Hi, folks,
Hope you are well.
Progress reports are nearly ready to go, and we are knocking on the door of the holiday season.
This is a good time to remind everyone that even though the holidays mean some days out of school, we are still doing serious work and we need everyone in school for the entire day when we are in session. This is a critical time, as we don't want a few days off to result in flagging effort.
We have been incredibly busy, and it seems almost impossible that we are coming up on Thanksgiving. I am very pleased with the progress that our children have made and with the work that the entire staff has invested in the process. The first few weeks of operation of a new school are a scary and delightful time, and I hope that we are all learning more about each others expectations as we go.
Corbett Charter School is a school of choice, and we are committed to being clearly and consistently who we are so that you can continue to make informed choices regarding what is best for each of your children. We recognize that this is not how most schools work, but we continue our commitment to a laser-like focus on extraordinary schooling and invite you to join us in doing the same.
We know that many of our core beliefs are unusual and even startling to folks. But if we believed just like everyone else, we would be setting ourselves up for average results. We do not anticipate ever being average.
One respect in which we want to see vast improvement is in student conduct. Many of our students are exemplary in this regard. Some are not. If our teachers are to be free to focus on achievement and on meeting the needs of those students who are attending to their business, then we need to limit the amount of time that they spend addressing misbehavior. The standards of good behavior in school are not a mystery and shouldn't have to be taught beyond the first few days. After that, teachers should be able to expect cooperation from their students in the vast majority of instances. Parents are the key ingredient in this key element of schooling. A classroom full of respectful, well-behaved students has virtually unlimited potential for growth. It's a wonderful thing to see. It depends, to a large degree, on the willingness of all of the adults involved to insist that school behavior is a matter of choice and that children must be held accountable for their choices.
Modern American pop culture temps us with all sorts of unfounded theories about why students misbehave. They are mostly bad psychology designed to sell books and seminars. (They are usually some derivative of the theory that 'everything is somebody else's fault!) The fact is that we humans beings are choosers, and we can be responsible for our choices. Youngsters can't be held responsible for making choices that involve complex problem-solving, but they absolutely can be (and should be) held responsible for being respectful of adults and for doing as they are instructed by a teacher. If you honestly believe otherwise, then some of our habits will seem strange. (But trust me when I say that there is a method to our sanity!
I know that we can work together to improve student conduct and that the result will be ever-increasing student achievement. It is a simple formula. We literally can't do it without you.
Thanks, and happy early holidays.
