The Mineola Board of Education announced plans Thursday for an informal meeting with school district residents in the near future to address concerns about the state-mandated Common Core curriculum.
Board Vice President Christine Napolitano called for a “town hall meeting” to counter the “misinformation” about the Common Core and new curriculum standards that she’s been reading on social media Web sites from parents in various school districts.
“I just don’t want this to infect us,” Napolitano said.
Mineola Superintendent of Schools Michael Nagler agreed that there are misunderstandings about what the Common Core as Mineola attempts to implement new approaches to teaching mathematics and English Language Arts.
“There’s a lot of confusion about things,” Nagler said.
In conversations with district teachers, Nagler said he has cautioned against stressing students out. He said he has encouraged teachers to “prepare [students] properly” without imparting a “doomsday philosophy” about the new curriculum.
“It’s certainly not the way we learned mathematics,” he said, adding that he realizes the unfamiliar terminology being used in math lessons is a source of concern for some parents.
The Common Core, Nagler said, is intended to improve the country’s educational standards as American students’ performance has slipped behind other countries. He said students will benefit when they become acclimated to Common Core’s focus treating subject material in greater depth.
“Over time, I think it’s good solid instruction and students should benefit from it,” Nagler said.
Napolitano said she has read comments from some parents suggesting that school districts should simply abandon the Common Core approach.
“There is no mechanism to opt out,” she said.
Board President Artie Barnett said there is a bill in the state Assembly to roll back the Common Core, which he termed a “red herring.”
Nagler said he would prefer the board schedule the informational meeting on the Common Core after the upcoming Nov. 19 capital projects referendum. That referendum is to determine a proposed $3.8 million in capital expenditures to make needed repairs to all district school buildings. A second proposition on the ballot would establish a capital reserve fund of up to $5 million for future projects.
Nagler is currently making presentations before PTA groups at district schools to explain the capital projects proposal.
Board President Artie Barnett suggested that the board poll voters on the Common Core standards.
After the meeting, he said he is concerned about a “hysteria” taking hold among school district residents about implementation of the Common Core.
“Common Core is a goal to reach and every district takes their own steps toward that goal,” he said, “I think it’s a good idea for us to sit people down and clarify things.”
Napolitano said she planned to consult with members of the Mineola PTA District Council to set up the Common Core informational meeting.
“We want to pursue the idea,” Napolitano said.
In other developments:
• Nagler said contract negotiations with the schools district’s teachers aides and clerical associations remain unsettled.
“We are at an impasse and we have a mediator assigned with the aides,” he said.
Nagler said mediation is the next step with the clerical workers as well. Beyond mediation, the next step would be a fact-finding presentation for the school board and the community. But he said the mediation and fact-finding are non-binding steps in the negotiation process.
“It won’t be settled until both sides to settle it. And right now I’d have to say we’re not close with the aides or the clerical workers,” Nagler said.
• Nagler reported that iPads were expected to be delivered last week for third and fourth graders at the Jackson Avenue School. When those students receive the Apple devices, he said 1,200 students from third grade through eighth grade will be equipped with iPads.
• A presentation at Thursday night’s meeting outlined the school district’s new program to offer residency to graduate education students from Adelphi University in elementary grade classes. Nagler said there are currently 17 student teachers from Adelphi working on their teaching skills in classes at the Jackson Avenue School.
“We are in our infancy in the program,” Nagler said.
Faith Vaughn-Shavuo, Adelphi’s partnership liaison, said she believed the classroom experience at Jackson Avenue would make the elementary education graduate students “road ready to compete in the field.”
Nagler said the school district is seeking to form similar partnerships with other colleges or universities to bring in students teachers at other grade levels.
