Wednesday Open Thread
I attended both the Board Audit&Finance committee meeting and the Curriculum&Instruction committee meeting this week. Interesting discussions at both that I will be writing about soon. I note that the only school board candidate at either meeting, was Lisa Rivera Smith who was at the C&I meeting. This was a bit of a disappointment as these last committee meetings of the year are key ones. Plus, the sooner that candidates understand the scope of the work the better. The learning curve for the Board is huge and I think that surprises many new directors.
Great article at The Atlantic by local rich guy, Nick Hanauer, called Better Schools Won't Fix America. He gets it half right:
Great article at The Atlantic by local rich guy, Nick Hanauer, called Better Schools Won't Fix America. He gets it half right:
All told, I have devoted countless hours and millions of dollars to the simple idea that if we improved our schools—if we modernized our curricula and our teaching methods, substantially increased school funding, rooted out bad teachers, and opened enough charter schools—American children, especially those in low-income and working-class communities, would start learning again. Graduation rates and wages would increase, poverty and inequality would decrease, and public commitment to democracy would be restored.
Comments
You have to be kidding me! this is the same group that colluded with a past (fired) special ed. director in kick backs and other nefarious things. Does the board pay attention to anything.
SPED Parent
--watching
JJ
JJ, I think that teachers and principals are okay to speak; I don't like when JSCEE staff take spots.
--watching
My roof has a 25year warranty and the roof on African American Academy K-8 can't be that old. What's going on ? Doesn't anyone question these over the top contracts?
--watching
--watching
A Message from the Social Studies Teachers: The Social Studies Department invites you to learn more about the integration of Social Studies Classes for the 2019-20 school year. We are hosting an evening event on June 20th, 6 pm to share our vision.
It has become increasingly apparent that the segregation of students in Social Studies based on the academic services they receive is neither sustainable nor the right thing to do, especially because it has racially segregated our students and school community. Social Studies teachers have committed to integrating all three grade levels for the 2019-20 school year in order to support one another in this process.
We know that there will be new and different challenges for ourselves, our students, the WMS community, and families; however, we are ready to step up to this challenge because we believe it is what is best for our students, our classes, our families, and the whole community.More information about this change will be shared at a community meeting in the WMS Library on June 20th at 6 pm. Our goal with this change is that WMS become part of a consistent experience that can address long-simmering segregation issues while providing new approaches to Social Studies rigor for everyone. Please join us on June 20th, 2019 at 6 pm in the WMS Library to learn more.
Thank you, Washington Middle School Social Studies Department
Innit together
One wouldn't think there is a huge financial crisis at SPS the way they are spending money!
All unnecessary spending should be frozen immediately.
Tax payer
Poppy
Our hope was that the five (5) students that needed Algebra 2 during their 8th grade year would be able to go off campus and take this course at Lincoln. Currently, Lincoln is unable to offer any seats, due to the continued enrollment of High School students to their program. If seats were to come available, we would not know until September.
At this time, we would like to offer you information so that your family can prepare. HIMS can schedule your child for either an EARLY release or LATE start thus making the Algebra 2 course a “homeschooled” class. How this works is that each family would complete an “intent to homeschool” form with SPS Cascade Partnership program, at which time you would contact Ms. Peila at elpeila@seattleschools.org and decide if a late start or early release works best for your child other scheduling needs.
Please note that when a student is homeschooled they are not considered a full time SPS student and would need to arrive late (no earlier than 10 minutes before the start of 2nd period) or leave the building early (no later than 10 minutes after the end of 5th period) depending on schedule. Ms. Powers will instruct you on the check in/check out process, your child will be able to sign themselves in or out as needed per adjusted schedule, with your written permission. This “part-time” SPS schooling, will not impact full time enrollment status for High School.
Per the 6th grade letter when you accepted the invitation for your student to start AL 1 in 6th grade, taking the AL 2 class in 8th grade online if Lincoln was not available is at family expense and HIMS does not offer a “study hall” for this class.
We will continue to work with Lincoln and will let you know if during the summer, they are able to make seats available to HIMS 8th grade students.
Please visit the OSPI Website http://www.k12.wa.us/ALD/Providers/ApprovedProviders.aspx for a list of approved online providers.
When your student enrolls into High School for the 2020-2021 school year, you would present your “certificate” of completion from an approved SPS/OSPI online program to the High School Counselor and your student will be placed in the appropriate next level of Math. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.
You will receive a mailed letter this week.
Respectfully,
Dorian Manza
Principal
Hamilton International Middle School
Did they tell you it was because it was slow simmering racism? Or just everyday pedological malpractice for the HCC.
EBG yikes
educate yourself
Amplify This
Horse Pony and Poppy, could you please be more specific? What is being said that bothers you?
The focus of support and equity is for children of color under the poverty line. However another issue IMO is that some families with median middle class incomes ($20,000 more than poverty line perhaps) also get lumped in with the "wealthy". Especially if they are also white or Asian. It's tough to make it as a family in this city on that income! The real wealthy's income has grown exponentially, especially baby boomers who have seen incredible property value appreciation, while middle class families struggling. Many of us have backgrounds where we may have been first generation middle class. We have no advocates, have struggled to rent or buy fixers near better schools, yet face big cuts at our public schools, and are now told we are "privileged". Geez, many are just trying to survive and have their kid be able to get into a four year state college.
MK
The Horse and Pony shows at the John Stanford Center are getting old. As previously stated, the board needs to recognize that the vast majority of those in Seattle Public Schools are not at the board meetings.
I see these policies, implemented by Anna Box, as punishment for students eager to excel in math. Any kid who wants or needs to break out of the academic mold prescribed by the district will suffer what amounts to exile.
As a result of these experiences, I believe the district administration is populated by truly cruel people who get a certain amount of satisfaction out of tormenting district families and students. I wouldn't say this if I hadn't experienced it first hand.
-Cynic
It is the school's responsibility to provide as much appropriate education for each student as is reasonably possible with the available resources. One would hope that would include math for every student; however the fact that the school can't arrange to provide math for a student doesn't mean the school is not responsible for providing some kind of educational experience.
If your student is in this situation, and you prefer late arrival or early dismissal, then by all means choose whichever you prefer; but if for example you cannot provide the extra transportation, or your student just wants to be in school, then let the school know that your student will be in the building and you expect a full day of whatever education is available.
Math Homeschooler
It does get much easier in high school where they are actually set up for study periods and part-time Running Start students.
Music Mom
1. I don't know that middle school has specific requirements for number of years taken of a subject. So, students may not need a math class that SPS approves or that is approved by the state.
2. However, students may want that class to be approved so it counts for high school graduation.
3. My son took a health class through one of the approved providers. It was a reasonable class for health. But would the approach of the online providers work for a subject that is such a foundation for the future, namely Algebra 2? That is very hard to know. Often these online classes seem set up for credit retrieval, or minimums, not for depth and challenge, and a foundation for STEM.
4. I therefore think it is worth looking into classes from Art of Problem Solving, from Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth, and possibly other programs. These programs are not on the approved OSPI list. Therefore, the state will not pay for them. In the situation these parents are in, I'm not sure if SPS is offering to pay for these classes or not. Note AOPS has a physical office in Kirkland where they offer classes.
5. A way to get credit AND take classes from CTY / AOPS is to work with an accredited program, like Academy Northwest, that transcripts for home school. Students work with a teacher, demonstrate work, and can get high school credit.
6. A big question to ask about any online program is what is the form of instruction? Is it live teacher, recorded teacher lectures with teacher support available, or just self-study? What works for one student may not work for another.
To close, I would definitely look at the depth of problems in any program. If all they care about is alignment with common core, and the homework looks very simple, then it may not be a good foundation.
I hope there will be updates of what these parents end up doing.
Stuart
I don't mind some spending, but I get aggravated that most of the board is basically tech illiterate so they don't ask the right questions or question why SPS employees do not have the skills to support a web-site or use a spread sheet. They spend other peoples money like it's other peoples money.
Maybe they all just wanted to go out with a bang and rambled on on ?
New board
Note: If you're taking Alg 2 in 8th grade, you should be ok in high school (precalc in 9th, calc in 10th, then you can do RS if your school doesn't offer anything higher). If you're taking Alg 2 in 7th or 6th, you may be out of luck for middle and high school both, so prepare for a long road of taking this on yourselves. Your kid will probably get a better math education that way (if you choose wisely), but it can be a pain. I agree with Stuart that CTY is a good option, and EPGY worked well for us as well (although it has changed since then, so not sure anymore). Unfortunately, both CTY and EPGY are expensive, so so much for equity. Maybe they offer scholarships?
That HIMS won't work with families to allow students to do their "home-schooled" math on campus in these few instances is shameful. Let the kids do their freakin math. Why can't they sit in another math class and work on their own thing? These are self-driven kids, and they won't take up a bunch of the teacher's time. If anything, they'll save the teacher time and allow them to focus more on other students--plus, the district will still get the money for keeping these butts in seats.
free money
Is this another example of SPS dumbing down the curriculum for high achievers?
Curious
Master Schedule
Mom3
• Pushing a screen-based curriculum that has been proven to lead to *worse* outcomes for kids of color, and reinforcing the growing privilege of people with more money being the only ones who get human interactions
• Attacking specialized classes and basically telling parents to take their kids out of SPS in order to get the classes they need, such as Algebra 2.
There's a school of thought that suggests that meeting any need presented by a child whose parents have privilege is somehow inequitable. It's not. Because when those needs get neglected, you're telling those parents to rely on their privilege. And thus the privilege becomes more important than ever before.
The way to break down inequities is to meet the need of every child in a public school. All of them. And that means kids who are furthest from educational justice will have more money spent on them and that's good, but it doesn't come at the expense of meeting other needs. We reject scarcity thinking. We don't rob Peter to pay Paul. Instead, what's happening is a two tier educational system is being created, where public schooling is a pretty rudimentary and barebones system that barely meets anyone's needs, whereas those who have money can go get the needs met elsewhere.
I can't think of a system more inequitable than that. But that's exactly what is being built right now and it's being built by those who claim to put equity first.
Justice
I believe these kids might have been impacted by a decision by Cascadia@Lincoln not to offer any recommendations for Algebra 1 placement for 6th graders that year. I remember that caused lots of confusion and each middle school handled it differently. I hope that elementary schools have a different policy in place now, but it sounds like from what @Mom3 is reporting that things may not have changed.
-nh
https://lastrealindians.com/news/2019/6/12/june-13-2019-a-succesful-native-youth-program-faces-eviction-from-seattle-public-schools
A Succesful Native Youth Program Faces Eviction from Seattle Public Schools
HP
"The way to break down inequities is to meet the need of every child in a public school. All of them. And that means kids who are furthest from educational justice will have more money spent on them and that's good, but it doesn't come at the expense of meeting other needs. We reject scarcity thinking. We don't rob Peter to pay Paul. Instead, what's happening is a two tier educational system is being created, where public schooling is a pretty rudimentary and barebones system that barely meets anyone's needs, whereas those who have money can go get the needs met elsewhere."
I could not agree with this more. I recall someone else on this blog calling this approach "drop-ceiling equity," and it's very apt.
I keep waiting for someone at SPS, or at any school, to acknowledge that this is the intent, that this is what the district is aiming for. I would respect the leadership much more if they'd simply own up to it so that parents can decide what's best for their kids.
Ruthie
The Executive Committee passed a resolution. Zachary DeWolf touts the fact that they passed a Community Workforce Agreement task force resolution. Hint: Passing resolutions are easy. Implementing the work, finding a consistent funding stream and implementation is the hard part. Makes for a good campaign slogan, though.
It wasn't that long ago when a task force passed an elementary school science adoption without adequate funding.
The district is a dysfunctional mess.
You both nailed it. Absolutely nailed it. The big corporations, the billionaires, and the ed reformers have figured out how to use equity language to convince progressives to turn against their values (and even their own unions!) and embrace the kind of aggressive ed reform agenda that we were all rejecting just a few years ago. A lot of people who should know better are being played by this fake equitywashing. I guess we all who actually understand what equity is and who truly support it are going to have to soldier on in the face of a lot of bullying and hate. But then again, that's what we've always had to do in order to fight for justice for every child.
Prachanda
You get what you pay for, and in SPS, that means you have to augment. (Not that we don't pay through the nose in taxes.)
AOPS alum
Thats EDM speak
BOOFYA
BOOFYA
JT
@Prachandra
I agree. I can remember when the social justice warriors in SEA were ranting against corporate interests in education having our students data and now SEA, in the name of equity, has no problem at all giving that data to the big business that owns Amplify. I wonder why that is.
Teresa
It sounds like you might be the only teacher willing to speak out against JSW and the activist teachers that have ruined the public schools for many kids. Turning students against their parents is exactly how communist regimes take power.
Rain storms start with one drop...thanks for being a drop of truth.
Overcome ranting
unclear