A new video-based teaching program rolled out in Mineola High School’s eighth-grade classrooms this fall has been met with sharp criticism from the district’s parents, teachers and students.
Parents said the program, called “Build Your Own Grade,” sidelines teachers, asking students to learn only by watching videos and completing “tasks” in response to those videos on school-issued iPads in nearly all core classes, like math, science, English and social studies. Multiple parents told Schneps Media LI that the program was causing their students to feel frustrated, struggle in courses they usually mastered and experience “extreme” stress in school.
“There is very little direct instruction. The primary instruction for the core subjects, social studies, math, science and English, is really based on using these videos,” said Alecia Devins, the parent of an eighth-grade student who started an online petition called “Remove the Build Your Own Grade Program in Mineola.”
She was motivated to start her petition, which received over 450 signatures in a week, after hearing of multiple student petitions collectively garnering over 200 signatures. She said the number of signees is significant, as the eighth-grade class consists of just over 200 students.
The “Build Your Own Grade” program gets its name because students’ grades start at 0%. Students then “build” their grade up by watching videos and completing tasks in response to them, which Devins and other parents said is also causing their students anxiety, as most students have failing averages because they haven’t completed enough work to reach a passing percentage yet. She said they also can’t get one-on-one help because teachers have been told they can’t directly teach lessons or answer student questions independently, even though they want to help, which students and teachers feel is preventing effective learning.
In a Saturday statement, Mineola Superintendent Michael Nagler, who leads Quave, the company behind the BYOG program, along with his 19-year-old son, James Nagler, said he understood parents were concerned about the program.
“I believe the purpose of BYOG and the change in classroom instruction has frustrated some parents, and we are working on solutions and messaging on our reasoning and philosophy,” Nagler wrote in response to questions from Schneps Media LI on the program. “To be clear, this initiative has been two years in the making and the teachers have been part of the process the entire time.”
Parents expressed concern over conflicts of interest between the Naglers, Quave and the district, as well as dismay that James Nagler, who attends MIT, resolves tech issues with the program, something they believe is a privacy concern and not working well. They said the software experiences frequent glitches that cause students to lose progress in their work.
“[James] is the IT department for this build your grade app,” said one parent, who did not want their name used due to fear of repercussions. “He operates out of his dorm room. He has full access to my child’s information, all the kids’ information. I don’t know anything about this kid. Has there been a vetting process? Have they looked into his background? Who safeguarded this program to make sure that my child’s information or the information for all of our students is secure?”
“The frustration is that even if these children make progress in this program, the system is shutting down and they’re losing any progress that they’ve already made, and the teachers are not allowed to help them,” another parent said. “The teachers are just standing in the background.”
Nagler did not respond directly to questions regarding privacy concerts, conflicts of interest or any monetary contract between the district and Quave.
After a Thursday night parent meeting on the program, the high school principal, Rory Parnell, emailed parents, saying the district “heard” parents’ feedback and that there may be a “potential” option for students to “opt out” of the program in the future.
“I am asking you to partner with me, to co-own this process, and to trust that we will adjust and make decisions in the best interest of children,” the email read. “In the coming days, we will be in touch to provide more information on the potential opt-out process as well as the specific ways in which teaching and learning in the classroom will adjust to better align with your vision as parents.”
The ability to opt out can’t come soon enough for Mineola families, including one mother who said that if an opt-out option was not granted within this semester, she would place her child in private school, which she did not want to do.
“What they’re learning in eighth grade is the building blocks for what they’re going to need to be successful in ninth grade, tenth grade, 11th grade,” she said. “We’re choosing to put them into this program without having the choice to opt out of it and forcing them to potentially struggle. I want to opt my child out because she knows how she learns best and it’s not by video.”
“They are spending every moment of their day on their iPad, going into programs, trying to teach themselves,” she continued. “And when they have questions, the teachers can’t help them. They could only guide them to the other videos that can help them build their own grade.”
“Most of the kids have failing averages because they haven’t gotten to a point where they’ve completed enough tasks to put them in the passing area,” Devins added. “It’s incredibly challenging for [my student] to look at these grades and see herself as potentially failing at this point and not having the opportunity to ask for help.”
“A lot of the kids are behind,” Devins continued. “They’re concerned about not being successful with their Regents because they are not getting the type of instruction that they need.”
She and other parents emphasized they were not frustrated with the teachers, who they said did not have much say in the program, but the district administration, which is in charge of implementing the program and making decisions about it. Teachers declined to speak with Schneps Media LI due to fear of repercussions.
The Mineola Board of Education did not respond directly to a request for comment on their involvement or any changes they may push for in the program. After the Thursday night parent meeting, Principal Parnell said the trustees had elected to include an opportunity for public comment about the BYOG program at its Oct. 9 Board of Education meeting, which was previously scheduled only as a workshop meeting.
That meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Mineola Synergy Building, across the street from the high school.
