SOL Devastation: APS Please Act!

After a year of mostly virtual schooling, APS students have incurred significant learning losses; reading, math, science and history SOL scores all dropped significantly from 2019. Math skills suffered the most.

While the average drops in SOL scores are significant and concerning, there are many pockets of students who suffered learning losses much more serious than the average:

• At four APS elementary schools, half or more of students failed the Reading SOL.
• At four APS elementary schools, half or more of students failed the Math SOL.
• At the five elementary schools where over 60% of students qualify for free/reduced meals, an average of 69% failed the Math SOL.
• Across all eight South Arlington neighborhood schools, an average of 45% failed the Reading SOL.

This comes after School Board assurances last year that SOL achievement wouldn't be impacted by virtual learning.

At the Return to School Community Town Hall on August 11^th, we heard:

• Superintendent Durán: “Accelerated learning is a key focus for us."
• Bridget Loft: “Virtual learning had a tremendous impact on mathematics progress.”

APE interpreted these statements to mean that APS would be laser-focused on catching up students, especially given that APS received $18.9 million in American Rescue Funds.

Yet, we have completed two full months of school and learning loss has not been discussed, much less addressed, at any of the past three School Board meetings.

School Board Member Diaz-Torres has focused on a concrete plan for learning loss for the 620 students in the VLP program. But what about the estimated 6900 students--35% of the K-8 student body--who experienced significant learning loss just in math?

No one at APS has called for, much less proposed, a comprehensive and concrete plan for catching up ALL students. These learning losses are large, they affect nearly the entire student population, and they require a serious plan—right now.

Principals and teachers, who experienced a very trying 18 months themselves, need support from the School Board and APS more broadly. APE calls on Superintendent Durán and the School Board to make and vote on a plan today that provides our educators with the funding, the support staff, the interventionists, the tutors, and the extra programming they urgently need.

Tell APS you want learning loss prioritized!
Tell the School Board you want a comprehensive plan from APS to address learning loss. Forward this newsletter to a friend or neighbor. Sign up your friends and neighbors. (Please get their OK first. They can unsubscribe at any time.)

To Our Elected Officials: Please Prioritize Education!

Read APE's Congratulatory Letter to Governor-Elect Glenn Youngkin.
Read APE's Congratulatory Letter to School Board-Elect Member Mary Kadera.
Read APE's Congratulatory Letter to County Board-Elect Member Takis Karantonis.

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Inconsistency in APS' Calendar: A Plea for Alignment and Input

APS just finished the first quarter of the 2021-2022 school year, yet of those ten weeks, students have had only two full weeks of school. Students, parents, and teachers depend on a consistent schedule to learn, teach, and work. APS has the most disruptive calendar in the region and does not offer childcare during school closures. Working parents spent the first quarter scrambling to stay afloat at work and care for their kids, and students and teachers struggled to implement schedules they’d just barely begun to follow. Kids—this year more than ever—need consistency and predictability.
 
In prior years, APS has solicited community input on calendars with real options and choice, and asked parents, students, and staff about their priorities and preferences. This year’s survey was a false choice between two very similar calendars.
 
In prior years, APS aligned its calendar with neighboring (and vast) FCPS – an effort to support staff who worked and lived in different jurisdictions. This year’s calendar has a different start date and Spring Break than FCPS, and APS is off for five holidays when FCPS is not, which makes the schedule almost impossible for staff and working families to navigate.
 
APS recently began starting school before Labor Day – an effort to have more instruction before statewide and nationwide tests. However, APS’s disjointed schedule means students have about the same number of days before these tests, despite starting a week earlier.  
 
Nearby jurisdictions Fairfax County Public Schools, Falls Church City Public Schools, and Montgomery County Public Schools have expanded their aftercare programs on school and staff holidays to provide consistent and reliable schedules for children and parents, and other jurisdictions coordinate with the County to offer camps on all school and staff holidays.

A jurisdiction's school calendar has an outsized impact on society. APS must ask for input and take into consideration the day-to-day needs of students, teachers, and families. The social safety net that our community depends on already has too many holes. We urge APS to fill the gap by offering Extended Day on school holidays, and to make efforts to identify which calendar approach provides the most stability to APS families and staff.

Email APS and the School Board and tell them you want input on the calendar and Extended Day coverage on school holidays.

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