here are the details from the D87 website re: this monday's meeting:
6:00 PM
Policy Commmittee Mtg. - Dist. Office
6:30 PM
Finance & Facility Committee Mtg. - Dist. Office
7:30 PM
Board Meeting - District Office

Please come if you are unhappy about the planned changes to the Social Studies Curriculum for honors sophomores. To my knowledge no policy decisions have been made to date. Also come if you are unhappy with other changes (ie, freshman science curriculum changes, others we may not have heard about yet.) also, if you're having problems with your kid's schedule (ie, the new no drop/no section change) the board should hear about this too.
if they don't hear from us we have no one to blame but ourselves.

and to GWDAD...i have a life, thank you, as do the many posters here who have far more posts than i do. civility is a gift and an obligation. we all try to remember that here (most of the time, right, ted?)

More power to you, Howdy! I commend you for taking all of the actions that you have to try to save this class and make a difference in the school. You seem to be a great parent and are truly interested in your child's well-being.

I hope you get the turnout needed to make a difference.

So, Howdy, you offer a very plausible reason to explain why the superintendent has a new initiative every week: the administrators have to keep creating work for themselves and their staffs.

Is this going to be a topic at the Monday night meeting as well?

I also want to commend Howdy for realizing that the board needs to hear from parents before it makes a decision like canceling a successful honors course.

no, farmer...not planning to be THAT blunt...i really do pick my battles (and i'm a former public servant myself...) thanks for the chins up.
PLEASE COME TO THE BOARD MEETING...ignorance is not bliss...

Wheaton South /Wheaton North students take AP US at the sophomore level...but GW parents don't think their kids are ready for AP at this level...Why?
wwshs.org...

Hinsdale Central has 250+ soph's in AP Euro...Why can't we encourage our students to take on this same type of challenge? Simply calling this change the district admin's attempt to justify their positions is clearly wrong. This is a national trend that all of 87 will need to catch up with.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Ted E.,

It sounds like you are on the payroll, DAD...your registration date is suspicious. I wouldn't put it past the district to put a few bugs on the board...big brother lives.

Anyone with an issue should attend this Monday's board meeting to defend the quality of education in our district. The easy answer isn't usually the right answer. Why eliminate effective courses?

GWDAD, I think you want to go back and reread your link to WWS/WN. The way I read it, AP Euro is not available until Jr. year as an elective.

Admiral,

Yes-WWS/WN students take AP US at the sophomore level-follow the link. Several of the posts on this topic seem to think #87 kids are not ready for any kind of AP class until 11th or 12th Grade. The point is in both examples kids in schools all around #87 are taking AP classes as sophomores. Check Naperville #204 -where kids take them as freshman....Check HS #214 (6 schools)-kids take AP classes as freshman...

I guess 87 kids should compete with these kids in football-but lets be sure to shelter them off the field.

thanks, informed taxpayer...i too smell an employee in GWDAD (look at the first thread he started...clearly stirring up false rumors about elimination of AP.) (and if asking an intelligent "why" makes me "insane" (see his last post on the previous thread about this subject) well, i guess anyone who questions 87 is insane.

As of TODAY sophomores in D87 can take AP euro history. however, SIX SECTIONS OF KIDS (at least 180 kids, about a THIRD of the class) have chosen THIS class at Glenbard West for this school year. This class AT WEST has a sterling reputation, AND the kids work hard. since GWDAD only has a freshman (if that's really so) then he would not be aware of the tradition for excellence this class has, its impact, or it's college prep qualities. of course, our new (3 years duration) superintendent has now decided that we will have one curriculum, one glenbard. WHY??? and i'll tell you, there really is no good reason for this. it's not mandated by ANY law that all 4 high schools have identical curriculum. THIS class AT WEST is worth keeping.

one other wrinkle...when they eliminate honors prep classes and substitute them with AP (for sophomores and freshman) what happens if your kid (due to lack of preparation, maturity, or heavy course load in other subjects) NEEDS to drop down? thanks to the new no-drop policy forget it. so, if you don't think your current 14 or 15 year old is ready for AP as a sophomore, they will now be stuck in regular civics and contemp. history. and anyone who thinks Glenbard west regular classes are as challenging as honors classes hasn't had a kid in either type of class.

and for what we pay these people, they should be accountable to parents.

PLEASE COME TO THE BOARD MEETING.

and your football comment is snarky. WWS/WN kids can still drop classes and adjust their schedules. ours can't. and YOUR kid can take AP as a sophomore. right now. sign 'er up. if you're so impressed with their schools then move.

if you really are a parent i think your main issue is that your AP student gets the same honors points as a honors contemp student.
pathetic. grade grubbing. sad.

This thread has a specific intent: To get parents and students to be aware of and then involved in the proposed curriculum changes at West. The subject does seem to digress into a related discussion of the merit of AP courses, in particular, and AP for sophomores at West.

I agree with howdy 100%. The Contemporary History Honors class and instructors are great. My West student who took that course as a sophomore claims it was his favorite - ever. He learned how World events and the individuals from that time (1945 to present) tie into the current conflicts and issues. This is a thinking student's class and I do hope it remains an option for sophomores. I have communicated this to the school. I was not totally comfortable registering my freshman (who has not even taken their first semester finals at West before having to make these course decisions) for the brand new Human Geography AP or European History AP.

** Digression alert! **

As for the sophomore AP discussion, if you go back and read the comments on the initial "Less AP options" thread, you will find responses from Dinsdale and scribbler that should help ease the mind of any parent concerned about their children's success and AP choices at West.

With regard to colleges assessing the rigor of coursework in admission, I can tell you that our college student was admitted early into a very competitive program in a competitive university, but waited until senior year to take any AP courses. I know that it is just shocking - admitted without having taken a single AP exam! It irks me every year when the High School rankings based solely on AP/IB tests taken and passed are presented. I suspect most parents will judge a high school's performance based on their own children's overall experience.

I believe a balanced high school experience of academics, extracurricular experiences and service work will serve most students well in their college application process and life beyond. Parents who support and encourage their children's education and personal development are invaluable. Keep up the good work, everyone!!

FYI - A College Board administered alternative to AP: The College-Level Examination Program

quote:

t irks me every year when the High School rankings based solely on AP/IB tests taken and passed are presented. I suspect most parents will judge a high school's performance based on their own children's overall experience.

Thanks, GEmom!
Your kid's admittance to a very competitive program with no AP shows that this is an administative decision NOT BASED ON THE NEEDS OF THE KIDS, THE VALUE OF THE COURSE, OR THE DESIRES OF THE PARENTS. More AP looks good for the school, good for the administrators. that's it. in a nutshell.
PLEASE COME TO THE MEETING.

quote:

I believe a balanced high school experience of academics, extracurricular experiences and service work will serve most students well in their college application process and life beyond. Parents who support and encourage their children's education and personal development are invaluable. Keep up the good work, everyone!!

X 2! Articulated VERY well, GEmom! Couldn't have said it better myself!

X 2 to Howdy's last statement as well! I have seen (well, read) put forth a fantastic and well-supported argument against the elimination of this class and an incredibly biased (read: opinion-based) and unsupported argument against it.

Though I cannot be there (previous engagement AND my children are both too young and currently in a different district), I encourage everyone with a voice on this matter to attend the meeting, as Howdy has been rallying.

Going to the meeting and voicing your concerns may or may not make a difference, but NOT going and NOT presenting your argument to the board will DEFINITELY NOT change a thing!

I now believe there is an upside to not having to worry about honors classes!

I hate to say it Howdy and GESingleMom2, but the number of AP courses and grades earned in those courses are TOP priority in college admission, particularly the most selective colleges. When counselors have to fill out the secondary school report form, one of the items included on that form is a listing of how many AP courses our school offers and a rating of the rigor of the student's curriclum. AP/IB courses are considered the highest/most rigorous - even over honors. So, again, I'm not implying that the Contemp Class isn't a great class or a wonderful choice for many, many students. BUT, for kids who have their sites set on an Ivy League or similarly competitive school, having more AP courses and taking more AP courses will make Glenbard kids more competitive in the college admission process. Most high schools in Illinois that have a wide range of AP offerrings allow Sophomores to take AP Euro.

Sorry.....I'm not trying to defeat your cause but I think there was some inaccurate information about what colleges look for in admission. Certainly if a student is ONLY an honors and AP level student but doesn't do any extracurriculars or service work, they might not have as good a chance at such selective schools BUT a student with loads of extracurriculars and service work but few honors and AP courses definitely will not have as good a chance at such selective schools. Also, I am not suggesting that the super-selective schools are the "it" schools. But for some kids, that's what they want and our schools should give them every opportunity to achieve that goal.

I hate to say it, Amy, but if there weren't so many AP courses in schools, then taking honors-level courses would be the most rigorous coursework in place, and then counselor could fill out that the student has taken the most rigorous coursework. To think that a good percentage of freshmen and sophomores are ready for college-level coursework is ridiculous. Advanced Placement is becoming the laughingstock of the sophisticated educational world. It is college board's cash cow, and most of the super-selective schools don't even accept ANY AP credit.

Thank you US News and World Report for basing a high school's effectiveness on the number of AP tests taken, and thank you district office administration for caring more about numbers than kids. We're not idiots. We know that our school has been effective for generations, and no magazine report is going to change that. What happened to Glenbard being a leader instead of a follower? Wow, what a tangent...Go to the meeting and try to convince them to do what is right...instead of what is easy (and looks good on a resume for administrative climbers).

And Howdy, One Glenbard also sounds like another resume builder for someone. It may be easy to have one curriculum in districts like 204 and 202. These began as one-school districts and grew into three and four-school districts that serve virtually identical student populations. This is not the case in Glenbard. Why not let the buildings decide what's best for their populations?

I guess it's because these teachers are being forced to teach to the PSAE. I assume that everyone will eventually be doing the exact same thing on the exact same day to prepare them for the test. Who cares if kids actually learn or develop a passion for genuine learning as long as the test scores are okay?

I'm not disagreeing with the value of Contemp or other honors courses but when colleges try to do an apples to apples comparison, they do compare what is available at a school and how mnay of those higher level courses are taken by each applicant. Yes, College Board makes far too much money. No, College Board and ACT should not dictate policy to high schools. BUT, as I stated in a much earlier post, AP courses are at least a known entity. Contemp honors at Glenbard is one thing but might be a totally different thing somewhere else....so, schools scamper to put AP courses in place so that their school's curriculum is known. By the way, students can take AP courses and not take the test, unless Glenbard has a policy that requires them to take the AP exam. My school does not and so we always have a number of kids who don't take the exams - more out of a desire to deny College Board more cash since they know their college won't give them credit for those particular exams.

As for One Glenbard, it sounds appropriate. Every school has bright, capable kids. Every school has kids who struggle academically. Every school has average kids. If they simply want consistency, I think that's good. What if you moved to one of the "other" Glenbards, where perhaps there is a much larger low-income or immigrant or low achieving student population? Should your amazing, bright kid NOT have access to the same rigorous curriculum that he/she had at the "better" Glenbards...sorry, your argument sounds elitist to me. Sure some schools in the Glenbard system might have 15 sections of AP US History where another one might only have two or three, but at least the kids at the school that only has two, have the opportunity to take that rigorous curriculum. AND some Glenbards might have 15 sections of a more remidial math course but another might only have two but at lease the kids who struggle in math at the school with only two will have access to an appropriate level of support. Kids aren't THAT different between the Glenbards.

As for PSAE - I agree with you. BUT, everyone wants accountablity. They want to test kids to prove they are learning what we say they should be learning and the PSAE is the measure we use. OF COURSE, they are going to teach kids how to take the PSAE and make sure they understand the content that might be tested on the PSAE. What choice do the teachers have? Unless society is willing to forgo using one test to determine if a student is achieving appropriate standards, school systems are forced to "feed the machine".

As an aside, when my daughter started Iowa she had several AP class credits that were accepted, which was great. However, she told us that other students she met, who went to school in "Smalltown Iowa" at high schools with little or no AP classes, took classes at the local community college and had a TON of college credits under their belts on the first day freshman year. Could that work for our kids as well at COD?