MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) -
A community-wide education forum held at Carver High School Tuesday night focused on the state of the Montgomery Public Schools. Topics ranged from textbooks to magnet schools.
Superintendent Barbara Thompson, Mayor Todd Strange, Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean and House Ways Means Education Committee Chairman Jay Love all answered questions at the forum.
One question focused on large class sizes after budget cuts.
"It's not how large a classroom size is, it's that we make sure we have the most effective teacher possible, in the classroom," Rep. Love said. "A great teacher can teach to 15, she can teach to 30 the same way. So we have to make sure we have great teachers in the classroom."
"A lot of what you're hearing about class size and those sorts of things were cuts that we felt across the system," Thompson said. "And certainly there are things we've been creative with in terms of grants and other monies to try to look at that."
The panelists also discussed the positives in the school system, including the success of the Advanced Placement program, improved performance on many AYP goals and the new M-Tech school.
The panelists mostly avoided the topic of the grade changing allegations facing the school system, based on advice from attorneys.
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