(Watertown News will accept Town Election related letters until Oct. 31)
Editor,
I have two kids in elementary school. We have had great experiences with teachers, our own school and the Watertown school system in general. I support Watertown teachers and schools absolutely.
However I see something like the not so great results received by Watertown schools in the MCAS science tests this year and I am concerned. At the school committee meeting on the results several reasons were given by the administration as to what caused the results to be what they were but no clear answers. This is to be expected in a complex process like education. We have excellent education professionals and based on my own experience they will do everything possible to get to the bottom of this.
Whatever you think of testing it is something these kids will face all their lives. It is also just one measure of our school’s performance among many but it is an important one.
We need to ensure that we give the kids of Watertown the best education possible so that as many opportunities as possible are open to them.
This sort of issue is just one example among many with no easy answers that come up naturally in a complex process like education. In situations like this I expect my school committee members to be skeptical, questioning and persistent as representatives of my kids and the community at large.
For this reason I want people like Candace Miller and Kendra Foley on school committee. They will give it renewed energy and focus and will have my vote on Tuesday.
Thank you for your consideration,
John Ryan
Merrill Road