Reply to DCPS Survey - Increase Instructional Time

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Reply to "DCPS Survey - Increase Instructional Time"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I am mixed on this. If the "extra tim" really is to explore more arts and music etc then great.  I think the reality is that its just worksheets, drills, busy work to get the slowest kids up to speed so they aren't hurting test scores.  I just don't see the benefit for my kid.   Maybe if the school committed to no more homework in elem school it would be ok.[/quote]

High school student's parent perspective here. I agree with this PP. I have not one ounce of faith that DCPS would do anything creative or worthwhile with either extra hours or extra days. They already seem to shut down the learning process entirely once the test cycles are over, leaving the last few weeks of school to movies, goofing off, and cleaning tasks that paid staff or parent volunteers should be doing. Extra hours or days will just be filled with more remedial-type worksheets and other busywork.

I would prefer that my kid have time after school for music, sports, and other activities on his own, and in the summer, to have a summer job and pursue other interests. Anyone who has been through the college application process knows that DCPS kids are already disadvantaged in applying to colleges because of inadequate counseling, a sub-par curriculum, generally inferior extracurriculars (some schools are much better than others), and very old-fashioned teaching and administrative approaches to learning. Even the top DCPS schools graduate "A" students who have somehow never written a research paper, presented and defended a portfolio of work, or carried out a long-term group or individual project demonstrating depth of knowledge in a subject. The last things these kids need are 1) more time spent on this sort of academic approach, and 2) a new schedule that makes it harder for them to pursue the extracurricular and summer activities that they need to be competitive college candidates and to become skilled, happy, creative, well-rounded adults.

I think the vast majority of "yes" responses will be from elementary school parents who want more free daycare. I remember craving that myself in the early days, but you may come to regret your "yes" vote when your child is bored stiff in an unchallenging DCPS middle school or high school. Hard to think ahead that far if your kid is in preK, but the years really do fly by.

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What she said.  For us, summer is a time for my ffth grader to pursue interests that are important to her -- zoo camp, programming, national park visits, more focus on music.  Interests that can help prepare for college and career.   They are also an opportunity for me to help her catch up on foundational math, spelling, and other language arts skills that are not covered in the kaleidoscope of a curriculum that DCPS is rolling out these days.  I understand the need for daycare for young working parents, and that many DCPS students need all sorts of support year round; those problems need to be addressed separately.   But I agree with PP on the need to take a longer view, and not condemn students to eleven months of discombobulated worksheets and test prep 7 or 8 hours a day.[/quote]

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