Dozens of Denver teachers are expected to present a petition signed by more than 3,000 colleagues to school board members tonight demanding more time to carry out numerous district reforms.
Between the district’s new “benchmark assessment” tests and new curricula in core subjects, teachers say, they “aren’t getting it all done during the scope of the day,” said Amber Wilson, who teaches sixth grade at Grant Middle School.
“I think the reform measures coming through are good,” she said. “But I thought the whole philosophy was to work smarter, not harder. … It’s the end of November, and we’re exhausted. We feel like we’ve been in school forever.”
Wilson said she has had to teach and reteach the new language arts curriculum to her sixth-graders because it’s more abstract than her students are ready for.
“I can see that they’re not with me, and so I go home and think about how I can say it again so they understand,” she said.
Denver Classroom Teachers Association president Kim Ursetta said that teachers don’t have enough time this school year to absorb all the new programs, which include state and federal mandates.
There are roughly 4,000 teachers in Denver.
“Teachers aren’t saying they don’t want to work harder, or do new programs,” Ursetta said. “They just want to take the time to understand what they’re learning and how it works with students. They want to work effectively.”
DPS Superintendent Michael Bennet said district administrators share the concern.
“Long ago, we shared the view that we need to find more time,” Bennet said. “We’re a little puzzled by the petition to the school board. … It seems to imply that we’re not conscious of the issue and that we don’t care about it. … And we do.”
