Teacher Selection
What if we didn’t get the teacher we
wanted?
The beginning of each new school year brings great excitement and,
sometimes, a little anxiety. One topic that creates both is the assignment of
students to a particular teacher’s classroom. Often times, parents convince
themselves that there is only one teacher who can work well with their child.
At Los Alamitos, we are VERY fortunate to have an excellent teaching staff of
caring and conscientious professionals, all of whom are dedicated to your
child’s success in school.
With this in mind, we thought we would answer some questions that might be
asked.
Q: How are students grouped in the first place?
A: We have several factors that enter into how we group students. First,
there is the contract with the teacher’s union that caps classes at 30 in 3rd grade, and 31 students in grades 4 and 5. For the 1st
and 2nd classes, we abide by the Class Size Reduction Act and classes
will have no more than 20 students by the middle of September. We also group
students heterogeneously, based on:
- boy/girl ratio
- new students equally distributed
- language learning needs
- parent volunteers
- identified special needs of the student
- ability levels
- GATE
Q: That’s very interesting, but what if we didn’t get the teacher we
wanted for our child?
A: Even though all of our teachers do have their own style, our school
operates on a teaming model. Thus, the same activities and units are
generally taught in every classroom within a grade level. Think of it this
way: if a job transfer took your family to South Carolina, your child couldn’t
have any of the Los Alamitos teachers. They would still receive a good
education. In the like manner, if your child is placed in an excellent class
here other than the one you had in mind, they will still get a good
education.
Q: That’s very interesting, but we still didn’t get the teacher that
we wanted for our child.
A: Well, we do try to make people as happy as possible, but we do not
accept teacher requests. That is not always easy. Here is what we suggest
you do:
- Visit your teacher’s class and see the good things that are going on
there.
- Make arrangements to speak with the teacher about your educational
concerns.
- Be patient. Please know that we do everything possible to make sure
that your child is appropriately placed for their academic success.
Sometimes changes are just not possible.
Q: Why do I have to be patient?
A: The first two weeks of the school year bring a tremendous amount of
change in enrollment to any school. Los Alamitos has been closed to new
students since May due to high enrollment in our area. Many students move
over the summer, and much to our dismay, some parents do not let us know so
that we end up saving a place for a child. New students also move into the
district late in the summer that has a tremendous impact on classes (see the
first question above).
Q: What if I know of a family that is using someone else's address and is
taking a space at our school?
A: Please let us know if you know of any families that are using someone
else's address in order to attend school at Los Alamitos. We do have some
families who have registered the correct way and have obtained inter/intra
district transfers. However, there are some families that do not register
the proper way and really belong in other districts. What would help us is
your doing the detective work to help us find out their correct addresses so
that we can send our district police out to their homes to verify where they
live. Thank you for your help with this.
Thank you for taking the time to read this information. Of course, if you
have other questions, please let us know. With your continued support, it will
be nothing less than a GREAT year!
Shyril McGuiness, Principal
Los Alamitos Elementary School
