Middle School Curriculum

Much afoot at Sherman Middle school. MMSD will look at developing a district-wide middle school curriculum. While that might improve the mess at Sherman, it might also mean watering down the curriculum, eg. math, throughout the district.

http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/index.php?ntid=45223

"School Board President Carol Carstensen, who made it one of her priorities to examine how the district's 11 middle schools are structured and to consider proposals for changes, said that questions and concerns about middle- school curriculum existed before the situation at Sherman boiled over.

"It came to a head around Sherman," Carstensen said.

Among the concerns is whether the kind of preparation students receive for high school varies depending on which middle school they attend, she said.

In one of her first jobs as the new superintendent of secondary schools, Pam Nash will focus on designing a middle school system that is consistent across the district, Rainwater said.

"Each of our middle schools has developed in a very different way," Rainwater said, adding, "It provides a tremendous amount of flexibility."

Carstensen said that while a more centralized model would sacrifice some autonomy and creativity in a school's ability to meet the needs of its specific student population, she believes that all students should have the same opportunities in certain areas, including instrumental music and advanced math classes."

http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/index.php?ntid=45223
Sherman's curriculum riles parents

Sandy Cullen Wisconsin State Journal
June 28, 2005

With continuing controversy over curriculum at Sherman Middle School prompting some parents to transfer students to other schools, School Board members and administrators will review the district's model for all of Madison's middle schools.
Sherman Principal Ann Yehle said she knows of three students who are leaving the school because of the controversy ignited last month when she announced that band and orchestra classes would be moved to an optional eighth hour after the regular school day. On Friday, the state Department of Public Instruction ruled that under Wisconsin law, instrumental music instruction must be available to all students in grades seven through 12 during the regular school day.

Prior to DPI's ruling, Yehle had agreed to offer band and orchestra during the regular school day as well as during the optional eighth hour next year. But some parents are still upset after learning that students might have to miss other classes, such as foreign language or art, on the days they have band and orchestra.

"It is unusual to pull students from one class to meet instructional time in another class," said Michael George, director of the Content & Learning Team for the state Department of Public Instruction, who issued Friday's ruling. "Clearly, they're not getting the same experience as other students."

Superintendent Art Rainwater, who said he will send a letter to Sherman parents today, said that students taking band and orchestra would miss another exploratory class one day a week, where in the past they missed the opportunity to take another entire class. Exploratory classes include music, art, foreign language, gym, healthy living and technology.

Rainwater also said Sherman will begin allowing students to take algebra at their parents' request, addressing another issue of contention at the school.

Many parents are upset that the number of Sherman students eligible to take algebra has dropped dramatically in recent years. They say that Sherman has required students to attain higher scores on an assessment test than other middle schools, preventing many students from taking an advanced math class before high school.

Yehle said she expected eight students to take the advanced math class in the coming year, down from a high of about 25 in years past.

School Board President Carol Carstensen, who made it one of her priorities to examine how the district's 11 middle schools are structured and to consider proposals for changes, said that questions and concerns about middle- school curriculum existed before the situation at Sherman boiled over.

"It came to a head around Sherman," Carstensen said.

Among the concerns is whether the kind of preparation students receive for high school varies depending on which middle school they attend, she said.

In one of her first jobs as the new superintendent of secondary schools, Pam Nash will focus on designing a middle school system that is consistent across the district, Rainwater said.

"Each of our middle schools has developed in a very different way," Rainwater said, adding, "It provides a tremendous amount of flexibility."

Carstensen said that while a more centralized model would sacrifice some autonomy and creativity in a school's ability to meet the needs of its specific student population, she believes that all students should have the same opportunities in certain areas, including instrumental music and advanced math classes.

Many parents have expressed concerns about differences between Sherman and other middle schools in the district, including the way Sherman schedules foreign language classes. Some parents also are dissatisfied with the opportunities Sherman provides for talented and gifted students.

Parent Alan Sanderfoot said those factors prompted him to transfer his daughter Olivia from Sherman to O'Keeffe Middle School, and that other parents are considering doing the same.

As a seventh-grader at O'Keeffe, Sanderfoot said, Olivia will have foreign language classes throughout the year. At Sherman, French and Spanish classes for seventh- and eighth-graders are concentrated into half of the school year, causing concerns among some parents about a gap in learning.

George said foreign language and music are two areas in which "continuous progress is very important."

"Many foreign language programs in Wisconsin begin in the elementary school and have opportunities for continuous progress," he said.

Rainwater said he does not believe the Sherman students experience a disadvantage in foreign language instruction.

Sanderfoot, who has another daughter headed for Sherman, said parents' concern is not just about opportunities for their own child.

"This is people worried about the whole middle school model and what it's going to mean in high school."

School Board member Lawrie Kobza, who was president of Sherman's parent group prior to her April election to the board, agrees that there is a bigger issue behind the Sherman controversy.

She said it appears that only Sherman and Sennett middle schools do not allow students to take a full year of foreign language in eighth grade.

"There's a lot of advantages to it," Kobza said, adding that foreign language looks good on college applications and can save money if students test out of college classes.

Yehle said middle school is a time when students should be sampling many subject areas to gauge their interests and skills, and should be introduced to what it's like to study a foreign language, rather than develop proficiencies.

But Sanderfoot and other parents are concerned Sherman's curriculum is being "dumbed down," which Yehle denies.

There is concern about parents' criticism of Yehle, Carstensen said, adding, "Everything that I've heard prior to any of this is very enthusiastic."

When she became principal 4 years ago, Sherman was considered a school in crisis, and Yehle has been credited with reversing the school's downward spiral.

"Ann has done a lot of good things at Sherman," said Kobza, who worked with other parents and Yehle to turn the school around.

"It's just heartbreaking to me to see this," Kobza said of the current controversy. "It's really just bringing the whole school down."

This fall, Sherman will be entering the third and final year of a comprehensive school reform grant, which has involved examining everything the school does and making changes, which are starting to be implemented.

Carstensen said she also is concerned that parents feel that they are not being listened to, adding that parents need to be involved in the process of change.

Posted by at June 29, 2005 9:16 AM
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