So now the Mayor wants to take over the failing schools! This is cracking me up-seriously! I have been laughing since I heard this. Where had the mayor been all this time? You know what, this is a dead giveaway that NO ONE is going to take over ANY school at least not this year. Come on Daniels, Bennett and Ballard--get on the same page. Of course with the speed the wheels of government grind, you will...in about five years!!
See, this is what I find so strange. The schools are failing. You don't trust Dr. White to save them. The State Board of Education has signaled intervention, but you don't trust Dr. Bennett to select outside providers to save them. The Mayor steps up to give some modicum of local control, but you don't trust the Mayor to save them. I mean, damn! If you have completely given up on the notion that the children (black, white, hispanic, mostly poor, inner-city) can be saved, then what do you propose?
At least these people are offering some solutions. Where are your solutions? Who would you pick to manage the schools? You? If so, what would you do to save the schools? What capacity do you have to turn the schools around (picking the right teachers, writing the right curriculum, managing the buildings, coordinating enrollment, etc.).
It is so easy to throw grenades. Be part of the solution. . .
That is not the issue. It is the fact that is there going to be a tug-of-war between the two factions? Bennett said it is his territory; Ballard says it is his jurisdiction. By the way, what is your solution to the problem?
I'm not the poster you're addressing, but just to offer my 2 cents, I'm in the "a takeover can't be worse" camp. I think let charters and vouchers take the students with parents who want out, and let the state or the city take over the schools that are consistently doing the worst (although I think the high schools are only a reflection of the problems in the earlier grades) and see if they can change things. I don't think it really matters who wins the tug of war, but based on principle, I'd prefer the control stay more local, with the mayor.
The answer is the same. Discipline. Schools need principals who make it clear to the students that misbehavior will not be tolerated. You don't want to learn, go home and be home bound. You CAN NOT come to school and disrupt the learning of the students who are here to learn. That more than anything will help the schools. Why? Because then teachers can spend their time actually doing their job : TEACHING, not controlling student behavior.
In the many schools I've worked in, the ones that made AYP were the ones with strong princpals.
I have never met a good teacher who also wasn't good at classroom management. The same things that help a teacher connect material to students helps them connect behavior modification to students.
But yes, strong principals tend to be better at teacher management, which tends to lead to better classroom management, so I do agree that schools need strong leadership.
I want a piece of the 55 million dollar pie, I will start my own charter school, after ADM, send the students to Tech, keep about one hundred and fire most of the teaching staff. I will look great to the state, city, and rolling in money. Oh, don't even try to send your special needs child to my charter school, they cost too much to teach, it's about the bottom line. Home school them, I will place them on a computer and still get 90% from the state, money, money, money.
How will you get your charter approved? (Most aren't approved). How will you get students to enroll in the first place? There are a lot of charter schools out there. How will you convince families yours is better than the ones already available? How will you get teachers to accept a position at your charter school. You have to either pay exceptionally well or have a pretty convincing strategy to get people on board with a charter school. They don't have the same security as traditional schools with union contracts, so you have to offer other incentives (better pay, benefits, environment, etc.). Just some things to think about.
Strong discipline from the principal is a must for a school to pass. JUst how do you get a strong principal? Downtown knows the ones who are strong and the ones who aren't. So downtown do what you need to do to get a learning atmosphere in the schools. Stop talking about it, just do it.
"How will you get your charter approved? (Most aren't approved). How will you get students to enroll in the first place? There are a lot of charter schools out there. How will you convince families yours is better than the ones already available?"
Oh please,there are over 30 and most are in IPS preying on naive parents who are still trying to figure out parenting for themselves.Watch for the Oprah Academy and the NASCAR and NRA Academys soon. You won't see them in Speedway which is an urban area. Why? because parents there CARE. State takeover is about getting rid of teachers and or cutting wages. No government can force people to parent anymore than they are doing it right this minute as children die all over the city from neglect or lack of supervision. If schools were allowed to discipline and NOT be worried about "numbers" based on funding, then we wouldn't have this problem.
The thing that amuses me is that the idiots on the radio ASSUME that these "take over" operations have and WILL succeed. Yet they give NO concrete examples...just lip service. If they were successful wouldn't you think EVERY school in an urban area would try it? I mean who really wants kids to fail? I've never met anyone that did.
Well that was certainly a thoughtful, well-researched opinion, now wasn't it. Let me see if I have this right: People inside IPS district lines for some inexplicable reason don't care about their children like other parents do. IPS teachers care deeply about students, but that kind of caring doesn't matter, only the kind of caring parents can give, which is the kind that IPS parents don't give. Schools are all the same and can't possibly improve except for charter schools which are always bad. What we need to do is be meaner to kids so they'll be afraid not to behave and be meaner to their parents, so they'll submit to our authority. Anyone who points out the libraries of research that talks about the merits of school choice, parent-teacher collaboration, relationships and respect, differentiation, engagement, and creating school and classroom environments that more mirror free market/business dynamic rather than the authoritarian style of a prison or military is wrong. Their research is merely "lip service."
For everyone: The IPS schools that do not meet the benchmarks assigned by the IDOE will be taken over.... No exceptions. We must embrace what is about to happen.
I am opposed to a state takeover but when the IPS Board and public has allowed Eugene White to destroy the system with his fiscal mismanagement and huge administrative staff costs, something must be done. It is easy for Ballard to suggest the Mayor take it over since he wont be mayor after January. It will then be Mayor Melina Kennedy's problem. We need to listen to what she has to say as she will be the one to implement the takeover if the city is in charge.
IPS parents DO care about their children. They care about their child's education and their child's school. But they are limited in how they show their concern. (Spoken from an elementary teacher.)
Sorry, but any parent that sends their child to an IPS school has already proven to me that they DON'T care about their children. If half the incidents that occur in IPS schools took place in a private child care facility, not only would the facility not survive, there would likely be criminal prosecution and civil suits.
Ok, I am not a teacher, nor do I have a child in IPS. I did attend the meeting at Broad Ripple and can left with the following impression: the state representatives and Dr. White were both focused on meeting state standards in language and math. Both sides presented their numbers showing percentages. Both sides numbers showed that Broad Ripple and IPS in general fell far below the state average. What I found shocking were the parents and other speakers outlook. They tended to harp on the fact that the state should not take over Broad Ripple, and if they do they should not touch the "arts and humanities" program(s). Not one parent focused on the fact that Broad Ripple, being a so-called magnet, only had roughly 63% and 54% meeting state standards in math and language. The percentages might be 1 or 2 percent off of presented figures. All I heard was don't touch the arts, don't change the humanities. Parents and speakers appeared to be more worried about the kids losing the performing arts than they were worried about the failing grades.
Good for you for going to the meeting even though you don't have a child in IPS. IPS schools need more community involvement and support! You are absolutely right about the lack of focus on academics at Broad Ripple. Just this spring, the principal cut teaching positions in all of the academic areas - leaving no more than five teachers in each of the departments of math, science, and social studies. They might have six in English. Wow. These teachers will be responsible for teaching a projected 1100 students in the fall. Academic classes will be huge, and classroom management will be the focus. However, she made sure to keep at least eight music teachers, five media and communications teachers, and several art teachers. Ahhh. Classroom management will be a non-issue as classes will be small. Media and communications - let's do the math - will have class sizes of 6 or 7 children. That's wonderful, but will these students have the academic preparation they need and deserve? Nope. Their English, math, science, and social studies classes will be overloaded and under-supported. I truly hope that the Broad Ripple Middle and High School for the Arts and Humanities' graduates all become stars in their chosen fields. If they don't, they are in big trouble. This is hurting our children while justifying undeserved paychecks. Unbelievable.
RE: Broad Ripple RIFs...Yep! That goes w/ the magic number from a few years ago. 175 students per teacher. Several of the other high/community schools have been mandated that teachers teach a minimum of six classes a day and have a minimum of 15 students per class, for the class to be even offered or available, but with the RIFs, I'm sure it will be realistically closer to 175 or so.
Not defending the low scores, but don't forget to consider that it may be the children of said parents, at the meeting, who were part of 63% and 54% passing. Were parents of the other 37%/46% there?
I really object to the insinuation that if parents aren't at these meetings, they don't care. I'm a parent as well as a teacher in the IPS district, and I haven't gone to any of these meetings. I respect people who go and have their voices heard, but I don't think those who refrain aren't prioritizing education. They're simply not prioritizing meetings that have a history of making not even the tiniest difference.
I have to agree with the above poster. I too have foru kids in IPS and teach at one of the high schools. I am being displaced to another building and feel the meetings are not benificial. They are like attending board meeting. Just shows to make the public feel they had input when in reality those in charge don't care!
I am instead attending my kids summer sporting and music events and spending quality time with them. Something that I don't get to do during the school year because of the requirements of my building to be at the beck and call of every thought that crosses his mind.
I will just roll with the punches as I have for the last little over a decade. My kids are passing state standards as I stay as involved as I can and are doing very well in the magnet programs they attend. If thing change in school status then we will look at the options and go from there.
Attending a predetermined outcome meeting is nothing more than a effort lost on something more important!
I am so tired this Saturday morning. Have not had my coffee. Wish this site would have spell check and gram check. Please police forgive any errors. I will go to church and do some hail marry's for my sins!
Solutions: 1. lower class sizes by putting all those "instructional coaches" in the classroom! They have been rewarded with an office and a desk and make no impact on student scores or student improvement in behavior. 2. stop suspending kids for picayune infractions of the dress code. How can they learn if they're not in school? Do the research! The "one-size-fits-all" thinking is myopic, stullifying and fools the public into thinking, "oh, we'll show these recalcitrants who's in charge." What happened to the "invitational practices" Eugene White mouthed in his first year? At every turn, students are hollered at, accosted, denigrated! Who wouldn't drop out of that repressive institution!??
"I really object to the insinuation that if parents aren't at these meetings, they don't care. I'm a parent as well as a teacher in the IPS district, and I haven't gone to any of these meetings."
I sympathize with you but a school corporation is only as strong as its parents- IPS fails. If you don't show then that's just another sign to Bennett that you are not involved. Then THEY will get involved. I shudder to think if IPS becomes one big Charter then they will be kicking out kids left and right...OR they will be taking ALL kids, putting up with more crap than IPS ever did and kicking out teachers who complain about the current set up. Either way, taking it out of the hands of the locals is BAD news.
As a music teacher myself, I agree that the arts and humanities are important However, I don't for a second think that our areas are more inmportant than math and language skills. The arts should be a priviledge for those who have mastered the essential skills of math and the english language. You want to get someone's attention at broad ripple? Cancel the performing arts classes, use the music teachers as teaching assistants in math and English until the school reaches 75 percent passing on the ECA. Those scores will shoot up so fast your head will spin!
Eight music teachers? That is an absolute LIE!! I teach at Broad Ripple and besides the band director, the orchestra director, the choral director and a keyboard director--who are the other four?? I hope you are not talking about private lessons people that come in a few hours a day and cannot be catergorized as teachers because they have NO TEACHING LICENSE.
175 students in a total of 6 classes per day means a teacher will have approximately 29.166666 students in each class. Enrollment is down, class tend to be under 25. While there is always the exception with some classes over 35 and up to 45, it is due to scheduling issues which were compounded by small school administrators not working together so that every required class was offered every period. Balancing classes will be much simpler.
Of course there are always the instances, where some teachers are overloaded with the "difficult" students because the counselors know that teacher can handle the students. I've known teachers who have had over 200 students in a day not only managing to kept control but get teaching done.
Some times we teachers are our own worst enemy. If all we do is complain, we will never be part of the solution!
Let's see, I taught 10 classes a day with an average class count of 22. I handled it. Not happily, but I handled it. Everyone knows Elementary level teachers can do anything. :)
"Eight music teachers? That is an absolute LIE!! I hope...that come in a few hours a day and cannot be catergorized as teachers because they have NO TEACHING LICENSE." Do your research before you start yelling on this blog, sweetheart. Teaching licenses aren't an issue at Broad Ripple. Just look at the Creative Writing "teacher", media and communications "teachers", full time dance "teachers", Athletic trainers, Conditioning coaches, and ghost math teacher names for unlicensed personnel teaching math. Really! You know it's all true. And by the way, if a "teacher" was being paid full teacher pay and full benefits, and the students were getting credit for their classes, then, ummmm, I'm thinking that that person was certainly categorized as a teacher. As far as the 8 music teachers, I won't embarrass myself pretending to know that which I don't (like you did!). BUT, how about the $64,000 a year "Director of Student Athletics" aka bus monitor and the new FOOTBALL coach who was hired in the early spring before the RIF's and when there was no teaching position available at the school. Let's wonder who got kicked to the curb because another Kappa brother was hired. Before you even go there, the above was not a racist comment. Rather, it was an astute observation. This new coach is literally a Kappa and is literally the brother of an administrator at that school that hired him while circumventing contractual requirements as well as IPS School board mandated procedures. Now, go ahead.
As far as the 8 music teachers, I won't embarrass myself pretending to know that which I don't (like you did!). BUT, how about the $64,000 a year "Director of Student Athletics" aka bus monitor ...
No clearly, you don't know because you don't teach at Broad Ripple. Now as far as the rest of your rant--bait and switch? You clearly said something you could not back up with evidence so you changed the focus of your argument. Give it a rest and stop trying to destroy BRMHS and IPS! This blog is for losers! Goodbye forever!!
Thank you Linda Davis! Very smart woman who surrounds herself with professionals who do their jobs plus! Now, all you haters of BRMHS, keep on hating as WE are only going to get better!
Let's be real. Linda Davis surrounds herself with ass kissers and leeches who drain dollars away from our children and into their own pockets. She doesn't know and doesn't care about the students at the school. She is there for the power and the paycheck. Most of the teachers on the other hand are wonderful, involved, caring, professionals in spite of having to work for her.
I still don't know how you have a failing school when you pick the kids who go to the damned school! Can anyone help me with this. You would have to be blind, crippled, and crazy to be the leader of a failing magnet school. I heard Harshman is making progress. Harshman! Ripple should be a walk in the park. I don't get it . . .
Ripple should be a walk in the park. I don't get it . . .
The problem with Broad Ripple has been that when the school was cleared out to make it a magnet, those students in the 10th-12th grade got to stay. Now, unless they fail when placed on academic probation ( fall below a 2.0) or are a serious behavior problem they will not be reassigned. Also, don't forget that as students are sent back to their boundary school, those on the BRHS waiting list are taken in. Many come in with a pledge and prayer to do their best, but fail. I had one student who came from Arlington-smart girl-who came to BR and lost her mind. She got so caught in in teenage girl drama her GPA went south quickly. Of course, she was also one of those girls hell bent on rebelling " cause we didn't have to do that at Arlington." We get that a lot too!
I get all of those issues. However, that doesn't explain under-performance in the lower grades for kids who are coming from elementary schools. Any school has to set a strong culture if it expects kids to achieve. As hard as that might be at Ripple, it couldn't be any harder than magnets like Attucks. Something else is amiss . . .
To the above poster: Again, Linda Davis surrounds herself with people who bow to her. She cares not one bit about their effectiveness in the classroom as long as they kiss her behind, tell her how wonderful she is, and make her look good (her words) to anyone who is watching. She doesn't know or care about the students in that school. That is obvious by the decisions she has made over the last two years. She has hurt so many IPS children. It's beyond shameful. It is reprehensible. (Spelling Police, forgive me!!)
Whew!!! I wasn't sure. We all know what is amiss. It is the Queen and her self-serving, power-tripping agenda along with her vindictive, manipulative, and down right sneaky/shady way of handling day to day business. She has tried (unsuccessfully, thank goodness) to destroy teachers, and is well known for her back stabbing. She only supports those who do not question her. It is a sad, sad state of affairs at Broad Ripple. The teachers there are absolutely wonderful but have to battle Linda's dictatorial administrative style every single day in order to continue to positively impact student achievement - in all areas. The problem with student achievement at Broad Ripple isn't the parents, the students, or the teachers. The problem is Linda Davis.
Hummmm. I ran into an old friend last Saturday who said the same thing about Linda Davis. He said she curses at teachers, threatens them, uses the "f" word, and is nasty in general unless she is trying to pump someone for information. A sneaky, two-faced liar, he says. Whatever happened to her? She used to be a good teacher, but apparently has lost all integrity in dealing with teachers. Principals need to be academic leaders and earn the respect of those who they count on for the success of their school. Apparently, she does neither. Come on Tony Bennett, give her a dose of her own medicine. Kick her to the curb.
So now the Mayor wants to take over the failing schools! This is cracking me up-seriously! I have been laughing since I heard this. Where had the mayor been all this time? You know what, this is a dead giveaway that NO ONE is going to take over ANY school at least not this year. Come on Daniels, Bennett and Ballard--get on the same page. Of course with the speed the wheels of government grind, you will...in about five years!!
ReplyDeleteSee, this is what I find so strange. The schools are failing. You don't trust Dr. White to save them. The State Board of Education has signaled intervention, but you don't trust Dr. Bennett to select outside providers to save them. The Mayor steps up to give some modicum of local control, but you don't trust the Mayor to save them. I mean, damn! If you have completely given up on the notion that the children (black, white, hispanic, mostly poor, inner-city) can be saved, then what do you propose?
ReplyDeleteAt least these people are offering some solutions. Where are your solutions? Who would you pick to manage the schools? You? If so, what would you do to save the schools? What capacity do you have to turn the schools around (picking the right teachers, writing the right curriculum, managing the buildings, coordinating enrollment, etc.).
It is so easy to throw grenades. Be part of the solution. . .
That is not the issue. It is the fact that is there going to be a tug-of-war between the two factions? Bennett said it is his territory; Ballard says it is his jurisdiction. By the way, what is your solution to the problem?
ReplyDeleteI'm not the poster you're addressing, but just to offer my 2 cents, I'm in the "a takeover can't be worse" camp. I think let charters and vouchers take the students with parents who want out, and let the state or the city take over the schools that are consistently doing the worst (although I think the high schools are only a reflection of the problems in the earlier grades) and see if they can change things. I don't think it really matters who wins the tug of war, but based on principle, I'd prefer the control stay more local, with the mayor.
ReplyDeleteThe answer is the same. Discipline. Schools need principals who make it clear to the students that misbehavior will not be tolerated. You don't want to learn, go home and be home bound. You CAN NOT come to school and disrupt the learning of the students who are here to learn. That more than anything will help the schools. Why? Because then teachers can spend their time actually doing their job : TEACHING, not controlling student behavior.
ReplyDeleteIn the many schools I've worked in, the ones that made AYP were the ones with strong princpals.
I have never met a good teacher who also wasn't good at classroom management. The same things that help a teacher connect material to students helps them connect behavior modification to students.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, strong principals tend to be better at teacher management, which tends to lead to better classroom management, so I do agree that schools need strong leadership.
ReplyDeleteI want a piece of the 55 million dollar pie, I will start my own charter school, after ADM, send the students to Tech, keep about one hundred and fire most of the teaching staff. I will look great to the state, city, and rolling in money. Oh, don't even try to send your special needs child to my charter school, they cost too much to teach, it's about the bottom line. Home school them, I will place them on a computer and still get 90% from the state, money, money, money.
ReplyDeleteHow will you get your charter approved? (Most aren't approved). How will you get students to enroll in the first place? There are a lot of charter schools out there. How will you convince families yours is better than the ones already available? How will you get teachers to accept a position at your charter school. You have to either pay exceptionally well or have a pretty convincing strategy to get people on board with a charter school. They don't have the same security as traditional schools with union contracts, so you have to offer other incentives (better pay, benefits, environment, etc.). Just some things to think about.
ReplyDeleteStrong discipline from the principal is a must for a school to pass. JUst how do you get a strong principal? Downtown knows the ones who are strong and the ones who aren't. So downtown do what you need to do to get a learning atmosphere in the schools. Stop talking about it, just do it.
ReplyDelete"How will you get your charter approved? (Most aren't approved). How will you get students to enroll in the first place? There are a lot of charter schools out there. How will you convince families yours is better than the ones already available?"
ReplyDeleteOh please,there are over 30 and most are in IPS preying on naive parents who are still trying to figure out parenting for themselves.Watch for the Oprah Academy and the NASCAR and NRA Academys soon. You won't see them in Speedway which is an urban area. Why? because parents there CARE. State takeover is about getting rid of teachers and or cutting wages. No government can force people to parent anymore than they are doing it right this minute as children die all over the city from neglect or lack of supervision. If schools were allowed to discipline and NOT be worried about "numbers" based on funding, then we wouldn't have this problem.
The thing that amuses me is that the idiots on the radio ASSUME that these "take over" operations have and WILL succeed. Yet they give NO concrete examples...just lip service. If they were successful wouldn't you think EVERY school in an urban area would try it? I mean who really wants kids to fail? I've never met anyone that did.
Well that was certainly a thoughtful, well-researched opinion, now wasn't it. Let me see if I have this right: People inside IPS district lines for some inexplicable reason don't care about their children like other parents do. IPS teachers care deeply about students, but that kind of caring doesn't matter, only the kind of caring parents can give, which is the kind that IPS parents don't give. Schools are all the same and can't possibly improve except for charter schools which are always bad. What we need to do is be meaner to kids so they'll be afraid not to behave and be meaner to their parents, so they'll submit to our authority. Anyone who points out the libraries of research that talks about the merits of school choice, parent-teacher collaboration, relationships and respect, differentiation, engagement, and creating school and classroom environments that more mirror free market/business dynamic rather than the authoritarian style of a prison or military is wrong. Their research is merely "lip service."
ReplyDeleteDo I have that right?
LOL Sounds about right to me. Again, no solutions, just stone throwing. Or grenade throwing, as the poster above said.
ReplyDeleteFor everyone: The IPS schools that do not meet the benchmarks assigned by the IDOE will be taken over.... No exceptions. We must embrace what is about to happen.
ReplyDeleteI am opposed to a state takeover but when the IPS Board and public has allowed Eugene White to destroy the system with his fiscal mismanagement and huge administrative staff costs, something must be done. It is easy for Ballard to suggest the Mayor take it over since he wont be mayor after January. It will then be Mayor Melina Kennedy's problem. We need to listen to what she has to say as she will be the one to implement the takeover if the city is in charge.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I'd count those chickens quite yet (Kennedy winning the election).
ReplyDeleteThe state, the mayor, the local school board, whatever. It doesn't matter. It will still be "public" education, and it will still fail.
ReplyDeleteIPS parents DO care about their children. They care about their child's education and their child's school. But they are limited in how they show their concern. (Spoken from an elementary teacher.)
ReplyDeleteSorry, but any parent that sends their child to an IPS school has already proven to me that they DON'T care about their children. If half the incidents that occur in IPS schools took place in a private child care facility, not only would the facility not survive, there would likely be criminal prosecution and civil suits.
ReplyDeleteI'm a secondary ed teacher, and I agree with the above elementary teacher.
ReplyDeleteOk, I am not a teacher, nor do I have a child in IPS. I did attend the meeting at Broad Ripple and can left with the following impression: the state representatives and Dr. White were both focused on meeting state standards in language and math. Both sides presented their numbers showing percentages. Both sides numbers showed that Broad Ripple and IPS in general fell far below the state average. What I found shocking were the parents and other speakers outlook. They tended to harp on the fact that the state should not take over Broad Ripple, and if they do they should not touch the "arts and humanities" program(s). Not one parent focused on the fact that Broad Ripple, being a so-called magnet, only had roughly 63% and 54% meeting state standards in math and language. The percentages might be 1 or 2 percent off of presented figures. All I heard was don't touch the arts, don't change the humanities. Parents and speakers appeared to be more worried about the kids losing the performing arts than they were worried about the failing grades.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for going to the meeting even though you don't have a child in IPS. IPS schools need more community involvement and support!
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right about the lack of focus on academics at Broad Ripple. Just this spring, the principal cut teaching positions in all of the academic areas - leaving no more than five teachers in each of the departments of math, science, and social studies. They might have six in English. Wow. These teachers will be responsible for teaching a projected 1100 students in the fall. Academic classes will be huge, and classroom management will be the focus.
However, she made sure to keep at least eight music teachers, five media and communications teachers, and several art teachers. Ahhh. Classroom management will be a non-issue as classes will be small. Media and communications - let's do the math - will have class sizes of 6 or 7 children. That's wonderful, but will these students have the academic preparation they need and deserve? Nope. Their English, math, science, and social studies classes will be overloaded and under-supported.
I truly hope that the Broad Ripple Middle and High School for the Arts and Humanities' graduates all become stars in their chosen fields. If they don't, they are in big trouble.
This is hurting our children while justifying undeserved paychecks. Unbelievable.
RE: Broad Ripple RIFs...Yep! That goes w/ the magic number from a few years ago. 175 students per teacher. Several of the other high/community schools have been mandated that teachers teach a minimum of six classes a day and have a minimum of 15 students per class, for the class to be even offered or available, but with the RIFs, I'm sure it will be realistically closer to 175 or so.
ReplyDeleteNot defending the low scores, but don't forget to consider that it may be the children of said parents, at the meeting, who were part of 63% and 54% passing. Were parents of the other 37%/46% there?
I really object to the insinuation that if parents aren't at these meetings, they don't care. I'm a parent as well as a teacher in the IPS district, and I haven't gone to any of these meetings. I respect people who go and have their voices heard, but I don't think those who refrain aren't prioritizing education. They're simply not prioritizing meetings that have a history of making not even the tiniest difference.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with the above poster. I too have foru kids in IPS and teach at one of the high schools. I am being displaced to another building and feel the meetings are not benificial. They are like attending board meeting. Just shows to make the public feel they had input when in reality those in charge don't care!
ReplyDeleteI am instead attending my kids summer sporting and music events and spending quality time with them. Something that I don't get to do during the school year because of the requirements of my building to be at the beck and call of every thought that crosses his mind.
I will just roll with the punches as I have for the last little over a decade. My kids are passing state standards as I stay as involved as I can and are doing very well in the magnet programs they attend. If thing change in school status then we will look at the options and go from there.
Attending a predetermined outcome meeting is nothing more than a effort lost on something more important!
I am so tired this Saturday morning. Have not had my coffee. Wish this site would have spell check and gram check. Please police forgive any errors. I will go to church and do some hail marry's for my sins!
Solutions: 1. lower class sizes by putting all those "instructional coaches" in the classroom! They have been rewarded with an office and a desk and make no impact on student scores or student improvement in behavior.
ReplyDelete2. stop suspending kids for picayune infractions of the dress code. How can they learn if they're not in school? Do the research! The "one-size-fits-all" thinking is myopic, stullifying and fools the public into thinking, "oh, we'll show these recalcitrants who's in charge." What happened to the "invitational practices" Eugene White mouthed in his first year? At every turn, students are hollered at, accosted, denigrated! Who wouldn't drop out of that repressive institution!??
"I really object to the insinuation that if parents aren't at these meetings, they don't care. I'm a parent as well as a teacher in the IPS district, and I haven't gone to any of these meetings."
ReplyDeleteI sympathize with you but a school corporation is only as strong as its parents- IPS fails. If you don't show then that's just another sign to Bennett that you are not involved. Then THEY will get involved. I shudder to think if IPS becomes one big Charter then they will be kicking out kids left and right...OR they will be taking ALL kids, putting up with more crap than IPS ever did and kicking out teachers who complain about the current set up. Either way, taking it out of the hands of the locals is BAD news.
As a music teacher myself, I agree that the arts and humanities are important However, I don't for a second think that our areas are more inmportant than math and language skills. The arts should be a priviledge for those who have mastered the essential skills of math and the english language. You want to get someone's attention at broad ripple? Cancel the performing arts classes, use the music teachers as teaching assistants in math and English until the school reaches 75 percent passing on the ECA. Those scores will shoot up so fast your head will spin!
ReplyDeleteNo, we'd just lose more Broad Ripple kids to Herron.
ReplyDeleteEight music teachers? That is an absolute LIE!! I teach at Broad Ripple and besides the band director, the orchestra director, the choral director and a keyboard director--who are the other four?? I hope you are not talking about private lessons people that come in a few hours a day and cannot be catergorized as teachers because they have NO TEACHING LICENSE.
ReplyDelete175 students in a total of 6 classes per day means a teacher will have approximately 29.166666 students in each class. Enrollment is down, class tend to be under 25. While there is always the exception with some classes over 35 and up to 45, it is due to scheduling issues which were compounded by small school administrators not working together so that every required class was offered every period. Balancing classes will be much simpler.
ReplyDeleteOf course there are always the instances, where some teachers are overloaded with the "difficult" students because the counselors know that teacher can handle the students. I've known teachers who have had over 200 students in a day not only managing to kept control but get teaching done.
Some times we teachers are our own worst enemy. If all we do is complain, we will never be part of the solution!
Let's see, I taught 10 classes a day with an average class count of 22. I handled it. Not happily, but I handled it. Everyone knows Elementary level teachers can do anything. :)
ReplyDelete"Eight music teachers? That is an absolute LIE!! I hope...that come in a few hours a day and cannot be catergorized as teachers because they have NO TEACHING LICENSE."
ReplyDeleteDo your research before you start yelling on this blog, sweetheart.
Teaching licenses aren't an issue at Broad Ripple. Just look at the Creative Writing "teacher", media and communications "teachers", full time dance "teachers", Athletic trainers, Conditioning coaches, and ghost math teacher names for unlicensed personnel teaching math. Really! You know it's all true. And by the way, if a "teacher" was being paid full teacher pay and full benefits, and the students were getting credit for their classes, then, ummmm, I'm thinking that that person was certainly categorized as a teacher.
As far as the 8 music teachers, I won't embarrass myself pretending to know that which I don't (like you did!). BUT, how about the $64,000 a year "Director of Student Athletics" aka bus monitor and the new FOOTBALL coach who was hired in the early spring before the RIF's and when there was no teaching position available at the school. Let's wonder who got kicked to the curb because another Kappa brother was hired.
Before you even go there, the above was not a racist comment. Rather, it was an astute observation. This new coach is literally a Kappa and is literally the brother of an administrator at that school that hired him while circumventing contractual requirements as well as IPS School board mandated procedures.
Now, go ahead.
As far as the 8 music teachers, I won't embarrass myself pretending to know that which I don't (like you did!). BUT, how about the $64,000 a year "Director of Student Athletics" aka bus monitor ...
ReplyDeleteNo clearly, you don't know because you don't teach at Broad Ripple. Now as far as the rest of your rant--bait and switch? You clearly said something you could not back up with evidence so you changed the focus of your argument. Give it a rest and stop trying to destroy BRMHS and IPS!
This blog is for losers! Goodbye forever!!
Thank you Linda Davis! Very smart woman who surrounds herself with professionals who do their jobs plus! Now, all you haters of BRMHS, keep on hating as WE are only going to get better!
ReplyDeleteLet's be real. Linda Davis surrounds herself with ass kissers and leeches who drain dollars away from our children and into their own pockets. She doesn't know and doesn't care about the students at the school. She is there for the power and the paycheck.
ReplyDeleteMost of the teachers on the other hand are wonderful, involved, caring, professionals in spite of having to work for her.
I still don't know how you have a failing school when you pick the kids who go to the damned school! Can anyone help me with this. You would have to be blind, crippled, and crazy to be the leader of a failing magnet school. I heard Harshman is making progress. Harshman! Ripple should be a walk in the park. I don't get it . . .
ReplyDeleteRipple should be a walk in the park. I don't get it . . .
ReplyDeleteThe problem with Broad Ripple has been that when the school was cleared out to make it a magnet, those students in the 10th-12th grade got to stay. Now, unless they fail when placed on academic probation ( fall below a 2.0) or are a serious behavior problem they will not be reassigned. Also, don't forget that as students are sent back to their boundary school, those on the BRHS waiting list are taken in. Many come in with a pledge and prayer to do their best, but fail. I had one student who came from Arlington-smart girl-who came to BR and lost her mind. She got so caught in in teenage girl drama her GPA went south quickly. Of course, she was also one of those girls hell bent on rebelling " cause we didn't have to do that at Arlington." We get that a lot too!
I get all of those issues. However, that doesn't explain under-performance in the lower grades for kids who are coming from elementary schools. Any school has to set a strong culture if it expects kids to achieve. As hard as that might be at Ripple, it couldn't be any harder than magnets like Attucks. Something else is amiss . . .
ReplyDeleteTo the above poster:
ReplyDeleteAgain, Linda Davis surrounds herself with people who bow to her. She cares not one bit about their effectiveness in the classroom as long as they kiss her behind, tell her how wonderful she is, and make her look good (her words) to anyone who is watching.
She doesn't know or care about the students in that school. That is obvious by the decisions she has made over the last two years. She has hurt so many IPS children. It's beyond shameful. It is reprehensible. (Spelling Police, forgive me!!)
You spelled it right. Gold star for you!
ReplyDeleteWhew!!! I wasn't sure.
ReplyDeleteWe all know what is amiss. It is the Queen and her self-serving, power-tripping agenda along with her vindictive, manipulative, and down right sneaky/shady way of handling day to day business. She has tried (unsuccessfully, thank goodness) to destroy teachers, and is well known for her back stabbing. She only supports those who do not question her. It is a sad, sad state of affairs at Broad Ripple. The teachers there are absolutely wonderful but have to battle Linda's dictatorial administrative style every single day in order to continue to positively impact student achievement - in all areas. The problem with student achievement at Broad Ripple isn't the parents, the students, or the teachers. The problem is Linda Davis.
Hummmm. I ran into an old friend last Saturday who said the same thing about Linda Davis. He said she curses at teachers, threatens them, uses the "f" word, and is nasty in general unless she is trying to pump someone for information. A sneaky, two-faced liar, he says. Whatever happened to her? She used to be a good teacher, but apparently has lost all integrity in dealing with teachers. Principals need to be academic leaders and earn the respect of those who they count on for the success of their school. Apparently, she does neither. Come on Tony Bennett, give her a dose of her own medicine. Kick her to the curb.
ReplyDelete