Those interested in the state of academics at Portola Middle School in El Cerrito are invited to attend a meeting at the school Monday night, Nov. 26, for a discussion and presentation by Principal Matthew Burnham.
The meeting, sponsored by the Parent Academic Rigor Committee (PARC), will be held in Building 7 at the school at 6:30 p.m.
"Principal Burnham will make a presentation about the status of academics at Portola," said an etree notice from the Portola PTSA. "In addition, any interested parents are welcome to stay to discuss how the PARC group can further its mission of improving academic success for all Portola students. Current Portola parents, future Portola parents, teachers, administrators and community members all welcome."
Information about the meeting can be found also on the Go Portola! website.
I would like to hear what parents can do to make up for the teacher turnover situation. I'm not sure if this impacts Portola, but this is an issue with other district schools. If a teacher is inexperienced, or non-credentialed, or simply new to the school site, they might be spending too much time developing lesson plans instead of focusing on (and evaluating) our children. Struggling children could fall through the cracks. So what can parents do to help these teachers? And what is the district doing to help? I don't mean coaching. I mean help in the practical sense, like providing pre-made lesson plans if needed. The fact that WCCUSD Human Resources staff (including the former HR director) were recently having difficulties complying with the state Ed Code with respect to documentation of district teacher qualifications is a cause for concern. Does the WCCUSD really know who is in each and every classroom with our kids? I'm not sure they do. By having a clearer understanding of the situation at hand, parents will have a better idea as to what they need to do to help their children succeed.