Averill Park board signals support for a 3.99% tax levy to limit cuts while avoiding voter backlash Board members discussed tax‑levy scenarios and class‑size tradeoffs and signaled consensus to advance a 3.99% levy recommendation that aims to preserve key positions while improving chances the budget will pass, with staff asked to return a recommended budget on March 30.

The Averill Park School Board is weighing a critical decision: support a 3.99% tax levy to preserve essential staff while navigating potential voter backlash.

Learn more here

#NY #ClassSize #TaxLevy #CitizenPortal #NewYorkSchools #EducationFunding

On the NYC Horizon☀️: #ClassSize Limits

November 15 is not just the due date for the @NYCSchools to submit its annual report on the implementation of the Class Size Law. This year is also the one and only time that NYCPS will submit a financial impact statement to New York State

5/11 THE CORE ISSUE: CLASS SIZE

When asked the top priority for improving education, 47% of respondents said "reducing class sizes."

This was more than 3x the preference for any other option and was the central issue for the ATA during the strike.

#AbEd #ClassSize #AbLeg #AbPoli #ATA #UCPfail

7/12 Crucially, the govt "offered no firm commitment to address class size and #complexity."

#ATA President Jason #Schilling says this is the "driving reason" for the dispute, citing frequent class sizes of 40+ students and a growing number with special needs.

#ClassSize #SpecialNeeds

4/6 "Teachers remain ready to work with the government to fix what’s broken," #Schilling continues.

"But this government has chosen #confrontation over cooperation—and Alberta’s students will continue to go without the supports they need to thrive."

#ClassSize #AbEd #Complexity #AbLeg #AbPoli

3/6 The #ATA remains committed to reaching a negotiated agreement, but insists it must include "productive dialogue about addressing #ClassSize and #Complexity."

The government's legislation, #Schilling says, is an abdication of its "duty to address the real issues that teachers... have raised."

2/8 The gathering, organized by #PublicInterestAlberta, saw teachers and supporters door-knock and drop off yellow signs.

About 51,000 teachers have been on strike since Oct. 6, leaving 750,000 K-12 students out of school for more than three weeks.

#ABTeachersStrike #ClassSize #ComplexNeeds

State representative meets Bemidji board, cites teacher survey: behavior, class size and mental health top concerns A state legislator told Bemidji ISD 31 board members on Oct. 20 that a teacher survey he circulated showed student behavior, large class sizes, meeting diverse learning needs and mental health as top priorities for legislative attention.

State Representative Bedell Duran revealed alarming survey results showing that student behavior and mental health are top concerns for Bemidji educators, sparking urgent discussions about legislative priorities.

Click to read more!

#MN #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #MinnesotaEducation #MentalHealth

Support Alberta Teachers! #edchat #albpoli #canpoli #edpoli #classsize #inclusion #fundingeducation

5/8
In response to years of complaints, the government has tweaked the formula for the upcoming school year.

It's moving from a three-year average to a two-year average, which Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides says should get money to growing school divisions faster.
#ClassSize

2/8
One of the key issues in the strike is #ClassSize, but it's hard to get precise numbers. Why?

In 2019, the newly elected #UCP government simply stopped the long-standing practice of collecting and publishing detailed class size data for every school in the province.
#Analysis

5/8
Schilling also pointed out that a 2003 government commission recommended guidelines for average class sizes. The #ATA says Alberta would need to hire over 5,000 new #teachers just to meet those 20-year-old recommendations.

The #UCP government stopped counting class sizes in 2019.
#ClassSize

Things #AI can’t fix (not a series, because I’d need some sense of organization)

#teaching #writing #ClassSize

Shady Grove School Adjusts Teacher Positions to Address Enrollment Changes Shady Grove School reallocates teacher positions to manage kindergarten enrollment needs.

Shady Grove Elementary is making bold moves to tackle changing enrollment trends, including a strategic shift of teaching positions to ensure smaller class sizes in kindergarten.

Click to read more!

#PA #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #EnrollmentTrends #EducationManagement #PennsylvaniaSchools

#Teachers #PublicEducation #AbEd #AbPoli #AbLeg #ClassroomComplexity #LegislativeGrounds #Edmonton #SupportOurStudents #GenderDiversity #GenderDiverse #PublicSchools #ClassSize #ATA #CUPE #AUPE #SpecialNeeds #Strike #TeachersStrike #FundPublicEducation #DanielleSmithHasGotToGo #UCPfail

4/11
The new part of the deal is a government commitment to fund 3,000 net new teachers and 1,500 new #EducationalAssistants over three years.

However, many teachers believe this is a drop in the bucket and won't be enough to fix the crisis of large, #ComplexClasses across the province.
#ClassSize

5/7
Details of the agreement have not been made public.

The #ATA says the tentative deal addresses both salary and classroom complexity issues. The government will only say that the agreement is "strong on classroom investment."
#ClassSize #Salary

8/11 Teachers don't want to strike, Schilling insists. They want to be in classrooms with students. But they're facing large class sizes and resource shortages in Alberta's underfunded system.

"Things will be worse," he fears.
#ClassSize #EducationFunding

Parents and Board discuss maintaining small class sizes in District 205 Lauren Canfield advocates for smaller class sizes to enhance individual student attention.

Parents in Elmhurst are raising alarms over proposed class size increases, with experts warning that smaller classes are crucial for fostering student success and engagement.

Read the full story

#IL #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #EducationalQuality #StudentSupport

Methuen School Committee debates budget cuts amid concerns for class sizes and staffing Methuen's school officials express alarm over proposed budget cuts impacting education quality.

Tensions are rising in Methuen as the School Committee grapples with budget cuts that could jeopardize the quality of education and class sizes.

Click to read more!

#MA #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #BudgetCuts #MethuenSchools #EducationEquity

Parents urge board to limit class sizes amid budget cuts in fourth and fifth grades Speakers advocate for smaller class sizes to enhance reading support for struggling students.

As class sizes in Charles County schools threaten to balloon to 34 students, parents are rallying for smaller classrooms to protect their children’s education and learning outcomes.

Get the details!

#MD #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #EducationQuality #StudentSupport #MarylandSchools

Want to know more about the positive impact of AGR? What's working best? 🤔 Dive into the full report to explore the data and findings: wec.wceruw.org/documents/WE...

#coaching #classsize #tutoring #achievementgap #evaluation (3/3)

Why the differences? What's working best? 🤔 Dive into the full report to explore the data and findings: wec.wceruw.org/documents/WE...

#coaching #classsize #tutoring #achievementgap #evaluation (3/3)

Gov. Whitmer: Not appropriate to have 30 kids in a kindergarten class Lansing — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Wednesday it's not appropriate for kindergarten classes to have 30 students in them after a Detroit News investigation documented class sizes across Michigan that conflicted with limits set in other states and with what education experts said is best for promoting learning. Using Michigan's Freedom of Information Act, The News found 206 elementary classes — ranging from kindergarten through fifth grade — across 49 schools over the 2023-24 and 2024-25 years that had at least 30 students in them. Among them was a kindergarten class at Bennett Elementary, where the Detroit Public Schools Community District said 30 students were enrolled. Similarly, Lakeview Public Schools in St. Clair Shores reported having 29 students in a kindergarten class at Ardmore Elementary last year. South Canton Scholars Charter Academy, a charter school in Canton Township, disclosed an average of 28.8 students across four kindergarten classes this year. And Bangor West Elementary in Bay County said it has 27 students in one of its current kindergarten classes. Asked if she thought having 30 students in a kindergarten class was appropriate, Whitmer, a Democrat, told reporters on Wednesday, "No. Of course, I don't." "I think the science would tell us that we've got to bring down class sizes," Whitmer said. The governor, who's in her second term, added that she had promoted efforts to support teachers and pull more people into the profession. But funding is also important, along with measures to ensure children are getting what they need, she said. "There's a lot of work to do in this space," Whitmer said. "I think it's really important we put all the old ... arguments aside and focus on what kids today need and what science says is going to be the best for our outcomes." Whitmer commented after an event in Lansing, where she encouraged Michigan residents enrolling in college for the first time to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). More: Michigan school districts pack kids into classrooms as reading scores falter More: Michigan schools often exceed class size limits despite teacher contract caps For the 2024-25 school year, The News tracked class sizes for about 19,900 elementary school students from kindergarten through fifth grade in Michigan. The data represented only a small portion of the approximately 613,000 students in that grade range statewide. Local superintendents have said the large class sizes have been caused by unpredictable enrollment fluctuations and physical space constraints. At least 31 of the 50 states have laws about class sizes, tie funding to small classes or set goals for their schools to attempt to meet and to be accountable to. Michigan currently doesn't have such a standard. Tennessee state law includes both average class size benchmarks for school buildings and maximum class size limits for individual classes. The average class size standard in Tennessee for kindergarten through the third grade is 20 students per class and the maximum limit is 25. Of the 797 elementary school classes The News examined, 63% had at least 25 students in them. The News tracked 36 individual kindergarten classes with more than 25 students in them. In recent weeks, multiple Michigan lawmakers, from both sides of the aisle, have expressed an interest in policies to encourage or require smaller class sizes. “It’s something we’ve been hearing anecdotally from a lot of parents across our districts,” state House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, told reporters on Tuesday. “They feel that, in a lot of these cases, these kids are in classes that are too big.” Whitmer would have to sign a proposal on the matter into law. However, she didn't endorse a specific approach to the issue on Wednesday. The discussions in Lansing come as Michigan leaders search for ways to boost young students' reading scores. Michigan ranked 44th among the 50 states in the average reading score of fourth-graders, according to the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress results. More: Michigan drops in national reading ranking, improves in 4th grade math More: Michigan educators turn to gaming to boost literacy, comprehension in young students And during her State of the State address in February, Whitmer said just 24% of Michigan fourth-graders were able to read proficiently. Michigan invests more per student than most states but achieves "bottom 10 results," the governor said. "We spend more and we get less," Whitmer said in February. "It’s not acceptable. For our kids, let’s do better. Let’s face our literacy crisis with fierce urgency." cmauger@detroitnews.com Staff Writer Beth LeBlanc contributed. Want to comment on this story? Become a subscriber today. Click here. This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Gov. Whitmer: Not appropriate to have 30 kids in a kindergarten class

Gov. Whitmer: Not appropriate to have 30 kids in a kindergarten class #Education #ClassSize #Michigan

Key Michigan lawmakers seek action on crowded elementary school classes Lansing — State lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle said they plan to take steps in the coming months to try to lower crowded class sizes in Michigan's schools. Legislators and school superintendents have floated ideas in recent days for accomplishing the goal, ranging from capping the number of students allowed in classes to allocating money specifically for addressing packed rooms to changing the way the state divvies up dollars for education. During a Tuesday press conference, Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, said his caucus is interested in addressing class sizes and that legislation would be “forthcoming” to tackle high student-to-teacher ratios. The GOP House leader didn't outline what the upcoming measure would be. “It’s something we’ve been hearing anecdotally from a lot of parents across our districts,” Hall told reporters. “They feel that, in a lot of these cases, these kids are in classes that are too big.” On Tuesday, The Detroit News reported the results of a months-long investigation that found thousands of Michigan elementary school students were learning in classes that featured 30 children or more. Through records obtained under the state's Freedom of Information Act, The News tracked 206 individual elementary school classrooms across 48 school districts in the past two years that featured at least 30 students. Amid ongoing concerns about inadequate reading scores in Michigan, the class size numbers revealed by The News conflicted with guidelines detailed in a majority of other states and with what Michigan education officials said would create the ideal environment to promote learning. More: Michigan school districts pack kids into classrooms as reading scores falter More: Michigan schools often exceed class size limits despite teacher contract caps Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction Michael Rice, who leads the state Department of Education, said elementary school classrooms should be "markedly" smaller than 30 students. Rice said the class sizes for kindergarten through third grade in high-poverty areas should be about 17-19 students. In March, state Senate Education Chairwoman Dayna Polehanki, D-Livonia, announced she wanted to consider placing class size caps for grades kindergarten through third grade in schools with high rates of students living in poverty. "I'd like to see class sizes capped in high-poverty districts in K-3 to give the kids that time with the teacher," Polehanki said. "So the teacher has that individualized time with that student." Polehanki said she is working with the Michigan Department of Education on optimal class sizes to put into state policy. Such a policy would represent a significant shift for Michigan, which has some of the largest elementary school class sizes in the nation, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics. While at least 31 of the 50 states have laws about class sizes, tie funding to small classes or set goals for their schools to attempt to meet and for which to be accountable, Michigan currently doesn't. As an example, Tennessee state law includes both average class size benchmarks for school buildings and maximum class size limits for individual classes. The average class size standard in Tennessee for kindergarten through third grade is 20 students per class and the maximum limit is 25. Of 797 individual elementary school classes examined by The News in Michigan for the 2024-25 school year, 63% had 25 or more students in them. About one in seven classrooms examined by The News had 30 or more students. 'A packed environment' Cindy Eyestone, who has two children at Carkenord Elementary within L'Anse Creuse Public Schools in Macomb County, is among the Michigan parents who would like to see lawmakers or school leaders take action regarding the size of elementary school classes in the state. Eyestone previously worked in the Detroit school district for 25 years. This school year, she's served as a substitute teacher at her kids' school. One of her children is in a kindergarten class with 26 students in it, she said. It's "absolutely ludicrous" to think a single teacher would be able to educate a kindergarten class of 26 students and meet the 5-year-old students' emotional needs, Eyestone said. Students' behavior has gotten worse than it was years ago and their social needs have increased, she said of her prior experience serving as a teacher. “We can’t develop children in a packed environment," Eyestone said. "Let’s take a fish tank, for instance. You’re limited to the amount of fish you can put in a fish tank," Eyestone said. "Otherwise, they don’t grow properly. They don’t have enough room to grow. These are fish. … Yet, you’re shoving 26 kids into a classroom and putting a teacher in front of them.” In response to a public records request from The News, L'Anse Creuse Public Schools reported two fourth grade classes and two fifth grade classes at Carkenord Elementary with 30 students this school year. But Molly Macek, director of education policy at the free-market-oriented Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, argued Tuesday that decisions on class sizes should be left up to individual schools. Likewise, Macek said improving teacher quality would be a better focus for lawmakers than shrinking class sizes. Funding models Nikolai Vitti, the superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools Community District, said his district has been working intentionally to lower its class sizes. Michigan needs to create a more aggressive and better-funded teacher development and retention process so it has enough educators to lower class sizes, he said. "This can be assisted by funding districts and schools with a class size cap in mind," said Vitti, who has led Michigan's largest school district for nearly eight years. Michigan lawmakers primarily fund school districts through an annual budget that's based on a per-pupil foundation allowance. Districts get base-level funding of $9,608 per student. So whether that student is in a class with 15 other children or in a class with 30 others, the base funding remains the same, giving schools little direct financial incentive to shrink the size of classes. The state could supplement the per-pupil model with a class-size-ratio-funding model, tying some portion of the money to class sizes, Vitti said. Multiple superintendents told The News that one obstacle to pursuing smaller class sizes in Michigan is the unpredictability of state funding. Michigan lawmakers decide independently each year how much funding schools will get for the next school year and the overall funding level is tied to enrollment, which can swing from year to year. The per-pupil funding approach, adopted as part of Proposal A in 1994, was based in part on holding schools accountable by having the money follow the student, whose family could decide to switch districts if they were dissatisfied. Schools need additional taxpayer support but also "sustained and predictable" funding, said Matthew Lobban, the superintendent of Davison Community Schools in Genesee County. "With reliable funding, we could recruit and retain more instructional, intervention and support staff, ensuring that students receive the targeted academic and behavioral supports they need," Lobban said. 'Where the rub is' Lawmakers took steps last year to give school districts the ability to use some of the dollars they receive for economically disadvantaged students to lower class sizes, said Sen. Darrin Camilleri, a Trenton Democrat and former teacher who chairs the Senate subcommittee that crafts the annual budget for Michigan's K-12 schools. In next year's state budget, which will be debated in the coming months, Camilleri said he wants to find additional funding for decreasing class sizes in Michigan. Lowering class sizes leads to better academic outcomes, the Downriver lawmaker said. "That is the clearest data that we can find," Camilleri said of the strategy. The Democratic-led Michigan Senate and the Republican-controlled state House will have to work together on the upcoming budget. State Rep. Tim Kelly, R-Saginaw Township, chairman of the state House Appropriations Subcommittee on School Aid, said Tuesday he is open to hearing more about Polehanki's idea of capping class sizes for high-poverty schools. "I'm not going to say to hell with that," Kelly said. Most people believe small class sizes will lead to better outcomes, the Republican legislator said. Asked if he agreed with that idea, Kelly responded, "Overall, yeah." "But I think if you have a highly effective teacher, it really doesn't matter," Kelly said. "That's where the rub is." cmauger@detroitnews.com Staff Writer Beth LeBlanc contributed. Want to comment on this story? Become a subscriber today. Click here. This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Key Michigan lawmakers seek action on crowded elementary school classes

Key Michigan lawmakers seek action on crowded elementary school classes #MichiganEducation #ClassSize #EducationReform

Parent Britney Broker opposes school closures citing class size and walkability concerns Broker emphasizes community support for maintaining local schools and reducing class sizes.

Parents are raising alarms about potential school closures that could balloon class sizes and threaten early childhood education in Lakewood.

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#OH #ClassSize #CitizenPortal #CommunityEngagement #EducationAccess #LakewoodSchools

School teacher warns select board about mental health risks from increased class sizes Teacher warns increased class sizes will worsen mental health and behavioral issues in schools.

Parents and educators in North Andover are raising alarms about the mental health risks of increasing class sizes, urging the school committee to reconsider their approach.

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#MA #MentalHealth #ClassSize #EducationPolicy #CitizenPortal

Needham School District faces $2.5M budget cuts impacting class sizes and special education support School budget cuts lead to reduced support for special education and increased class sizes.

Needham's school district is facing a $2.5 million budget cut that could drastically impact class sizes and special education support.

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#TownofNeedhamNorfolkCounty #MA #NeedhamSchools #CitizenPortal #ClassSize #BudgetCuts #SpecialEducation

2019 05 17 TDSB cancels hundreds of classes CITY YouTube video by Remember This Ontario

2019-05-17
TDSB cancels hundreds of classes
CITY Toronto
Dur: 1:36
youtu.be/tbQ40vR4BBc
#RememberThisOntario
#DougFord
#ABC
#ONPoli
#TOpoli
#Education
#ClassSize
#FYP
#foryoupages

2019 05 17 TDSB cancels hundreds of classes CITY YouTube video by Remember This Ontario

2019-05-17
TDSB cancels hundreds of classes
CITY Toronto
Dur: 1:36
youtu.be/tbQ40vR4BBc
#RememberThisOntario
#DougFord
#ABC
#ONPoli
#TOpoli
#Education
#ClassSize
#FYP
#foryoupages