One Hundred Fifty-Third Street School

Im not impress with a teacher in this school my son is a 4th grader here and he comes to me daily not wanting to go back to school. He is a great student never had a problem with school work and gets good grades. I understand that i teacher can be strict but there is no need to be hurtful. These kids are 9 years old and there is a line of worlds that should not be said to them. This teacher has called them idiots, loosers, bad students.. and tells them they only come to school cause their parents make them. and that its all about the money. Well why would they want to go with a teacher like that. My son has asked me to change him class but there seems to be no more room in other classes since a few other students have already left her class.. What can i do. I called a differnent shool and they tell me there is no room for new students.. i dont want his grades to go down. Any ideas out there??
—Submitted by a parent

I AM NOT IMPRESSED WITH 153RD ST SCHOOL,,I HAVE NEVER FELT A VERY WELCOMING FEELING HERE,,,I DON'T FEEL MY CHILDRENS NEEDS ARE BEING MET TO THEIR FULLEST,,AND THEY LACK CONSISTENCY WITH THEIR ACADEMIC CURRICULUM,,AND FRANKLY WITH THEIR CURRICULUM IN GENERAL,,NOW WE HAVEN'T BEEN HERE LONG AND DEFINETLEY DON'T PLAN TO CONTINUE ATTENDING,,ANOTHER ISSUE IS CAFETERIA SERVICE, WHILE IT HAS IMPROVED THIS YEAR WITH THE EXTRA HELP,,IN THE PAST MY CHILDREN HAVE BEEN LEFT WITHOUT FOOD DUE TO FEW MINUTES OF TARDINESS AND HAVE HAD DOORS CLOSED IN THEIR FACES!!!!! BY CAFETERIA MANAGER,,I DO BELEIVE WITH THE NEW HELP THIS YEAR IT'S A REFRESHING ADDITION AND HAVN'T NOTICED THAT MOST RECENTLY,,,IT GIVES ME A SAD FEELING THAT CHILDREN HAVE TO ATTEND SUCH DIM CIRCUMSTANCES DURING THEIR SCHOOL DAY!!!! CHILDREN SHOULD (AND PARENTS ALIKE) SHOULD BE GREETED WHITH FREINDLY FACES AND ATTITUDES ALWAYS, AND FEEL WELCOMED AND BE GIVEN THE OPPURTUNITY TO REACH MAX POTENTIOALS IN A FUN,SAFE,STIMULATING, AND CLEAN ENVIORMENT!!!!!!
—Submitted by a parent

Teachers are the best thing about this school! Most of them are wonderful, caring, and very competent. I can't understand why the low test scores? Unless all the brainy kids transfer out? But I know my child's teacher has a masters degree, as many of them do. Several of them are National Board Certified. All of them have more than 5 (I think) years of experience. I think the weakest thing about this school is the way the principal and the teachers interact...it seems like they don't get along. I also think there is no real "vision" for this school, at least not one that is expressed to us parents.
—Submitted by a parent

My child has been attending this school for a couple of years and I am noticing changes taking place.The principal here cares for the children and goes out of his way to attend other activities that are not solely during school hours. The teachers my child has had have been very nice and approachable. There is a great parent center where parents are always welcome. The school overall is improving as far as testing goes. New strategies and changes are being put forth in order to guarantee better results from our children. There does need to be more supervision on the yard and more maintenance around the school.There is a great after school program if you are a working parent. Also there is an awesome, very friendly cheer squad full of Tiger Pride. We could use more parent involvement .
—Submitted by a parent

This school had many good qualities: very experienced teachers, good access to technology for students, good improvement in reading and math over the last 3 years, recipient of the CA Quality in Education Act Grant which keeps class sizes smaller than average through 2014, Recipient of the VAPA (visual and performace arts grant). We have many parent volunteers. The weaknesses are the state of the classrooms and campus ( a bit run down), weak administration, and not enough supervision for students during recess and lunch.
—Submitted by a teacher

My daughter has been going to this school since kindergarten and she is doing very well. The teachers here seem very caring and since they started the uniform policy and improved educational standards, I have every confidence in this school. My daughter is in the gifted/advanced program which guarantees her placement in advanced classes through high school. I attended a school councel meeting and was very impressed with their standards and goals. It was very informative.
—Submitted by Cheri Petersen, a parent

Two years ago there was total chaos in this school. Then the principal and the vice principal both left. Now the new principal and vice principal are starting with a disciplinary plan, they are making uniforms mandatory and they work with the parents. Their whole goal is to work on being proactive with the discipline situation and not reactionary.
—Submitted by Mr. E. Morgan, a teacher

I currently have a first and third grader attending this school. The staff to parent communication is horrible. There aren't any programs in place for children who exceed average standards. My first grader regularly finished an entire week worth of homework in less than an hour. The children are not challenged enough at this school. My third grader works at a slower pace than his peers but is still forced to 'keep up'. I have to spend an additional 3 to 4 hours per day, teaching and reviewing daily assignments. There are no programs in place for 'slow learners'. One of my childis bored and the other feels inadequate when he's at school. If it weren't for the support of family, our children would not meet their highest academic potential while attending this school.
—Submitted by a parent

My daughter has attended this school for Pre-School and currently in Kindergarten. I was amazed/pleased of all the activities and memorization skills she learned in Pre-School and this was for 2.5 hours a day excluding Fridays. I noticed there is a new pricipal and it seems as everything has gone down hill. My child is too advanced for the class and she receives the same homework almost every other week. The children in the class seem disruptive. It very well could be the teacher and this particular classroom, but to me the entire school just doesn't look healthy.
—Submitted by Ma Dea, a parent

I really like 153rd street School. My child is in Special education there and he is treated better there than he has been treated anywhere else. they have a good specil ed section,
—Submitted by a parent

Great principal and teachers determine to raise the performance of students.
—Submitted by a parent