A family with three children in the Lindbergh schools recently shared with me some of their experiences. I share their communication with you because their experiences are not unique. The parents’ email communication with me is provided below without any modification.
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• We believe in the idea and mission of public education, and that it is a reciprocal relationship of mutual support that makes communities stronger.
• We chose to live in this area because of the reputation and performance of Lindbergh schools; we have been residents in the district since 2004.
• All 3 of our children were identified by the district as gifted and participate in the LEAP program. They generally receive A’s and a few B’s in their classes.
• Although we both have advanced degrees, we don’t pretend to be experts on education, and have largely entrusted that role to the school district; we recognize that education for this generation will look very different from what it did for us. It is very difficult as a parent to know if your child is receiving a high-quality education and how that will prepare them for the future. It is unclear if the school district can answer this question either for any individual student.
Positive:
• Each of our children have had outstanding teachers, many of which went above and beyond whenever the children were struggling or needed additional support.
• We appreciate the district’s emphasis on character, and efforts to build a sense of community within each school.
• At the high school level, the district has created multiple curriculum options to meet the needs and goals of children to try to prepare them for various career and educational paths.
Negative:
• Lindbergh has one of the lowest average salaries for area teachers; we have concerns about ability to recruit and retain top teachers, or that it reflects a larger proportion of teachers with fewer years of experience or less training (fewer with master’s degrees, etc) https://www.stltoday.com/…/collection_d82a4f80-7e78…
• Reading, writing and grammar curriculum is concerning. The district seemed to be pulled into a theory of reading instruction from the earliest grade levels that over-emphasized “natural development” and failed to incorporate structured academic approaches including phonics and grammar. Even at relatively advanced grade levels, our children’s reading comprehension and writing/communication skills are extremely poor. https://www.nytimes.com/…/science-of-reading-literacy…
• There is a disconnect between the elementary and middle school curricula with that of the high school. The district “no homework” policy for elementary and middle schools is problematic, and there does not seem to be an emphasis on “study skills”—helping students take notes, organize content, or prepare for exams. This was an extremely difficult transition for our oldest child. We are fortunate that as parents we were able to devote hours each day to help bridge that gap upon entering high school—it wasn’t until early 2nd semester that he was functioning independently and able to manage coursework on his own. Many families do not have the time and resources that we did—we believe this likely leaves many children lost, underprepared and at risk of “sliding off the curve” at the high school level when it matters the most.
• Online curriculum has many advantages, and is not going away. However, it makes it extremely difficult for parents to be involved in their children’s education. It is not easy to access or review material with your children in this format. Additionally, there does not seem to be much transparency for our children either. They are not given copies of their tests or work to review. If they miss questions on a test, they are not shown the test to see what they missed so that they can target areas for improvement.
• For over 8 years, we have enrolled our children in private supplementary Math and Reading programs outside of school at a cost out of reach for most families. We were concerned about backsliding during summer months, and that they were not working to their potential without daily homework/practice in the core subjects of reading and math. We are concerned about students in the district who don’t have access to these kinds of resources.
Concerns
• It is not clear how the district measures its own academic performance and student preparedness for college/future training. Without outcomes data, it is difficult to know if any individual student is meeting their academic goals or potential.
• Since we moved to the district, Lindbergh’s ranking among area schools has dropped significantly. Rankings aren’t everything, but they aren’t “nothing”. It is not clear what areas of performance the district has identified for improvement or how it is addressing those in order to return to recognition as a high-performing district.