Teachers share classrooms

CLASSROOM CHAOS

Overcrowding at McLean leads to lack of classrooms for teachers

Aaron Stark Reporter

Some teachers at McLean returned to the 2022-23 school year to find themselves without classrooms of their own. These teachers instead teach their courses in other teachers’ rooms while they have a lunch break or planning period. The McLean administration had to implement this suboptimal teaching method as a result of overcrowding.

According to Principal Ellen Reilly, McLean has grown by 70 students, from about 2,360 students last year to about 2,430 students this year.

Although an additional 70 students may not sound like much, each additional student places increased strain on McLean. More students means more classes are needed, and more classes result in more teachers at the school. Additional teachers require more rooms for these teachers to teach in, which the building lacks.

“If you look at Marshall, Langley or Madison [High Schools], they have all been built up so they can house 2,500 students,” Reilly said. “They have around 2,100 to 2,200 [students], but they are built for 2,500. We are built for 2,100, but we have over 2,400 students.”

I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE A CLASSROOM. IT WOULD MAKE ACTIVITIES SO MUCH EASIER.”

- CHRISTINE PRICE MATH TEACHER

McLean’s shortage of classrooms directly impacts student learning in ways that newer teachers may not realize.

“When I came to McLean in 2002, our

Temporary Territory — Social studies teacher Caylen Beight teaches first period AP World History in math teacher Kelly Bozzi’s green hallway classroom. An increase in student population has resulted in more teachers being required to share classrooms this school year. population was about 1,500 students,” math teacher Crissie Ricketts said. “We had empty classrooms. At that point, in a team-led classroom, one teacher could take a small group of students to an empty classroom and work with them alone. It was amazing.”

Constantly having to move around to different classrooms makes it harder to teach once class starts. Not every classroom is equipped with the same technology and other materials, making it harder for teachers to keep their lessons consistent.

“I would love to have a classroom. It would make activities so much easier,” math teacher Christine Price said. “I would like to have SMART Boards in all my classrooms. I also think that [having a classroom] makes it easier to organize all the material.”

Sharing classrooms creates various obstacles for both the “floating” teachers and the teacher whose classroom is being used.

“I would set my classroom up differently than other teachers do, setting up desks in groups of five or six,” Price said.

This change has not only impacted teachers, but also complicated student-staff interactions.

“I think a disadvantage for students would be that they have trouble finding me, especially this year, since I am in four different classrooms,” Price said. “If they want to find me, they sometimes have to walk up and down the hallways asking, ‘Where’s Mrs. Price? Where’s Mrs. Price?’”

As of now, there are no plans to resolve this problem. In March of 2020, the construction a modular unit provided 12 new classrooms for McLean students.

“We have the modulars, which are 12 classrooms outside, and we have the four trailers,” Reilly said. “Could I use more trailers? Probably. But where would I put them?”

While the modular and trailers were intended to temporarily relieve the overcrowding challenges, Reilly is uncertain about how the continued classroom shortage will be addressed by the county.

“We’re really working on when we can get into the queue for an addition,” Reilly said. “I don’t think anyone is really talking about that.”

Until McLean is renovated, there is no end to the classroom shortage in sight.

“I don’t want more trailers,” Reilly said. “I want an addition to the building, but they keep telling me we are not on the docket.”