Many of our teachers are excellent and among the best in the nation. They are truly trying their best to properly educate our students. Many others are like one of my daughter’s teachers who said, “I really don’t have to do anything but fill a chair until I retire. I HAVE TENURE!” Or another daughter who constantly cut class and was in danger of not graduating because she had not filled her Physical Education requirements. I said “summer school for the educational classes she cut.” They said, “Oh, no. She has health problems so we’re only double upping on her PE.” And this went on while we were still highly ranked! At that time, however, we had 12 or more National Merit Scholars and around 35 National Merit Awarded Students. And they ALL got tons of offers including Ivy and other highly ranked colleges. Even as bad as the schools have gotten, how could we only have 4? Nowadays Ridgewood parents tutor their kids for everything so are the tutors that bad as well? It’s really an unreal situation to be that badly thought of by colleges. And I personally know many of the current great teachers. What is happening to the schools?
BCA and private schools are getting the best students far more than they used to.
Because they come from parents whose spell Merit as Merritt
Your quote from a teacher, “I really don’t have to do anything but fill a chair until I retire. I HAVE TENURE!” says it all. Some teachers do the least possible and even the good ones get tired and burned out. Annual evaluations for raises and no more tenure. It protects the bad ones. The good ones have nothing to worry about.
Hey Hulk. A word of advice. If you are going to critique spelling, you might want to re-read your comment before hitting the “Post Comment” button.
There’s National Merit Commended Scholars (top 1% of New Jersey juniors taking the PSAT), National Merit Semifinalists (top 1/2 of 1% of same), and National Merit Finalists (most PSAT semifinalists go on to become recognized as finalists). What was the breakdown for this year’s graduating class?
Just a thought- maybe the kids don’t deserve the scholarships. Maybe, and I’m sure you’ll all prove me wrong with a plethora of angry comments about the lazy, greedy teachers but maybe just maybe the kids are not worthy of the awards you feel they are entitled to. I know in Ridgewood entitlement is a tough concept for many but maybe, on some outside shot the kids are not trying as hard or missing too much class time out of school on weeklong skitrips or maybe their parents are just pushing them through and overcompensating for all of their failures by placing blame on everyone but the actual kids. Just a thought, and I’m probably wrong – sorry to interrupt the blamefest -carry on with the venemous posts.
“Reader asks , “how could we only have 4, National Merritt Scholars””
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Because we are more focused on transgender rights, solidarity with kneeling football players, supporting illegal aliens, and other virtue signaling social engineering objectives than with providing a quality educational foundation.
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Any other questions?
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Because we are more focused on students learning mandarin chinese in high school instead of teaching them the basics of grammar, spelling, world history, american history, etc. Too much fluff. High school students should be learning foundational subjects.
Because when principal declares pompously in front of a full house back to school night that he has visited many schools around he world by RHS is the best he has seen ……………..fill in the blanks. RHS is full of hubris and we are sowing the results. Our kids are not getting the education they deserve. There are teachers that do not teach but just throw stuff at students and we have to scramble to find tutors and pay and arm and a leg to get the kids what we already pay for through taxes. We need a complete overhaul of the BOE and especially RHS higher ups. This is the only way to get back to the great times. We need passionate and competent people who have a clear vision and strategy with the best interests for kids and their families in mind.
With the current board clinging desperately to their respective positions they make a definite and public announcement that students and education are not considered AT ALL. I do wish someone could find out why they are clinging. What are they afraid will show up?