Salem Middle School

Everyone always screams bloody murder about Salem. When I had to go this school in the 6th grade I cried. All the awful rumors I had heard about the school made me think that I was gonna die if I when there. Salem is NOT as bad as you think it is. Are some of the students disruptive? Yes. Are there some horrible teachers? Yes. But no school is perfect, especially in DeKalb County and of all places in the South DeKalb area. I had some great experiences there, because I could block out others foolishness. If your child is easily swayed and stands on rocky ground don't send them here. If you know your child can stay true to themselves and do their work, they will succeed and rise above the rest. Don't hate on Salem if you've never been there.

They Should Make this school abandoned or Get A new principal And also new staff members

Hello, I was a student to this horrible school for the of year 2009. Really if you ask anyne whose ever looked in the direction of Salem they would scream the words," Why?!? Why are you trying to go there???" To tell you the truth, they forced me to go ther simply because I moved out of state and they didnt want to be bothered. At the beginning, I wasnt surprised with the foolishness and the rude behavior because in every crowd there are those "special few"........but then I saw how dark and broke it looked. The "Special Few" students were in the majority of that school, how could you let that be? How can you let those " teachers" sit up and do nothing? Wow......If you are wondering on how to get IN that school.....just know is not worth the risk......
—Submitted by a student

I,m a 6th grade student at salem middle and if I made a list of all the schools in DeKalb and ordered them from best to worst, this school would be on the bottom of my list! It seems as if the school is for under achievers. Last semester was my first at this school. Only 8 students in 6th grade, about 6 in 7th grade, and no students in 8th grade made the principal's list (all A's). The students sure can keep up with the latest styles but can't go through a semester without failing a class. If you think I'm just trying to find something bad to write about my school, just click on test scores and stats. Salem didn't make one score above the state average. This school is a big disappointment. PLEASE DON'T SEND YOUR CHILD HERE TO HAVE THEIR BRAIN CELLS WASTE AWAY. Oh, and before you judge me as a hypocrite I did make principal's list.

I went to salem in 6th grade and i didnt like it at all. The teachers that i had werent good when i ask a question they put me down for it. The students there are anoiing and mean{ overall not saying all} and the environment of the school isnt good. Fights at school. People made fun of you if you didnt have in style clothes. And my parents pulled me out of that school and i dont regret it either.

My son is in the 8th grade and I am trying to find another school for him to atttend before it is too late. This school needs new leadership and a staff that cares about the education of the the students and not just getting a paycheck. No wonder Salem hasn't made AYP and never will until there is a drastic change made with the way they operate. My son was failing math last year and when I tried to get him in the afterschool tuturial program, he was told the program was full. (what?) If you want your child to excel academically, don't send them to Salem Middle. Run the other way, please!! Bring Dr. Bolden back. At least he cared about the students.
—Submitted by a parent

My children have been to schools in Dekalb County and Atlanta Public schools, and Salem is by far one of the worst schools we have ever encountered. My husband and I are both very involved in our children's education, and frequently communicated with the teachers and administrators, but this school has too few resources and very low expectations of it's students and staff. The attitude of the top administrators is one of complacency which has obviously trickled down to the staff. There are teachers that care, but there are several that don't. Our children deserve better. The leadership needs to change. Salem is in a decent neighborhood. I would expect that for the high taxes that we pay, we would have better resources. We just got notice that the school is on the needs improvement list for 'No child left behind.' Our child has to transfer in his last year. Sad...
—Submitted by a parent

I am a parent of a 7th grade student gifted student, and first and foremost I want to say there are pros and cons to every situation. As a parent we can't complain about teachers not wanting to discipline our children it's not entirely their job. As for respect some of the students are way out of line and these teachers don't deserve the treatment from the students or the parents. Parental involvement is the key. When I walk into the school all my daufhters teachers know me because they see me on a regular, to check on her progress, to see her interaction in the environment and so that they know I care as a parent. Take responsibility for your child's progress, donn't blame the teacher, get involved. Everybody isn't raised the same way unfortunately. My daughter has had great teachers, when she slacked they called, emailed communicated with me.
—Submitted by a parent

I would say this school is alright. There are other worse schools. This school is really lacking the good teachers and staff. This school is a dissapointment. I am a 7th grader at Salem Middle school.
—Submitted by a student

Hello to everyone. I am an eighth grader in Salem Middle school, and I have read each and every review so far. My opinion as a student is that, SOME teachers are really good at what they do. They care, teach and stay on subject. For others, that isn't their goal. They are off subject, do not teach nor give homework. Also, the students aren't the best little angels either. I am a good student and I do witness some mess in that school building, but one thing i must say is that the kids run their mouths too much. Always talking. Half of our time is taken up with discipline, and it isn't like we have two full hours for each subject. Salem is an okay school, but I don't recommend a parent to send their student.
—Submitted by a student

This is my daughter's first year at Salem, and I am trying my best to make it her LAST I am so disappointed in the school staff, the teachers do not show the students any type of respect, they talk down to the students. The teachers have not made the transition from elementry to middle school smooth for the students. Some of the things my daughter tell me that the teachers say is very unacceptable, unprofessional and just down right rude!! I'm getting angry just writing this review! The very 1st scheduled parent teacher conf. only 2 of my daughters teachers were there, they never tried to reschedule, no note was sent home to apologize, I guess it wasn't important.
—Submitted by a parent

This was my son's first year and what a disappointment it was. I would not recommend you send your child to this school at all. There is no leadership or standard in the school from the staff to the students. My son has had more altercations this year than ever. There is no respect from the teachers or the students and the teachers are not concerned with teaching the children anything. They are more concerned with calling the parents for the smallest thing and/or having the child suspended. My son's math teacher told me basically that she did not have enough time in the day to teach and grade papers. The parent portal that is suppose to be updated is not on a regular. Communication between parent and teacher is voided completely unless something is wrong socially. I have also talked to other parents and they too have removed there child
—Submitted by a parent

This is my daughter's first year and it has been a challenging one. My daughter is a scholar and I am afraid her breeding, talent, academics and discipline will suffer if we must endure much more. The leadership is weak, and void of real academic professionalism. My view is the staff has lost all desire to make a positive difference in the lives of impressionable adolescents.
—Submitted by a teacher

Salem Middle School does not operate to its full potential. Salem has the potential to be a good institution of learning as well as a pleasant environment for the children of DeKalb County. However, Salem is inundated with a variety of children from different environments trying to adjust to a system that desperately needs to be altered so that it accommodates today's youths, their energy, and ideas. There is not enough effort towards teaching and positive interaction with the students. Instead there is more effort towards policing rather than teaching. The staff is overwhelmed and the students are misled. Salem lacks good leadership, adequately trained staff, consistency, and unity. There is a tacit concept of us against them perceived by the students and staff. There is no unity. Where there is no unity there cannot be success. This statement is an expression of my opinion based on observation, experience.
—Submitted by a parent

This is my daughters last year at Salem. The entire experience has been horrible. The teachers do not have the students' best interest at heart. Most of the teachers give the impression, that they are there for a paycheck. They do not go above and beyond to keep the students on track. This is a very trying time for students, parents and teachers. The children do not understand how important this stage of their lives are. It takes an exceptional teacher to make the difference. Unfortunately, Salem has little to none of these type teachers. I have another child entering middle school next year. She will never attend Salem, I will not make the same mistake twice.
—Submitted by a parent

I was hesitant to send my child to this school since I had heard negative comments. I decided to see for myself and I hoped for the best since I could not get her into another zoned school. I find their are good teachers at Salem, however, they get swallowed by a largely incompetent staff and teachers who don't show the children respect and don't give them lessons to challenge them. My daughter hardly ever received homework. She was not challenged. I believe this school, for whatever reason, fails our children. I wish I knew what to do to help this situation. I find school boards don't help. I feel at a lost. I study with my daughter on my own, but what about the parents who don't have the time to do this?
—Submitted by a parent

This is my daughters first year at Salem. I feel that this school has been a disappointment to me. I feel as though my daughter is just a statistic. I also, feel as though the teachers are there just to get a paycheck and that they really don't care about the students. If they get the concept of the lesson fine if they don't understand fine they(teachers) move on to the next lesson.
—Submitted by a parent

This is my child's first year from elementary to middle school. The transition was unsatisfactory. Very disappointed with the level of education that my child is receiving. Teacher communication is poor. As a parent, I feel that the parent/teacher communication could be better in order to assist in the success of the child's education. I am a very concerned and involved parent; however, I feel that the teachers at Salem (who my child interacts with)do not support parents like myself. Education is important!
—Submitted by a parent