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some year-round wake county schools may change to traditional
Published Sep. 17, 2008
Some year-round schools in Wake County may change back to a traditional calendar.
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/3557547/
Here we go again. At this point, it is time for parents to put aside their differences on whether or not year round is good and demand the Wake County Board of Education set real, objective criteria regarding conversion to and from year-round calendars. Such criteria would include:
- Availability of year round middle school (split-schedule families is issue #1)
- Availability of traditional option nearby (no more bunched conversions)
- Capacity return from conversion (no more Baucom's which got under 20% from conversion)
- Community demand for year round (no more waiting lists at some schools and dozens of opt-outs at others)
- Time limits before more conversions or deconversions can be performed (kids need consistency)
Anyone got any others? It is time for the Wake County Public School System to operate in a coordinated, planned and consistent manner. Whether it is intentional or not, the current administration appears disorganized at best and capricious at worst.
Please note, comments that call for the elimination of public education or speak on other issues will be deleted. I want to see what the public really needs on this issue and find a way to make the Board deliver. Please respect this.
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The shifts are called tracks, the hours are days, and off time is called track out. You now have year round school.
GOLO member since August 22, 2008
September 17, 2008 11:28 a.m.
GOLO member since December 18, 2007
September 17, 2008 11:18 a.m.
The county is too large and diverse to be served by one district. You cannot tend to the needs of individual children when you are managing close to 140,000 of them.
GOLO member since August 22, 2008
September 17, 2008 10:53 a.m.
Administrating WCPSS is Herculean, and there will be problems b/c the County Commissioners and Mayor align with bankers, builders and realtors to encourage uncontrolled and therefore unmanageable growth. That leaves the schools with buildings in the wrong location, land high, and mission impossible in their own planning. Add in English as a second language, racial balance, magnet schools, test scores, teacher shortages, jumps in fuel costs, parents suing every decision from schedules to dress codes to parking lots, courts ruling one way then another, gangs, and we are lucky to do as well as we have. If all schools were year round, then complaints wojuld be about one child in one track, and another in another, so please run busses to all areas all year, and make the jigsaw puzzle pieces fit. WCPSS is doing well, all things considered.
GOLO member since January 20, 2008
September 17, 2008 10:49 a.m.
Of course, that is how it works in theory. WCPSS has never gotten close to adding the theoretical 33% more kids. They struggle to add half that, which is one of the major problems. You are running a school for 33% more time but only adding 16% more kids. That is a bad idea.
GOLO member since August 22, 2008
September 17, 2008 10:33 a.m.
You increase your capacity by 25% because the school is being used all year. 25% of the kids are always tracked out. In some cases it did not do anything but make it so the school was not over enrolled. I have to say the times I have sat in carpool, it is much quicker, class sizes have dropped some, cafeteria is not as crowded. In some cases kids eat lunch as early as 11:00 and school does not start until 9:15. Keeping track of events that happen during track out is some work, but I feel like after the first year I have that under control.
GOLO member since July 12, 2007
September 17, 2008 10:33 a.m.
Other subjects covers illegal aliens, btw.
GOLO member since August 22, 2008
September 17, 2008 10:31 a.m.
GOLO member since July 12, 2007
September 17, 2008 10:28 a.m.
I have one question - I've never had an opinion one way or the other on year round vs traditional. My daughter was always ahead of all that mess in school and now she's out.
Serious question: How does a year round school schedule help eliminate "overcrowding" in schools? Same kids, same #'s, all still going at the same time - just spread out over a year with breaks in between?
GOLO member since December 18, 2007
September 17, 2008 10:27 a.m.
GOLO member since August 28, 2008
September 17, 2008 10:25 a.m.
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