Thomas Jefferson Elementary School in Jacksonville, Florida

Lots of school activities. My child was there for two years. The first year was pretty good. Except for the continuous bullying by one student. The second year was horrible. I volunteered a lot in the class and still didn't get to know the teacher that well. I thought that year would be even better because he got the "teacher of the year", who'd also been teacher of the year several times. The only thing I got to know about about her was she GOSSIPED A LOT about parents. She gossiped about me in front of my face with other parents almost as if she didn't even care to know that I was standing within a couple of feet of her. Then she will turn her face to you like she was your best friend. AWKWARD to say the least. I thought her teaching style was also strange as the "bad kids" were put at a table all on their own. My child was at that table and every time I volunteered I would sit with them. My child was mostly just an adhd type trying to fit in and be accepted but I DID NOT like how the others students in the class would walk by and tease them. They would come up to me and say these kids at this table are the "bad kids". It was like wearing a dunce hat for a table of 4 boys ALL SCHOOL YEAR! That type of segregation obviously didn't help these boys and I noticed as they year went on their behavior would get more extreme. These first grade children got a label from the very beginning of the year and that's it's your the "bad kid". I volunteered in several other school activities and will say that the PTA committee was VERY nice. Non judgmental types and I loved that! However it's apparent that the one's that actually get recognition & praise at this school is the one that gossips the most, acts as if they are better (know it all types), & puts off as the "most traditional". I once asked would my child be okay taking a 2 day vacation, as we traveled a lot for work purposes, and was told by the office staff that they would have to "talk with the social worker first"??? With a weird response like that I obviously didn't care to hear the answer anymore. My child didn't miss that many days AT ALL to begin with so I just found it weird. Needless to say with the 2nd year and really getting to know the "teacher of the year" that's setting the example for the other teachers in the school I immediately withdrew my child as soon as the school year let out. I was already driving WAYYY out the way for this school just because of their school rating and because I wanted my child in the magnet school program. IT WASN'T WORTH IT! There are other schools out there that don't put labels on children at the start of the year and pretend all school year to fight bullying. I had to have conferences with the principal and the teacher because of the constant bullying FROM THE SAME CHILD and the teacher turning a blind eye SEVERAL TIMES. Looking back it surprises me still have this high of a rating and it just shows me that a lot of parents don't get as involved with their child's school as they should.