Dublin High School Student Madeline Timm Provides a Student’s Perspective on Proposed Schedule Change

Madeline Timm

During Tuesday night’s Dublin Unified School District Board of Trustees meeting, Dublin High School incoming junior Madeline Timm took the podium to speak in favor of the proposed schedule change. Parents and members of the community also participated in the Public Hearing, primarily sharing concerns about the timing of implementation, building on comments made at the two Town Hall meetings.

During a lively debate, the Trustees acknowledged both their support for the District’s  proposed College & Career Readiness Program and concerns over the implementation timing. A vote on next steps for the program will take place at the June 24 Board Meeting where the District will present additional details and implementation options, as well as a budget request to fund the program.

Below is Ms. Timm’s statement to the Board (which she provided to OneDublin.org):

“Good evening, my name is Madeline Timm. After attending last night’s meeting at Dublin High School I wanted to address the School Board as an incoming Junior.

“After hearing several negative comments/remarks from concerned parents, I wanted to give you my opinion as a student who is a middle of the pack student and an athlete for DHS. My schedule changes day to day. Some days I have no homework and no practice, on others my day is packed with homework, practice and/or life groups. Having the opportunity to decide how to use the GAEL period to my personal benefit, whether that means I use it to decompress or seek peer or teacher tutoring/mentoring, would give me the flexibility to adjust my day’s schedule. I feel this time would give me the opportunity to have more time to understand a subject, get the help I need sooner and get the clarification I need before I leave campus.

“I heard parents concerned about the students being guinea pigs for this program and a while we will be, I don’t see it as negative. The changes are necessary to keep up with our rapidly changing world. The only negative I can see is that if the program doesn’t work my day will be 40 minutes longer than it currently is, and at a minimum I gain time to regroup at a point in my day, clarify my thoughts, and prepare for the rest of my day both during and after school.

“My parents and I did some research last night to compare ourselves to the global academic standards. which you are asking us to compete in, and here’s what we found:

“Many countries including Australia, Japan and India have extended their school year to 200 or more days.

“Other countries like France and Finland have chosen to adopt an 8 to 4 school day along with the 200 or more days.

“According to a recent study by the National Center for Education Statistics, the United States ranks 31st in math, 24th in science and 21st in reading according, while the countries with longer school days, including France, Germany, Australia, Finland, China and India are showing gains and improvements, and currently rank higher overall.

“Finally, I understand and hear everyone’s concerns for our academic well being. Change can be hard and can be scary but it is necessary. I think it is important to start the process this next school year so we can see exactly what needs to be fixed. Like writing papers for school, we have the outline and now we need the rough draft. The final will follow.

“Thank you for taking the time to listen to me and thank you for thinking of how you can make DHS even better than it already is.”