So Mad at DD School I Could Scream

[GOOFY4DONALD]

A couple of weeks ago the principal gave a huge speech about summer school. She was talking about how since they received or will receive the stimulus money summer school is going to be better that ever. She also talked briefly about how the more kids enrolled the more funding they will receive. Well I received a voicemail yesterday from the principal about how my DD12 needs to go to summer school or she will be held back. The following message was from DD's teacher urging me to sign her up for summer school. As I type this I am getting ready to go to an award ceremony at DD's school. She is receiving an award for straight A's for the entire year, perfect attendance, citizenship, excellence in sports and some kind of recognition for orchestra. My DD is an excellent student but she needs a summer break. They are adding so many days to summer school that the kids will end up with a 2 week summer vacation and frankly, I do not feel my DD needs to go. I actually feel that I am being bullied into this so they can get more funding.
Thanks for letting me vent

 

[kevschickee]

Oh heck no I would request a sit down with the principle. If she is a good student then there is no need for SS. You are right its all about the money. I would be very mad to

 

[perpetualplanner]

I know how you feel. I ended up having to sign papers denying my kid "services" when the school was getting money for a new reading program and they the more kids enrolled the more money they got. Sure he didn't read well - it was also the 1st month of 1st grade. He's now a 7th grader who tests off the lexile charts so I think I did the right thing. Schools really are strapped for money but I don't appreciate the bullying. The principal (who I really do respect and think does a fine job) actually told me "You have to do these things for your kid sometimes." My response was "Show me specifically how you're going to teach him to rhyme (the one thing he couldn't pass on the reading test) and I'll personally come to the school to ensure he goes to the class." Their response was flash cards which we already owned at home and he was bright enough to memorize but couldn't give even a made up word that would rhyme with the two flashcards. Needless to say it's only 1 of many tools children can use to read and he didn't end up using that one - Oh and today he can rhyme just fine.

Sorry So long - guess it's still a sore subject. This same child I had to fight the school to get him into speech and eventually just went with a private pathologist who worked better anyways and I pulled him out of school speech. They didn't need extra kids in speech and he only needed help with a few sounds.

 

[mom2faith]

I am from Canada and in our district kids don't really get held back any more - I am very confused?!?! Why would she be held back of she has straight A's?? I thought summer school was to raise your grades - if she is at an A what can she raise it to??

I am very confused here?!?!?!

 

[Lstar311]

Are you sure that it wasn't a mistake? If your dd got straight A's she should be in no danger of staying back. Something doesn't add up. I'd want a meeting w/ the teacher and principal ASAP. And, had you been notified of this before?

 

[mrsklamc]

How can they hold her back if she made straight As?

 

[Allison]

Did they get names mixed up? That doesn't make sense to say a straight-A student would be held back.

 

[GOOFY4DONALD]

Thanks for the replys. The names were not mixed up as her teacher called me too. The school can hold a child back if their grades are poor and they don't attend ss

 

[robinb]

Thanks for the replys. The names were not mixed up as her teacher called me too. The school can hold a child back if their grades are poor and they don't attend ss

Of course they can ... and they should hold back kids who have poor grades and who refuse to attend summer school. However, you said your DD had straight A's which is why we are all confused. Does she have straight A's or does she have poor grades?

 

[DonnaBelle06]

If he insists she go - take it to the school board...and if that doesn't work - take it to the media.

There is NO WAY I'd "force" my child into summer school unless it was absolutely necessary.

HUGS!
Donna

 

[Allison]

Thanks for the replys. The names were not mixed up as her teacher called me too. The school can hold a child back if their grades are poor and they don't attend ss

But you said she is a straight A student. How could they hold back a student like that?

 

[mcmeekin]

There has to be some detail left out of these posts. A straight A student can't be held back.
A straight A student can choose to go to SS. I went two summers and skipped eleventh grade. I was taking classes with people who'd failed classes, but I was simply taking them for the 1st time... finished HS a year early that way.

 

[ktlm]

Something isn't right. If she has straight As and perfect attendance there must be a mix up. Take it from me. I got put on academic probation after my 1st semester of college even though I made 4 As and 1 B, and was told I would have to see a tutor to keep my academic scholarship for the 2nd semester. As a staight A student through high school, I thought they were being pretty harsh for one B. When they checked into it, it was, of course, a complete mix up. If she got straight As and no mix up and it were me they would be in for a heck of a fight. If I didn't get anywhere with the principal I would go straight to the school board. If that didn't work, it would be straight to the media. Forcing a kid that doesn't need it into summer school is asking for a burnt out kid that does not do well later on. There is no way I would let that happen.

 

[Scurvy]

There has to be a mix-up somewhere, or someone has their wires crossed. There's no way they could hold a straight A student with perfect attendance back unless she attends summer school. Clearly there's a mistake somewhere! OP, I hope you can get this figured out. You need to talk to the principal and if that doesn't work, escalate to the school board and to the media if it comes to that.

[I see ktlm and I were posting at the same time! I guess great minds think alike. ]

 

[Brancaneve]

This smells awfully fishy here! I am a teacher in Northern CA and in order to hold someone back, paperwork and documentation must begin the first month of school. To retain her, they should have brought up the subject months ago!

Secondly, I have been hired to teach summer school in the past but did not end up working. Simply because the enrollment was so low that the program was not funded. There must be a minumum of students and they are trying to fill that quota with your daughter. Simply unacceptable!

Let us know what happened!

 

[ScotsMinnie]

Poor kid - she sounds like she has done well this year - don't they deserve a holiday????

We don't have summer school in the UK so not sure about the rules and regulations. I just think that kids need some time off aswell as adults do. By the end of the summer term they are tired and deserve a break.

 

[princessmom29]

Coming from a teacher, I think that there is either some kind of mixup or the school is seriously overstepping there bounds here. I know in our district there are guidelines tht must be followed for holding a child back, and notification must be made to parents multiple times that the student is in danger of failing. I just don't see how they can deny a student credit for work done when they made passing grades, and did not have excessive absences.

 

[McKelly]

Could the principal have meant "held back" in the sense that she will be further behind her classmates who DO attend summer school; whom will have had more academic exposure than your DD over summer and she might not be as ready for school in the Fall?

That is the only thing I can think of. If your daugher is a straight A student, there is NO WAY they can hold her back for not attending summer school. It is not required. I NEVER send my kids to summer school, but they try to get them to attend because of the money/funding, plain and simple. If they are starting to stretch the truth in order to obtain more funding, I would be looking for a new school district. What comes next?

 

[Tinka_Belle]

If he insists she go - take it to the school board...and if that doesn't work - take it to the media.

There is NO WAY I'd "force" my child into summer school unless it was absolutely necessary.

HUGS!
Donna

I second this!! Take it to the media. I will be darned if my DD's school is going to tell me that she has to go to summer school when she got an award for being on the honor roll all year. (My DD was A/B honor roll all year long)

 

[fortcampers]

In our school district, summer school is only for kids who are behind academically and need to get caught up to be moved on to the next grade, or for kids who have too many absences. In either case, the parents pay $10.00 per day per child to attend for as long as they had been told to attend. At the high school and middle school level, the kids go to "saturday school" to make up for attendance issues. When my daughter was in 5th grade, she missed 24 days of school due to severe migraines and 2 overnight stays in the hospital for testing. All of her absences had doctors excuse notes and she only had to go to summer school for attendance for 2 days. For our school cafeteria, the more kids apply for and get free or reduced lunch, they get more funding. Something doesn't sound right about a child who has straight A's and perfect attendance to have to attend summer school, even for funding issues. I would think a call in to the superintendant of the school system would be in order.