Seven parents and community activists — representing thousands of other parents across Chicago and decades of experience in local school council and other public education work — gathered in the lobby of Chicago Public Schools headquarters on Monday, March 26, 2012, to question the official version of Chicago's "Longer School Day" calendar and call for more promotion of the local school councils by Chicago Public Schools.
Representing Calmeca Academy of Fine Arts & Dual Language at a news conference held by Local School Council members, Jose Hernandez urges parents to stay involved despite city and CPS actions that diminish community control. Other speakers standing behind him are (left to right) Carmen Palmer, Wendell Smith Elementary; Nellie M. Cotton, Grimes/Fleming Schools; Steven Guy, Fuller Elementary; Dwayne Truss, Ella Flagg Young Elementary; Sharisa Lee Vaval, Wendell Smith; and Wanda Hopkins, Jackson Elementary Language Academy. Photo provided by Publicity Works.
How Rahm Emanuel can 'save' the schools (and he doesn't have to give me credit)
In order to win over parents, Emanuel's educational operatives have been going from school to school telling parents the mayor knows what's good for them even if they don't realize it.
"We had an information meeting and this official from the central office is telling us that if we don't start demanding a seven-and-one-half hour day, our children won't go to college," says Michelle Bever, a parent at Mt. Greenwood elementary school on the far southwest side. "Our parents said our test scores are fantastic—we were written up in Chicago magazine. He said, 'They're not as good as you think they are.'"
http://www.chicagoreader.com/...
CPS employees holding spots in line for parents (and cutting!), a hilariously awful practice that is described below as a "concierge service" for 7.5 hour supporters:
"When I got there a little before 6:30am, I notice my FACEmanager in the line before me, thought it was a little weird that CPS employees had to get there so early to get in line and then I noticed he was in line behind me. I started talking to a young woman in front of me, she happens to be the FACE manager for the Pilsen area. And then a older Chinese man comes to stand next to her, I was a little irritated by the cut in line but didn’t say anything. I heard them whispering about security, vandalism, etc. Another CPS employee kept popping up and telling the Pilsen FACE manager that her other parents were not going to make it. I started texting other parents I know in line and asked them to look around and see if they noticed any other FACE managers in line, sure enough a few other FACE managers were holding spots for parents that showed up much later than the rest of us. That would have been bad enough that they were holding spots for other people but come to find out these parents were all supporters of a longer 7.5 hr day. Basically the parents who question the longer day had to get there early and without any assistance but if you support a 7.5 hour day CPS will provide concierge service. This is another reason we do not believe CPS is truly trying to engage parents. I do not blame the FACE managers, this not something they would have initiated themselves. In fact my FACE manager lives nearby and is a pretty nice guy."
http://www.chicagonow.com/...
"Angry parents Wednesday accused Chicago Public Schools of playing favorites on the longer school day issue and paying staff to hold spaces in a very long ling to ensure pro-longer day speakers would be able to address board members.
“You guys had people standing in line [for others], planted,” an angry Sonia Quon of Raise Your Hand told one manager of the district’s Family and Community Engagement Office outside board chambers.
Both the manager and a CPS spokeswoman insisted no employee held spots but Quon and at least two other people insisted they saw a FAC employee hand over his spot in line to Wah Go, who later spoke in favor of a longer school day."
http://www.suntimes.com/...
According to the press release from Publicity Works, which helped organize the press conference:
LOCAL SCHOOL COUNCIL REPS CALL ATTENTION TO CITY ACTIONS THAT DIMINISH COMMUNITY CONTROL
“We are not lazy, ignorant or helpless,” declared Nellie Cotton, shortly after a news conference held, last week, in the lobby of Chicago Public Schools Headquarters as officials looked on. She joined diverse Local School Council members and candidates who see lackluster City support of the upcoming April 19 LSC elections as part of a strategy to sabotage community control over neighborhood schools.
Cotton, an opponent of the longer school day, has two children enrolled in Grimes/ Fleming Elementary near Midway Airport. “We’re over 80 percent Hispanic, with a high poverty rate. But we have a 96 percent attendance record and ISAT scores that exceed standards. We have graduates who’ve gone on to college. What we need is more money for special programs. Unfortunately, we are experiencing what happens when you’re not at the table – you end up on the menu!”
Echoing Cotton, Carmen Palmer contends the portrayal of CPS’ overwhelmingly low-income, minority population has given license to an elitist “we know what’s best for you” approach that puts budgetary, staffing and programmatic power into the hands of politically connected outsiders. “We have home-grown expertise,” notes Palmer, a retired teacher with a Ph.D. in education and personal experience building high performance public schools in the very environments where CPS initiatives have failed.
Agreed Jose Hernandez, representing Calmeca Academy of Fine Arts & Dual Language, “It is a fact the majority of schools with a good LSC have good test scores. We used to be able to count on CPS to partner with outside organizations to recruit for LSCs, but now there is a disconnect.”
In a statement expressing her concerns, Becky Malone of 19th Ward Parents reminded, “LSCs across the city have voted against a longer school day, but their capacity is limited if they do not have numbers. This is why it is so critical that as communities we keep our voices strong and continue to fight for our children through every means we have available to us.”
Wanda Hopkins held up sheets of new rules she had just received in her capacity as a long-time LSC member at Jackson Elementary Language Academy. “The restrictions CPS keeps putting on our schools are unwarranted. They are trying to discourage us. Why would people come to meetings and be a part of a board that has no power? I say to CPS and Mayor Emanuel, “Stop doing what you are doing!’”
Like Hopkins, Steven Guy talked about CPS-initiated legislation, re-staffing and charter-school promotion that undermine its mission to ensure a solid education equally accessible to all children. Guy considers such actions a violation of civil rights, which he expressed in a complaint letter to the Federal government following dismissal of an injunction several LSCs recently filed to stop school closings.
Dwayne Truss, from Ella Flagg Young Elementary on the West Side, and Smith Elementary’s Sharisa Lee Vaval focused their remarks on the comprehensive support required to maintain democratically run schools — whether legislators who accept CPS changes without sufficient input from constituents, or clergy who accept city money and invite CPS officials to present provably false claims to congregations.
“We need the pastors and all community members to unify with us for the sake of our children,” stated Vaval. “If the community refuses to stand for something, then we will surely fall for anything.”
The amount of homework is a really critical issue for kids. If they are overloaded they are not going to be happy and not going to enjoy it.
CHILDREN are being lumbered with hours of homework every week - but the extra slog doesn't do them any good.
Dr Ben Edwards, manager of the AIFS's study of 10,000 children, said a small portion of children did more than seven hours homework a week but that could be attributed to extracurricular studies such as music classes.
While the majority of 10 and 11-year-olds - 59 per cent - do less than two hours of homework per week, 22 per cent do three or four hours a week. Five per cent do seven or more hours a week.
It's not only kids who get tied down with homework - parents are also heavily involved. Dr Edwards said almost half of mums and dads - 41 per cent - helped out three or four days a week, with 15 per cent also chipping in on five or more days.
"A little bit of homework is probably OK at all ages, if part of the reason is to help kids become self-directed learners," Dr Walker said.
"But what the research shows is that only happens when upper primary and middle school students are given some assistance.
"If we (ask) if homework benefits outcomes, then it is pretty clear it does not at primary school and has pretty limited benefits in junior high school and some benefits in high school from Years 11-12."
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/...
Parents: Longer School Day Is Bad For Kids
Parent Dolores Fischinger says according to a survey, the majority prefers a shorter school day.
“And the numbers actually showed that the majority of people did not want 7 1/2 (hours); wanted something less,” Fischinger said.
Fischinger says parents conducted their own survey, and found that 53 percent of parents say the longer day is detrimental to the child’s health and wellness.
Skinner North is one of 51 public schools that have already implemented the longer school day. The entire district will go longer when the news school year starts in September.
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/...
CROSS POSTED @ http://www.substancenews.net/...