Another Summer Ends

At the end of another summer, I find myself revisiting an old question once again, Year-Round School. (Read previous related blogs Summer Controversy and Longer School Day/Year) As pointed out in this article there are many different forms of year-round school and the data is inconsistent on the effectiveness of it.

However, I am a proponent of year-round school and we have modeled our own school this way for the following reasons:

1. According to Duke University, the average student loses approximately 1 month of learning during the summer months, but for some students it is even more!

2. Memory must be used to be maintained. Insuring information is stored in long-term memory rather than short-term is key to learning. Read a great article about memory here.

3. It seems to be what most parents want, in my experience. This summer we had a math class with 4-5 students in both sessions. We had several students attending morning summer school classes that we offered. Also, we worked with 10 or more students individually, on a consistent basis, over the summer. People want their kids to learn in the summer, not just play!

4. Chunking is an important strategy in the learning process. By having smaller session periods of 3-5 weeks, with a short break in between, we allow for greater chunking of topics with a clear break in between units.

I have to add one other thing, while we are increasing the number of school days to 185 and chunking our learning into 3-5 week blocks with 1 week off in between, we are not extending the school day. In fact, we are shortening it to just 4 hours, leaving the afternoons open for students to experience a variety of opportunities in the afternoons. We want our students to explore their community by participating and contributing while gaining hands-on experiences. So if a student is interested in golf, why not intern or get a part-time job at a local golf course. Also, since jobs are not a one day a week experience, let's chunk the learning here as well by providing the opportunity for these interactions multiple days of the week.

What are your thoughts on year-round school? Shortened learning days? Daily opportunities for hands-on experience? Is it a good idea or a bad idea?

The President on Education

Yesterday, President Obama said that there should be a new way to measure school effectiveness for student achievement. He would do away with standardized testing and make use of other means such as high school graduation, attendance rate and college preparedness as a means to measure school effectiveness.

Having just finished CSAP (Colorado standard tests) before spring break, I would have to agree with our president on finding alternative methods for assessing students and the effectiveness of teachers and school. For instance, I have one student who spent the last 8 weeks between Christmas and the tests just doing chapter summary pages at the end of the math textbook. This coupled with summary lessons from her teacher over the material encompasses the information she was expected to know for her grade level on the CSAP test. If this isn't a classic example of teaching to the tests, I don't know what is. Did my student retain the information? Usually not which is why I had to go in and reteach the information to her in order for her to complete her homework.

However, as we already discussed in former posts (see Bruce Randolph School and Higher Graduation Rates = More Remediation?!?!?, the types of accountability being suggested are not necessarily effective ways to measure school success either. Competition seems to be the only thing that works in business to keep people on their toes and effective, so why aren't we applying that to schools? Unfortunately, charter schools are judged before they have a chance to be effective (see NYC Experiment - Part 2) or the results are marginalized rather than emphasis on specific positive impact.

A Step in the Right Direction

Douglas County Schools did something landmark in the realm of education this week. On Tuesday, the board UNANIMOUSLY approved a voucher plan of $4,575 each, for up to 500 students in the district to attend private schools.

As a stronger believer in choice, I view this as a positive step in the overall poor direction that public education continues to travel. Furthermore, if the public schools are as good as they claim to be (and I have no opinion on this district personally), then a little competition is healthy and certainly not a threat to them.

So why do people fear vouchers so much? One of the reasons is that many of the private schools are religious based schools. Another is that many of the schools cost 2 to 4 times more than the voucher amount, which will still prevent many people from accessing the vouchers.

But where there is a will, there is a way. So, even if the vouchers help just one child access a better education than they currently are getting in a public setting, isn't that worth it?

NYC School Experiment - Part 2

First off, I do have to say how disappointed I was that this was only 13 or so minutes out of the whole episode. Also, I found that Katie's ignorance on why a school after only its first year (and probably the testing was done in March of their first year) didn't have better test results. Sorry, can't fix a kid who can't read in 5th grade overnight. Just doesn't work that way. Not to mention that they said 2/3 of the kids that came there were reading below grade level when they first arrived.

There were some things that I really did like about the model for the school such as no asst. principal or other duplicate staff members that take up much of the expense of running a school. The principal said that he looks for 3 things in a good teacher, all things I can also agree with are important; Classroom Management, Student Engagement, and Evidence that shows student achievement. Although, I think we all expect that from the typical public school, don't we? Plus the teachers don't have a contract. They are like any other business employee, an at will employee which means they can be fired any time.

However, I am concerned that their employees said they were putting in 80 to 90 hours a week! When do you have time to sleep? I also felt badly for the one teacher who said she put her family on the back burner for this job. Was it really worth $125K? They are often video taped for training and review purposes which occur after school hours. Since they don't have as many staff, it seemed like they never had a break to plan for their classes. Another thing that puzzled me is the ratio of 16.5 students per teacher and yet many of the class sizes were 30 kids.

Honestly, I love what I do and sometimes work 12-16 hour days myself. But as much as I love kids, I don't think I could work in this environment even for $125K. It was interesting because Katie asked the one of the two teachers that was fired after the first year how she felt about it and she said that she was actually relieved. I think I would be too.

I am still not sure that the TEP School is the answer to our education woes. I think you could pay a little less, hire a few more staff members and possibly get the same if not better results because your teachers aren't working 80 hours of work each week. Yes, high salaries will attract good teachers, but I think it would attract any teacher. Like the good principal said, "There are great teachers in almost every public school in the city." Yet, I can guarantee they aren't there because of the money.

Here is the video in case you missed it.

NYC School Experiment - Part 1

This came across my desk this morning. Perhaps I was vaguely aware of it, but until now I have not paid attention to it. However, as part of furthering the dream of meeting the needs of kids educationally, it is important to me to see what others are doing. Is this school doing it right?

In a Time Magazine article on education spending from this past December, there is mention of a charter school in NYC that is paying its teachers $125,000. The difference with this school is that the teachers don't have tenure. The extension of their contract is based on their performance, from what I can gather. You can check out The Equity Project charter school website for more information.

But, the real reason I am posting about this particular school today is that 60 Minutes will be doing a story on them this coming Sunday at 7pm ET. I will be tuning in and you can expect another blog post Sunday night. But for now, here is a sneak peek provided by the 60 Minutes website.

Senator Heath’s Initiative isn’t Perfect, but it's a Start....A Guest Blog by Megan Miclette

Many of you already know that Governor John Hickenlooper has proposed a $375 million cut to education funding. In theory, I can understand the rationale behind it; after all, education spending is currently tying up 40% of Colorado’s budget and after spending some time trying to balance the budget myself using Colorado Backseat Budgeter, I can certainly understand the predicament that faces Gov. Hickenlooper. However, in practice, it doesn’t appear that anyone’s given much thought to a way to address the widespread and severe consequences that these cuts are going to have on teachers, students, parents and staff; for example, according to the Colorado Education Association, around 5,500 teachers could lose their jobs because of these cuts.  Apparently, “job creation” has taken a buzzword backseat to “reduce spending.”

There are no easy fixes to the situation that approaches us, but I have to give Sen. Rollie Heath (D-Boulder) credit for trying. Recently, Heath proposed a controversial citizen’s initiative tax increase that would do the following: -Increase individual and corporate income tax rates to 5 percent from the current 4.63 percent.
- Increase the state portion of sales and use taxes to 3 percent from 2.9 percent.
- Earmark spending of revenue from the increases for K-12 and higher education.
- Start the higher rates on Jan. 1, 2012, and end them on Dec. 31, 2014.

It’s hard to find a person on either side of the political spectrum that agrees with Sen. Heath’s proposal; in fact, only 10 Democrats put their support behind Heath when he proposed the initiative on February 28^th. However, this plan strikes me as a good compromise.  Yes, it’s more money out of voter pockets at a time when no one really wants to spend, but is there ever a time when people want to spend money? The old adage about voting with one’s wallet comes to mind here: as someone who is passionate about education, I would be willing to consider this initiative, even though it means slightly less money in my own bank account, approximately .37% less, to be exact.

I can understand the criticisms that many lawmakers have raised about this issue; people just do not want to spend more money, and the initiative is just a temporary fix anyway, something that Heath made a point to emphasize.KDVR covered this story and House Majority Leader, Amy Stephens R-Monument, had this to say; "We're not going to tax our way into prosperity. There is no appetite for taxing Colorado families who are trying to balance their budgets, find work and send their kids to school."

However, I was hoping for a more salient argument from the opposition than, “people won’t want to do this”, or at the very least, a better suggestion. At a time when everyone else is arguing and wringing their hands, I respect Sen. Heath for attempting to put more options on the table. Is it a perfect solution? Absolutely not, and I think Sen. Heath would agree with that criticism as well. But it’s a constructive suggestion in a climate where there seems to be a dearth of helpful attitudes. It’s a start. I look forward to hearing (hopefully) substantial, meaningful debate on this issue and other ways to solve our budgeting issues so that Colorado’s students can get the funding they deserve to keep our state’s schools among the best in the country.

Finding the Perfect School

I wanted to take the time this week to reflect on a few things and get a little more personal about something that has really affected me. As many of you know, I have a passion for teaching that often overwhelms me, even to the point of tears, when I hear some of the sad stories about what is happening to kids with disabilities currently in the local public schools.  For those of you who don't know me, you will just have to take my word on this.  This week I was astounded and outraged as my heart broke at another expectation that wasn't met by a promise for something new.

On Wednesday I heard that a new private school finally announced their opening as an alternative for students with specific disabilities.  I had heard the rumors and was hopeful because it was a mom who helped start it.  Yet, when I visited the new website I felt let down and betrayed.  The trend I see in the private school arena in our area is very sad indeed.  The schools locally all seem to want the best and brightest kids, the ones who have high IQ's and no underlying issues with behavior or remedial skills.  When I see a school catering to a very narrow band of students with disabilities that probably could make it in the current public system, I have to wonder why they even bother?  I ask myself, “Where is the school that will take a student at their level, whatever level that is, and create an individual program that truly meets their needs?  Where is the school that isn't worried about behavior issues because they know how to effectively engage and educate the kids who come to their school?” 

Not only that, but the money issue is insane too!  20K, 30K, 40K or more to provide a quality education for these special children?  They advertise low staff to student ratios, but then you come to find out that this number doesn’t reflect teachers or paras in the classroom.  It includes staff that may be sitting on the other side of the building, behind closed doors, doing the business of the school.  It is the numbers game and if you can somehow make your ratio low by manipulating those numbers, then you can justify charging more.  Of course private schools don't have to provide any services or special education.  Which honestly doesn't bother me because, if they are a good school and provide quality for their price, I believe they will thrive as families see the value in what they do.  If not, then they will eventually close.  What does bother me is if they claim to serve a population, yet when you get down to the nitty gritty they aren't really serving that population at all.

So when are we going to see a real change?  When will our focus shift from private schools for high functioning students to meeting the real needs of all students at a price that doesn't rival the cost of college?  I hope to address those questions in the next few months for families in my local area.  It isn't an easy road I have chosen to take, but my passion and desire to reach all students is important enough that I would gladly go hungry for a day to see just one of them smile as they realize they can succeed in learning.

Higher Graduation = More Remediation?!?!?

I am not sure how they can explain this one away! The Denver Post reported last week that while High School dropout rates have dropped and more students are graduating, colleges are reporting that they are now having to provide more remedial classes.

This doesn't make much sense to me. But then again neither does the teacher changing a grade because the administration put pressure on them for failing too many kids or because the parent called to ask what all those extra special education classes are for if the child isn't succeeding in the classroom. Instead, it seems that the schools are lowering their standards rather than figuring out how to teach these children. However, I am not sure that is the only thing going on here. In our label happy, over medicated, and over stimulated society, I think we have hyped up disability as an excuse.

Yes, I did say that. I work with children and adults who have disabilities on a daily basis. It is very real and for some it impedes their ability to live independently. Yet, I see some families and therefore their kids using that excuse as an explanation for their failure. They become apathetic and no longer want to take personal responsibility for their own actions. It is something that has become more and more prevalent in our society and it makes me sad.

In my generation, Special Education was just beginning its movement. It was about bringing those kids and adults, who were hidden in the shadows, out to shine in the spotlight! Yet children who didn't fit in the mainstream had to find their own way. Hundreds of children went undiagnosed with Aspergers, AD/HD, sensory, or processing disorders. They had to forge ahead like those before them. Many of those people went on to be our best scientists and out of the box thinkers.

So how do we change the mindset? How do we get kids back on their feet, confident in themselves and their own abilities? I know that I don't have all the answers, but I am sure going to try everything I can to make every child and adult I work with see the value of wanting to learn, setting goals, and reaching for the stars! For my students, there is no excuse for not trying their hardest and working towards their goals.

Oh, and one more thing, it is  ok  fantastic to be different! That is what makes you special and uniquely who you are.

Bruce Randolph School

Guest Blog by Megan Miclette

Last week, Colorado got a special nod from President Obama during his State of the Union address. “Take a school like Bruce Randolph, in Denver,” he said, “three years ago, it was rated one of the worst schools in Colorado… but last May, 97% of seniors received their diploma.” He went on to describe a young woman who thanked her tearful principal at graduation, saying, “thanks for showing that we’re smart and we can make it.” So how did Principal Kristin Waters (now an administrator for the Denver Public School system) create such a drastic change? Is the new system actually working? What does this mean for the future of other failing schools?

In 2005, when Kristin Waters decided to create and implement her reform plan, the school was on the brink of closure. Her plan involved two major changes: re-evaluating each of the teachers—after the rehiring process, only 6 of 40 teachers kept their jobs--and gaining autonomy from the school district. That’s right—autonomy. Waters, as the principal, no longer needed district approval for hiring, curriculum, scheduling, or budgeting. Did it work? I would argue that it did, to a degree. What if schools got to decide how to best motivate and challenge their students? What would a school district look like that trusted its principals to make these sorts of decisions, rather than tangling them up in webs of red tape? Moreover, if more schools were willing to critically evaluate at their teaching staff and replace bad teachers, we might see a significant change in our children as well. What would happen if our children actually wanted to go to school because they were actually being challenged by good teachers?

With all of the changes that took place, the success of the school’s reform can’t be denied—in the six years since the school’s reform policies were implemented, the school has gone from one of the worst in the state to having a 97% graduation rate. Their test scores, dismal at best before the reform’s implementation, have been steadily and quickly rising in the last five years; in 2005, only 7% of the students at the school scored proficient on math, and only 11% scored proficient on reading. Last spring, however, 17% of students scored proficient or advanced in math, and 32% scored proficient in reading. Test scores two and three times better in five years is a great accomplishment, but let’s be honest here—despite the increase, the school is still failing. If only 17% of your entire student body is proficient in math, how many of those students who fell way below average got diplomas that year? How many of the 97% of students who graduated are really ready for college or the career job market?

There are no easy answers here. This model seems to be contributing to the steady increase in the school’s success, but that doesn’t guarantee that the students who go there are getting a high-quality education. If education reform was as easy as replacing the bad teachers, we wouldn’t still be here talking about it. If raising test scores was an accurate way to measure student learning, no one would be worried about “teaching to the test”—which, by the way, is probably partially to blame for Bruce Randolph’s success. While we can sit and complain about the how’s and the why’s, the fact is that the reform is working for The Bruce Randolph School, which means we might have gotten one teensy, tiny step closer to successfully reforming what I see as a failing educational system.

Jail for Moms who Want More for Their Kids

I almost didn't believe it when I saw it.....

Mom Sentenced to Jail for Sending her Kids to a Better School

Seriously? Wow. I understand she falsified records, bad. But the father of the children lived within the good district and they wouldn't allow the children to attend because mom was the primary caregiver. So?

The district claimed it wasn't fair to others who pay the taxes for the district and this mom didn't. But the kids' father does. Who knows where the childrens' grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. live?? And for that matter, I pay taxes for schools and I don't even have children. Perhaps I could sponsor a child from another district?

All I can say is, thank goodness we live in a state that allows for open enrollment. Although I would remind my readers to stay ever vigilant on education news. While we currently enjoy many charter school options and open enrollment in our area, there is nothing that prevents someone from coming along tomorrow from saying it is wrong. If you don't believe me, just google the words "ban open enrollment", "ban charter schools", or even "ban homeschooling" and you will see how many people are unhappy with the way we do things here in Colorado.

Homework

We all know what it is, work assigned to be done at home. But what is the purpose? That varies per teacher. Some teachers assign homework because it is the thing to do but never bother to check it. Some may walk around the classroom and mark in their books whether it was completed or not, thus giving the student a grade. Others collect it, check for accuracy, and then provide the student a grade based on correctness.

However, there is little to no research that supports homework as a way to improve academic achievement. In fact, there is research that shows that too much time spent on homework is actually detrimental to learning!

So what is the answer? Do you think your child should have homework? And if so, how much? What should be the purpose of that homework? How should it be graded?

I want to know your feelings about homework as we prepare to launch our own school based on a model of reinforcing and correcting work immediately in the classroom, rather than sending home homework.

We value your feedback! Please share your opinions and be entered into a drawing to win a $50 gift card from Dave and Buster's! This contest is now closed.

Volunteer - What does it mean?

What do you think of when you hear the word volunteer? For me, it is a person who is dedicated to a cause in such a way that they give freely of their time and energy to an organization in helping to sustain it. Volunteers make the world go round, in my opinion, and are in high demand for many organizations, including our public schools.

Just this past fall the local schools found themselves in a budget shortfall that had them out asking for more parent volunteers to help out in a variety of ways from secretarial work to the library and health room, and even as teacher aides. However, to work within the schools as a volunteer, you need to undergo a background check. The district has paid for these up until tomorrow. Starting January 1st, 2011, all volunteers that are required to undergo a background check will have to pay the $20 fee themselves.

But it gets even more interesting because the list of those required to background checks aren't the parents who volunteer to come into the classroom to assist with parties, go on field trips, or even chaperone school dances, having direct access to students. The ones required for background checks are those that have a regular schedule in the schools but may not even have direct contact with the kids. (Don't get me wrong here, I think it is important to check backgrounds and make sure those working around kids don't have a criminal history abusing kids, I am just questioning which ones get the check and who gets a pass.)

If the school needs help that badly, ie volunteers to put library books away and make photocopies in the office, then why can't they cover this one time, very nominal fee for those volunteers? How else do you thank volunteers for all their hard work and the FREE labor they provide? It all comes down to one thing....money. Boy, BVSD sure has had its share of money issues this year and I have mentioned money quite a few times in my posts. So what is their end game in having volunteers pay for their own background checks? Perhaps it is their way to try to get the voters to approve more taxes for the sake of the schools. Yet, I still come back to the fact that most schools have too many administrators and if they need to cut back, why not do it there. Instead, the parent volunteers, those who are willing to give freely of their time, are now asked to pay a $20 fee to come help out at the school. So how do you feel about paying to volunteer?

Has This Happened to You?

Granted, this was made by some attorneys as an advertisement, as noted by their names said several times at the end of the movie, but I think it is makes a valid point.




Most recently I have been helping a family with a school problem, and actually the doctors now. This has been going on for over 6 months. The school says they can't do anything about the child's potential disability because it would be considered AD/HD which has to be diagnosed by a doctor. The doctor said that the school was doing whatever they could for the student, so they aren't going to give the child the label of AD/HD because it wouldn't really help the child. So in the end....who loses? The child in this case. Now many of you know I don't always advocate labeling, but in this case, I believe it necessary to get the child the help needed to succeed in the school setting.

This is just one of many things I encounter on a regular basis in the local schools in our area, although it was the first time I dealt with a family doctor who was unwilling to help the family out. Without money, it is difficult to get an outside assessment because these can cost anywhere from $700 to $1500 or more. So what is a family to do? Keep on fighting the good fight and make a stand for your child that lets the school know that they are responsible and you are not going away.

Study Tips

As finals will be here in less than 2 weeks, here is some advice for those who need to prepare:

• Review/ copy your notes. Take 15 minutes each day to review or copy your notes for each class. If you have 4 core classes, it will take you 1 hour each day. If you start today, you will get almost 3 hours of studying per class done before the first exam date, December 13th. This is much better than trying to cram in a study session of 3 hours the night before the exam.

• Make note of questions. While you are reviewing your notes, write down questions you have about anything that is unclear to you. Try to schedule a time to meet with your teacher before review day in class. If you can't, have those questions ready for review day when the teacher asks if anyone has any questions. If you wait until the night before to study, you may not have a chance to get those questions answered by the teacher.

• Try different places to study. There have been numerous studies done that show conflicting research on where a student should study. However, just as each student learns differently, I believe we all study differently too. Find the place that you feel works best for each subject area or type of studying you are doing. Keep in mind that this may not be the same place for each class.

• Limit distractions. Try to limit your distractions while studying. That most likely means turning off the television and the radio. However, some people need auditory stimulation while they study, so choose noise that serves as a background like favorite songs you have heard a million times or something without lyrics. Likewise for visual and tactile stimulation. Gum is a great tactile stimulant, but if you find yourself focusing on the gum rather than your notes, give it up and try something else like a squish ball or a piece of sand paper.

• Take a break. If you find yourself doing long study sessions, take a break. The average attention span for humans is 45 minutes. Don't get discouraged if you can't study that long in one sitting. Get up, stretch your legs, drink water, or get a healthy snack.

• Don't study right after dinner! Most parents expect students to do their homework if not before, then right after dinner. But think about this, your brain requires oxygenated blood to think and so does your stomach to digest food. If you are dividing your resources up you could end up with a headache, upset stomach, poor focus, or any other number of issues from the lack of oxygen needed to perform those functions. Just like they used to say about swimming, wait 30 minutes before diving in!

Good luck on your finals and study well!!

The Magician's Trick

On Thursday this week, Arne Duncan praised the progress made by IDEA law as the 35th anniversary of the passage of this legislation approaches. He went on to say that although there has been progress, the dream hasn't been fully realized yet. However, the law is a victory in the civil rights movement as disabled children as included more and more in schools with their non-disabled peers. And it goes on from there.

But here is the magic trick......while you are distracted by the speech and lines like this one, "Those students with disabilities who did attend public schools often were bused long distances to schools where they had little chance to interact with the full range of their peers," in the background something else is at work at the Department of Education.

Just last week the Office of Civil Rights at the Department of Education ruled against families who want to keep preschool children in their local preschools rather than attending a special preschool for kids with disabilities. The ruling states that there is not enough evidence to find that this violates the law. Since there are peer models of non-disabled students and they are providing services as required by law, the court felt that these students were receiving special education in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). However, 85% of the children attending this preschool are identified as disabled and only 15% are non-disabled.

Why does this matter? Currently in the US there is an estimated rate of only 10-11% of students with disabilities being served in public education. That is a very small proportion of disabled to non-disabled peers. This new preschool, while providing peer interaction, does not provide enough non-disabled peer interactions when compared to the true ratio in the general population. Last time I looked, it was more common to follow what the majority of your peers are doing. So how is shipping these students off to a special school where the vast majority of your peers are also disabled actually providing an adequate educational setting for these students?

I don't know about you, but the magic trick didn't work on me. Flowery speeches don't change the fact that the current education system is not meeting the needs of the disabled as originally intended by IDEA law. I see this ruling by Mr. Duncan's own department for what it is, dead wrong and a step backwards in time that will not help our students with disabilities to integrate as part of society.

Issues for Adults with Developmental Disabilities

This week I had the opportunity to interview someone at a local organization that serves adults with developmental disabilities. I am excited to share it here, because I feel that even as adults, we are all continually learning. Therefore this is very relevant to what I do and how I feel about education. Keep on learning.... Michelle

The Arc for Boulder and Broomfield counties is called The Association for Community Living in Boulder County. Nicole Newsom is the Director of Activities for this organization and also serves on committees for several organizations that focus their services for people with developmental disabilities.

Michelle: What types of services does your organization offer?

Nicole: Our organization provides advocacy services for both adults and children. We are also involved in public policy, informing the public the implication of the laws made at state and federal level for families and individuals with developmental disabilities. Finally, we also provide classes to the community in order to promote a sense of community between those with and those without developmental disabilities.

M: Why is this important to adults with intellectual disabilities?

N: Some of these adults are unable to advocate for themselves. Often they are unaware of their rights and therefore need a voice to speak for them to ensure they receive services and have a positive quality of life. Also, our facility offers them a safe place to learn and meet people.

M: What social issues do you see in your outreach to adults with intellectual disabilities?

N: There are many social issues including isolation, sex education and parenting. These issues are all things we try to address through our social and educational opportunities. Another issue is the quality of care in those providers that serve people with developmental disabilities. Unfortunately there is little supervision or follow through from the state to ensure these providers are providing quality services. Finally, the biggest issue I see is the lack of funding. Here in Colorado there is a long wait list just to get the services that these people need to survive.

M: What perceptions do you think society has with regards to adults with disabilities?

N: I think most people get a picture of the smiling Down syndrome child in their mind when they think of developmental disabilities. However, the diversity is expanse and this picture does not encompass the entire population by any stretch. Another perception is that these are not normal adults and therefore, must be treated differently. Sometimes, I find myself attending doctor’s appointments with an adult with developmental disability as a friend, to support them. It is frustrating for me and the adult with developmental disability when the doctor starts talking to me rather than addressing them directly. It is as if the doctor doesn’t believe that adult can understand anything he is saying.

M: How do you feel that your organization can change those perceptions?

N: Modeling is one of the best ways to do this. We try to model appropriate interactions with these adults in the community, at meetings, in classes, and at the doctor’s office. We hope that by modeling these things others will learn that the interaction with these adults is not much different than what they are used to with their friends, families, and co-workers. Another way we change perceptions is through public policy.

M: What ethical issues do you deal with in your work, with regards to adults with intellectual disabilities?

N: Monitoring care is a big issue. Another issue is guardianship and knowing what level of assistance the individual needs. The final issue is human rights, because sometimes you have to suspend an adult’s rights in order to ensure they are safe and healthy.

M: How do you feel those issues impede the process of assisting them?

N: Without monitoring care, there is no way to be sure that abuses are not occurring within organizations that serve these people. Guardianship is important as a layer of protection to prevent these abuses and to ensure that the individual’s needs are met. As for human rights, it is important to ensure that when rights are taken away that a clear path is provided to the individual on how to obtain those rights again.

M: What ways do you suggest to overcome these obstacles in order to provide the best service to meet the needs of adults with intellectual disabilities?

N: More funding is needed. Many people who work with organizations that serve adults with developmental disabilities are over worked and under paid and it is common for turnover to be high. Also, it is very important to teach self-advocacy skills to these adults. The more they know the more power they will have to protect themselves from others and to navigate the system to make sure they access all the services that are available to them.

A Silly Ban on Silly Bandz

It's 9am morning announcements and what did they just say? Silly Bandz are now banned in school? (picture of silly bands on right comes from their website)

This is the trend. As children get excited about the cute rubber bracelets made into shapes, the schools are suddenly banning them. Why?

From the Denver Post : "What was happening is in the classroom itself, kids were more preoccupied with who they were going to trade with, and what they were going to trade, than the teacher teaching," said Jonathan Wolfer, principal of Douglass Elementary School in Boulder. Read more: Despite school bans, the Silly Bandz fad plays on - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/lifestyles/ci_16098144#ixzz10OARBMZd

So let me get this straight, teachers are having difficulty getting students to focus on their work because of a bracelet. Now that we have banned the bracelets, the students are suddenly more focused on their school work, right? WRONG! Despite the ban, those classrooms aren't going to be any better for it. If a teacher has an effective management style, that should transcend any fad or general student misbehavior.

Recently in my course work I read a statistic that really bothered me: praise of students occurred only once every 15 to 30 minutes while reprimands occurred once every 2 minutes (Yell, Meadoes, Drasgo, & Shriner, 2009). Talk about negativity in the classroom. However, everything I have been taught about being a teacher in my undergrad and my graduate work so far indicates that positive interaction in the classroom is the way to prevent behavior issues. Unfortunately, I think this is a societal tendency, in that we are quicker to complain about something than to praise.

By the way....for those of you who are clients of ours, Bolder Tutor will continue to use Silly Bandz as an incentive for student engagement and achievement.

The Lighter Side of Things

School has started and with that, my schedule has gotten crazy. Not really an excuse not to post, but it is my reason why. But in these last 2 weeks many good things have happened....

- Near the end of summer I began working with a student who was resistant to writing or doing homework last school year. Friday we sat down and made a plan for his weekly homework packet. He was so excited to get it done, that he completed it last night and turned it in to his teacher today. Mom reports that he didn't even ask for help on the writing part but just persevered through it on his own without a single complaint!

- The student who completed her summer homework before school started, was ready to turn in when it was collected yesterday. Still "very few" others turned it in according to her and her teacher's did recognize that she did her part.

- IEP meeting date set for a student whose school admitted the IEP was inadequate and they weren't even following it last year.

- I set my schedule for classes this fall and will be officially graduating BEFORE Christmas!

- An adult student who some said would never learn her numbers was reading numbers from 1-50.

- A new student is getting comfortable with the remediation program and is already making progress.

- First tests are already being taken and the resounding sound of "I got an A" is ringing in my ears.

Share your good experiences these last few weeks as we all want to congratulate your child on their accomplishments!

The Summer Controversy

Summer is over here. The kids went back to school earlier this week. Everyone is excited to meet new teachers and friends and get going with a fresh start to a new year. But yet, already I see some of the disappointment in some of my students, after only 2 or 3 days back. The reality of school work sets in and their self-esteem is already suffering.

For instance, a student who worked hard with me all summer to complete her summer homework on time is not praised for doing so, but rather told that the work will be collected next week because too many other students hadn't completed theirs yet. Another student who is excited to do geometry loses his excitement when he finds out that they will be reviewing algebra for the first two weeks, a class in which he battled with for most of last school year, unsuccessfully. Not all the stories are bad, but enough to frustrate me when I hear, yet again, the push for longer school days or school years.

I am sure some of you will be surprised to hear that I am a proponent of year round school, if it is done effectively with breaks between units or quarters that would still entail the same number of days off the students currently receive. I think it would be beneficial to not have such a large number of consecutive weeks off for students. There is regression for down instructional time and I can't ignore that. Your brain needs to be used continually and when you take time away from practicing something like multiplication or writing, it becomes a bit rusty and difficult to get moving again.

However, I also know that summer is a time for a student to recharge, especially those with learning disabilities that struggle in the classroom. It is a time for them to do things in which they excel like summer camps for their interests, watching neighbor dogs, baby sitting, or even just exploring the neighborhood pond looking for bugs and frogs. All of these are learning experiences of their own and I believe of great value to our kids who spend 6-7 hours a day sitting in a classroom without much real world interaction. (I seem to remember taking many more field trips as a child than the students of today are afforded.)

So, when Time Magazine prints a cover article such as "The Case Against Summer Vacation" I shudder. Especially when the print version of the article includes graphs that don't necessary support their case. In fact, it showed that the number of hours our students spend in school was very high when compared to other countries in the world with higher achievement rates. So what does that tell us? According to this research brief put out by ASCD (formerly the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development), "Changes in instructional time do not generally increase or decrease student achievement, unless such changes go beyond unusually low, or high, amounts of time. Curriculum and instructional quality appear to have a much greater effect on achievement than do total hours of instructional time." (ASCD, 2005).

Wow, from 2005? So this research has been around for 5 years and we are still talking about increasing instructional time? Yes, and I would again suggest that it has more to do with money for the teachers, administrators, and the unions than it has to do with educating students effectively. But it seems that no one is listening, so the controversy will continue on and those who want longer school days/years seem to have the loudest voices and the highest positions to affect change, even if it isn't in the best interest of our children.

More Inclusion

Once again Boulder Valley School District is in the news discussing changes to their special education policy. Boulder public schools work to provide more special-ed in regular classrooms - via the Denver Post

BVSD held a special training session for all their general education teachers. This was to train them to keep special education students in their classrooms. According to the post "hundreds" of teachers were in attendance. I don't know about you, but the last time I was taught or trained in a room of hundreds of people, I came away with very little knowledge that I found applicable for my own personal situation. Secondly, having done my undergrad in teaching and currently working on my master's in special education, it will take more than just a few hours to train teachers how to work with kids with special needs.

Furthermore, I might remind my readers who are unfamiliar with the law, but there is already inclusion or mainstreaming, as some call it, in our schools. It was required by IDEA law, long ago, that school's provide the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) for student learning. However, the regular classroom is not appropriate for all students all the time and I would contend that even for some student's, ever. It is a relief that BVSD does recognize that LRE does not mean only the regular classroom , yet in the article a representative from the district mentions that special instruction can be done in the regular classroom. I agree that some special education can take place in the regular classroom, however that takes additional resources. The last time I checked, BVSD was "firing" teachers and aids, not hiring more. BVSD is reducing the special education budget for 2010-2011 by over $1 million dollars, according to page 34 of the proposed budget, including the reduction of 5.815 special education teachers and 4.5 paras.

Finally, I wonder how much money BVSD spent to have these specialists come in to train regular classroom teachers. Could that money have been spent to hire additional aids or paras for the classrooms themselves? Will it all be worth the expense or just another thing we tried in the name of reform? The new system will be tested this year and I hope that parents, teachers and others concerned about the state of education will hold these schools accountable to providing the best education choices possible for each student and not just create a system of inclusion for the sake of saying that they do it.