School Policy Puts Burden On Working Parents In Summit

SUMMIT, NJ — A district policy that limits how parents can review fifth-grade math tests is drawing questions in Summit, with concerns raised during a Board of Education meeting on Thursday about whether the process creates unequal access for families with different work schedules.

The discussion came up Thursday during the Summit Board of Education meeting when Brayton Elementary School parent Diane Messina described her experience trying to understand why students are not allowed to bring graded math tests home.

Under the current practice, students complete reflection sheets that outline the types of questions they missed and the nature of their errors. Parents who want to see the full tests must schedule an in-person visit to the school during the school day.

Messina said that setup can create challenges for families who do not have flexible work schedules or caretaking arrangements.

"I am fortunate that I have the flexibility to come into the school during the day to review these assessments," Messina told the board Thursday. "Many families don't have that same flexibility. Parents who work full-time jobs or have other caretaking roles may not be able to get the same information about their child's education performance and progress that I have been able to get by taking the time to come into the school."

Messina said she had been asking questions about the policy for months and acknowledged that reflection sheets do serve a purpose in helping students think through mistakes.

"Under the current practice, students don't bring home their math tests; instead, they complete a reflection sheet that identifies the types of problems that they got wrong and the nature of their errors," she said. "While reflection is important, it does not replace the ability to review the actual problems that my child answered incorrectly."

She also noted that the district uses the assessments as part of the process for determining middle school math placement, and said she understands the district may be trying to protect the integrity of the tests. At the same time, she questioned whether requiring in-person review is the only way to do that, since parents are still able to view the full tests in school.

As an alternative, Messina suggested allowing students to take home only the questions they answered incorrectly.

Following public comment, the issue was briefly discussed by board members and administrators.

Superintendent Scott Hough said he did not have an immediate explanation for the policy.

"It's something I'm gonna have to look further into," Hough replied. "I couldn't answer that right now."

No additional discussion took place during the meeting.

The district did not immediately respond to follow up questions from Patch.