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Parents and board press East Brunswick district for clearer plan, more teacher training on reading pilot
Summary
Parents at the Nov. 13 East Brunswick Board of Education meeting said families had little information about results from a new reading pilot and raised concerns about limited teacher training; administrators said the approved one‑hour session covers a screener feature and companies are providing ongoing support, with more training if teachers request it.
At the Nov. 13 meeting of the East Brunswick Board of Education, parents urged clearer communication and stronger teacher training after a district reading pilot flagged students as below grade level.
"I was alarmed to see so many indicators … showing that my kids are not reading at grade level," parent Dr. Maggie Georgees told trustees during the public‑comment portion, saying it took repeated contacts to gather what little information she could find about the pilot and its results.
Another parent, Michelle Bethy, warned of the "Matthew effect" in reading, where students who fall behind lose access to grade‑level texts and widen gaps over time. Bethy told the board that some students in resource‑room settings were excluded from the pilot and remain on older interventions, which she said limits access to grade‑level material.
Board members pressed administrators for details about staff training tied to the new programs. Trustees were told the one‑hour remote training on the agenda applies to a progress‑monitoring feature of the district’s reading screener — not the larger Amplify pilot program — and that companies who supplied the pilot provided initial summer training, have been holding monthly check‑ins with teachers, and are conducting on‑site walkthrough support.
An administrator said companies recommended the one‑hour session for the particular screener feature; if teachers need more instruction the district will provide additional professional development. "If this is not sufficient and teachers need more, then we would be happy to provide more support," a district official told the board during the curriculum discussion.
Parents at the meeting asked the board for clearer explanations of screening results, immediate supports for students flagged as below grade level, and a firm timeline for implementation across grades. Administrators said some parent and teacher meetings were scheduled and that the district maintains a web page with pilot information and planned parent sessions.
Board members urged the administration to make communications more accessible and said they would press for additional outreach so families could understand what the screening data mean and how supports will be provided.
