school because you are in such schools. I want smaller size classrooms and more enrichment for my kids. That is not being selfish.

No one is stopping you from advocating for more funds for smaller class sizes for your kids. In fact, most of us support it. We're simply suggesting that rather than you happily supporting the idea of MCPS finding the money by increasing class sizes for poorer schools, we work together to ask them to find the money somewhere else.

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is it that wealthy parents are both:
- demanding smaller class sizes in their schools
And
- insisting small class sizes don't help poor students?

Do small class sizes only help rich students?

Am I a wealthy parent with a house below 1M and and salary below 100k?
We all want the best for our kids, you advocate for more funds for higher FARMS school because you are in such schools. I want smaller size classrooms and more enrichment for my kids. That is not being selfish.

Yes, you own your own home and it is worth more than most people have in total savings including home equity. Yes, you are wealthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are all falling into the trap and arguing school vs school (rich/well off v focus/title 1).

The reality is, the lower income schools need to keep the lower student:teacher ratio, AND, the higher income schools need a cap as well - my kids have had 32 in ES and 35+ in HS, which is outrageous.

We parents should be screaming about both issues, not just the one that affects our own children

There is a lot of “extra” in this budget. 1.7 million to put security assistant staff in every elementary school?!

Huge salaries for certain new positions. $172k for a safe routes to school coordinator? This person is paid more than all classroom teachers. $166k for a volunteer coordinator. What?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow Taylor has some serious cojones to do this to low income elementary schools when outcomes are so bad.

And his budget one pager makes it look like he is adding funding to increase equity when he is almost certainly reducing funding for low income schools.

SMH

Outcomes are going to be bad no matter what. It doesn't matter if the class sizes are 5, 10, 20, or 30. Staffing should be the same as all the other schools.