The Summer School “Threat”
For 5th and 8th grade students who have received or are about to receive their results, parents commonly hear “if they don’t pass/If they opt out they have to go to summer school.” Please understand, that no school has the authority to tell you that you are going to summer school. By law, accelerated instruction is not decided by the school, the district, the superintendent, or the state. Accelerated instruction is decided by a meeting of the Grade Placement Committee held after the results of the second administration are received. Any “order” or “instruction” issued by anybody other than the Grade Placement Committee is legally invalid.
How will you know if this is a decision of the GPC? Because the parent is a member! Unless you are informed of the meeting, the school cannot hold a GPC meeting. (If you are notified, but don’t attend, the GPC can meet without you.) If there is a GPC meeting, go to it, and demand accelerated instruction that is not summer school. Ask for online learning. Ask for a one day “tutorial”. Ask for a home study/remediation plan. The SSI manual is clear that accelerated instruction has no legally necessary form, length or content. It must be individualized. Show them that in the SSI manual and make them choose the right plan for your child. These are your rights. If the summer school order comes any other way, ignore it. It is not valid.
I just had a talk with one of my sons teacher’s today she told me that my 5th grader failed both his Math & Reading STAAR Test. She also told e that he had one more chance to take it and if he did not pass it he would have to do summer school and he could stay in the 5th grade again. PLEASE send me the information I need to OPT my 5th grader out and I have a son in 3rd grade getting ready to take his test here in MAY and I would like to OPT him out as well.
Good lord. Send it to you? Read the website. It is all here. In addition, read the most recent article on notices of required summer school. No teacher or school can say right now what anyone has to do after the second administration.
If you haven’t found the letter please email me at edpoindexter@yahoo.com, I will send you a very detailed one.
How do you get an SSI manual?
Download it from the TEA’s website.
http://tea.texas.gov/student.assessment/ssi/
My 5th grader took the first time, failed then we didn’t show for the 2nd round. He is going to a private school next year. What are your recommendations for me in the event we decide to ever put him back in public school? What should or shouldn’t be on his record?