NDSA - before, during, after #10

Our school just finished up 2 1/2 days of NDSA (North Dakota State Assessment). For my students they do not take the same North Dakota Assessment as the rest of the population. My students take the NDAA (North Dakota Alternative Assessment). The window for administering the NDSA is from Oct. 16th to Nov. 13th. The window for administering the NDAA is from Nov. 16th to Dec. 22nd for the NDAA 2 and Jan. 16th for NDAA 1. As a department, we group the students who are taking NDSA with accommodations in specific rooms with certain teachers and para to help administer the test. For the students who are taking the NDAA, they grouped into two different rooms with different activities.

OK. now I am going to vent. At our school, for the two and a half days we did not have any classes and I had my students and some other special ed. teachers students in my room doing different activities (watching movies, playing games, on the computer, reading, and some caught up on their work) with a paraprofessional. When we first started to get ready for the test, the plan was I was going to start doing my alternative assessments. Then we got our dates that our window was going to be open and of course they do not match. So my students just had two and a half days of not learning and when my window opens, I will have to pull my students one at a time to administer the test. Not only they miss a class that I am teaching, I am too. I either have to have them have a free day or my para's have to do my instruction (they do not get us a sub for us). I have half of my caseload doing the NDAA 1 and the rest doing the NDAA 2. With 6th-8th graders, I will be administering (NDAA 2) 5 math tests, 5 reading/language arts, and 3 science test, all individually. Each student has as long as they need to take the each test, on average it will take over an hour to compete each section. So over 5 hours for math, 5 hours for reading/language arts, and 3 hours for science. To me, that is a lot of instructional time wasted.

I do not understand why the North Dakota Department of Instruction did not have the NDSA and the NDAA at the same time. We want to give our students the best education and losing at least 4 1/2 days of instruction is wrong.

School Referendum

On November 3rd 2009, Moorhead residents are going to vote for a levy referendum that would provide $850 per pupil in additional funds for the next seven years. If the referendum is passed, the money would be used to improve and preserve class sizes, to maintain and implement programs in such areas as science, math and the arts, and to enhance and expand student use of technology.

In 2002 the school district asked the community to passed a levy referendum to approve a $64 million bond referendum to support improvements to school district facilities. The district was going from four elementary schools to three elementary schools (building one new elementary school and remodeling the junior high and the 5/6th grade school into an elementary schools), a new middle school, and to remodel the high school. With the remodeling of the high school, they would add a ninth grade center. It torn down one elementary school, sold two elementary schools to Concordia College and MSUM, sold the old high school, Townsite (the building that held the district offices), and remodel an elementary school into the Probstfield Center for Education (the district offices, early childhood, adult ed. etc). The district made "promises" of smaller class sizes, new technology, and other things. The level did pass. We were told that our property taxes would go up, on average, $15.00 per month (i.e. for a house that cost $100,000). In my neighborhood, our property taxes were only suppose to go up between $10.00 and $15.00 per month. Ours went up $15.00 per month, but our neighbor across the streets went up $25.00 per month. Our house have the same square feet and our lot is slightly bigger. This happened to many people in the city, they were told their property taxes would be one number but found out after the levy was passed that their property taxes were another number, most of the time it was higher. These people were not happy.

As a teacher and a parent, I voted yes in 2002. My son just three years old and my daughter was just born. I wanted them to be able to attend school with newer curriculum and smaller class sizes than what was offered at the time (the average class size was around 25 in elementary schools, 30 in both middle and high school core classes and more students in gym). We have a new middle school and a new elementary school with big windows to let in a lot of sun, space for the students to go, and new everything. The three schools remodeled are very nice on the outside and inside. Did they get as much new items as the other schools? No, they did not. I understand that when you build a new school they will get new things, but why should the remodeled school not receive the same items? Why is it fine that those schools should have to use the same things that they have had for the past years? They built the new elementary building and a couple years after being built, the school was full. They did not build it for room to expand, they had to convert open team ares into classrooms. The students in those classes only had three walls (one wall was opened). Why is that? Is is because they ran out of money? They have never said. All of the schools have a marble map in the floor when you enter the main doors. To me, that was a waste of money, who notices that. Instead, that money could have been used to buy new technology or curriculum, or pay for a teacher. Last year in my daughters kindergarten class, she was among 24 students. 24 students that one teacher was trying to teach to read, count, and to help them socially adjust to school. This year, my sons fifth grade class has 30 students and my daughters first grade class has 25. Is this how they make a promise of keeping class sizes low?

I have mixed feelings about voting yes again (even though I know that I will for my children's sake). They say that they want to improve and preserve class sizes, to maintain and implement programs in such areas as science, math and the arts, and to enhance and expand student use of technology, but will they? We all heard this before and I feel that this time they will not get the levy to pass because of so many residents that were not happy the last time. It is sad that our children will suffer for this, but I do feel that the district needs to step up and admit that the last time a levy was passed some mistakes with the money was committed.

Parent - Teacher Conferences how can they be more effecitve?

It is that time of year, parent-teacher conferences even though school only started a little over a month ago (my children have only been in school for 25 days and they also had conferences already). Our conferences are at night (from 4-8:15) on three different nights. As I worked in my room on the first night, I wondered how can we as teachers make conference more successful for teachers, parents, and the students. At my school (middle school), the teachers schedule their conferences with the parents. Each conference is 20 minutes; this is good and bad at the same time. Good because you can see more parents in a short amount of time; bad because each conference is rushed and not everything (good or bad) may be addressed. At times, I have felt as a clock watch, knowing that I had parents waiting for me and felt rushed and did not have the full attention of the teacher when I was at my own kids conference. Our students are invited and encouraged to come with their parents. Students will also help the teachers show parents where to go, had them their child's folder, and answer questions that parents might have.

I don't know about the rest of you, I feel that I am the only one doing all the talking at a conference and the parent just sits there. I always will ask if they have any questions or concerns, and 9 out of 10 times, they say 'no'. While I waited between conferences, I noticed this was how other conferences went; the teacher talks while the parent listens and leaves. I want my parents to be more active with our conference and ask me questions about the curriculum, how they child is doing, what they are expected to master. I started to look for tips to give my parents and found this article on five must ask questions parents should ask their children's teacher.

My district, like many others, pushed up fall conference closer to the start of the school year at the request of parents instead of them being closer to the end of the quarter or report card time. The parents requested it so they can be informed sooner how their child is doing, and if they are doing poorly have an opportunity to make a change before the report cards come out. I do agree that it is better to have conferences earlier in the fall instead of closer to the end of the quarter but 35 days into school is ridiculous. We are just starting to get to know our students. Does pushing up conferences earlier make them more successful? With some schools having Power School do we really need to have conferences so early?

Using Ebonics in school blog #7

In one of my other classes that I am taking online, we read about "who are today's students". The chapters discussed how people and students that are in schools and our community are different from each other; their culture, class, and race. The chapters discussed how different cultures speak with different dialects. It also discussed how people judge those speaking English with a different dialect than standard English (i.e. Ebonics) and how they are perceived. We discussed a case study of a teacher who constantly corrected the students Ebonic miscues. A student is reading a paragraph and the teacher correcting them. Here is a little bit of it;
S (student): Yesterday I washed my bruvver.
T (teacher): Wait minute, what's that word again? - points to brother
S: Bruvver
T: No. Look at these letters in the middle. - points to brother- Remember to read what you see. Do you remember how we say that sound? Put your tongue between your teeth and say /th/.....

This is just one little piece of it, the rest was the teacher correcting the student and making the student repeat the word, than the sentence. How did the meaning of the sentence change by saying bruvver instead of brother? What did this student learn? The student may have been experiencing many feeling such as anger at the teacher, embarrassment and humiliation. They may feel that they are dumb or stupid and that they can not learn. If a student has these feeling why would they want want to learn from that teacher or enjoy learning if they are constantly correct. Often people judge those who use Ebonics when speaking instead of standard English to speak as dumb, slow learners, poor, and not educated. But that is not true. Ebonics is a systematic and rule-governed like all natural speech varieties ( http://homepages.dordt.edu/bnbkl/Paper%202.pdf).

So what is Ebonics or Black English? Dictionary.com defines Ebonics as: a dialect of American English characterized by pronunciations, syntactic structures, and vocabulary associated with and used by some North American blacks and exhibiting a wide variety and range of forms varying in the extent to which they differ from standard English (http://homepages.dordt.edu/bnbkl/Paper%202.pdf). What are some stereotypes of those who use Ebonics? As I stated above, some would say that they are dumb/stupid, uneducated, poor, they don't care to learn, "ghetto" like, or they will be a drop out.

As educators, what are we to do? When a students reads the word brother as bruvver, do we correct them or not, if reading it as bruvver does not change the meaning of the sentence what does it hurt? The special educator in me says that we should correct them (with my students, they may have a speech deficit and need help correcting their speech patterns or they are just learning the letter sounds and patterns). The following is a great article how Ebonics should be allowed in our schools http://www.york.cuny.edu/yorkscholar/v1/pdfs/thomas_ebonics_sp04.pdf.

What do you think? Should we allow students to use Ebonics in school or should we continue to correct those who use Ebonics when they read.

History - Blog #6

I started my blog on another topic, but stopped writing it after I went to listen to a gentleman named David Faber talk about surviving nine different concentration during WWII. Mr. Faber came to our middle school to talk to the 7th and 8th graders. Before my 7th grade special needs students went to listen to him talk, we discussed what the Holocaust was. As I explained that it was about hating people (terms specials needs students understand) who are different than you, I came to realize that I truly did not know much about the Holocaust. I only know what little I was taught in school, what my parents told me, and what I have seen in movies like Schindler's List. How can I, as a teacher, teach my students a topic that I know little about.

Mr. Faber told stories of how he survived and everyone in his family, all 85 of them were killed. When his mother and sisters were killed in front of him, he made a promise to God, his mother, and his sisters that if he lived, he would share his story with the world. That is what he has done. Mr. Faber wrote a book called Because of Romek (http://www.becauseofromek.com/) that tells his story. He tells how he was one of the lucky ones who had different jobs at each concentration camp from working in mines to searching the bodies of the dead for any gold or valuables they may have. Mr. Faber talks about when the British soldiers came to the concentration camp to free it how two nurses from the Red Cross saved an unconscious skinny boy who had typhus and that he is forever grateful (all the profits from his book go to wondered soldiers foundation).

After listening to him, I wondered what our schools are teaching our children in their history classes about history. With all the standards that our teachers have to teach, do they teach a sugared down version? Before I left to listen to Mr. Faber speak, I asked my son what he knew about the Holocaust. He said the Holowhat? The gentleman who introduced Mr. Faber made a comment that that in 2050 it will be 105 years after the Holocaust and all of the survivors will have had passed away, what will our children know about it?

There are certain periods of time that have defined our country and world. The Holocaust is one of them. We can't let those important times be forgotten, because history has a way of repeating itself, look at the war we are currently in. There are people out in our world that believe that the Holocaust did not happen. Why is that, was it because they were never taught it in school? Will this happen in 75 to 100 years when the Iraq War is taught or not taught in our schools?

I do not teach history to my special needs students, so I do not know what the curriculum is. Could someone please let me know that major events (i.e. The Holocaust) is not being watered down and that our children are being taught the history. History is made our world as it is, without knowing our history, who knows how we would be.

This is an article written about Mr. Faber.
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2009/04/01/local_news/news01.txt

If you are ever in Washington D.C. you must go to the United States Holocuast Memorial. http://www.ushmm.org/