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Teachers tell Wiseburn board social studies materials and minutes are insufficient
Summary
Two Holly Glen kindergarten teachers told the Wiseburn Unified School District board on Oct. 9 that the district's social studies curriculum is outdated, that many kindergarten classrooms lack materials, and that schedules leave teachers only about 30 minutes a week for social studies instruction.
Two Holly Glen kindergarten teachers urged the Wiseburn Unified School District board on Oct. 9 to adopt a new social studies curriculum and give teachers scheduled instructional time to teach it.
"Our curriculum is no longer relevant today," said Maria Rodriguez, a Holly Glen kindergarten teacher, describing the district's last full social studies adoption as occurring in about 2007. Rodriguez told the board that teachers lack class sets of social studies materials; she said a veteran teacher at her site had only 17 textbooks and has never had a full class set. "We were concerned about what we were going to be asked to show because we do not have textbooks," Rodriguez said, adding she relied on a classroom flip chart when a Williams Act auditor visited her room.
Didi Zirbel, another Holly Glen kindergarten teacher, said schedule and curriculum choices, not teacher effort, explain the lack of social studies work she sees in students' portfolios. Zirbel said the school's move from split-day schedules to full-day schedules produced long language-arts and math blocks and a daily "Win Time" during which teachers were told not to introduce new curriculum. After accounting for specials such as PE, STEAM, library and music, she said, students often have about 30 minutes a week left to receive social studies or science instruction.
"This is 100% not on the teachers," Zirbel said. She contrasted her older children's projects (family trees, national landmarks, timelines) with the lack of social studies projects at Open House for her youngest child.
Board President pro tem Neil Goldman reminded the public that by Brown Act rules trustees cannot respond directly during public comment on items that are not on the agenda, but he asked Superintendent Carrie Silvers to follow up as appropriate.
District staff and trustees did not make any commitment to adopt a new set of materials at the meeting. Trustees thanked the speakers and said the administration would be asked to respond following the meeting.
Ending: The comments were part of the public-comment period on Oct. 9. The board did not take formal action on social studies materials at the meeting; staff were asked to follow up with the speakers and report back to the board.
