Don't look for the new middle school math policy to be discussed, after all, at today's Wake County school board economically disadvantaged student performance task force meeting.
School board vice chairman John Tedesco said the math policy was removed from the agenda because of the need for staff to review how it would be impacted by the new common core of curriculum standards. He said hopes to have the task force discuss the policy in December.
Tedesco said today's meeting agenda is still in flux, with at least one topic expected to be the draft equity policy.
The meeting starts at 4:30 p.m. at Brentwood Elementary School, 3426 Ingram Road in North Raleigh.
Comments
This important topic starts in e-d-task force & not full board?
Thu, 11/03/2011 - 21:45 — NC4kidsWhy would this topic finally resurface in e-d-task force and not full board work session. This topic is important to ALL students not just e-d.....or is "equity" another code word for something else to come?
Argh...
Thu, 11/03/2011 - 08:30 — Bob_SconceWhy not just say "Staff has the discretion to do whatever the heck it wants in the name of 'equity'?"
Any body policy should be measurable -- there has to be *some* objective way to tell if it is being followed or not. All this policy does is lead to arguments about what 'equity' requires.
A good first step would be to require staff to present information about proposed spending on different subgroups of students as part of staff's presentation of the annual budget. That would allow the board to determine if it thought 'equitable' amounts were being spent on the various subgroups. The subgroups should be broken down by academic level -- things such as how much is being spent on remedial programs, how much on base AG programs, how much on magnet programs, how much on services for students with learning difficulties, students with IEPs and so on..... Right now, it's impossible to look at the budget and determine that information.
High five!!!
Thu, 11/03/2011 - 11:17 — twatts1000Good post!
Finally
Thu, 11/03/2011 - 06:59 — Dove314Finally, a substantive blog topic instead of political nonsense.
Question for those attending, can you share back how this policy would provide program equity across ability levels -- i.e. how it would serve the range from AG children through to those with learning disabilities, through to those with special education needs? The policy seems paradoxical in stating on one hand that it sees differentiation as necessary while on the other saying it needs to assess equity in curriculum and instruction. Is the purpose of the document focused on equity across schools rather than insuring all children have access to all the programs? And how will the policy address those circumstances which may be best handled by creating options such as the single gender academies or the STEM schools or the magnet schools which intentionally create inequalities between schools to achieve a different goal?