Zorg
A tool for publishing emails.
Disclaimer: it is assumed that all proper permissions have been secured to publish this email prior to its publishing. Zorg is not responsible for emails that have been unlawfully or unfairly published.
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
Leading in the NewsLos Angeles Unified To Fire Above Average Number Of Probationary Teachers This Year.
The Los
Angeles Times (2/10, Song) reports that "Los Angeles school district
officials are planning to fire more than 110 non-tenured teachers this year
based on their performance, about three times the number of probationary
teachers dismissed annually in recent years." Each of the teachers under
consideration for "termination this year received one or more negative ratings
on a recent job evaluation and have been sent letters indicating that they are
being considered for so-called non-reelection." In December, the Los Angeles
Times reported that "the Los Angeles Unified School District often grants
teachers permanent status with little or no
evaluation."
Leadership and ManagementReport Recommends Use Of Identifiers To Connect Disciplinary Actions To Students.
T.H.E.
Journal (2/9, Schaffhauser) reports that the Tenth Annual Safe Schools
Data Project, "compiled by the Kentucky Center for School Safety and the state's
Department of Education," suggests for Kentucky schools to use "a unique
identifier in order to connect disciplinary actions to a particular student and
to evaluate the effectiveness of programs targeted at repeat offenders."
According to the report, the Center's "most important shortcoming in the data
collection process...involves the current inability to connect each disciplinary
action to a particular student through a unique identifier." The report also
notes that such a "connection could assist schools in evaluating programs
targeted to repeat
offenders."
CurriculumCircus Director Is Artist-In-Residence At Elementary School In Massachusetts.
The Harvard
Post (2/9, Quinn-Szcesuil) reported that through an artist-in-residency
program at Harvard Elementary School (MA), students "will get a
behind-the-scenes peek into circus life when Rick Davis of Circus Smirkus not
only comes to town, but also teaches physical education classes for two weeks."
The program officially begins on Feb. 22, and is "funded in part by the Harvard
Parent Teacher Organization and a grant from the Harvard Cultural Council." For
the duration of the residency, Davis "will teach each of the grades, from
kindergarten through fifth grade, during their physical education classes. The
program ends on March 5 with a series of performances by the students for their
parents and the school
community."
Florida Students Will Demonstrate Vocational Abilities At Hands-On Skills Competitions.
The St.
Petersburg Times (2/10, Miller) reports that at the end of this month,
"about 450 students from Pasco, Pinellas, Hernando and Hillsborough counties
will descend upon" the Marchman Technical Education Center in New Port Richey,
FL, "to compete in hands-on skills and leadership competitions in 38 categories,
including automotive service technology, carpentry, culinary arts, cosmetology,
nursing, residential wiring, video production and Web design." Regional winners
"will go on to compete at the state level April 19-21 at Manatee Technical
Institute."
AssessmentSome Detroit Education Stakeholders Protest New Standardized Test.
The Detroit
Free Press (2/10, Dawsey) reports, "Teachers, parents and school board
members wary of a new standardized test being administered this week in Detroit
Public Schools tried to halt the testing Monday. Some teachers said they were
afraid that the test would be used as a political tool to help DPS Financial
Manager Robert Bobb lobby the state Legislature for academic control over DPS."
The Free Press adds, "Bobb, the state-appointed emergency financial manager for
DPS, is in a political and court battle with the school board over academic
control of the
district."
Legislation and PolicyTexas May Submit To Second Phase Of Race To The Top Competition.
Columnist Rick Casey writes in the Houston
Chronicle (2/10), "Before being ordered by Gov. Rick Perry (R) not to
compete for a chunk of the $4.3 billion 'Race to the Top' federal grants for
public schools, staffers at the Texas Education Agency had put in more than 800
hours preparing an application. " And TEA Commissioner Robert Scott has
requested that "the work be declared a state secret." According to the state's
Public Information Act, "all documents produced with the taxpayers' money are
public with" the exception of information that "would give advantage to a
competitor or bidder." Casey notes that "the TEA letter to the attorney general
offers an intriguing additional possible reason for keeping the material
secret": the state may decide to submit to Phase 2 of the federal grant
competition.
Education Stakeholders Want Michigan To Mirror Other States' Accountability Measures.
The Detroit
Free Press (2/9, Dawsey, et al.) reported that as Michigan "considers
new standards for statewide testing of students, some also see hope for
Michigan's educational system in the sweeping reforms recently announced by the
state." And some "say Michigan can learn strategies from other states that have
found ways to improve learning and accountability." The Free Press highlights
accountability measures in place in other states that may also work for
Michigan. Ideas include "a program under which parents lose public assistance
if their children are chronically truant" -- like the one in place in Florida,
New York and Wisconsin -- and seeing that "the best principals and teachers head
to the worst schools," which is done in Charlotte-Mecklenberg, NC,
schools.
Alabama Lawmakers Block Teacher Code Of Ethics.
Education
Week (2/10) reports, "Alabama lawmakers have overturned Gov. Bob
Riley's (R) veto and blocked a teacher code of ethics approved by the state
board of education from being placed into the state code." Though "supporters
of the ethics code argued it was backed by many teachers and had been in effect
for several years without any enforcement provision," the Alabama Education
Association opposed the code, arguing that it "would subject teachers to
dismissal or other disciplinary procedures for violating vaguely worded items."
Included in the code were provisions that "defined unethical conduct," and
language stating that educators "should refrain from the use of alcohol and/or
tobacco during the course of professional practice and should never use illegal
or unauthorized
drugs."
Campaign Buttons Don't Belong In Classroom, Judge Rules.
New York's Gotham
Gazette (2/10, Goodman) reports, "Public school teachers have
constitutional rights to wear political buttons while in school, according to
the United Federation of Teachers. But not according to the United States
District Court in Manhattan. In Weingarten v. Board of Education, a case first
brought in 2008, a presidential election year, the plaintiffs, United Federation
of Teachers and several individual teachers, claimed" that New York City Schools
Chancellor Joel Klein's "regulations banning campaign buttons and distribution
of political materials among teachers in Board of Education buildings, i.e.,
schools, violated the teachers' free speech rights under the federal and state
constitutions." However, following "more than a year of litigation," federal
Judge Lewis A. Kaplan declared Klein's "regulations to be
constitutional."
Georgia Governor's Teacher Performance Pay Plan Sharply Criticized.
Maureen Downey wrote in a "Get Schooled" blog for the Atlanta
Journal-Constitution (2/9) that Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue (R) "has
written a piece explaining his new pay plan that he says has teachers 'excited.'
I would probably have used the word 'incited,' based on" initial reaction from
"Get Schooled" readers. Downey goes on to post Perdue's statement, which reads
in part, "We developed the plan for enhanced pay after hearing from over 20,000
Georgia teachers, 80 percent of whom said they would like to be evaluated on
both classroom observation and the degree to which they have helped students
learn."
NutritionFirst Lady Launches Initiative Aimed At Eliminating Childhood Obesity.
The New
York Times (2/10, A16, Stolberg) reports, "The White House, led by
Michelle Obama, announced a sweeping initiative on Tuesday aimed at revamping
the way American children eat and play - reshaping school lunches, playgrounds
and even medical checkups - with the goal of eliminating childhood obesity
within a generation. The 'Let's Move' campaign, nearly a year in the making, is
Mrs. Obama's official debut in a high-profile policy role, and she has already
lined up an array of partners in government, medicine, science, business,
education and athletics who are pledging to work together to get children off
their couches and consuming fresher, healthier
food."
Robin Givhan, writing for the Washington
Post (2/10), says, "At its core, the initiative has four pillars: more
nutrition information, increased physical activity, easier access to healthy
foods and, ultimately, personal responsibility. It has bipartisan support. ...
Obama's national campaign purposefully and adamantly steers clear of defining
itself as in favor of foodie proselytizing and against French fries, burgers and
cookies."
Also in the NewsHeavy Reliance On Tech Gear Sets "iGeneration" Apart.
USA
Today (2/10, Jayson) reports, "To the psychologists, sociologists, and
generational and media experts who study them," heavy reliance on digital gear
sets apart the newest group of youth "even from their tech-savvy Millennial
elders. They want to be constantly connected and available in a way even their
older siblings don't quite get." USA Today adds, "The contrast between
Millennials and this younger group was so evident to psychologist Larry Rosen of
California State University-Dominguez Hills that he has declared the birth of a
new generation in a new book, Rewired: Understanding the iGeneration and the
Way They Learn, out next
month."
Editorial: Sending Unwanted Teachers To Poorest Colorado Schools Unfair To Students.
The Denver Post
(2/9) editorialized that Denver Public Schools Superintendent Tom Boasberg
"kicked a hornet's nest last week when he announced that the city's poorest and
lowest achieving schools would no longer be the routine dumping grounds for
direct- placement teachers. Instead, Boasberg decided to spread that joy among
all schools so that even the most highly ranked schools will get teachers that
other schools don't want." According to the Post, Boasberg's "action will force
a broader conversation about direct placement and, ideally, about state laws
that govern the
practice."
| ||||||||
|
Advertise
with Custom Briefings:
Reach key professionals
every
morning
| ||||||||
|
Before the Bell is a digest of the most important news selected from thousands of sources by the editors of Custom Briefings. The National Association of Elementary School Principals does not receive any revenue from the advertising herein. The presence of such advertising does not endorse, or imply endorsement of, any products or services by the National Association of Elementary School Principals. This complimentary copy of Before the Bell was sent to phines@riasp.org as part of your NAESP membership. View Custom Briefings' privacy policy. Neither Custom Briefings nor NAESP is liable for the use of or reliance on any information contained in this briefing. For information about other member benefits, visit www.naesp.org or contact us at naesp@naesp.org. National Association of Elementary School Principals | 1615 Duke Street | Alexandria, VA 22314 Copyright © 2010 by Custom Briefings | 11190 Sunrise Valley Drive, Suite 130 | Reston, VA 20191 |
