Schools to review areas of concern
BY STEVE SHEPPARD INDEPENDENT WRITER
Over the next year, the school committee and superintendent of schools will study class size, student behavior, the schedules of all three schools and ways teachers can best meet the needs of students with different learning styles.

MICHAEL GALVIN/The Independent Tammy King adorns Bryna Topham with face paint at the Homestead's 76th annual Rocking Chair Fair last Saturday. The Homestead opened on July 16, 1930.

By focusing on these areas the hope is to improve school performance and address needs that were outlined in a recent state evaluation.

In an interview with The Nantucket Independent, School superintendent Dr. Robert Pellicone stressed that there will be no changes in class size or in school schedules during the coming school year. The superintendent said he and the school committee will set up separate committees composed of teachers, administrators, parents and, in some cases, students, to tackle each concern.

"We'll study it for a year, maybe look at what other school districts are doing, and hope to have a presentation next May," Dr. Pellicone said Monday.

As to the topic of class size, Dr. Pellicone and school committee chairman Sue Genthner said the intent is not to add to the current standard of 15 to 22 students per classroom, but to evaluate how to best serve students with such relatively small class sizes. "We're committed to small class sizes," Genthner said, "but the question we need answered is how do we improve student performance."

Dr. Pellicone said behavior management is a concern frequently mentioned by parents. As he noted in a memorandum to the school committee: "We are relying too heavily on the counselors, behavior specialists, social workers, administrators and resource officer to address this problem." He said this was an area where students will be asked to serve on the committee.

There are different time schedules in the three public schools, and in the case of the Cyrus Peirce School, different schedules for each grade. In the elementary school, it was noted that while there are set times for music, art and physical education, no time standards are set for other subjects. "We'll study how we can standardize the amount of time students spend on subjects," Pellicone said.

He also noted that a review of time schedules in the Cyrus Peirce School does not mean a shift from the middle school setup. "We're committed to middle school education," he said.

As for what is called "differentiated instruction," Dr. Pellicone and Genthner said the goal is to reach students of all abilities, including high achieving students. "Are there enough advanced placement and honors classes?" Pellicone asked.

The goal, both Pellicone and Genthner said, is to improve school performance.

The different committees will be formed within the next month and those interested should contact the superintendent's office. "We'll meet twice a month until we're done," he said. "We'll spend a year studying it. Nothing's changing

this year." I