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Smaller class sizes will be one of the Denver teachers union’s top priorities when it begins negotiating its next contract with Denver Public Schools this year.
Aside from the ever-present issue of teacher pay, class size caps are top-of-mind for many teachers as they grapple with how to catch students up from pandemic learning losses , reverse troubling absenteeism trends , and attend to students’ increasingly complex mental health needs , union leaders said.
Class size caps haven’t changed in Denver since 1994, when the union went on strike and the district agreed to a cap of 35 students, among other issues.
One of the concerned teachers is Matt Meyer, who teaches fourth grade at Denver Green School Southeast. Some classes at his school have swelled to the maximum capacity of 35 students due to an influx of migrant students from Venezuela and other countries .