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Palm Beach County students will see many changes when school starts Tuesday District teachers and administrators have spent weeks this summer training for the new programs. Some think it's too much all at once. "A lot of people think there are a lot of good ideas out there," said Robert Dow, president of the county teachers union. "It's just that there are so many changes going on at the same time that people can't keep up with them. That's what the frustration is. It's as if nobody looked at the unintended consequences of doing so many things all at the same time, without easing into it." Hernandez acknowledges the changes are many. This summer there were "too many (training sessions) to even tell you a number," he said. But he's pushing for reform now. "Children don't have time to wait for adults," he said. One big change is a move to standardize what teachers cover and when they teach it. To ensure they hit every tested skill before FCAT, district administrator posted sample lessons online that teachers can use verbatim or as a guide. The lessons come complete with a script a teacher can actually read from if she's not comfortable improvising. The script is geared to classroom novices, but some teachers have dubbed the new lessons "Stepford teaching." "I was very leery of it to begin with it and thought (if) they're going to tell me what to do minute-by-minute of the day, I could just be a robot," said Martha Garnett of Timber Trace Elementary, a teacher for 40 years. But when she looked closely at the lessons, she found helpful resources to add to her own lessons. "No one has said you must do this lesson the way it is presented by the county," she said. "It's there for you to draw from and get extra things for your lesson." More changes this school year Departmentalization: Beginning with third-grade, or earlier in some schools, teachers will no longer cover all subjects. They will specialize a single subject or perhaps two. D high schools: The school day will be broken into eight instead of the traditional seven class periods, allowing students to take additional courses. Students who struggle in science, for example, could take a biology class and a second class focused on material covered in the 11th grade science FCAT. College-level courses: High schools will add more advanced placement courses and try to funnel more students into them. That's because high schools will not only be graded on FCAT, but also on other factors, including graduation rate, advanced courses and vocational certifications. Lake Worth High: The school was named among the state's worst, needing immediate intervention. The district must improve the school's D rating to a C and improve reading and math score or face closing it. Elementary homework: Recommend daily for math and reading Monday through Thursday, with science, writing and social studies assignments alternating as needed. Homework must be limited to a half-hour for kindergartners, an hour for third-graders and 90 minutes for fourth and fifth graders. The school board must still approve the limits. — Laura Green |
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