HOUSTON – The news about more schools will join Houston ISD’s New Education System (NES) next year has reactions from all over the district, from staff members to parents.
According to Superintendent Mike Miles, the shift to the NES System is about improving at struggling schools.
ORIGINAL REPORT: HISD adding up to 40 failing schools to New Education System next year
But some parents who spoke to KPRC 2′s Deven Clarke said the system is failing the kids.
“I know it’s going to be a lot more difficult for our students who you know sometimes even struggle with testing or have testing anxiety as my child does,” Angie, a parent, said.
Of the schools that will join the NES system is Almeda Elementary School, which received a D letter grade and an accountability rating of 64. The grades are partly based off of test scores student performance and graduation rates.
One of the objectives, according to Houston ISD is to use an innovative staffing model to ensure students receive consistent high-quality instruction.
Pastor Calvin Miller says he is also against it.
“I don’t believe that it’s successful,” he said. “The community I come from is Sunnyside, South Park areas where we’ve seen the school system not be too savvy. This is not a program that I believe is helping the school but it’s harming the schools.”
Miller, who has a third grader at Almeda Elementary, said he wondered where the ratings came from.
“My son has accelerated, my daughter is graduating this year from Debakey. She’s going to be a doctor, my youngest daughter is in Lanier so they’ve left this school and done great things,” he said.