Reply to Where are all you families of high performing students planning on moving to?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I've always been glass half empty, as as the years have passed, I've continued to note a downward spiral in expectations/rigor and discipline, which go hand-in-hand.

My husband, however, is not an alarmist. So he caught my attention when he said that [b]MCPS would soon implode[/b].

In a system this large, autonomy doesn't exist, as autonomous decisions are no longer valued.  Therefore, it's forced to conform to a "one size fits all" structure, where no student's needs are fully met unless a parent becomes an integral component in his/her kid's learning.

Those who can will pay for enrichment and will stay on top of their kids.  Teachers can only do so much, and once the system adopts online curriculum K-12 (it's coming), there's really no need for teachers. The APEX program is proof of that b/c kids can click through a series of lessons with little interaction with a teacher.

It's not about learning; it's about getting through the material. That's the case now.  Teachers have such large classes that feedback is a now a thing of the past.

And if a student is disruptive, it's the teacher's fault. suspensions?  expulsions? lol what??

It's sad that so few parents see this.  But if education isn't your thing, you wouldn't know. I'd encourage all of you to spend a day at your kids' schools.  It's eye-opening.[/quote]

I keep reading that on DCUM, and every time, I wonder what specifically the poster means, besides "In my opinion, MCPS is getting worse."

Also, classes used to be larger.[/quote]

You don't get it, and I don't expect you to either.  Your last comment is ignorant (not your fault).  Larger class sizes where kids are at similar levels doesn't necessarily ruin instruction.  It's not impossible to teach 30 kids who are all reading and writing at grade level or above.

But when an inclusion class of 32 (not lying here) has 16 kids with IEPs, with a sprinkling (maybe 5) at grade level, instruction is overshadowed by management. Even with two teachers in the classroom (And in most cases, it's an instructional assistant and not a fully certified special educator.), flexible grouping becomes tiresome b/c of management issues often stemming from uneven pacing.

I won't go into details, however.

Just try to recognize that erosion on a daily basis isn't alarming b/c you simply become used to less and less as time moves on. But at some point something will give. That's when there's the implosion - when the supports are gone and blame is placed upon teachers.

You can listen or you can pretend my words are nonsense.  But when you don't understand education, my words will indeed be filed in the "nonsense category."

no thanks - been there, done that - on to greener pastures[/quote]

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