Letter From a Teacher In Support of the Proposed Dublin High School Schedule Change

The following letter to the editor in support of the proposed schedule change was sent to OneDublin.org and the Dublin Unified School District by a Dublin High School science teacher:

I am writing to offer my input on the 7 period day. As a teacher at DHS and parent of an incoming freshman student, I am strongly in support of the change. In fact, my high-performing soon-to-be freshman was super excited to hear that from 10th grade on she would have a Gael period during the day to get her work done. And I am not concerned about teaching Science, labs or otherwise, within a 52 minute period. It’s been done by plenty of Science teachers before me, and will only require minor adjustments.

I feel very fortunate to be part of a district that is driven by so many passionate educators deeply committed to doing what is right for our students. I know that you have been hearing from those parents and students that are against the 7 period day, but I hope you realize that they represent the vocal minority. Most of the members of this district will trust that it’s teachers, administrators, and board members will act on behalf of the best interests of students. The WASC committee was truly amazed at the energy and enthusiasm they witnessed on our campus. This is such an exciting time for Dublin Unified. We have the capacity and drive to do great things, and we are at a moment in time when our school and community are ready to truly shine. As board members, you have the opportunity to be on the forefront of these great changes. But with great change, there is a need for courage. We must withstand the negative pressures, as there will always be a few that think they will not like the change. Change is hard, but without it there could never be progress. No one would argue that the city of Dublin has changed immensely in recent years, and yet we are trying to run a school as if nothing has changed. In this sense, we are still very behind our neighboring communities.

This is the 21st century and we are trying to prepare our students to survive in a rapidly changing world. I have attended many conferences bridging industry and education, and all emphasize the need to teach our students to be adaptable, innovative problem-solvers. I have heard from CEO after CEO… “we must teach our students not to be afraid of failure.” We must teach them to pick themselves back up fast and keep trying until they succeed. If we back down from these programs now, we are doing the opposite of all that should be modeled to our children.

Will these changes all be 100% smooth? Will we stick with the exact schedule that we enact next year? Will everything roll out as we envision it? Most certainly not…but we should not be afraid to start the process. As an innovative and reflective educational community, we will revise as needed as we move forward. And so long as we support the creative and passionate people that are driving these changes, we will succeed and we will graduate young people who have truly developed the skills to compete and thrive in our local and global economy.

I truly appreciate all that you do for our district. Thank you for taking the time to hear my voice. Please do not hesitate to respond with any questions. I was one of the fortunate to visit Adlai Stevenson in Chicago and see a model of what we are trying to create here. I also share in the vision of the team that is organizing the FMP, 7 period day, and tutoring center. How can we possibly deny that these are programs designed solely for the good of our students? I am hoping that you will give your wholehearted support to the exciting changes coming to Dublin!