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The schools are not as good as everyone thnks they are. I'm not joking.
They are as good as the multiple rankings say they are. Which means schools that are worse, are worse. I care more about them not being bad. That plus all the amenities we have in the burbs together makes it all ok.
OP, overall you will have a better experience here than putting them through a #1 school and living in the city. That's the point of having all this space.
You are one of many parents moving in from the city. Sadly the schools do not compare to the privates in the city , or the very top (competitive) publics. I know kids (city) in the same grade as my child, and their field trips, after school activities, among other things far surpass what we have here. Do I still love my child's LI school? Yes. Do I wish we could spend the 45k per year for private? Absolutely. It needs to be said that we all love living here, so that is more important to me.
Many parents here have a 2-3 hour daily commute to deal with, not so in the city. The salaries for teachers out here are far more than what I would expect. I'm sure they make more than the Teachers in top Tier schools in the city, which is unbelievable.
I also hear the school day 830-330, next year my child will be 930-330. That is one hour less instruction every single day.
Last edited by newmommyq; 06-05-2015 at 06:16 PM..
They are as good as the multiple rankings say they are. Which means schools that are worse, are worse. I care more about them not being bad. That plus all the amenities we have in the burbs together makes it all ok.
OP, overall you will have a better experience here than putting them through a #1 school and living in the city. That's the point of having all this space.
I agree with this, it's a much easier more relaxed life style here. Everyone has to pick their poison
Curious- what are typical field trips for Kindergarteners? I have been extremely happy with my son's K experience, but I have nothing to compare it to so I'm curious about other people's experiences...good or bad.
As far as school in general, the 'good' districts on LI are very similar to the 'good' districts in Westchester...people who say LI schools are overrated, do you also think Westchester schools are overrated?
The core curriculum also caused unstable climate patterns, made finding parking harder and increased the cost of milk.
What a bunch. A lamebrain art class and soulless inimaginative field days have nothing to do with cc. Neither does funding-limits and budget caps making field trips less and less viable.
If the whole state public school system is subject to common core, whichit is, how come there are so many schools with fantastic extracirrculars, great field trips and other enrichment classes?
Honestly you anti-common core loons are beyond the pale. Everything turns into a common core discussion. Like with gun nuts and Obama-responsible-for-everything-nuts. Look up monomania in the dictionary.
Yes, Obama is glorious, Common Core is good and may Liberalism continue to flourish amongst the unwashed masses! Hallelujah!
I believe these teachers need evals, I don't believe in tenure. But I don't believe in using the kids to gauge these teachers.
Yes, I agree they do need to be evaluated too, but unfortunately the kids are "the final product". Common core is a horrible, and ridiculous test, which will NOT truly evaluate a child, or the teacher. There needs to be a better way, unfortunately, what is it????
Curious- what are typical field trips for Kindergarteners? I have been extremely happy with my son's K experience, but I have nothing to compare it to so I'm curious about other people's experiences...good or bad.
When my kids were in kindergarten they went to the Waterfront Center in Oyster Bay, the library, a play at Hofstra (that was a bit of a nightmare), The Muttontown Nature Preserve and a couple of others I can't remember. In first grade they went to the science museum in Port Washington, the Chidren's Museum and maybe the firehouse?
Yes, I agree they do need to be evaluated too, but unfortunately the kids are "the final product". Common core is a horrible, and ridiculous test, which will NOT truly evaluate a child, or the teacher. There needs to be a better way, unfortunately, what is it????
Observations by someone not at all familiar with the teacher would be a good start. Principals and APs evaluate teachers now, but that is a system that can be fraught with too much backstory (whether they get along, hang out personally, whatever). If know anything about education, you can tell by observing a teacher for one period or lesson if they are any good. You can tell if they planned the lesson, if they are organized, if they have a behavior management system in place, if they know their kids strengths and weaknesses and how to deal with them.
Going off test scores is not a fair way to do it - first of all you're going off one day of testing. Second of all in many if not most schools the kids with IEPs are usually grouped together. In my kids' middle school, they use "teams" for 6th grade (like most middle schools now) and all the IEPs are on one team. So these teachers are held to the same standard as all the others? Hmmm - I'd be thrilled to be that teacher.
Teachers do need to be evaluated - and they need to be rewarded or penalized based on those evaluations, just like in the real world. There are enough bad teachers out there and they are doing some damage that isn't easily undone. You can never eliminate unfairness from the system, and that's true in the private sector as well. But the system can certainly be improved.
Yes, I agree they do need to be evaluated too, but unfortunately the kids are "the final product". Common core is a horrible, and ridiculous test, which will NOT truly evaluate a child, or the teacher. There needs to be a better way, unfortunately, what is it????
How about returning to the previous methods of teaching? Sit in rows, not in groups 'peer teaching', eliminate social promotion, and stop with unfunded mandates. Eliminate tenure. My son had a teacher who was awful. Parents referred to their child's time in her class as 'the lost year' and rightly so. She was lazy, disconnected, and counting the days until retirement. She was an untouchable piece of dead wood whose fat arse effectively filled a seat -- nothing more.
How about returning to the previous methods of teaching? Sit in rows, not in groups 'peer teaching', eliminate social promotion, and stop with unfunded mandates. Eliminate tenure. My son had a teacher who was awful. Parents referred to their child's time in her class as 'the lost year' and rightly so. She was lazy, disconnected, and counting the days until retirement. She was an untouchable piece of dead wood whose fat arse effectively filled a seat -- nothing more.
We had one of those in third grade and never recovered. She did get removed from teaching to handle kids who need extra help. She makes $120K a year. Every year parents who had had her had to request not to have her again. I literally can't even begin to describe how little my son learned that year. His twin was so far ahead at the end of the year it was ridiculous.
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