First speaker during the Public Comment portion of the meeting was Jim Tuman, who sought to reduce or waive the minimum hours requirement for use of the gym facilities. Since this topic was on the Meeting Agenda, I will write about it in another post. Stay tuned...
OK, "stay tuned" is a little anachronistic..... Click "Refresh".....
Next to speak was resident Larry Stengren. He stated that this was the first Board Meeting he had ever attended, that he was not the kind of person to complain, but that he was concerned about the class sizes in the 4th Grade classes. He said that, while he supported similar class sizes when this class was in 3rd Grade, and thought that the bigger 3rd Grade classes were successful, he felt that the larger class sizes were not working as well this year. He said that he has heard this same sentiment from both current 4th Grade students and their parents.
Mr. Stengren said that his daughter, currently in the 4th Grade, has been a student at Algonquin Road School since Kindergarten. In her studies, Mr. Stengren has found that his daughter will learn concepts taught at school with time and attention, but 4th Grade students this year are not able to get that time or attention. As a result, he said, he thinks student grades are suffering. He said that, while he does spend time with his daughter at home on her studies, that extra attention is needed in the classroom.
He said that he asked his daughter if a teacher has come during class to offer additional help, and his daughter said no, the teachers haven't. When he asked her why, he said his daughter, a 4th grader, responded, "There are too many kids in class."
Mr. Stengren said that he'd had an opportunity to observe a 4th Grade class. He also talked to Superintendent Jackie Krause and members of the School Board prior to the meeting. He stressed that he thinks the 4th Grade teachers are great, but that they seemed overwhelmed. He also said that he didn't come to the meeting seeking an immediate answer, but he wanted to underscore that whatever solution is adopted by the Board would be in the best interest of the students first.
During his conversation with Dr. Krause, talking about the possibility of hiring a third 4th Grade teacher and dividing the two classes into three, Mr. Stengren said that Dr. Krause asked if he thought that the students would be upset if classes were divided during the school year. Mr. Stengren said that he asked several 4th Grade students, and they responded no, they wouldn't be upset. He said that it was probably too early in the year for students to form a deep bond with their teachers, so if classes were going to be divided, it should be done soon.
Mr. Stengren mentioned that when these students were in 3rd Grade, in similarly sized classes, ARS had a student teacher to help. He said that helped both the students and the teachers a lot, and that the students noticed the extra attention.
Resident Cynthia Mitchell asked why the District employs three administrators for two schools. Board President Paula Zasadil said that this was a different topic, but that the Board has been over and over this, and they decided that three administrators were necessary.
As an example, Supt. Krause related a story from last school year. While she was Principal for ARS, she said there was one day when she had to be off campus for a time. While she was away from the school, a student was hurt on the playground. She said the first thing the parent asked was why the Principal wasn't at school when the child was hurt. Dr. Krause said that one administrator can't be spread between two schools.
Dr. Krause went on to say that she met with the 4th Grade teachers about the issue of class size. She said that the teachers expressed a need for additional help with the classes, and asked Dr. Krause and the Board to address the issue. She continued by saying that this class has one more student than it did as a 3rd Grade class last year.
Mr. Stengren continued his comments, saying that his impression of seeing the teachers at the end of the school year last year, they seemed like they were ready for the school year to end. He went on to say that the 4th Grade teachers seem like that now, only weeks into the school year. He said that class sizes seemed to increase discipline issues in class, which further wears on the teachers. Mr. Stengren reiterated that he is completely behind the schools, and when he needed to move to a bigger house, he moved within Fox River Grove to stay in District 3.
Board Member Doris Sadik asked Mr. Stengren what he thought the difference was between last school year and this one. Mr. Stengren said that he is speculating, but that the 3rd Grade teachers had a great attitude toward the challenge of teaching the larger classes. He cited his experience at this year's ARS Open House, when his daughter's teacher spend 10 minutes of a 30 minute presentation talking about class size. This shouldn't be the focus, he said. He said that maybe the 4th Grade teachers had more reservations about the class size coming into the school year. He related a story of dropping off his daughter at school. His daughter asked him to walk her to the classroom. He said he found that a bit odd, as 4th Graders usually don't want to be seen with their parents. He said when he took his daughter to her classroom, he was surprised at what he saw; children were rollerblading outside the classroom door, and one girl was sitting on the ground, crying, because she'd been knocked down.
Cynthia Mitchell said that her child is one who loves to learn, but that her grades are suffering because of the class size, and she's losing enthusiasm for school. "It's just sad, " she said.
Board President Zasadil said that the Board has been aware of this issue, and that they have been waiting and observing the 4th Grade class while Ms. Machroli has settled into her role as Principal at ARS. She said that now the Board has some direction to take into the Executive Session of the meeting.
Following Executive Session, the Board unanimously approved the creation of a position for a part-time teacher's aide. This position would assist the 4th Grade classes for 3.5 hours a day, and would be paid at the prevailing rate. Supt. Krause said that this approach was consistent with what the teachers requested when they met with her.
