The Education Wonks
You keep repeating the shibboleth "We haven't had a raise in years", as if that's the Secretary's fault. That's not even the Governor's fault. That's the fault of your school board and your local union, and no one else.
As for "In God we trust, all others bring data", I've heard that phrase for years with regards to statistics. You try to make it sound bad because of your dislike for the Secretary. I kind of like the saying--look at what happened to education in California *before* the standards and accountability movement. That movement didn't just "happen", there was a reason for it, and the reason isn't a pleasant one.
Spellings and her Gang of well-fed, well paid politically appointed EduCrats remind me of certain British Officers of the First World War.
While evading actual front-line service themselves, they would sit well behind the front lines, in relative comfort, and while toasting one another with claret order their troops to repeatedly charge machine gun emplacements.
When the front-line troops didn't acheive the expected results, those soldiers were threatened with courts martial. To the generals, the troops weren't trying hard enough.
Similarly, teachers aren't given the tools to get the job done by our rear-area dwelling EduCratic generals but are being held 100% accountable for achieving the expected results.
Maybe Spellings should try a little substitute teaching there in the public schools of Washington, D.C.
She might then learn something about what life is really like for those of us who work with real students.
I would love to see how the Madame Secretary handles a child who refuses to attempt homework or a parent who refuses to discuss their child's academic needs with the school.
To people like Spellings, other people's children aren't real they're theoretical.
correlation
It always amazes me (yes I am easily amazed) how Spellings and those of her ilk make it sound like how gracious they are to be dispensing "Federal" money to the states. Totally ignoring that it is money taken by force from the people of a state. Also ignoring that overall, they return only half of what they take the rest goes into their own pockets. I wonder what the schools would be like if they could use 100% of the money that they send to the Fed.s.
Hmmm...so the answer to all our troubles lies solely in the almighty dollar? Implement more programs and more wastefulness and *poof* trouble disappears. Seems to me that we should stop being wasteful with what we have instead of pumping $6 BILLION tax dollars into an already too expensive system.
Hmmm...here's another thought...who says this is working, tests that varies from state to state. Let's see, "X" number of students need to pass, and I get to make up the test! 2+2=...DONE!
How about a national test for national standards, unless you Cali folks think you can't handle what the NY folks can do. You can measure achievment gap, but you are pitting the groups in your area with each other. Sure there are 29 states with better passing rates than mine...the ones with easier tests. Come up with national standards, along with a national assessment test, and then we'll talk about achievement.
Don't worry, Ed with that raise you don't get I'm sure you won't mind your taxes going up!
Some school districts are choosing to forego their federal $$$$ to get the monkey off their backs....
DISD LOCAL ISSUES: DISD Support Professionals Back to the Dark Ages...
Dear Colleagues:
On Thursday, May 11 the DISD Board of Trustees heard from the Policy Committee during the Policy Briefing. There has been an Ad Hoc Committee formed to review district policies and refer changes to the board.
Chairing the committee is Dr. Edwin Flores. Ms. Nancy Bingham and Mr. Hollis Brashear also sit on the Ad Hoc Committee.
At Thursday's meeting, this committee proposed several policy changes, but there are three glaring ones that came up for discussion.
The first would amend policy DGBA (Local), Personnel Management Relations: Employee Complaint/Grievances. This amendment would re-work the district's grievance process in all cases except for professional employee terminations.
The new system would reduce the process from 5 steps to 3. At first glance, this is not a bad idea. BUT, THIS PLAN IS HORRIBLE! It removes the Level 3 hearing in which employees are able to call witnesses and produce evidence in their favor/defense! It also reduces the Board Hearing to just 8 minutes for you to present your side before the trustees.
Dr. Flores stated in the hearing that many other districts in the state use the new format and that we are trying to reduce the cost of grievances in the district. The main problem---attorneys. Attorneys are needed at the level 3 from our end because the DISTRICT pulls in attorneys at that level! If the district didn't pull in attorneys, but instead pulled in staff members, it would reduce costs on both ends.
Not only do they want to restructure the procedure, they want to make sure that the Board is not required by policy to have to respond in writing to the employee's complaint. Trustee Blackburn asked that the board be required in writing to respond, but others, most notably Dr. Flores, rejected that idea.
The second would amend policy DCD (Local) Employment Practices: At-Will Employment. For many years the Dallas ISD has afforded all support professionals job protection that is above-and-beyond state law. Dr. Flores and Ms. Bingham are now aiming to take it away from them.
The new policy would allow the Dallas ISD to do the following: "At-will employees may be dismissed at any time for any reason not prohibited by law or for no reason, as determined by the district."
This clause will send every support professional employee in the Dallas ISD back to the DARK AGES! They would basically work at the pleasure of their supervisor! If their supervisor decides they don't like the shirt they wore that day... "YOU'RE FIRED!" If they need to leave early to take their child to the doctor... "YOU'RE FIRED!" Coupled with the change in the grievance procedure, this policy will give little hope to our support professional employees.
The third would amend policy DFF (Local), Termination of Contract: Reduction in Force. For many years the Board of Trustees would have to vote to implement any and all RIF procedures. Then, the administration would be required to meet many mandates in how they terminated employees and the employees would have recourse through the grievance procedure.
The new policy would RESTRICT the Board of Trustees from only voting on RIFs occurring because of financial reasons. It would allow the General Superintendent to order RIFs because of "program changes". "Program Changes" can mean almost anything. The most obvious, the implementation of Bilingual Staffing and reassignment of hundreds of experienced non-bilingual certified elementary teachers ----- release of over 200 hall monitors --- release of campus community liaisons.
The new policy would also make "certification" the number one priority in determining whether or not someone would lose their job. Seniority will be bumped all the way down to the third priority. If you're not certified right, then you go! No matter that you have been successful as a teacher for 20+ years.
Finally, the new policy would do away with the provision that the Dallas ISD give persons RIF'd, first shot at any new jobs. Currently, the district has to give anyone released under a RIF, first shot at any job in their field that becomes open. The new policy would put an end to that. They would be able to just go out and hire any new person they could find.
For those of you who do not understand what a "RIF -- Reduction in Force" means, I will make it short and to the point. If a RIF is ordered, the Dallas ISD can release you from your job BEFORE the end of your contract term. For all of you that just signed a new two-year contract...., that contract MEANS NOTHING if you are released due to a RIF! You will be out of a job in the Dallas ISD and standing in the unemployment line.
Every employee should be outraged at what has been proposed. It is the plan of Dr. Flores and Ms. Bingham to bring this up for a vote at the May 25, 2006 Board of Trustees meeting. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm. I am asking that all who do not agree with these proposals come to this important meeting and wear something black. Black for the darkness that these policy changes will send our employees back to.
If you would like to speak in opposition to this plan, please call 972-925-3700 to sign up to speak to the board. You must call in by 3:00pm the day of the meeting. Sign up as an individual employee, as I am also speaking for NEA-Dallas.
We will meet at the NEA-Dallas Office, 3816 San Jacinto, at 5:00pm and walk over as a group. If you will be joining us, please call or 214-821-2061 or email us (neadallas@sbcglobal.net) and let Mary or I know you're coming.
Also, PLEASE let everyone in your building know what is going on! Employees must be informed to be able to stand up for their rights. And they MUST stand up for their rights or they will be taken away!
My question is what will the politicians from NCLB do when they realize that not all the teachers in the United States are well qualified, and that not all the students in the United States are proficient? Are they simply going to continue to blame the teachers, again?
100% proficiency? Yeah. I'll bet. I'd love to see these magical schools where all is goodness and light and every student is not only above average, but way, way above average. Thus far, no one has been able to produce on those claims. What a surprise.
*This is an achievable goal, and not too much to ask; in fact, some schools have already achieved 100 percent proficiency.*
In thinking about it last night, this is the part of the entire article that bothers me the most. Certainly there are schools that do a great job, and we should do all we can to emulate their success, but there are far more schools that do a Really Good Job (90% or better) that are still in danger of being labeled as failing, and that's horrible.
I love the WWI comparison above; it really gets to the heart of the issue. Here in Washington State the alternative high schools are all In Need of Improvement, Failing, etc....I'd dearly love for Mddm. Secretary to walk in one day and tell all those teachers, doing the best they can with the absolute hardest students in the world, that they're no good and need to do better.
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