Muck Off
You can’t turn on the news these days without hearing about the singular problem sweeping the nation, the one threatening America’s youth at an alarming pace: optional, anonymous student surveys on equity.
Just kidding; it’s only a problem in Aspen. Kidding again, although it is an issue weighing heavily on Carbondale resident and recently re-elected Colorado State Board of Education member Joyce Rankin. Last month she penned an opinion column
, “Sex, Religion and Your High School,” about a “serious problem” with an Aspen High School survey on equity that she said concerned parents brought to her attention.
Courtesy photo
Since the pandemic broke in March, Kim Zimmer’s job has been getting hundreds of Aspen High School teachers and students on the same screen.
“High school is high-stakes time for students,” said Zimmer, Aspen High’s technology integration specialist. She also teaches broadcast journalism. “We have kids that really want to achieve and kids that are in the IB program and students that really have been dedicated to being successful, so I didn’t want us to lapse in the quality of instruction.”
Before the virus jolted the spring semester at schools across the country, remote learning had not been put into practice at the Aspen School District. New to teachers’ professional development was their having to learn fast about online instruction. Students also felt the pressure.