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Board reviews equity action plan alignment and weighs lower maximum class sizes
Summary
Administrators proposed aligning the Equity Action Plan to the district comprehensive plan and asked board input; members pressed for narrower ability ranges in co‑taught and inclusion classrooms and asked the board to consider lowering maximum elementary class size limits.
Perkiomen Valley SD administrators told the education committee on Oct. 10 that they plan to revise the district’s Equity Action Plan to better align targets with the comprehensive plan, and they urged board guidance on operational issues such as class composition and maximum class sizes.
An administrator presented data showing achievement gaps—special education cohorts lagging general education—and described the Equity Action Plan as a vehicle to identify barriers and allocate tailored resources. "If you look at these two graphs, you see there's a gap between how the special education cohort is achieving versus gen ed students," an administrator said, urging targeted supports and different instructional modes.
Board members urged clearer operational implementation. Several members questioned wide ability spreads in co‑taught classrooms and asked whether the district can homogeneously or more narrowly group students for ELA and math at the middle level. Administrators said principals and the administrative team are promoting narrower ranges and that a forthcoming gifted services review from the MCIU may provide recommendations on grouping models.
Board members also discussed Policy 1 26, which sets class‑size ranges; administrators flagged a proposal to reconsider the maximum for Grades 5 and 6 (the current top range discussed at the meeting was 27 students and instances of 28 were cited). Board members said a maximum of 27 or 28 "feels high" and suggested lowering the top end by two or three students where practical. Administrators cautioned that lowering caps has operational impacts—classroom space, staffing and building assignments—and suggested policy revisions include implementation options such as co‑teaching assignments or other mitigations.
Administrators proposed board walk‑throughs this year to inspect physical classroom conditions and inform any policy changes. No formal changes to Policy 1 26 or to the Equity Action Plan were adopted at the meeting; administrators said they will return with recommendations to policy committee and provide options for how to operationalize lower class‑size targets.
