Advanced Learning - Why Bother?
I mean, seriously, why does this district bother?
To explain, it was noted by several readers that the testing schedule for Advanced Learning programs is NOT in the school calendar. And, by law, they have to supply public notice (at least for APP).
You'd think the calendar, going to every single family in the district, would be the ideal place.
You'd think the first-day packets, going to every single family in the district, would be the ideal place.
You'd apparently be wrong.
So I wrote to the Board and the Superintendent:
Special Service Program
Highly Capable Students
WAC 392-170-042
Annual notification.
Annual public notification of parents and students shall be made before any major identification activity. The notice shall be published or announced in multiple ways in appropriate languages to each community in school and district publications or other media, with circulation adequate to notify parents and students throughout the district.
This is a legal obligation (at least for APP).
I respectfully ask that you send home a sheet with the first-day packets with dates and information about this program (unless the district is planning to not have it or test for it this year).
Here's the reply I received from Stephen Martin, Interim Director for AL/Highly Capable:
Your message was forwarded to me for response. You are quite right. This important notification avenue was overlooked in the flux surrounding Dr. Vaughan’s retirement last spring. I have already alerted the Public Affairs Office, and we will make sure that Advanced Learning dates are included in future.
Fortunately, there are multiple other means of notifying families. Our website www.seattleschools.org/advlearning information is frequently updated, and principals will include AL information in their school newsletters and websites. Additionally, we are sending notices to newspapers serving the various communities in the city, and to over fifty private and independent schools.
Perhaps you, too, would be willing to spread the good word!
You can see that Mr. Martin doesn't mention the first-day packets.
Here's my reply:
To explain, it was noted by several readers that the testing schedule for Advanced Learning programs is NOT in the school calendar. And, by law, they have to supply public notice (at least for APP).
You'd think the calendar, going to every single family in the district, would be the ideal place.
You'd think the first-day packets, going to every single family in the district, would be the ideal place.
You'd apparently be wrong.
So I wrote to the Board and the Superintendent:
Special Service Program
Highly Capable Students
WAC 392-170-042
Annual notification.
Annual public notification of parents and students shall be made before any major identification activity. The notice shall be published or announced in multiple ways in appropriate languages to each community in school and district publications or other media, with circulation adequate to notify parents and students throughout the district.
This is a legal obligation (at least for APP).
I respectfully ask that you send home a sheet with the first-day packets with dates and information about this program (unless the district is planning to not have it or test for it this year).
Here's the reply I received from Stephen Martin, Interim Director for AL/Highly Capable:
Your message was forwarded to me for response. You are quite right. This important notification avenue was overlooked in the flux surrounding Dr. Vaughan’s retirement last spring. I have already alerted the Public Affairs Office, and we will make sure that Advanced Learning dates are included in future.
Fortunately, there are multiple other means of notifying families. Our website www.seattleschools.org/advlearning information is frequently updated, and principals will include AL information in their school newsletters and websites. Additionally, we are sending notices to newspapers serving the various communities in the city, and to over fifty private and independent schools.
Perhaps you, too, would be willing to spread the good word!
You can see that Mr. Martin doesn't mention the first-day packets.
Here's my reply:
I appreciate the input and naturally, I'll be happy to send out the info.
I will note, however, that principals have frequently NOT included
information on AL programs (for various reasons). How will the district
monitor to make sure the information is given out at all schools? As
well, it is wrong to believe that all parents
have or use a computer. I know this from being a PTA co-president and
struggling to make sure ALL families receive notification.
Director Martin-Morris has frequently been unhappy with the
distribution of AL students in the district and it points to areas where
parents may not have access to websites. I would also note that it far
more important to make sure every single SPS school
knows than any of the private or independent schools.
Again, I stand by belief that this should be a stand-alone sheet in
the first-day packets which I know could be done because I've been in
charge of first-day packets at a couple of schools.
I doubt if I will receive any reply.
Here's the link to the Advanced Learning page:
Information and forms regarding eligibility testing for the 2014-15 school year are now available. Click on Application Forms in the menu at right. Applications are due by Thursday October 3, 2013.
Why the Application Forms wording is not a live link and you have to go to yet another page to get to them is a mystery.
We continue on this path of pretending we have Advanced Learning but it is really mostly lip service.
Sign me,
Disgusted (but not surprised)
Comments
I agree. Why is this very rational request ignored?
Unfortunate.
2cents
and
"they inherited a lot of stuff and they weren't responsible for it,"
They always blame the churn.
That doesn't negate this big flub, no one correcting it, believing the website is the be all and end all to communications with parents and, like Po3 says, blame someone else.
And that's great. But if those letters are near the deadline, it leaves families scrambling to understand what they are being told about their child and their options and less time to get the application in.
Sorry to sound so disappointed but I am.
-an SPS parent
-- D's mom
Until district administration feels that a basic education means that every kid learns at school - at every level - these kinds of shenanigans will continue. While district administration continues to regard advanced learning programs as "elitist," for kids who "will do fine" even if those programs cost exactly the same as general education, then advanced learners will continue to be denied the chance to learn at school.
SusanH
I don't think any of the Board think we need it, I don't think Mr. Banda thinks we need it, and I don't think that Mr. Tolley or Ms Heath think we need it.
I see them all in the "those kids will do just fine; they aren't the ones we should be worried about" category.
I think they are marginally grateful for the way that APP pulls hundreds of kids out of the overcrowded elementary schools in the northeast and allows the District to stuff them into an otherwise unusable building. Other than that, they find it all a great bother that messes things up for them and does nothing they find beneficial.
Bear in mind that we can never really know the mind of another - we often don't know our own minds - but I don't see any sign of interest in advanced learning among any of them. Certainly no sign of support for it. I often detect tiny indicators of distaste for the "elitism" APP and Spectrum (not ALOs).
Think about it. What have they ever done FOR these programs? Nothing. What have they done TO these programs? Split them, dissolved them, restricted access to them, moved them, created (or allowed) massive teacher turnover, toyed with them, shoved them into discarded spaces, and they have never kept a single promise ever made to any advanced learning community.
Then they have the gall to tell people that they support Advanced Learning. HA! Next time one of them says that, ask them for three examples of how they have supported advanced learning.
-jaded
Has he ever done anything about it? No.
Ditto for Director Patu.
There is nothing stopping any Board member from setting up an informational session for AL for their region.
But they don't.
Director Martin-Morris was taking a shot at advanced learning programs, implying that they are classist and racist. He wasn't doing anything positive for anyone.
Then the committee is dismissed - for no apparent reason. Everyone pointed to someone else for dismissing the committee.
Then we are told that the committee will be re-formed, but it hasn't been.
Then we are told that new advisory committees will be formed, only they haven't been.
So we see exactly what we have seen for the past ten years: a series of new, fresh reasons for why the District can't even begin the discussion of advanced learning, the discussion that the District has said that they want to have for the past ten years. I guess they can always invent some rationale for why they can't have this discussion right now, but they will promise to have it soon.
They act as if no one has noticed that they have maintained this failure for a decade.
–Sara
AL Everywhere