Reply to Curriculum 2.0

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Question for the lazy two posters, why do you think MCPS is implementing the new curriculum.  They don't gain any benefit from having angry parents or students who can't or won't take advanced math in high school. My understanding was that the new curriculum was developed because the students didn't understand the concepts behind the math they were doing.  I can relate since when I was a child we learned multiplication, addition, etc. primarily through flash cards and memorization in 2nd and 3rd grade. We didn't learn the concepts behind those processes until 5th grade.[/quote]

To respond to post 19:00:

The reason MCPS is implementing the new curriculum with the timing of a new superintendent is obvious.  It was someone's job at the Carver Center to develop the program and therefore the roll out of a "new" curriculum was needed to justify and budget the salary that person got paid (which is far more than the salary the general education teachers who work with our children get).

My children range from a high school to 2nd grade and I remember similar promises by MCPS of how great the Everyday Math program was to be when my oldest child was in elementary school.  I also heard similar concerns from parents at PTA meetings on why the county was changing the math curriculum and the impact it was going to have on students.

How much did MCPS pay for all the textbooks and teaching materials for Every Day Math and the training required to teach it?  And for what?  To totally dismantle the program less than 10 years down the road?  At least the teachers had a curriculum and text books to teach from when Every Day Math was brought on board.  As a parent, I have always relied on my child's math text books to help them with homework to reinforce the methods of solving the problems the way the teacher taught at school.  Thus far this year, I haven't seen a single math textbook for the Curriculum 2.0.  My child (who again is in 2nd grade) is only bringing home worksheets she could have done in Kindergarten.

Math is still math and 2 + 2 will always equal 4.  People get paid lots of money to come up with these new curriculums but new isn't always better.  Besides the salary issue, there is also the cost of new textbooks, worksheets, and training to implement the new curriculum.  In a time of tight budget constraints, the children in Montgomery County Public Schools would be better served with more teachers and smaller class sizes than a "new" curriculum.  Anyone who has taught would tell you 1 teacher for 30-32 kids is too many.  The smaller the class sizes the more effective the general education teacher can be in managing the many diverse needs of the children in the classroom.  Additional aides and special educators would also be beneficial to aid instruction.

Finally, I am quite concerned about the lack of information on how much progress my child has made this year under Curriculum 2.0.  For math, the report card no longer indicates if she is above grade level, on grade level, or below grade level.  Isn't this the bottom line of what most parents want to know?  Instead, the measurements are as follows:

Advanced - indicates that your child is currently working at the Advanced level in Grade 2; consistently demonstrating complete understanding of all Grade 2 mathematics content instructed during this marking period based on student work, teacher observations, and formative assessments.

(My child took 2nd grade math last year in 1st grade.  Is there any data being collected that she has made any additional progress this year if she is only being taught 2nd grade concepts?  Also, what is the definition of what's considered "complete" understanding?  100% on all work.  If a child is getting 100% on everything, the curriculum is not challenging the child.)

Proficient - indicates that your child is currently working at the Proficient level in Grade 2; demonstrating understanding of most Grade 2 mathematics content instructed during this marking period based on student work, teacher observations, and formative assessments.

(What is considered "most"?  99.9% - 51%?  Seems very subjective when the subject is math and grades, performance, and progress should be measurable)

Basic - indicates that your child is currently working at the Basic level in Grade 2; demonstrating minimal understanding of Grade 2 mathematics content instructed during this marking period based on student work, teacher observations, and formative assessments.

(What is considered "minimal"?  Again, this is a very vague term.  Does a child need to get less than 50% of the concepts to be flagged as minimal?  Also, what support is to be added for children which such designation so they can do better?  Are they ready to move on or should the information be repeated since the child is missing concepts?  How is the general education teacher supposed to meet this child's needs and the needs of the advanced student at the same time?)

[/quote]
Absolutely agree about the subjectiveness of the grades. In fact, some teachers exploit this subjectiveness to punish the students whom they don't like or whose parents they don't like. 
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