I grew up in Montgomery County, Maryland, an affluent area with some of the most amazing public schools. I attended one, Washington Grove, for kindergarten. At that time, kindergarten was half-day and it may have been parental choice.
But then I went to parochial school (Go Crusaders sounds rather impolitic now) and then all-girls Catholic prep school. Holy Cross Tartans - less offensive sounding, although a sandwich called a Tartan was served in the cafeteria.
One thing I always knew about teachers in parochial schools was that they made less. They were just as well educated but sacrificed a bit of cash and a bunch of long-term retirement cash to teach in a religious school. This was for diverse reasons - more freedom in regard to testing and curriculum and teaching, belief in the religion and its philosophy toward education and maybe even to assure themselves of having more students that were there ready to learn. That last reason is perhaps controversial, but I do not remember my mother signing my homework every night or even having a parent refuse to help with schoolwork (as happened constantly to one of my daughter's classmates one year).
That occurred to me the other night when I attended the Community meeting for the Wilde Lake High School cluster schools at Slayton House. All the principals (except Harper's Choice) gave a brief overview of their school, challenges they have overcome and programs they offer.
They answered some questions from the audience although they tinted the answers with rose-colored glasses.
Sample: Q: Does testing preparation take too much time away from teaching?
A: Testing prep IS actually teaching the material.
How is having my daughter take the fourth-grade PARCC tests for reading and math teaching her the sixth and seventh grade material she normally is taught in her fifth grade G/T classes? (Responses to responses were not solicited, though, so I blog...) (NOTE: I am NOT against common core. I am against high-stakes testing.)
Back to my original thought:
One of the principals mentioned "case managers." My husband and I turned to each other. Case managers? Another principal mentioned "meeting the students where they are" and "knowing the students" has reduced suspensions and attendance rates have risen.
That doesn't mean I'm not continuing along the path we've taken. But it increases my respect for our public school teachers. They have to deal with way more challenges than my teachers did. Not that we didn't get detentions, we did. But fights in our hallways were more likely to be "Did you hear what Annie said about Josie?" Although I do wish a teacher had stepped in to stop that first grader from chasing me with a cicada when I was 11. STILL scarred.
Further complicating that matter is the school system's response to a union survey of its members. You can find out more from my friend Julia's well-written essay here. The system downplayed the response from almost 4,000 teachers and school personnel basically calling it a flawed, questionable survey from union hacks. That's because they don't like the results.
I, for one, am not a union hack. I'm an accountant. I'm "management." I do believe that unions are sometimes a problem in situations, a la Detroit's Big Three automakers. But having viewed the work of Howard County teachers and spoken to many of them, they are not the problem. They are the solution and they should be involved in so many more of the decisions that are imposed from on high by fiat. And they're a resource that we already have.
Friday, March 27, 2015
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Let's go to Kindergarten!
What a scary/exciting/fun/awful/new experience kindergarten can be!
That struck me again last night as I listened to a Howard County kindergarten teacher talk about the importance of paraeducators in her life. No, that's not correct. She talked about the importance of paraeducators in kindergarteners' lives.
Because as I noted initially, kindergarten is a crazy time for a child. What do you remember about kindergarten?
I remember that I got to have chocolate milk, which was so much better than the white milk I struggled to finish every night.
I remember nap/quiet time, which was hard for me - trying to fall asleep during daylight was rough.
I remember drawing a house many days and having essentially the same story for that house everyday. I think I may have drawn houses when I couldn't sleep.
I remember that it was only a couple of hours each day.
These are not memories that my daughter will have of kindergarten. My daughter may remember playing math races with teddy bears in kindergarten. She may think of working on her sight words. I can remember, from my volunteering in her classroom, helping kids work on their letters ("No, that's a p, not a d.") while her teacher and paraeducator worked with small groups on reading at their various levels.
I remember thinking, How do they do this when there aren't any parent volunteers? How do four kindergarten teachers manage with only one paraeducator?
How will kindergarten teachers manage with thirty fewer paraeducators next year? Why do they have to? Because we have to finance a Gallup survey? Because we have to outsource legal services at a cost of $1 million over the previous administration?
Kindergarten is not the way it used to be. (I'm leaving out the developmental arguments now - the system exists and will for the foreseeable future.) If kindergarten class sizes increase, which they will under this budget, the impact on these little kids will be felt throughout the elementary school and throughout their progress in the school system.
The ripple effect is just as important, which this teacher noted. She thanked us for focusing on the impact she will sustain but she encouraged us to think about the greater systemic challenges.
Throwing this pebble into the school pond may have 13 years of impact, growing larger and larger. You can never get that pebble back.
That struck me again last night as I listened to a Howard County kindergarten teacher talk about the importance of paraeducators in her life. No, that's not correct. She talked about the importance of paraeducators in kindergarteners' lives.
Because as I noted initially, kindergarten is a crazy time for a child. What do you remember about kindergarten?
I remember that I got to have chocolate milk, which was so much better than the white milk I struggled to finish every night.
I remember nap/quiet time, which was hard for me - trying to fall asleep during daylight was rough.
I remember drawing a house many days and having essentially the same story for that house everyday. I think I may have drawn houses when I couldn't sleep.
I remember that it was only a couple of hours each day.
These are not memories that my daughter will have of kindergarten. My daughter may remember playing math races with teddy bears in kindergarten. She may think of working on her sight words. I can remember, from my volunteering in her classroom, helping kids work on their letters ("No, that's a p, not a d.") while her teacher and paraeducator worked with small groups on reading at their various levels.
I remember thinking, How do they do this when there aren't any parent volunteers? How do four kindergarten teachers manage with only one paraeducator?
How will kindergarten teachers manage with thirty fewer paraeducators next year? Why do they have to? Because we have to finance a Gallup survey? Because we have to outsource legal services at a cost of $1 million over the previous administration?
Kindergarten is not the way it used to be. (I'm leaving out the developmental arguments now - the system exists and will for the foreseeable future.) If kindergarten class sizes increase, which they will under this budget, the impact on these little kids will be felt throughout the elementary school and throughout their progress in the school system.
The ripple effect is just as important, which this teacher noted. She thanked us for focusing on the impact she will sustain but she encouraged us to think about the greater systemic challenges.
Throwing this pebble into the school pond may have 13 years of impact, growing larger and larger. You can never get that pebble back.
Saturday, March 7, 2015
The library is open!
Other parents may rant and rave about schools being closed with all this four-letter-word crap that has imprisoned us for several days this year...this month!
Admission: I have been suffering the DTs over my library not being open. It's been closed three or four days this week. On Sunday, I wanted to laugh it off as "We made such a mess at Evening in the Stacks" but it was only ONE branch. (And believe me, the amount of work done to transform Miller branch is monumental.) I had even had a thought on Saturday, faced with the impending ice storm, to see if I could borrow a book. Where would I have stored it? In my evening bag that could barely fit my phone? But I mentally slapped my wrist and realized that would seem CRAZY.
On Tuesday, I picked up my requests, figuring they would tide me over. Not so much.
A book for Lil.
An audiobook - Wolf Hall - because the BBC has produced a version of this amazing book with Damian Lewis and Luke needs to refresh his memory for the PBS airing in the spring. He commutes to McLean, VA most days so he can get through a book lickety-split on his drive. In paper, it would take a month of Sundays, which he usually works on these days, so audio is a winner!
A book for me. I felt rejuvenated to explore a new author. Alas, it was so hard to follow and seems to be based on a cheating scandal about the West Ham football club. I rarely give up on a book, but I couldn't do it.
I had thirty pages in The Outcast to go and no good book to anticipate.
Howard County notified parents of Friday's closure on Thursday at 6:30 PM. I was distressed, yes. Annoyed, perplexed, etc.
The library notified us at 9:31 PM that they'd remain closed Friday as well.
And I began to wish that I had browsed the stacks that fun evening in the stacks.
Admission: I have been suffering the DTs over my library not being open. It's been closed three or four days this week. On Sunday, I wanted to laugh it off as "We made such a mess at Evening in the Stacks" but it was only ONE branch. (And believe me, the amount of work done to transform Miller branch is monumental.) I had even had a thought on Saturday, faced with the impending ice storm, to see if I could borrow a book. Where would I have stored it? In my evening bag that could barely fit my phone? But I mentally slapped my wrist and realized that would seem CRAZY.
On Tuesday, I picked up my requests, figuring they would tide me over. Not so much.
A book for Lil.
An audiobook - Wolf Hall - because the BBC has produced a version of this amazing book with Damian Lewis and Luke needs to refresh his memory for the PBS airing in the spring. He commutes to McLean, VA most days so he can get through a book lickety-split on his drive. In paper, it would take a month of Sundays, which he usually works on these days, so audio is a winner!
A book for me. I felt rejuvenated to explore a new author. Alas, it was so hard to follow and seems to be based on a cheating scandal about the West Ham football club. I rarely give up on a book, but I couldn't do it.
I had thirty pages in The Outcast to go and no good book to anticipate.
Howard County notified parents of Friday's closure on Thursday at 6:30 PM. I was distressed, yes. Annoyed, perplexed, etc.
The library notified us at 9:31 PM that they'd remain closed Friday as well.
And I began to wish that I had browsed the stacks that fun evening in the stacks.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Still world class?
As loyal readers to this page know, I've become more involved in the educational system and the sausage-making of our Howard County school budget. And it IS sausage-making. Ugly.
Today, the Board of Education, a group I'm increasingly disenchanted with, voted to ignore the voices of the Howard County community and cut more than 60 paraeducator positions. They would say they're being "reallocated," but that's coded language. And for those of you who say, Hey KC, there was an election in November - I don't remember any candidate saying they wanted to cut dozens of jobs for a growing school district. Maybe I was focused on other things, but that doesn't ring a bell. Secondly, part of the Board was not up for election in November.
These cuts affect ALL children. If kindergarten has 4 teachers for 80 kids, 1 paraeducator makes the ratio fall from 20:1 to 16:1. That's a major difference, loyal readers! In high school, cutting the media service staff will prevent kids from getting research help in an everchanging environment. There are new tools and resources every year and trying to find the right one is frustrating. '
What can you do?
Thank heavens that the Board is NOT the final say on the budget. Or thank the county's previous legislators. The budget CAN be changed before it's implemented!
Send emails to County Executive Allan Kittleman, find your County Council member here, and contact them.
Interested in learning more? And having pizza too??? Here's some information from the dedicated team of the HCEA:
"Please join HCEA for an open community meeting on Tuesday, March 3rd, 5PM in the Centennial HS cafeteria. We will clarify the impact of the cuts and develop strategy for the next part of the process. RSVP here to give us an idea of how much pizza we need!"
If you want to sustain, at the very least, the impressive school system we have, please find a way to advocate for our kids. Even if you don't have kids, your opinion can still make a difference.
Thanks for listening!
Today, the Board of Education, a group I'm increasingly disenchanted with, voted to ignore the voices of the Howard County community and cut more than 60 paraeducator positions. They would say they're being "reallocated," but that's coded language. And for those of you who say, Hey KC, there was an election in November - I don't remember any candidate saying they wanted to cut dozens of jobs for a growing school district. Maybe I was focused on other things, but that doesn't ring a bell. Secondly, part of the Board was not up for election in November.
These cuts affect ALL children. If kindergarten has 4 teachers for 80 kids, 1 paraeducator makes the ratio fall from 20:1 to 16:1. That's a major difference, loyal readers! In high school, cutting the media service staff will prevent kids from getting research help in an everchanging environment. There are new tools and resources every year and trying to find the right one is frustrating. '
What can you do?
Thank heavens that the Board is NOT the final say on the budget. Or thank the county's previous legislators. The budget CAN be changed before it's implemented!
Send emails to County Executive Allan Kittleman, find your County Council member here, and contact them.
Interested in learning more? And having pizza too??? Here's some information from the dedicated team of the HCEA:
"Please join HCEA for an open community meeting on Tuesday, March 3rd, 5PM in the Centennial HS cafeteria. We will clarify the impact of the cuts and develop strategy for the next part of the process. RSVP here to give us an idea of how much pizza we need!"
If you want to sustain, at the very least, the impressive school system we have, please find a way to advocate for our kids. Even if you don't have kids, your opinion can still make a difference.
Thanks for listening!
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
World Class Whatsits
The Howard County Public School System touts its desire to be a world-class educational system. My daughter goes to a "World Class Elementary Education Pilot School." When I Googled "world class HCPSS," I got more than five pages of results.
I do not question that our American educational system pales in comparison to other developed countries. Some people disregard these tests and metrics, but I believe them, because I feel them in many areas as I interact with people. Try asking your friends how they would feel if Russia invaded Georgia and see what the result is.
A large part of the problem is the vast amount of school districts the US has - more than 13,000 in 2002. The lack of uniformity amongst those districts - size, taxing authority, curriculum, etc. - does not help matters. Which is one reason I'm generally in favor of Common Core - college freshmen should have a similar preparation regardless of state. (And for the record, I think the Department of Education is not quite constitutional.) Teachers in HCPSS have told me before that a kid coming from Texas is more than a year behind their cohort here. That's sad.
So, on the face of it, I agree - we should aim for an education that is competitive with other developed, wealthy countries.
But I don't always see that as part of our reason for having that as a goal.
Call me cynical. But I wonder if it's something else. More in the Gordon Gekko "Greed is Good" vein.
Is the purpose of HCPSS to educate our kids or to increase our property values?
We've all heard stories of people who move in with family members, crowding into townhomes and apartments, in order to get a Howard County education.
Ducketts Lane Elementary is a brand new school - not even two years old. Have you driven the Route 1 corridor of Elkridge lately? Do so before spring comes. Because you can see the explosion of housing over there without the leaves on the trees. Ducketts is forecast to be one-third over capacity next year, which has led the county to end the RECC program there to make space.
Given these increased student forecasts, but no analogous staffing increase, how do we continue to make our schools world-class?
Our property values may be high now, based on our historically school system performance. But sustaining them? Call me a pessimist on that one. And educating ALL of our kids to make it in the "real world"? Call me Eeyore:
"It's snowing still," said Eeyore gloomily.
"So it is."
"And freezing."
"Is it?"
"Yes," said Eeyore. "However," he said, brightening up a little, "we haven't had an earthquake lately."
The House at Pooh Corner
(Full disclosure: I am a part of the Citizens Operating Budget Review Committee for the FY2016 Howard County Public School System. You can find more information here. My views here are my own.)
I do not question that our American educational system pales in comparison to other developed countries. Some people disregard these tests and metrics, but I believe them, because I feel them in many areas as I interact with people. Try asking your friends how they would feel if Russia invaded Georgia and see what the result is.
A large part of the problem is the vast amount of school districts the US has - more than 13,000 in 2002. The lack of uniformity amongst those districts - size, taxing authority, curriculum, etc. - does not help matters. Which is one reason I'm generally in favor of Common Core - college freshmen should have a similar preparation regardless of state. (And for the record, I think the Department of Education is not quite constitutional.) Teachers in HCPSS have told me before that a kid coming from Texas is more than a year behind their cohort here. That's sad.
So, on the face of it, I agree - we should aim for an education that is competitive with other developed, wealthy countries.
But I don't always see that as part of our reason for having that as a goal.
Call me cynical. But I wonder if it's something else. More in the Gordon Gekko "Greed is Good" vein.
Is the purpose of HCPSS to educate our kids or to increase our property values?
We've all heard stories of people who move in with family members, crowding into townhomes and apartments, in order to get a Howard County education.
Ducketts Lane Elementary is a brand new school - not even two years old. Have you driven the Route 1 corridor of Elkridge lately? Do so before spring comes. Because you can see the explosion of housing over there without the leaves on the trees. Ducketts is forecast to be one-third over capacity next year, which has led the county to end the RECC program there to make space.
Given these increased student forecasts, but no analogous staffing increase, how do we continue to make our schools world-class?
Our property values may be high now, based on our historically school system performance. But sustaining them? Call me a pessimist on that one. And educating ALL of our kids to make it in the "real world"? Call me Eeyore:
"It's snowing still," said Eeyore gloomily.
"So it is."
"And freezing."
"Is it?"
"Yes," said Eeyore. "However," he said, brightening up a little, "we haven't had an earthquake lately."
The House at Pooh Corner
(Full disclosure: I am a part of the Citizens Operating Budget Review Committee for the FY2016 Howard County Public School System. You can find more information here. My views here are my own.)
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Paraeducators are awesome!
Dear Board members,
My daughter has been a student at Running Brook Elementary
for almost six years and will attend Wilde Lake Middle School this fall.
The proposed budget reallocates Para-Educators positions next year, in addition to increasing class sizes. I am troubled to find out that a core part of her great experience at Running Brook is being diminished. When she entered kindergarten, she had the benefit of two college-educated parents who were able to supplement her wonderful preschool experience. Having volunteered in her kindergarten class, I know that not every student comes to kindergarten with those advantages. As I volunteered over the past few years, I saw firsthand how each grade needs its individual paraeducators. Kindergarten and first grade are the foundations of the rest of public education. Paraeducators are not a want, they are a need for this population.
Despite not being certified in education, they are
well-educated people, many with bachelor’s degrees, and assist teachers in
so many ways. These team members facilitate smaller groups and more
individualized instruction for those who need extra help. They are the unsung
heroes of every classroom team, although I believe Running Brook does do a
great job of recognizing our amazing paraeducators.
People of my parents’ generation often say to me “We had 40
kids in our classes when we were young.” But that was a different classroom
without inclusion of multiple cognitive levels and the emotional and
socioeconomic factors we encounter today. Paraeducators are able to contribute
amongst three or four classrooms in the same grade without disruption to the
room. Positions should not be reduced from
current levels. This proposal is not a spreading of resources; rather, it is a
stretching of already tight resources.
Another concern that has become clear over the past few
years is the lack of respect for teachers in our system. The adversarial system
is supposed to operate in our legal system, not our educational system. These
one-year contracts, programs like the Elementary School Model and disrespect
for fine arts teachers and paraeducators are driving teachers away, whether to
other counties or other professions.
Please consider that our current status as a great school
system is rooted in decisions made several years ago. Those policies have been
working. Adding additional proven programs
is fine, but not at the expense of ones that have a proven track record.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Utility
This is a more introspective post than usual so apologies if you're here for Howard County politics, whiskers on kittens or updates on my ballerina.
I had a moment this morning where I was angry at myself and wished I was not here. And then I thought, But the hubby & the ballerina need you.
I'm useful.
That actually made me feel worse. Yes, having a sense of purpose is good. But just feeling like someone needs you to make sure the bills are paid, the fridge is stocked and the heat is on isn't always a purpose.
I've said before that I seem to be a professional patient. I had tried to leave that behind. But my blood pressure is up and my psoriasis is making itself known. That makes me grumpy and frustrated. No question that I think "Better living through chemistry" - but feeling like I spend my time in doctors' offices seems "un"-purposeful. My elementary school-aged daughter has gone to her pediatrician twice in the last two years - for her annual checkup. At least she doesn't have my immune system!
I'm OK - don't worry about me. Just a gloomy January getting me down. I'm more annoyed that I ate too much at lunch and I'm still uncomfortably full.
I had a moment this morning where I was angry at myself and wished I was not here. And then I thought, But the hubby & the ballerina need you.
I'm useful.
That actually made me feel worse. Yes, having a sense of purpose is good. But just feeling like someone needs you to make sure the bills are paid, the fridge is stocked and the heat is on isn't always a purpose.
I've said before that I seem to be a professional patient. I had tried to leave that behind. But my blood pressure is up and my psoriasis is making itself known. That makes me grumpy and frustrated. No question that I think "Better living through chemistry" - but feeling like I spend my time in doctors' offices seems "un"-purposeful. My elementary school-aged daughter has gone to her pediatrician twice in the last two years - for her annual checkup. At least she doesn't have my immune system!
I'm OK - don't worry about me. Just a gloomy January getting me down. I'm more annoyed that I ate too much at lunch and I'm still uncomfortably full.
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