Each year we work to bring improvements to the world of teaching and learning in Stonington. Our goal is to have all students learning at optimal levels, and to do so we must continually ask, “How can we do a better job of reaching them all?”
Identifying what we want students to know and be able to do when they are ready for the world beyond Stonington Public Schools is a critical task. This is especially important if we want students to have the tools necessary to pursue their own goals after graduation – whether in the world of college, employment or military service. Once content and skills to be taught are determined, we set about planning how best to instruct, and we tackle the challenges associated with meeting various learning styles, readiness levels and abilities. The work is complex, but incredibly important.
On occasion, I’ll hear from a family who feels that their child’s needs are not being met. In some cases there is a perceived lack of support or remediation. In other cases, parents are looking for more challenging experiences for their youngsters. In all cases, parents want the most personalized instruction possible – and rightfully so.
So where do we stand with you? In your opinion, how can we do a better job of reaching all students? I’m hoping that this post will prompt you to consider the degree to which you feel we are meeting our goal. Share your thoughts about the over-arching work of our district here, but by all means be sure to communicate directly with our teachers when specific concerns exist about your children. Our power is multiplied when we all work together.
We Are Stonington Public Schools.
My best,
Leanne
I’m concerned that our students are not proficient in basic math. Community business owners have commented that the high school students they are hiring are incapable of doing math with speed or accuracy. I feel that my student was the subject of a math experiment for 8 years of elementary and middle school–years when they were forbidden to have their parents show them alternate ways of mulitplying or dividing. Am I overreacting? Have homebase teachers administer a pop quiz of basic math (no calculators) and you will probably share my concern.
Thank you for weighing in. For the past few years we have been administering assessments of basic math facts to gauge student proficiency. This began as a result of questions like the one you pose here. The results are analyzed and the schools take steps to meet the needs of students who continue to struggle. There is no doubt that the math curriculum adopted more than 7 years ago has received some criticism, but our goal each year is to build upon instruction and to remediate whenever deficiencies exist. Since the time of the adoption, Stonington has learned that all programs require some degree of supplementation by the classroom teacher, and that parents, like yourself, want to help. Our efforts now center around sharing a few problem solving strategies with students and helping them to identify which strategies are most effective and efficient. We would be happy to share our latest math fact findings with you if you are interested. You can email ngullickson@stoningtonschools.org and make the request. Nikki Gullickson is our Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction and she would be happy to share the data with you.
Leanne,
Regarding the High School I have been wondering why you don’t differentiate the classes more? For popular core subjects it seems like there can be three or more classes covering the same subject at the same level. As I understand it the range of ability within for example an Honors class can be large and you could offer a better experience to both ends of that spectrum by scheduling Honors 1,2,3.
Neil
Neil,
Thanks so much for your question. I’ve shared your post with Dr. Murphy, the principal of Stonington High School, and asked that he contribute to our reply. Dr. Murphy responds that, “At the ninth and tenth grade levels we attempt as much heterogeneity as possible by having two levels: Honors or interdisciplinary/non-interdisciplinary courses. During the junior and seniors years, we do have AP, College/Honors, and standard.”
As a rule, the expectation of teachers in district is that lessons, regardless of course, are differentiated to address a variety of needs in the classroom. This is complex work, but we continually seek to improve our courses so as to meet the needs of students. In order to explore the concept of high school offerings in more depth, I would encourage an ongoing dialogue with HS administration and the guidance office. For example, is there a particular subject area that has presented challenges in terms of differentiation from your point of view?
Leanne
Thanks. It goes across subjects ie the wider the range of ability in a class the harder it is for the teacher to match the needs of each student. I’ll follow up with HS admin since I’m sure there are complexities not obvious to an outsider.