West Belmar

This review is a complete reflection of what I have seen throughout my children attending and graduating the WB. Mr. Abeal is a gem. He does a fantastic job at bringing fun back into school with family events and creating a sense of community alongside the WBPTA. That is the beautiful thing about the WB. Unfortunately, the staff is either hit or miss which is what we did not expect at all. I am sure it is the same at every school in the nation, and even in NJ unless you're paying top dollar because that is what we keep hearing. The staff itself is "experienced" but that comes at a cost. Being a teacher for years looks great on paper. But when it comes to being in tune with the needs of the current generation, experience doesn't get you very far. Especially when you're experienced and have your set ways on how to run your classroom. For example, the use of worksheets. Worksheets on a daily basis for 180 days is not teaching is supposed to be about in 2024. Personally, I would despise going to school if the only thing I was looking forward to were dittos and busy work. My children's main complaint was that they were bored. I wish the teachers were trained with more evidence-based practices and actually utilized them into the classrooms. What is probably going on is that the staff is going through the motions, attending an hour or day long training and then simply adding it to their resume but then going back to their ways. Is it accountability? Is it a well-known problem that the district can not do anything about? I don't have the answer there. All I have is regret on thinking this was the best choice for my children. The conclusion we have come to is that the staff needs to be injected with young blood that have the patience, the stamina, and the knowledge with modern educational practices that will take the classrooms, the students and the parents into the current decade. I hate to say it, but the WB fell short of our expectations considering the reputation it has throughout the shore towns. I feel our score above reflects this. I am not sure how to amend this. Is it a management issue? Is it a tenure issue? Is it a district wide issue? I do not know, and I wish I could help to fix it. The WB could be a GREAT school. It truly has the potential to be a blue-ribbon school with the sense of community it has but unfortunately the staff needs to get into this century & utilize curriculum that will bring all students up regardless of placement & background.