Fornits
Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform => The Ridge Creek School / Hidden Lake Academy => Topic started by: Anonymous on July 17, 2007, 01:19:28 PM
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According to HLA's website, there are now a total of 4 teachers, down from 22 a year ago. 1 science teacher, 1 history, 1 math, 1 English. For grades 8 thru 12. Does HLA only offer 4 courses now, and how do 4 teachers handle 5 different grades? Is this still a school? What the hell are parents and consultants thinking when they send a kid there?
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According to HLA's website, there are now a total of 4 teachers, down from 22 a year ago. 1 science teacher, 1 history, 1 math, 1 English. For grades 8 thru 12. Does HLA only offer 4 courses now, and how do 4 teachers handle 5 different grades? Is this still a school? What the hell are parents and consultants thinking when they send a kid there?
Hmmm. Was it every really about ACADEMICS? Secondary to 'modifying behavior'. My A/B student came home 5 credits behind his peers and had to attend summer school in order to graduate with his peers.
Has anyone heard what the current enrollment is? Still 50ish?
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do 4 teachers handle 5 different grades? Is this still a school?
dunno but when i was there, i took classes with kids in grades above and below me. since different states have different requirements, different kids came in at different levels, even if they were in the same grade. e.g some states make you do geometry, then algebra, some the other way around or they mix the two. so i was a 10th grader, but i was in a geometry class with 9-12 graders. and likewise with english, bio, and spanish. it's a good exuse but unfourtunately it causes alot of very big problems in the classroom. they should have individual teachers for different grades and different classes. but with only four teachers....i bet they got A.C's reading off pre-made lesson plans to classes where they just dont do shit.
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I believe they only have around 50 some students currently.
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Ian Adkins-Science teacher
Hawley Stevens-History teacher
Sam Tanner-Math teacher
Foy Tootle-English teacher
Janet Fraser-Special Education teacher
This is all HLA has left. Greer Dover left HLA and she was a good English teacher. Now they have the former Drama teacher Foy Tootle teaching Drama. Parents, this is what you are paying $6,000 a month for. What a quality education you are paying out the YING YANG for!!
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The former drama teacher is now teaching English classes _Foy Tootle.
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There's a large number of students graduating in August so that number will drop even lower!
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do 4 teachers handle 5 different grades? Is this still a school?
dunno but when i was there, i took classes with kids in grades above and below me. since different states have different requirements, different kids came in at different levels, even if they were in the same grade. e.g some states make you do geometry, then algebra, some the other way around or they mix the two. so i was a 10th grader, but i was in a geometry class with 9-12 graders. and likewise with english, bio, and spanish. it's a good exuse but unfourtunately it causes alot of very big problems in the classroom. they should have individual teachers for different grades and different classes. but with only four teachers....i bet they got A.C's reading off pre-made lesson plans to classes where they just dont do shit.
Multiple Aged Classrooms have been proven to be extremely effective. Many new models are evolving that include the use of teaching science and history in a setting that includes students from many different grade levels. This gives the students an opportunity to view ( and be exposed to) a wider range of curriculum and interact with other students who are on different levels and also allows kids who want to move ahead and excel in a particular area the space to do so.
The “friends schools” in the northeast has been utilizing this method for over a century and their students move on to the top colleges in the country. Montessori schools also work to a similar model. Forcing a structure on children and trying to make them conform to a predefined demarcation of class levels (as our public school system does in the US) is not very effective , especially for kids who are coming together from different parts of the country and are moving along at different paces (as you pointed out).
Given that these schools are not held to the ancient standards and state requirements that the local schools are they are able to provide a more flexible and effective method for educating the kids. It may turn out many of our local programs can learn a lesson themselves. This is something we should keep an eye on.
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:rofl:
:wave: Who.
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in theory it may work but in my experience at hla, the older kids were bored and just sat there while the younger kids were absolutely confused. the teachers ended up dumbing-down the lessons and spending more time with the younger kids than the older. although this is not the case for spanish class with doug T. another problem is that the younger kids would be mentally intimidated by the older and smarter kids. also there was alot of emotional abuse between classmates becouse the 12th graders couldnt stand sitting through 20 minuits of the teacher explaining something they've heard and learned over and over throughout the years. so they'd take out their frustration on the younger kids. HLA is like any other prison, it's extremely easy to get on someone's "hit list", and once you do you can expect a retaliation. it didnt all happen in the classroom though. for example, a youngster would take up a teacher's time while an older kid needs help on a serious problem. that older kid gets frustrated, so later that day he passively-agressively instigates an altrication with the younger one. staff, dont tell me you've never seen this happen.
sure, it may work with schools like freinds, but freinds is the exact opposite of hidden lake. HLA has a restricted and very stressed environment, very limited resources and [some] very troubled kids. also keep in mind that the freinds are quakers. they have a very different philosophy on life which is essentially the oposite of hidden lake. a freinds school teacher would shudder at the idea of sending a child to hidden lake. and with four teachers.....fuggetaboutit. maybe if they had a teacher and a T.A (like most freinds schools) for every subject and level they'd make it work, but they dont.
yeah sure, i know, hla has no other choice because kids come in at different levels. but that's a different issue, and one that cant be fixed unless the whole hidden lake system is re-designed.
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Yeah, explain to a parent that their 11th grader is going to be in the same English class as an 8th grader, both of whom are paying 6 grand a month, and see how that flys.
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Multiple Aged Classrooms have been proven to be extremely effective. Many new models are evolving that include the use of teaching science and history in a setting that includes students from many different grade levels. This gives the students an opportunity to view ( and be exposed to) a wider range of curriculum and interact with other students who are on different levels and also allows kids who want to move ahead and excel in a particular area the space to do so.
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yeah, this b.s. you speak of takes education to whole new level, not a higher level but still. so what experience do you have with this type of schooling? my senior year was spent learning all 50 states and capitols and man oh man, did that challenge me, along with relearning my abc's.
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Aside from the obvious, different aged kids in the same class, there is no comparison between the situation at HLA, and Friends or Montessori.
Montessori combines grades until about 8th grade, and based on the brief search I did the same seems to be true of the "Friends" schools.
Montessori doesn't take grades, cooperation is encouraged vs isolation and competition.
If there's a problem between two kids, they go into a seperate room and dialogue until they resolve their differences. It's not aired in a group confrontation.
Genuine respect is modeled and that's what kids respond to.
Rights aren't seen as privileges or taken away for punishment.
Is it possible for the control freaks who run programs in this industry to let go of their antiquated, barbaric methods and adopt a more respectful way of interacting with kids? I won't hold my breath.
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Is it possible for the control freaks who run programs in this industry to let go of their antiquated, barbaric methods and adopt a more respectful way of interacting with kids? I won't hold my breath.
yeah i wouldnt either. the staff there are so reactionary half of them think the south should have won the civil war (and some even pretend the south won). asking them to change their ways is like asking a neo-nazi to marry a jew.
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Oh, they just added a new Spanish teacher Katie Bedard to the staff list. :lol:
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yeah, this b.s. you speak of takes education to whole new level, not a higher level but still. so what experience do you have with this type of schooling? my senior year was spent learning all 50 states and capitols and man oh man, did that challenge me, along with relearning my abc's.
HAHA! Dude, that class kicked ass.