Reply to Is FCPS replacing specialized instruction with “inclusion”?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I miss the day teachers gave enrichment assignments for students who needed it. No student was labeled.[/quote]
  +1

Teachers in a mixed classroom can provide proper acceleration.  It is not that hard.  Sure, some of the instruction is targeted to the whole class, [b]but good teachers have been grouping since forever.[/b][/quote]

That's not entirely true.  In the past, kids who didn't meet a minimum standard failed the grade and needed to retake it.  Now, everyone passes and moves onto the next grade level, even if they're years below grade level and putting in no effort to fix that.  In the past, teachers perhaps had to accommodate kids ranging from slightly below grade level through several years above. [b] Now, they have to accommodate a range from many years below grade level through many years above. [/b] There's too broad of a range of abilities for effective differentiation, especially when teachers are often required by admin to give the lion's share of their time to the below grade level kids.  [/quote]

[b]The bolded may happen, but it is not common.  And, teachers are NOT required to give the lion's share of time to the below grade level kids.[/b]

As for retention, it has been many decades since we had wholesale retention.

[b]And, to get many years below grade level, you are talking about middle and high school.  
Quit exaggerating.
[/b]
You do know that teachers effectively taught in one room schoolhouses.  Not ideal, but it can be done.

[/quote]
So you've never been in a 6th grade gen ed classroom at a Title I FCPS school.  Trust me, there are 6th graders reading on a 2nd grade level.  [/quote]

If a sixth grader is reading on a second grade level and has been in school since K, there is a learning disability of some type.

[b]And, FWIW, I spent years teaching in a Title I school--where almost all the kids qualified[/b].  Teachers can provide differentiation there as in any other school.  
And, even in Title I schools you have some kids who are very, very smart.  [/quote]

I very seriously doubt that.  If you are a teacher at all or ever stepped foot into a Title I school, you'd know that some kids are chronically absent.  It's hard to make progress when you're frequently missing school.  Some other kids just aren't trying and couldn't care less about learning.  Many are ESOL of varying levels.  Brand new kids who have never attended any american schools, were years below grade level, and didn't speak a word of English were still being added to my kid's class even as late as 6th grade.

Many of my kid's teachers were fantastic.  My kid's above grade level reading group still only saw the teacher maybe once every 2 weeks for 15 minutes for language arts.  There's a limit to how much they're allowed to enrich advanced kids when there are so many higher needs kids in the classroom.  My kid was fine, since she's self motivated and used her time constructively.  i doubt the same could be said for any on or above grade level kid who has lower executive function.  [/quote]

Well, former Title I teacher here:  your experience is sad.  I taught primary grades and  always worked with all groups daily.  However, in the upper grades, I would not assume that the teacher is not providing instruction if they are advanced. The teacher does not need to hear them read out loud.  If they are advanced, they should be able to write answers rather than have face to face interaction.  One on one face time is not always needed.  If you were a teacher, you would know that.  Teachers are likely preparing lessons that you think are trivial because your kid does not get pulled aside.

[/quote]

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