Newton's Mixed Classrooms: A Lesson in Inequity

Newton Public Schools tried something new in autumn 2021. They mixed students of different levels into the same classroom, hoping it would help them learn better. This was a big change during a tough time, right after COVID-19 shut down schools. But teachers and students are now saying it's not working. The idea was to make it easier for students to move up levels and learn more challenging things. It was also supposed to help students who needed more support. But three years later, teachers are saying these mixed classes aren't helping anyone. Some say their students aren't learning as much as they should. Others say they don't have enough help to teach these mixed classes. One teacher even said it's like trying to teach some students their ABCs while others are learning to read Shakespeare. That's a big difference! To make things worse, the school didn't have a way to measure if these classes were helping students. They didn't even collect data to see if it was working. A group of teachers called the Faculty Council did their own survey. They found that most teachers thought these mixed classes weren't helpful. Some even said it made them feel stressed and unhappy. Some students did better in single-level classes, even when they had the same teacher. The Faculty Council wrote a petition asking the school to stop these mixed classes. It had support from almost all teachers in STEM and language classes. But the school said they need more time to think about it. Teachers say they understand, but they also say the school needs to act fast because these classes aren't helping students who need the most support.