People are doing the best they can with the tools they have. Communication, parents and teachers said, was a big problem at Paul Revere Elementary School. Several parents said that though the school had its share of problem teachers, the principal was chiefly to blame for the poor climate, and they questioned why the district didn't simply fire her and leave it at that. Attempts to reach the school's former principal last week were unsuccessful. The current principal, Robert Walters, said he is convinced that the wholesale overhaul was needed.
Desperate times require desperate measures.
This year, he said, he will focus on curbing truancy, lifting test scores, and increasing parent involvement. Ms. Sloot, for one, hopes he succeeds. Chanay Bell, left, and Chevyan Lattimore, both 5, get down to business in a kindergarten class at the Cleveland school.