Let’s start from the facts;
·
We have one of the best – if not the best -
music programs in the USA as a country.
·
Well-known fact we used art in education and
communication for the last 40000 years and it is demonstrated to be therapeutic
for those who needed it and the easiest form of communication and education for
those receiving it.
·
Another well-known fact is nothing in this world
works as many parts of your brain as music. Just listening to music works 10
different parts of your brain simultaneously, if you playing music this number goes
much higher. (Interested? Please search
Oxford journals, AMA journals, BMJ to name but a few, or have a quick chat with
neuroscientist.)
·
Our children are lucky that they go to various
field trips – most probably not enough, but still - and get to LEARN about
their country, their own region, learn how to travel in a group, social skills,
etiquette, history, science, math and hundreds of other things during their
field trips. Many educators and studies agree that these learnings stay with
them for life. (For a quick test see how much of the lessons vs how much of the
field trips you remember from your own school days?)
·
January 30th: I have been approached
by three music teachers telling me that there were new changes coming to the
music program, and informed me about the HoCo board of education (BoE) meeting.
During this meeting Dr. Foose, the current superintendent for HoCo, avoided any
questions about the changes with rather rudeness and dismissiveness. When the issue of GT classes and the rest of
the current pull-out classes brought-up in this new suggested system the answer
was, “Oh, school administrators will take care of this.” We are all curious if
they will be given magic wands to conjure more time to implement these changes,
and how any administrator can be so far from the reality going on in our
schools?
·
February 3rd I have been approached
by 4 other music teachers from different schools and they have expressed their
fear about losing already tight schedule they have with the children, to nothingness.
Their twice-a-week classes going down to once a week as well as 45 minutes down
to 30 minutes.
·
February 5th I got calls from few Elementary
GT teachers telling me about the mess they have left as with the new suggested
curriculum they will not be allow to take out children from lessons – new common
core (CC) doesn’t allow pull-outs - and they are NOT qualified to teach science
which, new CC would require. All of the
teachers I spoke with were frustrated, furious and very concerned about this currently
successful program’s future.
·
February 10th: I got to meet with 9 different
teachers (from, arts, and GT departments) as well as 6 more with over the phone
to talk about how we can be proactively talk to the board and let them listen
to our concerns. At this point the
teacher’s union started actively worked with the Howard County parents for
music education (HCPSM)
·
February 14th I have been told that
none of the teachers can talk to me – or any other parent - about the situation,
as they do so their employment will be in jeopardy.
·
February 18th HCPSM called for a meeting
where things discussed at length. The aftermath
of this discussion encouraged a few of the public thinkers within us to share
what is going on with the world.
·
February 20th those people who
informed us are being threatened in various stages and some of them had to make
amended statements against their real will.
These are the chronological facts as I lived.
Now I shall move to the proposed changes;
…Vision 2018:
Fulfilling the Promise of Preparation a reality. The model includes:
- Pre-Kindergarten - A full day PreK program for eligible students will be offered at each participating school.
- Departmentalization - Teachers will specialize in English Language Arts/Social Studies or Mathematics/Science/Health or Fine Arts, PE, or Media/Technology.
- World Language - Instruction in Spanish will be offered to students beginning in PreK through Grade 2.
- Strengths Development - Students will focus on developing their strengths and come to view effective effort, motivation, and persistence as the means to academic success and well-being….
And here are my questions about these changes starting from the Elementary Schools;
Pre-Kindergarten Many of the Howard County Elementary
Schools already in portables - not ideal places of education as it stands, and
a bit of a shame for the 4th richest county in one of the richest countries in
the world. The first question comes to mind is space. Simply where will all
these small children seek lessons? Shall
we add some more portables? As we seem to getting rid of the recess altogether
we can fill the whole field with them I suppose. Another simple and daily
question any parent or a teacher would ask, if they were kept in the portable;
who will take these children to and from the bathroom? They will need a person
just for that. Let’s think about security for a minute, or implementation
brought on the art teachers while there is not a curriculum available to teach
these students as well as in reality no arts teacher in HoCo elementary school
is actually qualified to teach Pre-K?
Departmentalization
Remember, there will be
neither pull-outs nor any elementary GT teachers qualified to teach science the
future of our successful GT program’s future is rather bleak.
Moving to day-to-day
lessons; we have usually have over 20 kids in any given classroom with rather
different levels. Let’s put them all in one class and watch. Will the teacher
adjust her curricula for the lower level children therefore the higher level
children on that subject will be bored and not learn much, or will the teacher design
the lessons to higher levels consequently those who are not so good on that
subject will be left behind. How about keeping things in the middle? This way
neither of the spectrum children will learn much at all.
Music program:
This is where it hurts me most. We have music program to be proud of. Yes, even
if your children are not playing an instrument at the moment with the new
program all the children have to choose either chorus, strings, or band. Not a
bad thing you may say. But let me remind you that instead of twice a week
lessons there will be only one and that is mere 30 minutes. So there will be about 30-40 kids in one room.
You really don’t have to be a music teacher nor even have anything to do with
music to realise that in that short time you CANNOT even tune the instruments
never mind teaching them to play. Besides, I am really curious where all these
instruments will be coming? As it stands even with 10- 15 kids in each class
quite a few of the students have to share an instrument. Yes, during a concert
they take turns to play. Remember most of the title one school children borrow
their instrument from the school system. So according to this new proposed
system those who can afford will take their children to private lessons with
privately rented/bought instruments those who cannot just sit there and ponder.
Again you don’t have to be a Superintendent to see the huge unfairness this
will create between children. Of course the effects of this will directly upset
our music programs in middle and high school programs. But I shall talk about
that later.
World
Language: As a mother who speaks 5 languages I support this program whole-heartedly
but not by sacrificing the others. I wonder if this can be addressed by making
the school day for Elementary schools say starting at 8am and going until 4pm. Or why we are trying to reinvent the wheel? Within
our own state there are foreign language immersion programs that are rather successfully
being run for years. How about opening some of those for our own county? Also
it surprises me the choice of languages Spanish –one would hope that BoE knows
that majority of our children’s first language is Spanish so don’t you think
this would be little redundant? - The second language chosen is Chinese. I
would love to hear the reasons behind this, too.
Strengths
Development: Again it is rather important point I do support whole-heartedly.
Yet we all noticed that neither by MSA’s or most “standardized” testing is far
from evaluating this. It is also known by many of us they are nowhere near to help
the teachers or the students to achieve any of the suggested topics.
The rest of my thoughts are about the changes that will affect Pre-K to 12th grade;
Extended Day Field
Trip
…POLICY 8100-PR IMPLEMENTATION
PROCEDURES
These are some of the
proposed changes;
2 b. Extended Day Field Trip – the duration of the
trip is no longer than 12 hours. The planned return time should be no later
than 9:00 p.m. when school is in session the next day. A planned return time no
later than 5:00 p.m. is strongly advised for grades 4 and below.
3. The amount of time spent traveling to and from
the destination shall not exceed one-half of the total time planned for the
field trip. …
What this means to our children; this change has the potential
to impact a number of band trips. Please let the BOE know how these changes
could negatively impact our instrumental music programs. If this is approved events
like middle school bands playing at High-school matches will be only but a
distant memory. Spring and winter Concerts for elementary schools as well as
String-a-pooloza concerts, music in the park or similar programs will be
discarded if this will be approved.
Here let’s take another point; Even if your child isn’t in
band or strings program, please think this for a moment; although I do not have
a child in high school I go to see my child or their friends from middle school
to play during the games. Get to meet with the high school parents that I
haven’t met before; I go out and about much later than I usually would, so
there are people in the neighborhood. Kids, coaches, teachers, and the parents
acquainted with each other. This is
called building a community, creating a safe environment for us all. I promise
you this is cheaper, more effective, and much more desirable than having police
cars patrolling our streets all the time.
Needless to say, when the time comes and our children apply
to enter a university or for scholarship I would be very surprise to hear if
they would ever asked “let’s see how was your reading and math?” –I want to
assure you I am not denying the importance of having a strong basis, just pointing
out how important to have it all- to give you a place or scholarship. I would
think they would be more interested how rounded an individual you are and what
you can bring to their faculty as a good student as well as good musician,
artist, sportsman, etc
Change and growth are good and necessary things for
survival, yet growth or change for the sake of growth or change only happens in
cancer in the organic matter and is NEVER a useful thing.
In a nutshell
Now do pardon my skepticism if I look like I do not trust the
BoE to represent us. After all, aren’t these people chosen by us to represent
us? Yet it worries me that they don’t seem
to know their powers in the political hierarchy. They are feeling helpless
against the new implementations of the Superintendent. As a board they come above the
Superintendent. Their first job is to protect or improve my children’s
educational future. Thus far, they seem
to have failed us on this front. The Superintendent herself since day one -
seemed to me- more interested in proving herself than working with the
community she is appointed and improving things for that community. She is –least to say- arrogant towards the
public she is supposed to be serving.
Yes, not RULING but SERVING!
