Teachers....Help please

[irishsharon]

This is not a budget question but there seems to be lots of teachers on this board so I was wondering if you could help. My ds(11) started 6th grade in the co-teaching classes (1 regular ed. teacher 1 special ed. teacher) after two weeks I had a team meeting with the main teachers (social studies,math ,English and science) I knew ds was struggling in math and he was suppose to be in the 15:1:1 class but they could not make it work with his schedule, this is what I was told. At the meeting they all agreed he should be in the 15:1:1 class for math and they said he would benefit in all his subjects if he was in 15:1:1. I was surprised because he does really well in social studies and science. Anyway his report card came home today and he got a 87 in math, 92 in English, 97 in science and 89 in social studies so HERE is the question do I leave him in the 15:1:1 classes or have him go back to the co-teaching class? We will keep him where he is for math because he has a learning disability in math. I am just wondering if it would be better to get 70's in co-teaching than 90's in a more restrictive class setting? Just want to do what is best for him

 

[holden]

As a teacher and a mom, I would keep him wherever he succeeds best. The grade really isn't the point here, but his self-esteem is. He'll feel better about himself if he earns "better" grades, and that will help him in the long run. I used the quotes around "better" because I feel the actually grade isn't as important now as it will be in the future. You want to set him up as a life-long learner now so those skills will transfer over to high school and beyond. A positive attitude towards school and self-confidence as a bright student (which he certainly seems to be!) will carry him far

 

[irishsharon]

This is ds first year in middle school and he was very nervous the first couple of weeks. He has been in a co-teaching class since third grade and I really feel it is the best fit for him(except math). His new teachers caught me of guard when they all said he should be in the 15:1:1 classes. I feel they did not give him a chance. Ds complains every week about the behavior of some of the kids in his class. He brought another childs test home by mistake and the child got a 28 out of 100....so I wonder is it better to be in the middle or on the top. I really don't know what the best thing to do is.....so confused!!!!!!

 

[chris31997]

Talk to him. Talk to the teacher in the new class. Ask the main teacher in the original class their think/reasoning behind the move for all subjects. Was he struggling in the orginal class? Would a tutor in math help? Maybe talk to the office about it?

Like the PP said you want to encourage lifelong learning. It possible for him to get shut down in either setting.

 

[CAFarmerGirl]

I would go observe the classes before making a decision.

 

[MomToOne]

DD13 has a learning disability, but I have found at least in her case it's better to challenge her and put her in classes that make her put in more effort - she CAN do it, when she uses all the compensating techniques she's been taught, and she rises to the occassion. Does she have to work harder than the other kids? Yup. Absolutely. No question about that at all. But she CAN do it. As a parent, I have to make it clear that what I value is her putting in the effort, not getting perfect scores - but I've given her that consistent message for years, and she absolutely knows without a doubt that is truly how I feel.

I've found schools tend to want to put kids into classes based on standardized test scores - they group all the kids who are at a lower level in a class together, and then the teachers of that class teach to the lowest of the low - so the kids who could do better are never really challenged to do that, so their test scores stay low, and the cycle just endlessly repeats itself. When DD is put in with the higher achieving kids, she is pushed, she works harder, she learns more and her test scores shoot up. But I've had to really advocate for that for my child.

One other thing I've noticed is that I've instilled in DD that she needs to let her teachers and I know immediately when she doesn't understand something. And she's become very good at doing that, going before or after school or during lunch to get things clarified. But I've been amazed this year at the number of teachers who consider her a "pest" for doing this and who have made snide comments to her about it. It's not like she does it every day, just once in awhile. Clearly they feel put out by it. It makes me wonder at times about some teachers, quite frankly....

 

[DizneyLizzy]

As a teacher and a mom, I would keep him wherever he succeeds best. The grade really isn't the point here, but his self-esteem is. He'll feel better about himself if he earns "better" grades, and that will help him in the long run. I used the quotes around "better" because I feel the actually grade isn't as important now as it will be in the future. You want to set him up as a life-long learner now so those skills will transfer over to high school and beyond. A positive attitude towards school and self-confidence as a bright student (which he certainly seems to be!) will carry him far

Agreed. I teach middle school, and I always try to stress to the parents that their child's overall emotional well-being and confidence in the classroom is the most important thing at this age. If he feels successful and enjoys school now, he will be more successful in school in the future because he will have the right attitude. Keep him where he wants to be and where he will feel the most confident.