Petitioning Saratoga Union School District Board of Trustees

SUSD parents want a single math period

Our Ask: We are concerned with the most recent board vote to make the Geometry pathway one
with a double period. We feel the majority of the board have not listened to our concerns and we
would like the board to revisit the issue especially given the close vote of 3-2. More than 85% of
the parents present at the board meeting have expressed our strong preference for having a
pathway where students can get to Geometry with one period of Math each year for different
reasons but our preferences were not taken into proper consideration.
Summary: (Why Option 2 is not a good choice?)
1. Lacks Holistic Growth: Deprives the kids of experiencing the various programs that the
district is known for and impacts their growth as well-rounded students
2. Underappreciates Students Outlook: Fails to take into consideration that just because a
student likes to be challenged/accelerated in Math does not essentially mean the student will
enjoy additional Math instruction hour in school.
3. Overlooks Facts: Disregards statistics and evidence that show our students can be successful
in a pathway comparable to our neighboring districts
4. Discourages Parents Aspirations: Does not support the academic and non-academic goals
of parents in the Saratoga public education system in terms of curriculum depth and breadth
through a wide range of alternatives that serve the needs of each student.
5. Neglects Common Core: Embrace common core and have accelerated math pathway with
single period
Background: Saratoga Elementary and Saratoga Middle schools are recognized as outstanding
California schools at the state level. Some of our board representatives have listed the many
achievements our students have accomplished in Math just this past year. However, our board has
chosen to ignore all statistics and has taken on the stance that Common Core Math is different
and hence our students will not be successful without extra time spent in the class. There has been
no concrete evidence to support that argument. In fact, our most recent and only available data
shows that most of our Redwood students are doing very well in the new Common Core Math
classes. 3 out of 5 of our board members have opted to select a pathway not chosen by our
neighboring districts. Our board has refused to recognize that students learn at different paces but
insist on having all students who complete Algebra in middle school spend the same number of
instructional hours to get to Algebra regardless of 5th grade placement test results.
Statement of Need:
A. Recognize students learn at different speeds and be willing to support our students different
learning styles and preferences.
B. Know that making students take a class when they can demonstrate mastery of most topics
prior to taking the class is not conducive to their development nor fair to the other students in the
class.
C. Appreciate that music, language, and STEM2 are a large part of our district. Depriving our
students both accelerated and ones who need extra support of these programs is not consistent
with our districts emphasis and will negatively impact the participation rate and quality of our
signature programs.
D. Acknowledge that we need to show our appreciation and support for our phenomenal
programs and making families choose between music and possibly other elective programs and
Math is not the way to show our support.
E. Support the academic and non-academic goals of parents in the Saratoga public education
system in terms of curricular depth and breadth through a wide range of alternatives that serve the

needs of each student.

F. Be familiar with the Common Core curriculum and understand why our neighboring districts
have chosen not to have double periods of Math for their students.
G. Get to know our students. See how our K-5 students are performing on Khan Academy and
Dreambox and how much of what they have done will be repeated in Common Core 6th-8th.
H. Build a pathway to allow all our students to take classes that will interest them and keep them
engaged to best serve our students.
I. Do not disregard statistics and past evidence that show our students can be successful in
pathways comparable to our neighboring districts.
J. Respect the opinions of parents and believe in our students.