Reply to BOE reconsidering the Virtual Academy, Leader in Me, and Innovative School Year Calendar

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Reply to "BOE reconsidering the Virtual Academy, Leader in Me, and Innovative School Year Calendar"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Folks really should click through the report on MVA because it doesn't look good, assuming one wants to take an evidence-based approach. At the very least, the VA needs to be revamped to address the issues detailed in the report.

The report is easy to read, and clearly laid out, even if it does seem it took MCPS quite a while to make it public. The biggest takeaway is that MVA is not working at the ES level in particular. Attendance is worse for MVA than in-person school, and testing outcomes are significantly worse.

At the MS and HS levels, chronic absenteeism is about the same as the in-school population, but that itself is alarming given the dismal state of attendance in general.

At best, the data would suggest that MVA is not an appropriate model for K-5.

https://ww2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/sharedaccountability/reports/2023/Virtual%20Academy%20FINAL.pdf

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Some of t that data is not accurate as many families opted out if testing.  [/quote]

This doesn't make any sense, though. The report says that for MAP-M only about 11% of kids opted out of the test. So, of the 89% of MVA kids who did take the tests, there were statistically significant (in some cases very significant) differences for K-5 kids in particular.

So, unless the missing 11% is for some reason also the highest scoring 11%, the numbers still show that MVA isn't working for K-5, at least in terms of attendance and mastery of core academic subjects. There's no reason to believe that the 89% who did take the test is not statistically representative of the broader group and in fact much more reason to believe that the 11% who didn't test are more likely to be lower scorers than higher scorers.

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Stop bringing up facts and data in response to the fever dream that the virtual academy is a worthwhile program [/quote]

MAP is the only test that is allowed to be taken virtually.  All other standardized tests have to be taken in person.  Many opted out of those because the home schools all test on different days and it was very disruptive to their academic schedule as they missed VA classes to take the test and they usually were forced to sit in an empty room all by themselves all day.  I wish some of you would allow a conversation to occur instead of picking up on one tiny nuance to justify your hate of a program that benefits students.  Many students LOVE being home and learning.  It would help if you asked a few.  Even though the VA numbers are shrinking (mainly because of limited classes at the moment and home schools refusing to keep up their end of the bargain) it's still as large as some stand-alone elementary and middle schools here in the county.  [b]Could you imagine if we were talking about your child's school or magnet program shutting down? You all would be up in arms here[/b].  Try to have some empathy folks.  I know you have it in you.  [/quote]

Naw. If MCPS decided to build a new experimental school a few years ago and I opted to roll the dice to attend, I wouldn’t be up in arms if attendance dropped 40% two years in a row and the system started asking whether it’s wise to keep the school open. [/quote]

+1.  Also, at the posters saying that the test scores are biased because high performing families opted out- you are shooting yourself in the foot. If your kids are doing so we’ll get them in there for the tests. Otherwise don’t complain about the data. MCPS can only use what it has in front of it.[/quote]

You are right, we did shoot ourselves in the foot, but its a bunch of bad choices and if you are in the MVA for health reasons, its a bit concerning to send your child to a school, that you have no contact with, when no one is masking or taking basic precautions AND the school refuses to accommodate the concerns. [/quote]

I thought the kids would be in a room by themselves taking the test? Not mingling with the unmasked masses.[/quote]

That would make sense, but no, I was told they'd be in the large lunch room with everyone else.    They could have had a separate room for all the virtual kids, but our school refused.  [/quote]

Can’t your kids wear masks?  Worn correctly they are very effective.  Oh well, too late now.[/quote]

Mine always mask but it helps, it’s not 100 percent.  And, thaton.y helps with airborne, not surface.   Not everything is about Covid.  [/quote]

Couldn’t they bring Clorox wipes for the desk?  If this was an issue before Covid, what did your kids do then?  [/quote]

We all don’t have your privilege.  Enjoy it.  [/quote]

It's a valid question.  You seem to be in VA for more than just Covid, but virtual was not an option in MCPS before the Covid-19 pandemic.  Were you homeschooling?  Or were you just accepting the risks and sending your kids in person?

As someone else noted, other places in the country have had a virtual option for a while.  If virtual is that important to you, I'm wondering why you stayed in MCPS to begin with.[/quote]

There have been the same discussions over and over again with the bullies demanding answers to silly questions and no matter what you say it’s not good enough.   Why are you so invested in shutting the school down?

And not everything is simply about Covid.  Time for you to move on.  Maybe if you spent half as much time helping your kids as you do posting on social media your kids would have been more successful in school. [/quote]

I don’t think it’s silly to ask what the families for whom going into a school is a life or death decision did before MCPS created the virtual academy a few years ago. It would help inform the discussion since proponents of the VA seem to be arguing that the choice is continuing to find the VA or depriving their kids of an education. [/quote]

With the caveat that I'm talking about one specific kid, a relative of mine who is not my own child, I'll tell you what their parents did. Since their condition is pretty rare, I'm going to be somewhat vague while trying to answer your question. My nibling had a major organ transplant as an early elementary schooler. While awaiting the transplant, they received some limited at-home services supplemented by parent teaching. After the transplant, they were still extremely vulnerable. Terrifyingly so, but their parents also wanted them to have as close to a normal childhood as possible, particularly because there was a chance they could end up needing another organ down the road.

Basically, a bad thing could happen no matter how careful the parents were, so it was more worth it to make sure my nibling felt like a normal kid than to make sure they were 100% safe.

The schools were, as far as I could tell, great. In the rest of elementary school, my nibling would be paired with a teacher willing to use upgraded disinfecting in the classroom, and their parents would send a stock email to all of the other parents in the class describing the situation and asking for enhanced attention to sending their kids in with "just a cold." The parents also made masks available (this was pre-covid, so it was unusual but no one felt their rights were being violated.)

Middle school was harder, particularly because covid happened in this period, but my nibling returned to school in fall 2021, so just a touch after the rest of their grade.

My nibling is in HS now, and still going to school in person. My sibling is greatful that their kid is generally compliant with the drug protocol and takes care of their own health, as a lot of transplant kids spin out around this age because they are so frustrated at the limitations.

End of the day, it's not perfect, but it works becuase my sibling was willing to take a chance on the adults and the kids in their community being fundamentally okay people who wanted to do the right thing. [/quote]

Great post. I wonder how many kids are in similar positions. Would be it be cheaper for MCPS to pay for a private VA for them or for MCPS to have its own? [/quote]

My guess is neither. It’s probably most cost effective for MCPS to go back to whatever it was doing for decades before they started the virtual academy experiment a few years ago. [/quote]

That might not have been the right thing to do. This is a small number of kids to be sure but if they cannot be in a classroom for medical reasons, MCPS still has to give them an education. [/quote]

There are student who opted for virtual academy so that they can skip out in-person class. These are not kids who are medically fragile.[/quote]

If a kid wats to skip school, they will.  Plenty of kids skip in person or don't follow the rules on closed campuses and leave without permission.  That has nothing to do with the virtual academy and regardless of the school situation that is a parenting issue.[/quote]

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