Increasing Class Sizes In Georgia (Atlanta: public schools, college, live in)

[Sweet Atlanta Peach]

So, my fellow educators, how will it feel to have to deal with this? All I can say is in some situations, there will be even more children left behind. I know it may not seem like a lot, but, imagine teachers that have to deal with extreme discipline AND academic issues (LIKE ME). But, just another result of this horrible economy.

Classes may have a few more kids, cost less money | ajc.com (http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/printedition/2009/01/09/classsize.html?cxntlid=inform_artr - broken link)

[cityrover]

Try college. You cannot even get into the classes you need. Been like this for a while now, despite hiking tuition and cutbacks in h.o.p.e. approvals

Article says the increase is 2 students per class. Hardly noticable in real terms.

[Sweet Atlanta Peach]

Originally Posted by cityrover

Try college. You cannot even get into the classes you need. Been like this for a while now, despite hiking tuition and cutbacks in h.o.p.e. approvals

Article says the increase is 2 students per class. Hardly noticable in real terms.

Yes, it doesn't seem like a lot. But, it's not if you do not have discipline and academic challenges depending on the area you teach in. I used to think the same thing before I actually started teaching.

[coolyfett]

How bad do you think it will actual become GA Peach? Do you have feeling that it may grow to a crazier number like 10-12 students?

[Sweet Atlanta Peach]

Originally Posted by coolyfett

How bad do you think it will actual become GA Peach? Do you have feeling that it may grow to a crazier number like 10-12 students?

Well, right now its only going to be by 2 students which doesn't seem like much, but, depending on the classroom climate, can be a strained.
But, that's why we get paid the big bucks, right? We are superheros, we can handle ANYTHING!!

[DeaconJ]

Adding 2 students to a classroom of 2nd Graders IS a big deal. Teachers are already pulled in 100 different directions during a typical day...and 2 additional students simply means that my time and attention is further diluted - and it was already being distributed among too many areas.

I'm not sure why this is such a big news item. The maximum class sizes were not adhered to - I can assure you of that. In booming areas of Metro Atlanta, registering new students is a continual process that lasts the entire school year. Last year at my Fulton County school, our grade level registered an average of 3 students per week, but quite a bit more than that in August and September. The school can't hire another teacher/create a new class just because a newly registered student will cause a classroom to exceed the limit. That new student will, of course, be placed in a classroom...as will the next one, and the next, and the next, etc. until there are enough students to warrant hiring an additional teacher (which may or may not happen). My grade level started out with 7 classes in August, but ended the year with 11. My class size fluctuated between 19 and 22 students - and these aren't at an independent age.

I'm not complaining about the above scenario...it's expected when teaching public school in a growing area. Public schools don't have the option of turning away new students that live in the district, and it's difficult finding places for all of them - and impossible to find places for all of them while adhering to class size limits.

[ramblinwreck17]

This country's survival has and will continue to rest on the backs of our teachers. Generation after generation they deal with more and more red tape and continue to come through. Wish US students valued their education like most of the international community.

[RainyRainyDay]

Originally Posted by ramblinwreck17

This country's survival has and will continue to rest on the backs of our teachers. Generation after generation they deal with more and more red tape and continue to come through.

I'll second that. Given the low pay scales of Georgia teachers, compared with other professional jobs, it's amazing that we have so many good teachers. For example, my daughter has had excellent math teachers in Cobb middle and high schools. With their good math and organizational skills, those people could easily have been successful in my field, software engineering, and be making more money.

As a society, we benefit a lot from the altruism of people who are drawn to a teaching career.

(I'm not saying there are no poor teachers out there. Of course there are. But the good ones are pretty amazing.)