Florida School Removes Black Students from Class (Parents were shocked)
A school assembly is under scrutiny tonight after African American Sophomores (black students) at a Flagler County Elementary School were singled out for low test scores. Parents of fourth and fifth-grade students say not only did they not get a warning before their children were pulled out of class, but they are disappointed by what they say teachers told the black students.
Black Students Taken Out of Class at Florida School
The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported that the students were pulled out from their classes just because of their race, not for their grades; Jason Wheeler, a spokesperson at Flagler Schools, confirmed it.
In addition, Wheeler added that the parents of the black students had never been communicated about the assembly, which made parents furious.
“They contact us at least three times a week,” said Danielle Brown, a parent of a fourth-grader at the school. “This is the one time that they haven’t. They could have sent something out before. They could have even sent something out after … but never sent a text, a phone call, an email – nothing.”
Brown also said this assembly was a form of “segregation.”
“My daughter is nine years old, and I feel like them doing all this is just a huge step backward in the wrong direction.”
Students were informed “The Problem” during the presentation was that “African American” black students had “underperformed” on standardized assessments over the past three years. Around 32% of the black students were at a level 3 or above for English and Math, but they were expected to have at least 41% – an area of concern.
The school looked into things and found something. They told every student to aim for at least Level 3 on all tests to fix it. They also said students should get at least 75% in all subjects.
The presentation ended with the “F.A.S.T. Challenge” from the school. And this made a lot of parents mad. In this challenge, students are told to compete with their friends to win a meal from McDonald’s.
“I just feel like you are kind of setting her up to be in a situation to become a victim of bullying,” said Brown.
Last Tuesday (August 22), the person in charge of the school, Flagler Interim Superintendent LaShakia Moore, talked about the problem with the assembly. She said it was not right to not involve parents in what happened.
“We want our parents and guardians to participate in their children’s educational successes actively. Our parents were not properly engaged without informing them of this assembly or the plans to raise these scores.”
She added, “However, sometimes, when you try to think ‘outside the box,’ you forget why the box is there.” She also committed to working with the school’s principal, Donelle Evensen, to explore issues surrounding the presentation.
“That said, from this point forward, all of our schools will engage our parents, no matter what group or subgroup their children may be in, in our continued efforts to raise achievement among all students.”
