tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post6607936120418967151..comments2024-03-28T02:21:17.452-07:00Comments on Seattle Schools Community Forum: Seattle School Board Meeting, January 3, 2018Melissa Westbrookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-61089954792894930352019-10-21T05:09:18.619-07:002019-10-21T05:09:18.619-07:00Its great to know about this blog, Appreciate your...Its great to know about this blog, Appreciate your efforts with such a valuable information provided. Could you help me to find out details about <a href="https://www.auxilo.com/education-loan/studying-in-abroad-loan/" rel="nofollow">Abroad Study Loan</a>.Subhajit Royhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12641782784323167179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-50467869126631524042018-08-10T06:11:03.063-07:002018-08-10T06:11:03.063-07:00Thanks for sharing the information got to know mor...Thanks for sharing the information got to know more about <a href="https://www.incred.com/education-loan.html" rel="nofollow">refinance loan online</a><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-38707033143687181542018-01-05T15:55:06.561-08:002018-01-05T15:55:06.561-08:00Again, please, if you know someone else is using a...Again, please, if you know someone else is using a moniker, do NOT post with the same one.Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-20463533479878285292018-01-05T11:22:36.074-08:002018-01-05T11:22:36.074-08:00That is not the same Reader from prior post. Way t...That is not the same Reader from prior post. Way too over the top logically. <br /><br />Imho Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-30354158324079507992018-01-05T09:14:55.190-08:002018-01-05T09:14:55.190-08:00@Que Sera- Because I was directly responding to Re...@Que Sera- Because I was directly responding to Reader's comment attacking HC parents and insulting HC kids. I completely agree with your other points regarding finding better ways to identify and serve underserved students. We have family members who were not identified due to some of these factors. But that was not the point of Reader's post. It was to blame and target HC parents and kids. <br />Researcher Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-80393574925348821842018-01-05T09:00:04.979-08:002018-01-05T09:00:04.979-08:00South Lake High School is certainly well funded: o...South Lake High School is certainly well funded: only 74 students and 9 teachers, funded at $18,197 per student! That's about three times as much as the district spends on a lot of HCC students. Which is as it should be. Cohorting HCC students makes it much cheaper to educate them, so the district saves money on the HCC students and use that money to provide personalized mentorship programs like Standing Tall to students at South Lake.<br /><br />I do wish all the schools taught more (or any!) African history, though.Bottom Linenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-20817046166618667362018-01-05T08:27:21.048-08:002018-01-05T08:27:21.048-08:00pro-HCC, pro-diversity, good comments. It's in...pro-HCC, pro-diversity, good comments. It's interesting that those who rail against the program don't seem to want to truly find students of color who could benefit from it. Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-59766280579240153792018-01-04T23:12:40.423-08:002018-01-04T23:12:40.423-08:00I don't know about Bonnie but when my daughter...I don't know about Bonnie but when my daughter started middle school at a non-HCC school, one of her friends was placed in Algebra 1 in 6th grade and finished Algebra II in 8th, along with several other students. That was 6 years ago, so I would assume it is still happening.<br /><br />Jen<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-8984190086321477802018-01-04T22:13:51.859-08:002018-01-04T22:13:51.859-08:00Why Bother, It depends on the map scenario. The ca...Why Bother, It depends on the map scenario. The capacity coming online in 2019-20 does make a big difference. For the most overcrowded schools, that means getting "all the way" down to 100 or so over capacity. That's a lot better than 300-400 (looking at you, Ballard!), but still not great.Eric Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-91513399705392180532018-01-04T20:53:58.781-08:002018-01-04T20:53:58.781-08:00I'm surprised, Bonnie, that you find the teach...I'm surprised, Bonnie, that you find the teachers outside of HCC not to be excellent. That's a pretty harsh thing to say, and not my experience at all. Although, in my experience I believe the worst teacher my child had outside of the cohort was actually a pretty good teacher for most of the students and was only a bad teacher for my student because she wasn't able to differentiate sufficiently and didn't have any training at all in giftedness.<br /><br />And you must have tried private school, too, to evaluate that self-contained is better than private school. Again, the reason private didn't work out very well for you might be because most of the private schools aren't really geared toward gifted kids either, with a couple of (very expensive) notable exceptions. <br /><br />And you found a small range of abilities in the cohort? Really? What school were you at? What level were the kids at? Finding a room full of asynchronous kids who are all the same age and all at the same level has got to be near impossible. Likewise with the fewer behavior issues. Really? Which school? Sounds nothing like the HCC classrooms my child has been in. <br /><br />And when you got to middle school you decided to repeat two years of math? That is a very unusual choice. But I guess not being with your friends from elementary school friends was pretty important to you in middle school? Did you pretend you didn't know them in the cafeteria and refuse to sit next to them in music and sports, too? A lot of families really want their kids to be able to go to middle school with the friends they made in elementary school, so you're pretty unusual in wanting nothing to do with them anymore. But if you believe they're being unfair by demanding SPS provide them with a basic education, maybe you didn't see eye to eye and the friendships were doomed anyway. Still, it's a pretty sad story.<br /><br />I'm glad you somehow came through that and are happy in high school. That's actually amazing. And great. Good for you.<br /><br />Kind of weird that you think you should personally get to decide how the district runs its HC services based on the experiences of one student, you. But, by all means, write to the board and give them your suggestions. They love to hear from their constituents.Unusual Experiencesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-42824277201615941732018-01-04T19:57:04.845-08:002018-01-04T19:57:04.845-08:00@ Bonnie,
So that was your personal experience, g...@ Bonnie,<br /><br />So that was your personal experience, great. Ours was the opposite. Having spent more years than than you in self-contained classrooms, our experience was that private school is better. My student has learned more in private, has better teachers, is actually enjoying math and doing well in it for the first time ever, and has many fewer behavioral issues. The range of abilities in the classroom is larger in private, but the teachers handle it well, and even my HC student is sufficiently challenged. <br /><br />I'm not sure how exactly you made that "fairness"-based decision to stay out of the cohort for middle school, but I expect your child didn't particularly "need" HCC-level challenge to make it through (otherwise, as the responsible parent you no doubt are, you likely would have chosen the cohort). Or maybe you really were willing to sacrifice your own child's well-being for this idea that somehow it would make things better for everyone else if your child was miserable. <br /><br />As a previous poster noted, this isn't really about who thinks what level the cutoff should be. But I will point out that our testing can't reliably identify those at the 99.5th percentile, so we'd have to redo the testing entirely, probably going to a much more expensive process. It also wouldn't solve the diversity issue (and might make it worse). More power to you.<br /><br />Also, enough, please, with the "HCC students have poor social skills because they don't spend enough time with GE students" garbage. To the extent that they do have poor social skills, it's probably more likely to be because they don't share the same interests, and/or they have Asperger's type symptoms. <br /><br />bedtimeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-66313829563673558282018-01-04T19:03:57.083-08:002018-01-04T19:03:57.083-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.haters hate because that is all they havenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-85475201128478966072018-01-04T18:50:59.550-08:002018-01-04T18:50:59.550-08:00How am I profiling?
JSHow am I profiling? <br /><br />JSAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-35043711640444443312018-01-04T18:46:22.389-08:002018-01-04T18:46:22.389-08:00@Melissa
Are you going to call out JS on their od...@Melissa<br /><br />Are you going to call out JS on their odious profiling? <br /><br />Re. Director Harris. Yes she voted for the HCC at every high school amendment, but as the motion didn’t pass it had no effect. What she said at the most recent meeting was that she believes in equity, but we’re not there yet. This isn’t the first time she’s made such a statement. When it comes to equity and doing something concrete to address it, she equivocates and kicks the can down the road. Stalling in other words. She has no hesitancy, however, in voicing her concerns for those parents who flock to her meetings concerned about (her phrase), the college arms race. <br /><br />So who exactly Is Director Harris listening to and representing?<br /><br /><br />For progress<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-69835455697143066832018-01-04T18:36:24.085-08:002018-01-04T18:36:24.085-08:00You would have to calculate in the local populatio...You would have to calculate in the local population by race to prove some sort of segregation conspiracy. I willing to bet that Ballard attendance area is more than 75% white. For sure Roosevelt area is 95% white. Why are you only concerned about black and white ratios? I like how you leave out Ingraham, why is that? is it because that non blacks/Latino are the minority and IB is 93% non black/Latino? Isn't the white student % in the low 40 percentile? So 57% non-white and IB is 93% non black/Latino, see the problem.<br /><br />What stops people from buying a home in Ballard, it's NOT the color of their skin. It's money. Really sick of people playing the worn out redlining card.<br /><br />JSAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-8613853901977937752018-01-04T18:33:28.501-08:002018-01-04T18:33:28.501-08:00
I think the cohort should be reserved for the 99...<br /><br />I think the cohort should be reserved for the 99.5 percentile and up. I feel it does a disservice to keep the number of kids we have in the cohort from having to deal with their age peers of all academic levels in core classes.<br /><br />HARDLY ON TOPIC<br /><br />They will need the social skills later in life that they are missing by being cohorted with there CoGAT peers.<br /><br />NOT ON TOPIC - INFLAMMATORY <br /><br />KILL POST Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-796718257585941152018-01-04T18:18:20.649-08:002018-01-04T18:18:20.649-08:00Cleveland and Franklin are pretty "segregated...Cleveland and Franklin are pretty "segregated". According to OSPI for 2016-17, both were 28% Black/AA but only 7% White (in a district that was 47% White.) And one of them is an option school, so the students chose the segregation. Of course, Ballard (75% White) and Roosevelt (69% White) are "segregated" in the other direction.<br /><br />Actually Hale is about as close to un-"segregated" as you can get. Hale was 14% Black/AA students and 54% White (pretty darn close to the district's 15% Black/AA and 47% White). Great work, Hale! Shame on the other schools. Optional Segregationnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-50967990613137029232018-01-04T18:04:02.435-08:002018-01-04T18:04:02.435-08:00Having been in self-contained classrooms for three...Having been in self-contained classrooms for three years, my experience was that it was better than private school.<br /><br />Small range of abilities, motivated parents, excellent teachers, much faster pace in reading and math, higher level discussions, kids more relaxed about stretching their intellectual wings, less behavior issues, etc.<br /><br />It wasn't fair to the other other kids at the school, we decided, and we stayed out of the cohort for middle school, so we're at our local high school and happy.<br /><br />I think the cohort should be reserved for the 99.5 percentile and up. I feel it does a disservice to keep the number of kids we have in the cohort from having to deal with their age peers of all academic levels in core classes.<br /><br />They will need the social skills later in life that they are missing by being cohorted with there CoGAT peers.<br /><br />BonnieAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-55392289091016205292018-01-04T17:59:52.594-08:002018-01-04T17:59:52.594-08:00No, nothing I ever write is suggesting race base s...No, nothing I ever write is suggesting race base segregation. I don't believe there is any segregation based on race in SPS, period! There could be segregation based on skills very similar to scholastic sports segregation. Why don't people raise hell when a north-end basketball team is top loaded with imported black students. Shouldn't participation be equal based on race with each race being represented on the field or court? Of coarse not it's based on winning the game. It's based on skill and effort. <br /><br />Can minorities participate in HCC?, of coarse. Are there social economics impacts preventing participation? perhaps, but those are not isolated to minorities.<br /><br />There are countless social programs targeted at black students from K-5, MS HS and college. High FRL schools with a large minority population receive larger allocation of local funds, federal grants and charitable donations but some still claim various school are underfunded, simply ridiculous. <br /><br />It seems to me it's time for impacted but well funded SPS communities to step up and perform their civic duties and get their children educated within the current environment which includes very generous funding. Stop listening to adversarial community organizers looking for votes. Clean up the bad influences in and around your school buildings and community and perhaps things will turn around.<br /><br />JS Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-24700770257561853702018-01-04T17:26:19.576-08:002018-01-04T17:26:19.576-08:00@ JS, assuming you mean racially segregated yes, t...@ JS, assuming you mean racially segregated yes, that is a falsehood.<br /><br />Here. How about I officially kick off a "drive for un-segregated HCC by parents and advocates? Will that make you happy?<br /><br />Hey fellow HCC parents--Please join me in saying (yet again) that HCC should be more diverse! We know the importance of a academic acceleration and a cohort of intellectual peers for HC children, and we understand that the most cost-efficient way to deliver these state-mandated services is to do so via the cohort, so we still advocate for continuation of the cohort/pathway model, but we hereby state (again) that it is important for SPS to DO MORE and DO BETTER re: identifying and/or developing HC students from historically underserved groups. We understand that efforts may take time and may require more resources (i.e., the Rainier Scholars model), but we encourage you to devote resources to this efforts. Current HCC parents are willing to do what we can to help, too. Preserve access to appropriate academic challenge for current HC students, and expand access to HC for those who, for whatever reasons, have had trouble demonstrating that they, too, need HC services. <br /><br />pro-HCC, pro-diversityAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-23356807064137019652018-01-04T17:10:33.041-08:002018-01-04T17:10:33.041-08:00@ Eric B, aren't the new seats supposed to com...@ Eric B, aren't the new seats supposed to come online in one year (not counting current school year), so relief should be in 2019 not 2020?<br /><br />@ Que Sera, it may be true that "historically underserved students are systematically being deprived of needed HC services" and that "HC services are perpetuating inequity by using identification processes that virtually shut these students out," but neither suggests that we don't need HC services, or that returning HC students to their neighborhood high school is an effective solution, so I'm not sure how that's relevant to this discussion. What you should be focused on are improving the identification process, and academic (and family) supports during the early years to help develop a pipeline for HC qualification. <br /><br />@ Relax Please, that's just absurd that "gifted kids just figure it out and can't be taught by laymen" or that "gifted means entering collage [sic] at 12." Gifted children need teachers, too. And those kids who enter college early also had teachers of some sort along the way--and they'll have teachers in college, too. By your logic, why should they even go to college? They should just keep figuring it all out on their own, right? Sheesh. If you don't like the term "gifted," fine. They state, and the district, use "highly capable," so why don't you just go with that and relax (please). <br /><br />@ reader mobster, FYI, for HC students, access to accelerated learning IS basic education according to the state. So yes, "beyond what everyone else gets" WOULD be "providing a basic service." However, these AP classes we're talking about are NOT only open to HC students, so the beyond what everyone else gets idea isn't valid. It might be beyond what students at some schools with low demand for AP classes get, but that's because they have low demand--and that's why a pathway is needed for the low numbers of HC students at those schools.<br /><br />@ reader, reader mobster, and JS, show me one shred of evidence that what HCC families want is segregation and not academic rigor? The fact that many families choose a more-diverse HCC over their less-diverse AA school suggests academics are the driving force. The push for continued access to IBX (which includes classes with GE students doing IB) also suggests families want academic challenge. The push for more AP classes (open to all) does likewise. Your constant cries of segregation are misplaced, and would be better directed at our neighborhood SAP if you truly cared about the issue. <br /><br />whydoibother<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-54511840865378601192018-01-04T17:03:58.302-08:002018-01-04T17:03:58.302-08:00"With such a drive for segregated HCC" b..."With such a drive for segregated HCC" by parents and advocates I should have wrote.<br /><br />Is that a falsehood?<br /><br />JSAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-64516744488617973392018-01-04T16:42:22.651-08:002018-01-04T16:42:22.651-08:00"Director Harris’s comment that we can’t undo..."Director Harris’s comment that we can’t undo forty years of redlining seems to be an attempt to prejudice from the dais any plans to disperse privileged populations and to academically integrate classrooms."<br /><br />No, she voted at the previous Board meeting to "disperse" the HC kids. Do keep up.<br /><br />What she is pointing out is that the city is segregated and that issue falls largely to what the City allowed over decades. The district cannot change that. They did try busing and it didn't work.<br /><br />"Used creatively we can get to a much fairer play, reflective of the city we want to be and not one beholden to a shameful past." <br /><br />Okay, I'll bite. What can you do to the SAP "creatively?"<br /><br />There is no "drive" for segregated HC. It's done and the majority of Board members support changing that. You need to either listen or stop writing falsehoods.<br /><br />Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-73455147977341927872018-01-04T16:41:04.113-08:002018-01-04T16:41:04.113-08:00Don't worry there are no segregated class room...Don't worry there are no segregated class rooms in SPS. if there are, where? Details please. Is Tolley chief segregationist? <br /><br />Lie much?<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-52711428884726194462018-01-04T16:31:26.100-08:002018-01-04T16:31:26.100-08:00With such a drive for segregated HCC, it makes me ...With such a drive for segregated HCC, it makes me wonder what type of social engineering might be going on in those secluded classrooms. They could be using the NYT social justice video series to bias these groups. <br /><br />JSAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com