From the Plaistow Town Crier;
Posted by Len Mullen on January 27, 2009 at 05:50:35:
I find it striking that Plaistow -- with the worst schools in a terrible school district -- doesn't rail against the system. TRSD has published a draft of its 2009 - 2014 strategic plan. Few parents (three by my count) would support this plan, but a Plaistow school board member (who is up for re-election this year) would. Show your kids some love by voting against Elizabeth Kosta. She's a member of the committee that recommended...
* downsize/compact the curriculum
* eliminate ability grouping, block scheduling, school calendar
* develop a long range plan for PK-12 facilities
* consider purchase of additional land
* improve building security
* rehabilitate/replace school spaces
* increase schools’ capacities (despite declining enrollments)
when all we need to do is...
* Teach 180 FULL days
* Do homework at home
* End finals on the last day of school
* Minimize teacher out of class time
* No nonacademic assemblies
* No nonacademic field trips
* No fundraising during school hours
* Take TVs out of the classroom
* Provide tutoring after school
I plan to vote against EVERY SAU warrant and proposal until they agree to teach our kids. You should too. Call the SAU, your School Board rep, and your Budget Committee rep and insist they start teaching. I also encourage you to boycott fundraising that is done on school time and NOT send your kids to school on half days (the SAU loses state funding if no kids show up on these nonteaching days).
SAU: http://www.timberlane.net/Administration.htm
School Board: https://public.timberlane.net/sau/trsb/default.aspx
Budget Committee: http://www.timberlane.net/Budcom/trsd55.htm
Dennis, tell your friends in Atkinson to take a look at the draft of this plan. They can help out by voting against School Board chair Willima Baldwin. They also have two openings on the Budget Committee. It's time for change folks.
* Strategic Plan for Failure
Atkinson Town Hall
The Norman Rockwellian picture of Atkinson
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18 comments:
Are some of the signs for this web site that were around Atkinson now missing? I seen them the other day and now they are not there.
Are we starting this crap all over again?
Oh and I have to agree with the poster, the TRSD should go back to school to learn how to teach!
How about a tough curriculum?
How about no more movies in class?
How about ACTUALLY TEACHING 180 DAYS a YEAR!
How about Not embracing every new educational fad to come down the pike?
How about spending the $13,000 we pay you for every kid who goes there, efficiently?
While I agree with reasonable cuts to defray the costs of education I can't say I agree with Mr. Mullen totally. I can and do think the days of teachers not teaching should be looked at with more thought. Do all of the teachers have to go ,especially if they teach the same subject? I can see one or two and maybe a third in the district going to learn what they can along with updates,etc. As educated persons in the world of teaching thay canm pass on what they know and alternate from year to year with one another to go to these sessions. That alone can help eliminate a day or two of extra school term come June due to winter school closings . We all have to pull our belts in another notch or two and it has to start with the teachers and contract settings of the days of no school . It seems to me not all the teachers go to these things so why do the students have the day off because of it and at taxpayers costs. May be it is me alone in this thinking but I'm fed up with every unnecessary cost I think isn't of necessity. How about you?
I plan on voting NO to all Timberlane warrant articles. It's time that the school system gives ALL students a quality education. Stop wasting our money on fads, failed programs and overpriced studies for new bldgs. Enough is enough.
You guys really need to stop being so one sided, look at the full picture here. Being a substitute teacher, the students dont learn regardless of how the teachers teach them, so we need any and all possible options to get them exited about education so that they can pay into your social security accounts with their high paying jobs
If there's no fun in school (a snow day, fun assemblies, just a day to do relax and collect your thoughts) then kinds wont learn or want to learn because what's the point? they hate it - you all hate Atkinson, look at what "good" you do here. haha If you hate everything in town SO much just get out of here.
It's time for a change in attitude for all of us, Atkinson used to be such a nice, friendly, "rich" community and now we're known for our crappy small town, unreal politics. makes everyone sick.
Thats funny because in private schools they dont do all of that crap, and the students learn more than they do in the public schools!
That is because the expectations are higher, and they are not ALLOWED to skate by.
Yes it is called accountability. When the PSAT tests were done in the fall, MANY of the students taking them were cheating. The test moderators rather than policing the testing were reading the paper.
So, does the staff really care? No. Do the kids get away with crap like this? Yes.
If a kid does not make the grade, they stay back. Pure and simple. And if the parent does not understand that, make them take a refresher course and see what really goes on there.
Someone mentioned free market schooling a while ago and I think that is the best choice for all. It will certainly make TRDS or (TURDS) face reality and have to compete for students rather than having them forced to go there.
Anon 7:59 AM,
I disagree with your point. Most children who attend private schools have a different economic and social background than children who attend public schools. In addition, there is a greater likelihood the parents of private school children have a college and/or post-graduate education. To simply compare performance of public school versus private school and base it solely on "expectations" is incorrect.
Wrong! In inner cities all over the country there are parochial schools and charter schools, filled with economically disadvantaged students from the local neighborhoods. They are educated for a fraction of the cost of public schools, and they outperform public school students academically!
Well look who is on the school committee.
No educational back ground just a nice guy who cares.
Someone with limited higher education. Would let just anyone operate on you?
They are the ones responsible for your child’s education.
Along with the parents, teachers aunts uncles friends and neighbors.
As one who believes, as many of you do, that it is improper to merely complain, I offer up this admittedly far from perfect alternative to the SAU's poposed startegic plan.
Please check out the link below. Sorry about the formatting, the thought was that it could get cleaned up later. Additions are shown in red. There were some deletions, but they do not show up in this draft. The goal was to keep the revision within the same general form and conrtext as the originla, obviously inadequate, document.
If you like it, PLEASE feel free to froward it to boad members, administrators, and perhaps enter its internet address into the comments suggestion of the SAU's proposed plan...
Comments?? What's missing??
http://www.chachka.net/Timberlane%20School%20District%20Strategic%20Plan%20rev%201.pdf
Peter Bealo
moderator: Timberlane Parents' Forum
Anon 9:27 AM:
Can you please provide some evidence to backup this statement? A quick search on Google reveals many reports showing charter schools lagging behind public schools with respect to academic performance.
some do, especially in their first 3 years. but then they are usually operating on less than 50% of the budget of the public schools too. But most of the charter schools, and nearly ALL of the parochial schools do better academically than public schools.
If you want local comparisons, look at Timberlane vs. Pinkerton
or St. Joes
or Central Catholic
or Bishop Guertin
ALL have FAr higher academic achievement than Timberlane, for FAR less money.
Anon 12:37 PM,
Assuming you are the same person who posted at 9:27 AM, I am having difficulty following you. At 9:27 you write:
"Wrong! In inner cities all over the country there are parochial schools and charter schools, filled with economically disadvantaged students from the local neighborhoods."
Yet, your examples on your recent post are all local, parochial schools. This hardly backs-up your original statement.
I don't understand why people are settling for under performance at Timberlane. We pay plenty and we should expect the very best for our children. Find the best public schools in the state and find out what they are doing right. Seems to me Timberlane is a high performer in knowing how to do what's wrong. Stop the insanity and reject giving more money until they get their act together.
As I said to Billy Baldwin one day last year,
1.) stop showing popular movies in class.
2.) make them read
3.) assign homework, and make them do it at home, not in class.
4.) Steal a successful curriculum from Pinkerton, or Central Catholic, or Phillips Exeter, and put it in place, NO CHANGES!
5.) Fire ALL curriculum coordinators.
Rather the new curriculum has the kids putting sticker that are written in ebonics warning them not to drink and drive.
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