The Seabrook School Board has formed a committee to consider withdrawing from SAU21. Remember, SAU21 is focused on politicizing the district rather than improving academic outcomes.
First the SAU called in the radical leftist political group Seacoast Outright for a day of professional development training for their teachers. SAU21 then called in another political day of training for teachers focusing on privilege and bias. Some of these decisions resulted in a “human rights” complaint against Superintendent Meredith Nadeau. One would think that with this kind of blowback, the leadership would refocus their efforts on improving academic outcomes. No, instead, the former Assistant Superintendent, David Hobbs, wasted a year of his time working on Portrait of a Learner.
It’s not like there isn’t room for improvement in this district. Seabrook students are scoring so poorly that their school board is now looking to leave the SAU. I can’t blame them. When the people running the school have other priorities, one has to question whether they are being served well by all of the money they send to the SAU. I keep waiting for school administrators to do something, but their lack of urgency is alarming to anyone watching from the sidelines.
I recently wrote to the Seabrook administrators, asking some basic questions to help the board identify some of the problems that could be contributing to the poor performance. My hope is that the administrators will start taking this seriously and come up with some kind of plan.
The Superintendent has implied that demographics play a big role in this problem. Sorry, I’m not buying it. If that were the case, then Massachusetts students wouldn’t have been outperforming the entire nation pre-Common Core. A state with a large population managed to educate its students so well that its students finished at the top in the country. Not only were they doing well nationally, but they were performing at a level so high that they could compete with students in high-performing countries.
It’s time to stop the excuses. If those at the top cannot look inward at what they are doing to contribute to this mess, then we need to hire people who are willing to get the job done. Otherwise, it looks like this school board is going to leave the SAU, and I don’t blame them.
SENT to the SEABROOK AMIN:
Dear: Seabrook School Administrators:
After watching the Seabrook school board meeting on August 14th, I wanted to follow up with an inquiry. I think once this information is shared, especially with the board members, only then can you begin to dig deeper into areas that could be adjusted or changed in order to get the outcome you desire.
Can you please provide the following information for all of us:
1) Provide a list of curriculum and/or programs used in the following subjects:
Math, Science, Language Arts, Social Studies
2) Provide a list of Competencies in each grade level for each of those subjects.
3) Provide the pedagogy used in each of those core subjects for each grade level.
4) How much time ,and how many days are dedicated to each subject, at each grade level?
5) Are tutors available to children who need it in reading and math, for each grade level?
6) What is the reasoning for not leveling students in middle school?
7) How many students are fully prepared and complete Algebra I by the 8th grade?
8) Do you have enough teachers and paraprofessionals for each grade level?
I sense the frustration between school board members, parents, teachers and administrators. But if everyone is not familiar with these answers, it’s hard to draw any conclusions.
I mentioned in the past, the Core Knowledge Scope and Sequence for k-8. It is content rich, and focuses on what each student should know at each grade level. Some Charter schools in New Hampshire have added the Core Knowledge Scope and Sequence to their k-8 program of studies. Has that been moved forward in any way for Seabrook or any school in SAU21?
It was extremely disturbing to listen to the parent describe what these students do not know. Some of this is basic academic content that can be mastered by using quality curriculum and pedagogy. If no one knows the answers to the above questions, how does one discuss ways to make a positive impact in the classroom?
I just took a tour of the new Charter School opening up on the Seacoast. Seacoast Classical Academy. I would suggest everyone take a look at the books and curriculum they will be using when they open in the fall. You don’t get any better than what they have purchased for their students. Why not do some side by side comparisons?
I applaud the board for making sure the focus is on academic outcomes, these kids deserve a quality public education. It is up to the administrators to bring viable solutions to the board. You may be using a Common Core math program, but did you know that there are serious flaws with Common Core math? Have those flaws been addressed with the program you chose for your students? As a math tutor, it’s hard for me to help a student who has not mastered basic math fluently. If they’ve committed math facts to memory, it’s a huge advantage going into higher level math classes.
Shurley English is an outstanding program used by home-school families across the country. It sets the foundation for writing. In order to become a good writer, students need to become good readers. Good exercises include students taking 25 sentences, finding the mistakes and correcting them. Some of this is very basic, but it builds a foundation of knowledge that will help them when they attend Winnacunnet High School.
Thank you for your assistance.
Ann Marie Banfield
REPLY FROM SCHOOL SEABROOK SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER:
Ann Marie,
Thank you very much for the information. I look forward to all the answers to your questions. We do have discussions like this but many times in meetings with limited time , it’s hard to absorb all the information provided. There are many questions that I think would be interesting to see answers to. I think the way you have written out the questions, when answers are provided to us in this email for all to see, one by one in a question / answer format, it will be extremely helpful. You also provided questions that maybe we wouldn’t necessarily think to ask.
What a wonderful idea.
Thank you ,
Kelli
MY REPLY BACK TO SEABROOK SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER:
Ms. Hueber,
I can certainly sense the frustration among everyone involved. I was part of a math forum for many years where our top mathematicians conversed about math education in this country. I wish I had the ability to describe all of the conversations that took place so you would understand the root causes of math illiteracy among the k-12 student population. In addition, I’ve tutored children in mathematics, and can look at some of these textbooks/programs, and immediately point out some of the problems that others would miss.
I’m going to share a very old series of videos from the Baltimore Curriculum Project below, in case I did not include this information in the past.
In these short videos, Dr. James Milgram shows you how math is taught in U.S. public schools versus in a top performing country like Russia. Details matter. Dr. Milgram also served on the Common Core Math Validation Committee, but refused to sign off on the Common Core Math Standards because of their poor quality. So adopting a math program simply because it aligns to the Common Core math standards shouldn’t be good enough for any students in SAU21. The administrators should be able to identify the numerous problems with Common Core math, then select a math program/text that teaches students quality mathematics.
It’s my understanding that Seabrook uses Eureka Math? I am in the process of hopefully confirming this with my inquiry. Just looking at the website would cause me to refuse this math program for my children.
Just scanning through the website, I noticed several things that concerned me:
1) From the web site:
Eureka Math²® is a revolutionary Prekindergarten–Algebra I* math program designed to advance equity in the math classroom by helping students build enduring math knowledge.
What does this mean? Equity seems to be the new political buzzword, but what does that look like in a math class? Here you will see where Equity Math has been considered a failure in CA schools.
So what does it mean when Eureka Math pushes “equity” as one of their prominent goals using this math program?
2) From the web site:
Eureka Math²™ is a revolutionary math program designed to ensure that students move beyond rote memorization to build enduring math knowledge through the intentional integration of digital resources and a focused approach to encouraging student discourse.
You should know that there has been a war against rote memorization in the math reform movement for decades. Sadly, one of the most important math skills to acquire, has been under attack for a very long time. Reading their marketing, I have to wonder if this statement is somehow minimizing the importance of rote memorization in math education. Maybe not, but you should be aware of how education reformers in the field of mathematics have downplayed rote memorization. A student must move beyond memorization, but memorization and fluency set students up for success when reaching higher level mathematics.
Integration of digital resources isn’t necessary for a good quality math education. When children were handed a calculator during the “fuzzy math” faze in the 90’s, it turned out to be one of the worst decisions for math education. Texas Instruments profited while math literacy among students suffered. Keep in mind that this push for technology comes from those who profit off of the sale of digital devices, software, etc.
Student Discourse, what does that mean and how does that help math education ?
Student discourse, or the act of students engaging in discussions and conversations with their peers and teachers, is a crucial aspect of the learning process. When students are actively participating in discussions and sharing their thoughts and ideas, they are able to deepen their understanding of the subject matter and develop important critical thinking and communication skills.
Where are the independent and peer reviewed studies that student discourse among peers improves academic outcomes in mathematics?
This kind of discourse can also confuse students when they are not properly taught how to work through an algorithm. For instance, if children are left to inquire their way through math, and they are left to discover how to work a complex problem, this can also lead to confusion. Compare that to a student who sits with a teacher or tutor and is guided towards the correct answer.
This case was made in American Educator : Putting Students on a Path to Learning, the Case for Fully Guided Instruction. Every administrator, teacher, school board member, and parent should be reading this article. The role of a highly qualified teacher should never be marginalized. By not providing quality instruction to students by a highly qualified teacher, can put students at a disadvantage. They can also pay a math tutor to offer that quality instruction to their children. Parents who have the means to afford a private tutor can improve that quality of math education their children receive. Those who do not have that ability, may see their children fall through the cracks. A simple change to the pedagogy can make a world of difference in a math class.
Baltimore Curriculum Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmQZJVX9mdQ
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdWDfGC3088
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ_tOx4IHSI
Everyone seems to be focused on trying to achieve the low quality standards set by the State via Common Core. I urge you, as you go forward, to look beyond that. Look at what high performing countries are using to educate their young children too. All of this should have been provided to you by the administrators working in the SAU.
I applaud you for wanting to set the bar higher for students in Seabrook, but all of the board members in SAU21 should be looking beyond that. Do not settle for mediocrity served up to our public schools with these dumbed down standards. Public school children deserve better than that.
There is a Russian school of math located in Nashua. Go and visit them and look at their materials. Compare them to what is being used in our public schools. These programs are good enough for your kids too. High quality math programs should not be available to just some children in New Hampshire, they should be available to all children.
You should know, Seacoast Classical Academy will be using Singapore Math for their students. How is it they managed to choose one of the best math programs available? Was this even presented to any of our school boards as an option to use in our schools? If that answer is no, someone needs to ask WHY?
In 2019, the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) ranked the United States 15th among 64 participating education systems for average fourth-grade mathematics scores. The U.S. average score was 535 out of 1,000, which was 91 points lower than Singapore’s top score of 625 and 238 points higher than the Philippines’ lowest score of 297. The U.S. ranked 11th among 46 participating education systems for average eighth-grade scores.
Sincerely,
Ann Marie Banfield
