WWYD? School Quietly Cancelled Advanced Science - 10/03/17 12:30 PM
In the past students enrolled in Advanced Math classes (scoring 98-99% on Math MAP) were also enrolled in Advanced Science.
Last year DD took Advanced Science for 5th where students worked out of the 6th grade book and were tested on 6th grade curriculum. She did well and we were pleased with how the year turned out.
Continuing on this course, DD would eventually be allowed to take Biology in 8th grade. The program had been in place for years.
Somehow during the past spring, middle school principals advised the school board to eliminate this program (supposedly due to new state science standards which don't look all that dissimilar from previous standards and are in some cases lower than before). The board vote was split with one board member bullying others to tow the line of the administrators and place full faith in their recommendations and the measure passed 4-3.
Some consideration was given to maybe allow "some" students the ability to be bussed to the high school on their own time to take biology but they would need to give up other electives to accomplish this and only first thing in the morning. Maybe.... Nothing was really worked out and parents were not told exactly how this would happen or even how one could qualify.
Because of the way this was done, many parents were not aware of the change.
This fall when those formerly "Advanced" students returned, they were placed in "Enriched" 6th grade science and issued the same textbooks as last year.
So far, the class is teaching the exact same 6th grade topics as last year except there are no formal assessments (no tests or quizzes) - the teacher doesn't utilize the textbook because the students used it before, only projects like doing Nearpods, a powerpoint presentation on the solar eclipse, firing off an outdoor rocket. Many of these items are similar to elementary level work.
I'm really disappointed about this. The advanced science is now gone and it looks like DD is going to waste the school year learning nothing in her science class.
What would you do? I've personally never seen a situation so egregiously handled as to issue even the same textbook (an expensive one that parents had to pay for twice) and with no real program in place. DD complains the teacher is not teaching at all. As for myself, I see no evidence of learning anything in the class that wasn't already covered last year.
Last year DD took Advanced Science for 5th where students worked out of the 6th grade book and were tested on 6th grade curriculum. She did well and we were pleased with how the year turned out.
Continuing on this course, DD would eventually be allowed to take Biology in 8th grade. The program had been in place for years.
Somehow during the past spring, middle school principals advised the school board to eliminate this program (supposedly due to new state science standards which don't look all that dissimilar from previous standards and are in some cases lower than before). The board vote was split with one board member bullying others to tow the line of the administrators and place full faith in their recommendations and the measure passed 4-3.
Some consideration was given to maybe allow "some" students the ability to be bussed to the high school on their own time to take biology but they would need to give up other electives to accomplish this and only first thing in the morning. Maybe.... Nothing was really worked out and parents were not told exactly how this would happen or even how one could qualify.
Because of the way this was done, many parents were not aware of the change.
This fall when those formerly "Advanced" students returned, they were placed in "Enriched" 6th grade science and issued the same textbooks as last year.
So far, the class is teaching the exact same 6th grade topics as last year except there are no formal assessments (no tests or quizzes) - the teacher doesn't utilize the textbook because the students used it before, only projects like doing Nearpods, a powerpoint presentation on the solar eclipse, firing off an outdoor rocket. Many of these items are similar to elementary level work.
I'm really disappointed about this. The advanced science is now gone and it looks like DD is going to waste the school year learning nothing in her science class.
What would you do? I've personally never seen a situation so egregiously handled as to issue even the same textbook (an expensive one that parents had to pay for twice) and with no real program in place. DD complains the teacher is not teaching at all. As for myself, I see no evidence of learning anything in the class that wasn't already covered last year.