Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was at a PTA meeting last school year (at an MCPS ES) and a woman complained to the principal that the variety of the teaching regrading Black History Month wasn't enough for her preference. For full disclaimer: that parent is black; I am white.

I don't quiz my kids on what they are taught on the "non" math/reading stuff, but know they get into Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement.

This particular woman's words were something like "My son says it's the same thing, every year. We need to add to the program! We need to get kids more into the history!" She obviously didn't think the school did enough to teach new things.

Some MCPS elementary schools hold a wax museum event during Black History Month. I think it's put on by the 4th graders and can be a fantastic interactive vehicle for the whole school community to learn more about important and often lesser-known historical figures[b].

+1

That's really great! I wonder which schools participate?

Anonymous wrote:I was at a PTA meeting last school year (at an MCPS ES) and a woman complained to the principal that the variety of the teaching regrading Black History Month wasn't enough for her preference. For full disclaimer: that parent is black; I am white.

I don't quiz my kids on what they are taught on the "non" math/reading stuff, but know they get into Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement.

This particular woman's words were something like "My son says it's the same thing, every year. We need to add to the program! We need to get kids more into the history!" She obviously didn't think the school did enough to teach new things.

Some MCPS elementary schools hold a wax museum event during Black History Month. I think it's put on by the 4th graders and can be a fantastic interactive vehicle for the whole school community to learn more about important and often lesser-known historical figures.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids have had lessons re. MLK since Kindergarten.

Not sure what you are talking about.

+1. My kids learned about MLK every year in elementary school. I've heard very liberal parents complain that they love the MLK lessons, but maybe the schools could mix it up some years and teach a little bit about other famous Americans too.

I agree. Our school does a great job of teaching african american history starting during the Civil Right era, but NO OTHER HISTORY (it isn't on the MSA). And they mostly teach what they do teach in February.

Also the ONLY biographies my kids have read, or reports on people they have written, have been on famous African Americans, during black history month.

Nothing on famous Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Europeans of the middle ages or Renaissance, or famous scientists, mathematicians, presidents of the US, world leaders past and present; famous inventors. Nothing.

Is it because these people aren't tested on the MSA? I think so.

And maybe because there isn't a special month devoted to them. Thank goodness for Black History month in that it creates at least some opportunity to delve into biography and history in a meaningful way.

Anonymous wrote:

When you send your kid to a mass public district such as MCPS, you are going to get a core focus/curriculum and the teachers are not allowed outside of that. There is no creativity. Heck, my kids are 7 years apart and my younger one is doing THE SAME EXACT assignments that older one did. Each year, the school halls are lined with the SAME pictures/assignments/art work/ etc... This is the choice people wanted to push those test scores and say "MCPS is such a wonderful school district!!"

Wait, what? How is it possible that your children seven years apart are doing THE SAME EXACT assignments, when Curriculum 2.0 appeared between your older child and your younger child and RUINED EVERYTHING?

(My kids are 4 years apart, and yes, sometimes they do THE SAME EXACT assignments. Sometimes I think, "Oh, not that one again." Sometimes I think, "Oh how nice, that one again!" I never think, "This assignment is bad because my older kid already did it.")

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids have had lessons re. MLK since Kindergarten.

Not sure what you are talking about.

+1. My kids learned about MLK every year in elementary school. I've heard very liberal parents complain that they love the MLK lessons, but maybe the schools could mix it up some years and teach a little bit about other famous Americans too.

I agree. Our school does a great job of teaching african american history starting during the Civil Right era, but NO OTHER HISTORY (it isn't on the MSA). And they mostly teach what they do teach in February.

Also the ONLY biographies my kids have read, or reports on people they have written, have been on famous African Americans, during black history month.

Nothing on famous Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Europeans of the middle ages or Renaissance, or famous scientists, mathematicians, presidents of the US, world leaders past and present; famous inventors. Nothing.

Is it because these people aren't tested on the MSA? I think so.

When you send your kid to a mass public district such as MCPS, you are going to get a core focus/curriculum and the teachers are not allowed outside of that. There is no creativity. Heck, my kids are 7 years apart and my younger one is doing THE SAME EXACT assignments that older one did. Each year, the school halls are lined with the SAME pictures/assignments/art work/ etc... This is the choice people wanted to push those test scores and say "MCPS is such a wonderful school district!!"

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids have had lessons re. MLK since Kindergarten.

Not sure what you are talking about.

+1. My kids learned about MLK every year in elementary school. I've heard very liberal parents complain that they love the MLK lessons, but maybe the schools could mix it up some years and teach a little bit about other famous Americans too.

I agree. Our school does a great job of teaching african american history starting during the Civil Right era, but NO OTHER HISTORY (it isn't on the MSA). And they mostly teach what they do teach in February.

Also the ONLY biographies my kids have read, or reports on people they have written, have been on famous African Americans, during black history month.

Nothing on famous Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Europeans of the middle ages or Renaissance, or famous scientists, mathematicians, presidents of the US, world leaders past and present; famous inventors. Nothing.

Is it because these people aren't tested on the MSA? I think so.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This particular woman's words were something like "My son says it's the same thing, every year. We need to add to the program! We need to get kids more into the history!" She obviously didn't think the school did enough to teach new things.

This is my opinion too, actually. (I am white.) The lesson every year is, "There was segregation, and that was bad, and then Ruby Bridges went to school, and Rosa Parks sat on a bus, and Martin Luther King Jr. said, "I have a dream", and then everybody had civil rights." This is appropriate for kindergarteners, but I think that fifth graders would be ready for a bit more.

Yea -- cause there is more to black history than slavery and the civil rights movement

It's actually not an unreasonable assumption considering how top-down MCPS is run and how teachers we've interacted with have generally point to the curriculum that they must follow when asked why something is or isn't taught. Still, my posts were mainly about the two schools we've dealt with here and my disappointment and surprise vis a vis previous experience in another country, bringing the absence of teaching on this subject in our experience here into stark relief. I got some info from this discussion: many people have had a different experience and some people have a similar experience to mine. So I'm pretty much done here. Once again DCUM devolves into the re-DUH-culous.

Anonymous wrote:Wow, PPs. Mean girls much? Your experience is different than mine therefore mine couldn't possibly have happened... Wow. Just Wow.

No, but people should not assume that just because something happens or doesn't in their child's school, it is the same way across all MCPS schools! Duh.

It seems from this thread that OPs experience is quite rare compared to the majority of the County. Maybe OP should speak with specific teacher/principal to understand why her experience is an anomoly.

My 4 MCPS under 10 years old kids KNOW MLK very well and his legacy from their school lessons. like the other poster stated the only presidents they know are Washington and Lincoln and since we have been the memorial in DC umpteen times Jefferson.

I'm not invalidating the OP comments but just wanted to share my experience.

Wow, PPs. Mean girls much? Your experience is different than mine therefore mine couldn't possibly have happened... Wow. Just Wow.

OP is a liar for sure. My kids have had a lesson every year. They also know all about Rosa Parks but cannot name a president other than Washington and Lincoln.

Anonymous wrote:It is irrelevant which country. My post is about my surprise that a public school in a foreign country does a much better job, by leaps and bounds, of annually teaching and celebrating the legacy of an American hero than a supposedly top notch school system in the US.

Your OP was refuted by everyone, and your 'country' that teaches so much about MLK would likely be refuted as well. Plenty of people here from most countries.

Anonymous wrote:It is irrelevant which country. My post is about my surprise that a public school in a foreign country does a much better job, by leaps and bounds, of annually teaching and celebrating the legacy of an American hero than a supposedly top notch school system in the US.

I asked because I'm from a foreign country, and my kids spent most of their formative years in a different one--neither of which taught much about it. I was just surprised and curious. Why so reluctant to answer? And why are you such a complete bitch? Frankly, I think you're lying.