Forum Index
»
Preschool and Daycare Discussion
update on DCJCC?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| I'm sorry, is the previous poster actually a parent at DCJCC? Or just an observer? |
Anonymous
|
Sarah-
I hope that you received permission from the parents of the child in question before posting these details. |
Anonymous
|
i think 19:02 is the same mom who always pop up to harsh on the J whenever there is a J thread. she is a former J parent and she was dissatisfied. she is particularly rabid in her criticism.
i am a current J parent. the school is not a joke; far from it. i assume this person has not had their child enrolled at all this year or even last. there were some issues and problems under the previous director. the school has some a long way in addressing them. i could go on, but i find this poster so annoying that i don't want to feed into her insanity. |
Anonymous
| I've made my decision and will not be returning next year. After all the hoopla of the previous year I decided to wait it out for one more. This is a decision I have regretted for a few months now. As far as I can tell, the administrative situation is not better but far worse and I've seen absolutely no attempt at correcting previously made mistakes. The director is young, ignorant and incapable of dealing with conflict. It seems to me that the Administration at the J is content to allow the same mistakes to occur over and over again. After reading all of the posts on this forum concerning the JCC I can honestly tell you that I will not risk another year with this institution. It is obvious to me that this has been going on for far longer than my children have attended and will surely go on for some time to come. |
Anonymous
|
current J parent here. i don't think it is fair or accurate to call the director ignorant and incapable of dealing with conflict. my own opinion is that she is not properly supported by the administration. i think she works very, very hard and she's always been responsive to me. i find her to be helpful in general.
we've not had any significant issues at the J. but, yes, we've had some and there are some problems. all in all, we will be sending our child to the school for another year and that was not a hard decision to make. you have to keep in mind that this is a full day of care for the child. the J is really part daycare and part preschool. other preschool programs have a shorter day and so will seem (or are) more focused. the J is doing something else than your typical half-day preschool and expectations have to be adjusted to account for that. |
Anonymous
|
19:40 and 20:00, can you be more specific about how the director lacks support by the "administration"? You both mentioned it, and I am curious to know more.
What did you think about the actual teaching and quality of care your children received? Also, what is the turnover rate for enrollment? Do the majority of children stay, or do the vast majority of parents pull their children out after a year or two due to frustration with the program/director/administration? I'm trying to gauge whether the expressed opinions on this thread are extreme or the norm. Thanks. |
Anonymous
|
22:50, I live in the neighborhood and I have known many parents with kids at the J over the last 7 years. Honestly, and I am not any of the PPs, every single one of them thought it was a mediocre experience and chose it out of convenience over preference.
It is a good place for working families due to the hours and coverage provided. It will not be a great educational experience (except for maybe the Jewish aspect) but it will be a serviceable option. If you need an all-day spot for your kids and the J is convenient to your commute or home, it is a decent choice. |
Anonymous
|
there are a lot of good things about the J: great facilities including ample indoor play spaces, art and music teachers, a capable director, young, engergetic teachers (all with BAs), hours and location, reggio-inspired philosophy.
what holds the J back, imho, is that no one there is formally trained in education/development/early childhood. the director has some kind of certification/credential, but certainly not a master's degree in ed. virtually none of the teachers have ed degrees. therefore, there is no curriculum in place and the school lacks policies and procedures for things like management of classrooms and behavior issues. not many teachers have formal training in reggio, so it really is just a loose influence. i simply don't think you can run a school on that scale without a true education professional running the ship. and the school is not accredited. if you've vistited an NAEYC school, you will see the difference. this isn't to say the school is all unorganized free play; it isn't. but i don't think it is reasonable to put a bunch of recent college grad 20 somethings into a room with no education and training in early childhood and expect the optimum result. the teachers are young, smart, nice, and engergetic. that doesn't mean they know how to manage a 16 3yos in a room together. or the one or two with consistent behavior issues. and there isn't anyone there who can support them in this. |
Anonymous
|
Thanks, PP. I do think that the teachers need more consistent training and teacher modeling. Because they are so young, they could use a much more experience education professional to show them how to lead a classroom. Speaking as an educator, there is nothing better than observing first hand and participating in teaching alongside a good mentor.
The fact that the JCC teachers do not have education degrees does not necessarily make them unqualified--in fact in most countries outside the US, teachers have degrees in other areas in addition to training in pedagogy. The fact that the JCC teachers have college degrees is a good sign that they are intellectually capable, with training, of becoming superior early childhood teachers. NAEYC is a good first indicator of quality, but not necessarily one of good fit. I visited several NAEYC accredited facilities and some were amazing, while others were not. Many Bright Horizons centers, for example have NAEYC accreditation, but I found them wanting in comparison to other non-NAEYC accredited facilities, especially for the 2-5 age group. |
Anonymous
|
It's just about teacher education, as the PP indicated, but also about interest and enthusiasm. The JCC would be an incredibly convenient preschool for us - 2 working parents, within walking distance, etc. We took several toddler classes there (e.g., getting ready for preschool) which require caretaker participation. The teachers for these programs were not involved or interested in the kids. I understand these are not the same teachers as in the preschool but it's an indication of management and culture at the school.
As PPs have reported, the preschool classes have some really enthusiastic teachers that I have seen for myself, but there also are many, many who do not engage with the children at all. As a result of our experiences with the JCC when the time came to apply to preschool, it wasn't on our list even though it was in closest proximity to our house. |
khgordon
Member Offline
Member Offline
| Hey folks, I was the original poster and thought I should write in to say we ARE sending our daughter to the JCC in the September, and we're looking forward to it. We were v. impressed with the Director and also the way the school takes full advantage of being in an urban neighborhood. We want our daughter to grow up with a sense of community and an appreciation for a vibrant neighborhood and we think the JCC will help her gain that. I'll be sure to post when I'm a current parent and have a good, fact-based impression of how the school runs. In the meantime, thanks to all for the posts on this. |
Anonymous
|
The fact that the JCC sends all its classes to Stead Park each day, yet, as an institution, did not contribute one dollar to the renovation (a six year, community effort) speaks
volumes for what type of institution this is. |