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"It Takes a Village to Educate a Child"

Appendix 2e - Preplanning Input from Community including Terraces and Wake Robin Residents

1. There are more teacher aides and less teachers.
2. Hiring needs to be done without restricting field to candidates with Education majors.
3. What are the attitudes toward teacher testing?
4. With community growth how do we maintain low student-teacher ratio?
5. Quality of teacher preparation; subject, general needs
6. Hiring the best teachers, quality people.

1. Expectations by teachers of student performance.
2. Expectations by and for parents.
3. What is the attitude of the unions (Association) toward standardized testing?
4. Will Shelburne students be prepared to compete outside of the State of Vermont?
5. SAT scores, Math is improving a little: Verbal has dropped.
6. Need higher expectations of student achievement.
7. Set a goal of 99% achievement level for students on standardized test.
8. How do you know how well you are doing?
9. What are the right performance measures?
10. Grading system, no grades now, competition is real.

1. Science curriculum/ program needs text books and laboratories.
2. Curriculum needs to reflect what a students needs to know before they move on (to next topic).
3. Incorporate and/or identify things that students would use in working/jobs.
4. At grade school level, more basics, less computer and technology.
5. Not enough Science in Shelburne and state.
6. Need more expertise in Science, daily Science class.
7. Will we meet the needs of our students for the 21st Century in Science?
8. Lacking in topics, basics need to be taught- grammar, how to write.

1. Schools expect parents to provide education when their job is to provide the moral and value development.
2. Parents, faculty, administration need to campaign that "It is cool to do well in school".
3. Lack of more families' participation in school, PTO. Out of 800 families a small percentage participates.
4. Parents need to be involved, not only volunteer, also support teachers and school with student behaviors and academics.
5. Surveys need to go to all taxpayers.

 

1. Executive and administrative staff :
2. We need commitment by the principal and staff to push academics.
3. Principal's job description needs to include the responsibility for getting students to a 99% standardized test achievement level.
4. Principal's job needs to include academic goals.

Board relations with all stakeholders:

1. School Board is micro-managing school staff instead of empowering and supporting professionals to do their job.
2. Roles and responsibilities of the School Board in the questions before the Summit? Do they have the training and authority.

1. Parents should have school choice:
2. If we do have choice, then who pays for transportation and will we have empty classrooms?
3. Maintain choice of programs of different educational philosophies-Don't let it be eroded.

1. Children lack respect for themselves and their teachers.
2. Motivation toward achievement needed.
3. What is done to help individual students who need more help and/or are at the high achieving end of the spectrum?
4. School needs to level out socio-economic backgrounds.
5. School needs more text books, fewer computers, letter grades, longer school year.
6. So many students with special needs; Why? Intervene earlier, relieve Special Education.

1. Physical plant is archaic- noisy, dingy, distractions, etc. It inhibits education.
2. Need walls and doors.
3. Crowding problem.
4. Interest in auditorium.
5. Regional plan with neighboring communities to address auditorium and other community facility needs.

1. High School (CVU) needs to be ready for the students at the level they arrive (99% expectation).

1. What is the current stand on merit pay for teachers, how does one determine merit, it is subjective.

1. Good idea toward Shelburne as the best in the nation.
2. Strategies don't happen overnight. Additional strategy sessions will be needed.

1. System not funded to handle needs of Special Ed kids.
2. Student performance not linked to spending.
3. How are we spending? Spending well? Need the best use of our money.
4. Money isn't everything (in education).

1. Technology as a teaching tool/ aide.
2. Students need to know the nuts and bolts of computer use; ex. word processing, file management.

1. In Education everyone is an expert and think they have the answer on how it should be done.
2. Home is home; school is school.
3. Problem of complacency- "A good school is like a democracy", we need to keep working at it. Be self critical- always keep looking for improvement.
4. What would we have to do to be on the cover of Time Magazine as the best school? Funding, student teacher ratio, etc.

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Last updated:  May 05, 1999