Last week, Mason District representative Sandy Evans and I had the opportunity to sit down with high school student leaders from the Falls Church, Annandale, Stuart and Thomas Jefferson communities, and we had barely begun our conversation before hands shot up to protest the new online mathematics textbooks. I was not surprised by their vociferousness — after all, change is always difficult.
However, the ongoing shift to online textbooks continues to expose new problems, some foreseen and some unforeseen. As the students reiterated, publisher technical glitches, a shortage of hardback books and a lack of education in how to use the textbooks have left many students, parents and teachers in despair. Some parents have even had to resort to buying copies of the expensive hardback textbooks. To complicate matters, student computer and internet access remains a concern, as many students lack the necessary computer hardware and infrastructure at home. For example, the power outages accompanying Hurricane Sandy prevented students from completing their homework since their books required an internet connection and, of course, electricity. As the School Board was undergoing a massive turnover last year while textbook talks progressed, half of the Board had little knowledge of the looming changes.
Around the same time I heard the first rumblings about the textbook situation at back-to-school nights in September, staff had begun to discuss potential changes to our AAP (Advanced Academic Placement) Centers by 2013 with the AAP Advisory Committee (AAPAC). The intentions of staff were good — to gain advance feedback from a highly knowledgeable group of community stakeholders. Yet as news of the potential changes spread, it appeared to the broader community that staff had made a decision without its feedback or input from the School Board.
Both the online textbook and AAP Center changes are forward-looking steps for FCPS. There is little doubt that online textbooks, like their cousins Kindle and Nook, are the way of the future, and we must adapt to embrace them. Similarly, our current AAP Centers are bursting at the seams, and being able to teach our gifted children in their base pyramids with Center-like academic rigor is a significant aspirational goal. But asking our teachers and community to adapt to these changes during the same year they are facing state-mandated teacher evaluations, SOL changes, new elementary-level grading standards and multitudinous other initiatives, is unsustainable. Being in the midst of hiring a new Superintendent only adds to the concern that FCPS has rushed the implementation of these initiatives.
As a school system, we must acknowledge these mistakes so we can correct them as quickly as possible and avoid repeating them. FCPS took shortcuts by failing to implement a mathematics textbook pilot and failing to acknowledge that community engagement on potential AAP changes should come before releasing extensive plans. In a county with many diverse issues and complexities, there are bound to be problems stemming from county-wide initiatives, but these shortcuts in outreach have gouged a self-inflicted wound in the system.
On the other hand, these past few months have provided an important learning experience for FCPS, offering insight in how to better engage and educate the community. Since issues began to arise, staff has worked nonstop negotiating with online textbook publishers and laying out a schedule for AAP Center public engagement. The School Board is fully committed to working through these issues with the community in the coming months. Meanwhile, we will continue to prioritize narrowing the digital divide. We will continue to work toward building strong community schools. And we will continue to maintain our high-quality AAP program. The missteps over the past few months will not cause us to lose sight of the bigger picture: helping all of our children succeed.
_____________________________________
Community meetings to discuss potential AAP Center changes have been announced for 7 p.m. Nov. 27 at Westfield High School, Nov. 28 Lee High School, and Nov. 29 and Kilmer Middle School. In addition, the School Board will be discussing both the online textbooks and AAP Centers at our work-session on December 10. Moving forward, please let us know your opinions.
_____________________________________
Ryan McElveen is an At-large Member of the Fairfax County School Board. His views are his own and do not necessarily represent those of the School Board. He can be reached at ryan.mcelveen@fcps.edu.
Community engagement is an afterthought and a paste on. "After all, all wisdom is to be found exclusively in Gatehouse!" This pathology can be traced back to the very hiring process where Dale Fail didn't have to engage FCPS's various communities before he was given the job. Let's not repeat that mistake as we choose his successor. Make sure that HYA's contract has the finalists interact with the FCPS' communities before a final choice is made by the School Board.
Mr. McElveen, I hope that you start looking at Gatehouse with a little more skepticsm. Our School Board has rubber stamped Dale and followed Gatehouse's wishes for far too long. Anyone who watches the School Board meetings understands this. It is time for the School Board to challenge the administration--that is your elected responsibility. Make the administration defend its decisions. Question them.
I concur with Mr. McElveen's statement above. The community is not even aware of what the "problem" is that FCPS staff is trying to address. No information has been provided to the public and parents have not been involved from the start. FCPS staff should start a series of community dialogue sessions with parents of ALL students (and not simply just students currently receiving AAP services). Let's define the problem, discuss possible alternatives, develop pro and con lists for each of the alternatives, and work together to arrive at some possible solutions.
Why are all these decisions being made in a hurry befor Dale exits? Why leave all this mess for a new Sup. Someone please stop the madness and show some leadership.
Unfortunately, we already are supposed to have "community involvement" as a result of the election of school board members from each district and the three at-large candidates. Some of the newer members are trying to listen to the community. Unfortunately, others are still following the Pied Piper--Jack Dale. Sadly, though Mr. McElveen wrote a good article here, he did not support an outside auditor. He went along with the Old Guard. Maybe, now, he will rethink that decision. Unless the School Board starts seriously questioning and challenging the administration (and voting accordingly), it doesn't matter what the community thinks.
A true leader acknowledges when something is not being done correctly, focusing then on how to resolve the issue (and prevent it from occurring again), versus 'saving face'. It is only through the recognition and acceptance of the problem that it can then start to be addressed and resolved. 'FCPS took shortcuts by failing to implement a mathematics textbook pilot and failing to acknowledge that community engagement on potential AAP changes should come before releasing extensive plans.' Correct. Agreed. '...we must acknowledge these mistakes so we can correct them as quickly as possible and avoid repeating them.' The true test here will be the 'avoid repeating them' section. Mr. McElveen has correctly identified what 'went wrong', but (more importantly) is leading to find solutions to avoid 'history repeating itself'. I hope others on the School Board and FCPS administration will support his position and work with the community and your educators to find solutions for the issues identified in his letter (and any future ones). Steven L. Greenburg President, Fairfax County Federation of Teachers AFT /AFL-CIO #2401
AAP centers are not a new program in FC. New centers have been set up and are performing well across the county. The wheel is not being reinvented. FCPS isn't rushing.The statement that moving the rising 3rd graders into the new center would provide enough relief is incorrect. Define enough? 3 schools are grossly overcrowded and need significant relief.
What safeguards can be put into place to ensure the Board is consulted before major initiatives are developed and acted upon? Obviously, the Board should be consulted early on in any planning stage, but how would it effect that? Some formal procedures can be put into place, yet much depends on the ability of the superintendent and his staff to actively include the Board in substantive decision-making. It appears an insular culture currently exists at the upper levels of administration that excludes the very people the electorate entrusted to govern our school system. A paradigm shift is needed and the Board has an opportunity to achieve that with the selection of a new superintendent. The Board must take the reins of this wagon if it really intends to steer it in another direction. Hiring a more forthcoming superintendent who is dedicated to an open process is a first step in that effort.
Actually there is PLENTY of doubt, in reference to your absolutism quote above. Some children and adult learn better from a hard copy book they can touch, feel and read. Not to mention the issues you refer to about elwctricity, lack of knowledge....But books are dont help help enrich someones friends for IT contracts probably :o(
Einstein said something about doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. It's insanity. The identities of the finalists for the 'Superintendents job must be disclosed before a final hiring decision is made. We won't be fooled again.
Localities throughout the country disclose the finalists' names before making a hiring decision. The Fairfax School Board doesn't respect their electorate enough to share the information with them.
Any candidate too fearful to encounter the public for whom s/he seeks to work before getting the job is far too cowardly to be worthy to lead the country's 11th largest school division in a county with the 3rd highest rate of graduate education in that country. Any superintendent hired in secret will believe, as Dale Fail does, that the public be damned and the School Board are his lackeys. Secrecy is antithetical to democracy. Especially in a local government.
HYA doesn't want to be accountable to the public that pays it bills so, no surprise, it advocates for a secret process. A public process brought Dan Domenech who had been the leader of the NYC schools. His predecessor, Bob Spillane, had been the leader of Boston's schools. Dale Fail came from Frederick, MD - that secret process resulted in a big upgrade, huh? And they were happy to be rid of him! The Fairfax job is a prestigious career capstone for any superintendent. The reward far exceeds the risk of disclosure. Any candidate who is too cowardly to allow their identity to be revealed if they are among the finalists is unworthy of the Fairfax students, parents, teachers and taxpayers. Any candidate who refuses to interact with the Fairfax public may well have something to hide. The remedies suggested for a repeat of the Dale Fail process are illusory. The successful candidate will sign a 4+ year contract carrying beyond the next School Board election in 2015. Get it right, in the sunshine.