Reply to Hearing Testimony on FCPS Proposed CIP

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I also support creating an IB magnet HS program for students who want to be in the program. It would be a school where students can work toward IB certificates or IB diplomas.

Creating an IB magnet secondary school program may also work. It could be the smallest secondary school but the idea is to give IB students a school.[/quote]

Update from the Gatehouse. They are considering designating Key as the IB MYP regional center and Lee as the IB regional high school. Someone prepared a presentation that explained how facilities would manage the shifting elementary feeders and the study focused on projections based on pupil placement to the new center. It would be voluntary, but the thought is that demand would exceed seats so each of the pyramids feeding into the center would get a certain amount of seats and there would be a lottery/wait-list. They are debating putting bus service into the cost projections. Without it, consolidation would save money. With it, consolidation would essentially be a wash.

This is also very preliminary.

What's crazy is that this crisis was created when the county slashed ESOL funding and threw students into Lee who were in specialized programs at the Marshall night school. They thought they could do this since the state allowed them to VGLA instead of taking the SOL. It all blew up in their faces when the state was like no more VGLA and when the assessment folks starting looking into projected SOL scores saw that Lee would very quickly get in trouble with the state.

Now, instead of just admitting they screwed up in order to save a few million in instructional compensation, people are looking at the regional IB site as a way to fix the issue without going back to the Marshall model. If they can achieve it with a cost savings, it might actually happen. If it's a wash, it's less likely. And if it's more expensive, it's DOA.[/quote]

IB is more expensive so it could be a cost savings to have a regional IB program and at first glance I support this. I haven't heard what the Marshall model is as an alternative and don't have the history on this. Can you give more information?[/quote]

Marshall had an evening ESOL school. It was focused on new arrivals and older learners and worked to get students to graduate. A lot of these students were over 18. Most of these students also did training in the trades. For example, a friend of mine worked there before being de-staffed and she mentioned that many of her students were working to become CNAs, so she focused on teaching English to them so they could get through the program and graduate. It was a good program, but the county cut it to save money. It was a politically unpopular program and there was little resistance since these students were not a population that would lead to blow back (compare: cutting immersion).[/quote]

Was the state against this program or was it just a budget cut during the recession? Was this in addition to them going to a day school or a completely separate school?[/quote]

No, the state didn't have anything to do with the program. It was a county program and the county was looking to cut programs that wouldn't cause of big blow back.

The state falls into this because these students used to take VGLA or weren't tested at SOL as new comers. The state changed its rule on testing for these types of ESOL students. That caught the county off guard. They didn't expect this to happen. Now, it's the whole exercise of showing they didn't screw up by doing something to prevent the bad consequences of their original idea.[/quote]

So this is a state change, not a federal change? Is it related to ESSA or NCLB? I think it' funny that the state doesn't want to spend any additional money on ESOL students yet cares about them passing harder tests. You'd think they'd be happy to not have to pay additional money to immigrant 17 year olds. Something doesn't add up.[/quote]

The federal laws all deferred to the states to determine testing and regulate testing. So, Virginia made this choice for who knows what reason. But it caught the county off guard. No one thought this was going to occur.

And yes, the state isn't spending on ESOL in FCPS. If anything, FCPS is somewhat screwed in terms of state funding. Rural/poorer districts get more money, fwiw.[/quote]

There's something missing here. Maybe federal law required certain passing requirements but didn't mandate the test used, just that they all had to be the same? The state has been removing testing due to parent demand and so not to have to spend money on this sort of thing to catch kids up. It just doesn't make sense that they'd make the law harder. Do you know what law this is even referencing?[/quote]

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