It was a rainy Monday morning, not too unlike other mornings in the northwest, as I took my sons to school. Today was Monday and so with it came the "All School Gathering". My sons attend Metropolitan Learning Center. This is a K-12 school with about 425 students. MLC is unique and has shown that it can be successful by being unique and placing first what matters most–students. For this week, I will briefly describe one salient point from the day. Hopefully we can take some of these successes and use them in our own schools.
You Can’t Teach THAT!
COME ONE, COME ALL! Share your “you can’t teach that” story. Share what caused a curriculum complaint. Perhaps it was a book, a unit, a topic, or a method of teaching. 
It’s Parent Conference Time!
By Tom
I've only had to use it once, and man was I glad it was there.
It was parent conference time, a fall tradition since before chalk. I was setting the stage; grown-up chairs, regular table, student files, notepaper, pencils, and of course the obligatory Box of Kleenex.
The first conference that afternoon was with Anthony's mom. Anthony wasn't doing well. He was behind in reading, math, writing, science, everything. He even had trouble with lunch. In fact, the only thing Anthony was doing well at was art. In art he was amazing. The rest of the class would line up at his desk to get him to draw the people in their pictures. I had to put an end to it, because it got to the point where he was doing most of everyone's art.
So my plan was to begin the conference by telling Anthony's mom what a wonderful artist he was and then move from there to the trouble he was having with everything else. The old Good News/Bad News device.
School Funding: Is remediation what disadvantaged students are lacking?
I applaud the authors of this
funding proposal, a group of legislators involved with the Joint Task Force on
Education Funding, for acknowledging, “One of the most pernicious failings in education
is the divergence in educational attainment between children of modest means
and those with more money.” I’m just not sure that remediation is the answer.
What It Takes; Tom’s Take
It’s about time someone finally looked at our state’s constitution (or at least the preamble) and then looked at how we actually execute the "paramount duty" of educating our children.
And then explained how to make up the difference.
That, in a nutshell, is how I view the plan by a new task force on school funding. It’s quite a document (Thirty pages! With no pictures!) and it goes a long way towards describing what this state needs to do. It doesn’t tell how we’re going to pay for it, but that’s probably a topic best tackled after the election.
The part of the plan that particularly caught my attention was about how teachers would be assessed in order to receive additional compensation commiserate with improved classroom skills.
As I read this I recalled one of my earliest evaluations.
My Neighbor’s Bike Skills
Teachers can teach anyone, anything. Last week I taught my neighbor’s son how to ride a bike. Being a highly trained teacher, I used widely accepted educational practices, current trends in education, and data based analysis. Read about our week through my daily notes . . . .
How Will this Education Funding Proposal Impact You???
Like many places around the nation, the funding of education is a hot topic. Is funding adequate? Are the limited state / federal educational resources being allocated efficiently? How can a state budget be ‘rewritten’ to better meet the needs of education? Recently, a few state legislators looked at this issue and want to know what you think…
ProCert or ProCertifiable?
According to OSPI, “The Professional Certificate (ProCert) is designed to help teachers demonstrate they have a positive impact on student learning. It is an individualized, classroom-based process that focuses on increased skills to impact student learning rather than credits. ProCert expectations apply state-wide, focus on student learning, and emphasize closing the achievement gap and reaching student learning goals. It is fully aligned with Washington’s expectations for K-12 student learning. Through ProCert, teachers demonstrate their competency in the 3 standards of Professional Certification: Effective Teaching, Professional Development, and Professional Contributions.” http://www.k12.wa.us/certification/Teacher/procert-program.aspx
Beginning in 2001, new Washington teachers have had to complete the ProCert program (or National Boards) to be able to apply for continuing certificate. Isn’t a university-educated and trained teacher “professional” enough? Isn’t holding a Washington state certificate “certificated” enough?
The Bells & Whistles of this Blog
Yes, the bloggers on Stories from School: Policy Meets Practice are wonderful. Yes, the posts are a great mix of classroom practice and state policy. But you want to get more? Excellent. Are you aware of common blog features? Read on to get the most from Stories from School.
You Cannot Measure with Measure 60 (ORE)
I do not usually have a newspaper in my house. I usually do not read the newspaper. However, on this cold, wet Sunday, I read the newspaper. You see, it was left there by a guest and I am glad they did. I was able to read about Measure 60 in Oregon. Not our state you say, well, it is only one state away from Washington, and not too many away from the others.