Maya McFadden Photo
Dee Marshall: "We don't need to just put our kids just in a class so the bodies will be some place. They need enrichment."
New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) needs to amp up its resources for sixth, seventh, and eighth graders in order to get back to developing enriched “future leaders and global citizens.”
That call was made by Hill Central veteran educator Dee Marshall during the public testimony section of Monday’s Board of Education meeting at John S. Martinez School.
Marshall said that the district needs to restructure its middle schools in order to do right by students on the brink of high school.
“The prevalent notion that middle school students will become future leaders and global citizens requires enriched instruction and a supportive public school environment. Low performing middle schools also need access to enriched classes,” Marshall said on Monday. “Despite challenges such as limited teachers of color and language instructions, however, standardized testing often takes precedence, overlooking cultural relevance for students from diverse linguistic backgrounds.”
To address such issues, Marshall said, NHPS middle schools should be provided with the resources to provide “meaningful enrichment classes” to students to encourage perseverance, creativity, and determination. She added that a focus on seventh and eighth graders in particular needs to be a priority.
“The whole point of middle schools in New Haven needs to be addressed. It’s long overdue,” she said.
She noted that current school layouts are not conducive to middle schoolers’ positive development. Even the desks that many have to sit in, she said, “they can’t even fit in, most of them.”
She also suggested the district get volunteers from local colleges to offer courses to youth. And she said said NHPS should consider transitioning to offering sixth-through-eighth grade schools to hone in on middle schoolers’ needs.
“We don’t need to just put our kids just in a class so the bodies will be some place,” she said. “They need enrichment. They need relevant enrichment. Our middle school kids are so deprived, so deprived academically, socially, emotionally, and ergonomically.”
Watch the full meeting above.