We’ve reported on parental concerns from the Pittsfield School district. (See the links below) However Governor Hassan has continued to hold Pittsfield up as the model school in New Hampshire based on the numerous federal reforms they’ve put in place.
On July 25th, the Concord Monitor ran a front page article on a student who graduated ill prepared for college or the workplace. Many of us have been warning parents about the federal reforms and the lack of focus on literacy. It comes as no surprise that students and board members are discovering there is a real problem in Pittsfield. We just wonder when the Superintendent and our Governor will wake up.
If you recall, Pittsfield handed control over to the Nellie Mae Foundation. Nellie Mae (think community organizers like ACORN) then came into the school to tell the teachers how to teach. Reporters and parents should file a Right to Know Request if they want to see what the school has to do in order to get Nellie Mae grant money. It should also be noted that all of this funding originates with the Gates Foundation and the Federal Government. In other words, the Feds are running your school in Pittsfield.
So how’s what working out for you?
In spite of the praises from Governor Hassan and the Superintendent who pats himself on the back at public hearings before legislators, it sure looks like the graduates are acknowledging it’s not working well at all.
‘Pushed out’: Pittsfield high school graduate returns to confront school board
Taylor Edwards, graduate from Pittsfield explains:
**“I felt like I could barely read things or understand when people are talking with me, or that I’m supposed to, like, sound smart in front of people, and I hardly can say half the words that I can say, so it’s hard for me.
**“I’m basically here to say that when I was going to high school here, I was basically kind of pushed out in a way. I wasn’t really helped out with my reading in a nutshell, really.”
****As for Nilsson, he said he plans to follow up at the school board’s meeting next month to see what progress has been made.
“I think the school system up here is broken, and they’re not into the basics of learning. They’re trying to go above and beyond the basics, and you can’t go anywhere until you have the basics. You need your arithmetic, your reading, your writing,” he said.
Pittsfield Math: Common Core Math (Does it make sense?)
Pittsfield Under Attack From NGOs, Foundations, and PR Firms
Pittsfield, NH Parent Speaks Out Against Common Core
Pittsfield Listens: How to LOWER Academic Achievement in the School
Pittsfield NH School: Success or a BIG FAT LIE
Pittsfield Under Attack By NH Listens
Ayers Aligned Group Working In Pittsfield
NH Listens Coming To a Town Near You
The Radicalization of NH Teachers and Children
Math Education via Common Core in NH Claims More Children As Victims