Reply to 2023-24 draft calendar scenarios to be reviewed

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Sticking with option D. Also known as basically the calendar we’ve been using. [/quote]

+1[/quote]

3/4 scenarios are different and move us away from what we've been doing. It seems like they want to move to an earlier start date. That makes sense to me; [b]no learning happens after Memorial Day[/b], and test scores right now are even more abysmal than normal. [/quote]

That might be true in some classes or schools, but is not true of all.

In my experience, when you shift the dates to avoid an undesired behavior, the behavior just moves to a different date. I’m a dinosaur who had kids in MCPS back when there was school on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. People pulled their kids out at noon so MCPS made Wed a half day. Then people started skipping Wednesday all together. Then, we didn’t have school on Wednesday at all so people started pulling their kids out at noon on Tuesday. Now Tuesday is a half day and last year, many people skipped that day altogether.

It would make more sense to require a substantial project or assessment the first week or eight days in June if you want to enforce learning after Memorial Day. [/quote]

DP.  I get your point but I think part of this issue is that statewide and [b]national standardized testing tends to happen in May[/b].  It's not every class, but for those that are somewhat test-driven, the curriculum is squeezed in before relevant May dates and there's often little to do afterward.

(I'm new to Maryland and my kids are young if I'm missing anything, but that's my general perception.)[/quote]

I am an AP teacher and every year I comment on this.  It is an absolute shame that some teachers and parents think it is OK to waste a large proportion of the school year "because the kids and I have worked hard and deserve a break."  As if the test itself was the point, instead of learning.  Based on the teacher groups that I am in, I would estimate that 75% of AP teachers just show movies after the exam.  So sad.  All of these classes cover so much ground during the year and force us to rush, so these kids would really benefit from going in-depth on interesting topics.  For example, after the exam in my AP US GoPo class, we did Case Studies on property rights/eminent domain; fascism; federalism and the New Deal, and the Patriot Act and NSA Surveillance.  We also did a couple of field trips.  Parents should push back on this laziness...  [/quote]

I agree with you but also see that there are really mental health effects to cramming a 9-10 month class into 8 months, and kids need a little break after that—so yes to interesting discussions but no to massive writing assignments or a ton of outside reading/homework.  My kid is also going to try to do some college visits after APs—she refuses to take jay days off until after the exams, and also will be studying through winter and spring break.  It really is a grind trying to get ready for all those tests in may — I think she has 5.  As a teacher, you might not see what this looks from the perspective of sleep/relaxation/socialization, but it is really tough on the students to cram that material into an abbreviated period.   [/quote]

Trust me, as a teacher of AP exams for 15 years and the mother of four who each entered college with 30-40 credits, I understand what is involved.  Your child's "break" will be three months long; they just have to wait a few more weeks.  If you are concerned about her mental health, perhaps she shouldn't take five exams in one year.[/quote]

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