Tag: PGCPS

Recess: A Thing of the Past?

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The following is an opinion piece written by Prince George’s County parent Li’l Dan Celdran. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the owner of this website, Prince George’s County Advocates for Better Schools, or its members.

My son attends our neighborhood school as a kindergartner this year. As a product of Prince George’s County Public Schools myself, I knew that school would be different for my son: I just didn’t realize hoIMG_6473cropw much. For instance, at the orientation I learned that his school gets only 15 minutes of recess daily (weather permitting). When I attended kindergarten, I went for a half day. We had 30 minutes for lunch, then 30 minutes for recess. We used construction paper, scissors, crayons and glue. We played “house” and dress up. We used blocks to build structures. School was fun.

Now, students don’t go outdoors when it’s snowing, raining or too windy. Instead, they have recess indoors. This may include playing “quiet” games (e.g. board games), free play with manipulatives, or going to classroom “centers” (e.g. library corner, science area, drama-imaginative play). Although he receives regular Physical Education classes, this does not take the place of recess. Recess is a break that would allow children to play (or not play) as they wish. I want my child to have a break from his learning and more time for movement and creative play.

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County Council to Adopt Budget Today at 1:00; Baker Modifies Plan to Increase Funds for Schools

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From the Washington Post, published May 27 2015, reporter Arelis R. Hernandez. Go here for the full story.

Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III on Wednesday backed away from a proposal to increase property taxes to generate new money for the county’s troubled public schools, — tacitly acknowledging that he did not have the support he needed from the County Council.

Instead of raising the tax rate by 15 percent, which would have produced $133 million, Baker (D) announced that he would seek $65 million in additional school funding in the budget the council is scheduled to vote on Thursday.

Press release on 5/27/2015 from the office of Rushern Baker.
The Prince George’s County Council will convene session on Thursday, May 28, 2015, at 1:00 p.m. (new time) to adopt a balanced spending plan for Fiscal Year 2016, which begins July 1, 2015.  Budget adoption will take place in the Council Hearing Room, First Floor, County Administration Building, 14741 Governor Oden Bowie Drive in Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
Live streaming of the Budget Adoption will be available and can be accessed by clicking here at 1:00 p.m.  Budget information is available on the County Council FY 2016 Budget web page.

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Audit Could Answer Questions About Prince George’s Schools

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From the Washington Post, by reporter Arelis R. Hernandez, published May 22, 2015.

For the complete story, go here.

Four years, two superintendents and one bruising state financial report after the Prince George’s County Council came up with the idea, officials are in the last stages of launching a comprehensive performance audit of the school system.

Council member Derrick Leon Davis (D-Mitchellville) sought an audit in 2011, under then-Superintendent William R. Hite Jr., after years of upheaval in school governance left many residents skeptical of how resources were being used.

Continue reading at the Washington Post.

PARCC Testing in a Prince George’s County High School

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We’ve been hearing a lot lately about how today’s standardized testing schedules can impact student morale and classroom instruction. However, the problem goes deeper than just the individual student or even classroom. The following is one teacher’s account of how testing works at her local Prince George’s County High School. Individual schools may vary in how they schedule state-mandated exams.

classroomTeaching schedules can affect many more students than just the ones being tested at any given time. Teachers can be assigned to tasks outside the classroom even while their students are not being tested. And because classrooms at the high school level are not necessarily segregated by grade, some students in a given class may be tested while others aren’t. During that time, a teacher has to determine the best way to make sure all her students are being presented with the same material.

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Prince George’s Group Offers Support for Parents of Students with Health Needs

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The support group Parents of Students with Health Needs recently held a listening session with board of education member Verjeana Jacobs and other PGCPS officials, so that parents could share their experiences.

The excerpt below is from the Gazette, reporter Jamie Anfenson-Comeau, published May 20, 2015.

For the complete story, go here.

Beth McCracken-Harness of Cheverly said that the three years her son spent in and out of school while being treated for a major illness were some of the most difficult experiences in her life.

“There was a time when I couldn’t go to the doctor right across the street without getting a call that my son’s heart monitor was going off,” McCracken-Harness recalled. “It was very isolating. Thank God for the Home and Hospitals teachers who came by.”

Continue reading at the Gazette.

PGCPS Policy Prohibits Use of Food or Recess as Punishment/Reward, Lunch Must Last 30 Minutes

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by Amy Alford

Prince Georges’ County Public Schools has a policy on Wellness, Nutrition, and Physical Activity (Administrative Procedure 0116) that specifically prohibits the use of food, physical activity, recess, or physical education as a reward or punishment.

playground_6403.v01a.25percentThe policy also states that lunch must last at least 30 minutes, and principals must ensure that students have at least 20 minutes to eat. Additionally, it calls for principals to provide a cafeteria environment that is “pleasant and conducive to appropriate food consumption and socialization.”

It may surprise some parents that the policy requires that “all elementary children will have multiple opportunities daily for physical activity lasting 15 minutes or more, in addition to a daily recess period, preferably before lunch.” Earlier in the document, physical activity is defined as, “Any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles those [sic] results in an expenditure of energy.”

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A Dozen Years of Changes in PGCPS Governance Structure

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by Amy Alford

Over the last dozen years, the PGCPS Board of Education has been structured in several different ways. Each time, the change occurred as the result of an act of the Maryland General Assembly.

The governance of PGCPS is unusual compared to school districts across the country. Nationwide, 90% of school districts are termed “Independent School Districts” which means that the elected school board has taxing authority. In Prince George’s County (and in Maryland in general), the school board depends on the county government to partially fund its budget (other money comes from the state and federal government). ([12])

In 2003, the elected board of education was replaced by a board appointed by the county executive (Wayne Curry at the time), and the governor. At the same time, the superintendent position was renamed the CEO, forcing Iris Metts, the superintendent at the time, to reapply for her job. ([1], [2]) She was rehired, but did not seek a new contract in 2003. The dissolution of the school board was in part caused by an attempt by the board to fire Metts. After Metts left, the appointed board hired Andre Hornsby, who resigned in 2005 during a federal investigation that ended with his conviction. ([3]). Howard Burnett served as acting CEO until John Deasy was hired in 2006.

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Online Poll Shows Little Support for Property Tax Increase

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by Genevieve Demos Kelley

County Council Member Mel Franklin (Democrat, District 9, Council Chair) has invited residents to take a one-question, online poll regarding the proposed 15.6% property tax increase to fund Prince George’s County Public Schools. As of 8:11 am this morning, 549 out of 630 respondants answered that they opposed the proposed property tax increase. Only 5.3% of 630 respondants stated that they support the property tax increase outright, with 7.4% indicating that they would be willing to consider a smaller increase

While these numbers are certainly suggestive, we should be cautious about interpreting the survey results as representative of the views of county residents. Opponents of the tax increase have promoted the poll through social media and email. Hence the group of 630 respondants is far from being a random sample of voters; it is a self-selected group that may not accurately represent the opinions of voters in Prince Goerge’s County.

Screen capture of poll results.

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15 Minute Minimum Recess in PGCPS Is Shortest in the Area

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by Genevieve Demos Kelley

Some elementary school students in Prince George’s County have as little as 15 minutes of recess per day. PGCPS policy states that recess for students in kindergarten through fifth grade should be “no less than 15 minutes per day and for no more than 30 minutes per day.” (Middle school and high school students do not have recess.)

playground_6394.v01b.25percentIn a 2013 policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics has written about the “crucial role” of recess as an “essential, planned respite from rigorous cognitive tasks.”

The AAP does not recommend a specific number of minutes for daily recess. However, its recess policy statement notes that across the nation, “the length specified for recess ranges widely, from 20 to 60 minutes per day,” suggesting that a 15 minute recess is outside the norm.

Recess Policies of Nearby Districts

How does PGCPS’s recess policy for elementary schools compare with policies in nearby districts?

  • Montgomery County requires that recess for elementary school students be between 20 and 30 minutes.
  • Howard County elementary schools schedule a 30 minute recess into the school day.
  • Anne Arundel County Public Schools cites on its website the recommendation of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) that recess be at least 20 minutes per day. (Read the full NASPE statement here.)
  • Fairfax County elementary schools recently increased their scheduled recess to 20 minutes per day, after the recent move to a full-day schedule on Mondays.
  • DC Public Schools allow for a minimum of 20 minutes of recess per day in elementary school.

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One Member’s Experience Testifying at a PG County Board of Education Meeting

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The following is a first person account from a Prince George’s county resident who recently elected to testify at a board of education (BOE) meeting. If you would like to testify about an issue you feel needs attention, check the website pgcps.org/board for more information, and call 301-952-6115 to register.

Mold in my son’s classroom has been an ongoing concern this school year. On March 26th, another parent suggested that it might be worth testifying before the board of education about the issue.

I learned there was a board of education meeting scheduled that night at Suitland High School. I looked up how to testify before the board of education and found out that you only needed to call 2.5 hours in advance. Even disorganized me could manage that! I called a friend to ask if she’d accompany me, and then called to register. The woman who answered took down my name, contact information, and the topic I wanted to speak about.

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