Your worst experience with a school or school system

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Kindergarten at MCPS with 26 kids, no aide, no rotating aide and my child learning nothing but things they learned in preschool. Hanging out with kids that don't speak English. Good times!

Oh, the absolute horror!

Says the person whose kids do not go to school with 2/3 of the class Spanish speaking and 50% FARMS.

Actually my kid does go to a school with many non-native speakers & a high FARMS population. Some of us don't mind diversity.

My child goes to a private school with more diversity and culture than I have ever seen. Indian, Korean, Chinese, Hispanic, AA, Japanese, Iranian, Australian, African, Russian etc...

We love it but they speak English. I can't imagine going to an American school where 60%+ of a school's population can not speak English. Ridiculous [/quote

I think this poster has a problem when over 50% speak the same language that is all the same i.e. 66% Spanish. The English speakers are left out.
I have to agree, too!

[b]The way the first PP phrased her complaint ("hanging out with kids that don't speak English") implies that s/he was unhappy that her kids was socializing with kids from different backgrounds/cultures. I'm guessing that's what the second PP found objectionable about his or her comment -- & I have to agree.

The fact that the first PP then brought up FARM rates also indicated that it wasn't just the communication barrier that high ESOL rates might have caused for her child that the he or she had a problem with. Did his or her kid also feel "left out" because half the kids in the class were poor?

+1

Part of the phrasing used by the first PP in her initial post ("hanging out with kids that don't speak English") seemed a bit off to me when I first read it .I initially gave her the benefit of the doubt,though, & figured it was just a poor choice of words as it makes total sense to me why a mother wouldn't want her non-Spanish speaking child in a class where the majority of the kids only speak Spanish. That would almost certainly hinder the child's ability to socialize with his or her peers & affect the way the class is taught.

Once she mentioned FARMS rates, however, it became pretty obvious to me that the first PP wasn't just concerned about the potential issues her child might encounter at school due to being in the minority as a native English speaker.She was also clearly upset that her precious snowflake was being forced to mingle with those she considers beneath her family, including -- gasp!-- "the poors".

Sorry, first PP, but you sound like a major snob.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My dyslexic son volunteer to talk at a school wide assembly and the teacher said, "Honey, nobody in your reading group will ever speak at an assembly".

My son (3rd grader) said, "Oh yes I will." ... and he did. It's a long story after that but he told the reading specialist and to stop a shit storm from happening he was given a small part.

I'm sorry, PP! That's just awful!

On the positive side, it sounds like you're raising a kid who isn't afraid to speak up & fight for himself when necessary!

[Anonymous]

12:08, Loudoun County, right? I am thinking our property values will drop precipitously if this next bond ref is not passed!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure...but it definitely seems personal. I don't know what to do, I guess I'll make an appt with the principal. First time ever.

My suggestion is that you email the teacher first with a copy to the principal. Recap the conversations/meetings you've had with her regarding your DS's disrespectful behavior and that you'd like to meet with her, the principal and school counselor to discuss your DS's behavior. Tell her you are a willing partner with the school team to address behavior issues. Ask her to come to the meeting with specific examples of his behavior and what was going on prior to those behaviors so you, as a team, can perhaps identify environmental/situational triggers and come up with a plan to ensure these behaviors are addressed appropriately. You might add what a shock to you all this is as your DS has never been a behavior problem in the past and you're concerned this will have an impact on his relationship with his teacher.

Of course, I think what the teacher is doing is BS. If you're going to talk to a parent about behavioral issues, there need to be concrete examples and they need to be significant. From what you've described, they aren't. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

Our worst experience? Local school in VA teacher was truly awful - 1st grade (had taught for several years) and bullied, belittled, yelled and was cruel and spiteful in the extreme. Yes, met with the headmaster who was tired, mildly concerned but obviously waiting for retirement and didnt want to rock the boat. Especially as the teacher was aggresive and confrontational. I guess I should have know somthing was wrong on the first morning when another mom went to kiss her child goodbye on his first day and the teacher put their hands on her and marched her out of the room slamming the door behind the mom...

I have to say that a few months of suffering was more than enough and I could not get my child out of there quickly enough. My DC was stressed, emotional and lost all of their confidence in that class and it took a long time to get it back - I wouldnt want any other child to go through what mine did - it was awful!!!

[Anonymous]

12:46 what school was that?

[Anonymous]

DS was in 4th grade and having problems with a girl in his class. She would poke him, break his pencil, whisper provoking things. He finally broke down and pushed her after she was leaving dirty tissues in his bag on the back of the chair and broke another pencil Both he and I had complained to the teacher previously about her, but he was made to apologize and was punished - and she wasn't - IMO because she was a girl. It finally got to him so much, he flipped out in art class after she did something else to one of his projects. He ran out the room and the art teacher called the school guard to get him. The guard pinned him against the locker and called the other guard to help her restrain him.

The guards actually liked and knew DS, so they did get him calmed down, but I was called to come pick him up by the principal.He was furious and unable to talk. I had never seen him like that. I told them never to touch my son again or I would sue. The classroom teacher kept them apart for the remaining two months of the year, but it took that incident to make it happen.

She was a manipulative child. She would often pit people against each other on the playground and then get out of the way to watch the fights. I did a lot of volunteering that year, so I saw it first hand. I hate to think of her as an adult.

[Anonymous]

Wow 4th grade is a crap year, no? It was our worst too and for several of the same reasons as the other 4th grade posts.

[Anonymous]

Worst experience = the food. I went to DCPS for Duke Ellington after being at FCPS for k-8. I'm not sure what they put in the food but on the small number of occasions I actually ate food from the cafeteria (less than 5), I always got extremely sick. Basically made the bathroom uninhabitable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A cliquey/bully teacher in a private school targeted. I work full time and I am not "involved" in school during school hours so she felt like my DD was an easy target. She targeted other kids who had similar profiles. She was overly punitive in grading my DD's work and would take off full letter grades for ridiculous things like using blue versus black pen for a writing assignment in 2nd grade. I probably could have dealt with that somewhat but she made my daughter cry many, many times during the school year by singling her out and bullying her. She made outlandish claims that my DD was incapable academically- though that was far from the truth as demonstrated in her grades since then/before then. The administration supported me a little but not enough.

That is the most surprising / disappointing thing about independent schools. The administrators seem to protect "their own" (ie, teachers who are longtime colleagues) and their way of doing things versus taking parent complaints seriously. I thought that as a "paying customer" and donors of time, talent & treasure, we'd be listened to, and our concerns would be addressed. But no, they really seem to just pander to you, knowing you'll be gone in a few years. How to put this? There is no real accountability as in the publics. At least if you have a problem in public, you can go to the PTA, file a form online, go to school administration - county bureaucracy, etc. There are well defined processes. In private, there is no apparent policy manual for handling parent complaints..it is all shrouded in mystery. They act like they just expect you to shut up or leave if you have issues to be addressed, yet act hurt if you do leave, and then blame you. I have been surprised by the petty and unprofessional atmosphere at our children's well regarded independent school. I don't know if they are all like this, but would love to hear from others. From reading the independent school forum, it is clear there are a few schools where parents report similar situations, so I know it is not unique to our school. If there is a truly professionally managed independent school out there, I'd love to hear the name!

[Anonymous]

This is PP - I should add before moving to private, we were in public for many years. My worst experience there was the IEP process - BUT at least you can hire advocates, lawyers, etc, and for problems with teachers I had good luck working with the PTA. In independent schools, I think you're just SOL if you made a bad choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The whole process when dealing with a SN child- especially the IEP process. I have PSTD from it. Seriously.

+1

[Anonymous]

So 6 pages later, here's my takeaway -

Public school is a total crap shoot. It doesn't matter which district - MCSP, FCPS, ARLINGTON, HCPS. If its not the teachers that suck its the superintendent.

Private school is like Lord of The Flies - only you pay $40K for the privilege of staying on the island and getting harpooned by some rich kid know-it-all, or by a teacher who has passed judgement that you should be kicked off the island, but not before harpooning you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So 6 pages later, here's my takeaway -

Public school is a total crap shoot. It doesn't matter which district - MCSP, FCPS, ARLINGTON, HCPS. If its not the teachers that suck its the superintendent.

Private school is like Lord of The Flies - only you pay $40K for the privilege of staying on the island and getting harpooned by some rich kid know-it-all, or by a teacher who has passed judgement that you should be kicked off the island, but not before harpooning you.

This is hysterical - and so true!

[Anonymous]

23:05 poster-Please help your kid and others n his class by talking to the head of the school and switch classrooms!