Teachers concerned about kindergarten staff allocations for
Teacher teaching students in a classroomCDC/Unsplash
Staffing shortages are affecting schools across the country. In Montgomery County there is a mad dash to fill the vacancies before school begins for students on August 29. As the school system scrambles to fill almost 300 full-time and part-time teaching positions, schools hope to keep their teaching allocations.
Teaching allocations are dependent upon the number of students enrolled in a school each year. As enrollment drops, teachers are either involuntarily transferred or choose to move to another school.
However, kindergarten allocations are hard to predict and depend on the number of enrollees. Families with a first-time kindergartener aren’t always sure when to enroll their child. In this case, earlier is always better. Teachers are asking families not to wait until the first day of school to enroll their child and expect to drop him off at his new school. There is paperwork to complete and classes to create. And sometimes, last-minute enrollment means overcrowded classrooms until they can bring in another teacher. It also means looking for space that has been allocated to another teacher.
Due to lack of enrollment, kindergarten teachers across the county are in a panic because schools are losing teacher positions. They have taken to posting reminders on social media to enroll students for kindergarten as soon as possible.
Montgomery County Public School consistently monitors student enrollment throughout the summer. As a result, schools lose teaching positions, and classes become overcrowded the longer families wait to enroll their students. Finding teachers to fill vacancies and create new classes becomes challenging, especially when there is a teaching shortage.
How to enroll your kindergartner?
MCPS has moved to online enrollment for kindergarten. However, it is still possible to go to your child’s school and enroll in person.
To enroll online you will need to create a Parentvue account.
To enroll by using paper forms, contact your home school directly. Families can use the School Assignment Locator to help them find their school.
What paperwork is needed?
Depending on the enrollment numbers, it can take about a week to complete the process. However, schools are open throughout the summer and can begin processing the paperwork.
To enroll, families need to provide the following information
- Proof of Residency
- Identification
- Birth documents
- Health Forms
If there are any questions, contact your school directly.
Has your school lost teaching positions due to a lack of enrollment? Let me know in the comments.