This is in response to two letters published in the Aug. 30, 2016, issue of the WW-P News. The first letter concerns eligibility for high school Honors and Advanced Placement courses, and the second is regarding teacher turnover within the WW-P Regional School District.
In the first letter, Deborah Marinsky — a candidate for the Board of Education — favors requiring teacher recommendations for students to be eligible for placement in an Honors or Advanced Placement class. That was how things worked prior to 2012.
This resulted in a system where standards for recommendation varied from teacher to teacher. With no consistent procedure for recommending students to honors classes, the district had been forced to institute a “parent override” provision where parents were able to have their child placed in an advanced class regardless of teacher recommendations.
Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, the board instituted a policy where students who meet the grade requirements in a prerequisite course (B for Honors and A for Advanced Placement) are eligible to take the next course at the advanced level.
Rather than “dumbing down” the curriculum, what we have found is that more students are successfully taking advanced courses.
The changes to eligibility criteria have opened doors for students who are more than capable of doing the work necessary to succeed and excel. The number of students taking AP exams increased about 10 percent since 2012, with 93 percent of them scoring a 3 or higher on the exam.
With respect to the 9th Grade Language Arts Honors, 40 percent of the students were enrolled in that course last year — not 80 percent as Ms. Marinsky’s letter states. Nevertheless, all students successfully completed the course, with 75 percent of them receiving an A or a B, again indicating that our students are capable of completing advanced work and should be given the opportunity.
In the second letter, Veronica Mehno comments on a message from a district supervisor welcoming 84 teachers to the new teacher orientation session held in August.
She erroneously assumes a similar number of teachers left the district last year, drawing the conclusion that teachers no longer want to work at WW-P. This is also a theme echoed by Carol Herts and Ms. Marinsky in their campaign for seats on the Board of Education.
During the past school year, 34 teachers retired, and 28 resigned. The teachers who were hired to replace those who had left were joined by about two dozen more who were hired as temporary replacements for those on leave or who were hired last year after the start of classes and therefore not able to attend the orientation given last summer, bringing the total to 84. All teachers new to WW-P, whether it is their first year teaching or their 21st year, must attend this orientation.
WW-P has a large number of capable and experienced teachers. Out of a certificated staff of about 850, more than 300 have 20 or more years of experience. Many were hired when the district went from four schools in 1985 to 10 by 2002. Now, as many of these teachers reach their well-deserved retirement, they are being replaced with younger teachers. New teachers receive mentoring by their more experienced colleagues to assist in their development.
With our reputation as a high performing district known for its outstanding staff, motivated students and supportive parents, WW-P has no problem attracting available qualified teachers at all experience levels. And contrary to Ms. Mehno’s implication, schools like Rider, TCNJ and Rutgers have first-rate education programs and provide an ample source of exceptional teachers to continue our tradition of excellence.
Anthony Fleres
Fleres is president of the West Windsor-Plainsboro Board of Education.
