To the idiot who wants to "Free The PDTs", speak for yourself only! I can't imagine where my school would be on the literacy guide without a PDT. I am an administrator in an elementary school. I could do without a few people in my building, but not my PDT. We are not done by a long shot either. Teachers have had no formal training for shared reading, so it really isn't being done still. We have told the teachers they will get trained on shared reading next year. We have a new assessment kit coming called the DRA to replace the IRI disaster. Teachers are going to seriously need help with this new DRA kit next year. I hear it is not something you just train once and expect people to know how to do. I do not think we can do all of this next year without a PDT. I am busy most of the day with discipline, managerial duties, and putting out fires. I need someone to have those conversations about teaching and learning, cause the good lord knows I do not have a chance to do it very often.
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I heard that parents have the right to sign a paper and refuse to have their child be subjected to the CRT? I don't think it matters to them in any way as far as college goes either. Colleges do not look at CRT score when choosing students. Does anyone know if this is true? If we could get this whole town to refuse to allow their students to be subjected to two weeks of wasted time on a test, then what would the state do? They can't shut us down. Why do we insist on being sheep and not being a voice for our children?
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LCPS is the 2nd largest district in the state. Why do we have a secretary going to Santa Fe to "lobby"? Lobbyists are registered. They work year round with legislators building relationships and keeping the needs of the client before the legislators. Hundreds of school employees journey to Santa Fe during the session to talk to legislators. Maybe Stan Rounds, who is a lobbyist, can straighten this place out. I am continually amazed at the ignorance and lack of sophistication in this district.
posted by LCPS1 @ 6:16 AM
12 Comments:
When I was going to school in the 60's and 70's in rural NY, my school took the Iowa Test Basic SKills several years (not sure if every year). As I recall, they may have been spaced over two days when I was under 5th grade, but we always manged to complete them in a day after that. The test was pretty accurate, to my knowledge, in seeing if we were on track. College testing like the ACT and the SAT seem to be able to capture a reasonable estimate of a student's abilities in 4 hours on a Saturday. Everyone keeps asking why does the CRT need so much time in the school week to accomplish? Isn't it because of the No Child Left Behind-Texas model being forced on every state? What we got when Bush got elected was the United States of Texas model of incompetence thrust into every government institution. I think that the state decisions regarding the CRT were made in that light, as well as many assuming our kids would do so poorly on standardized testing because of heavy cultural influences, some thought it would be more humane to use this testing format. It is obvious now, it isnt. However, bame GW Bush, because none of us, from parents to teachers and especially LCPS officials have anything to do with this useless waste of money called NOLB. Until our governments, our schools of education, our Boards of Ed. and admistrators and our educators stop treating the education of our children like it's a political football, this kind of stuff will continue.
Yes, parents can sign a form refusing to let their child take the CRT. However, the students that do not take the CRT adversely affect the AYP of the school. Even if we were able to convince every parent to sign the refusal form, all that would lead to would be an investigation of that school and the school being taken over because it didn't make AYP. This is unfortunate because we all know that CRT is a waste of time, shows absolutely nothing of what the students actually learn and benefits absolutely no one.
http://www.bcps.org/news/display_release.asp?id=1436
http://www.bcps.org/news/display_release.asp?id=1436
How can we ask our children to show class and character when we have administrators calling people idiots? I hope my children don't attend your school.
Just remember, the people who brought you the IRI disaster are the people who will bring the frustrations of the DRA. So please, direct your criticisms to the appropriate people.
Regarding the CRT--yes, any parent can go to the central office and have their child(ren) withdraw from CRT. That withdrawal (test not taken) is counted as a failure to participate for the school. Participation is one of the measured elements of AYP. Many schools in Las Cruces are either close to failing or have failed due to lack of participation. Although the state cannot "shut us down" due to lack of participation/failed AYP, both the state and federal governments can withdraw funding from the district. By not having your child participate, you will eventually deny funding to the child's school. Remember, both CRT and AYP are evaluations of the effectiveness of the education our children are being given. Moreover, test taking skills are arguably an important part of that education, because they will be needed throughout a child's educational life (i.e. SAT, ACT, ASVAB, etc.).
Instructional time at my school during February was a joke... Now that the CRT is done, what do we teach for the remainder of the year? The REAL curriculum???
About the issue on teaching sexual issues in the schools...Do we have a problem with teaching children self respect? Seems to me that there are too many negative people out there not believing that our kids can have self-control. What a concept! Yeah, that's the answer people...cover their ears, their eyes, cover something else with a condom and move them on with an STD!
Would someone please help with the acronyms? We parents who are on the 'outside', need help in understanding what you're talking about. LCPS staff certainly aren't deliberately trying to confuse us, but a brief guide to your commonly used acronyms would be a big help. In other words, don't be like the bureaucrats who thrive on acronyms... and we know how much they want to keep us confused. How about spelling out: PDT, PLT, CRT, DRA, IRI, and any others that have been used... except ETC. Thanks
Holy crap, someone actually hired "Our Lady of the Hell of Blowing all the Schools Money on My Royal Self" got a job in Baltimore. Those poor, poor fools. Look at this article:
http://www.bcps.org/news/display_release.asp?id=1436
I guess that's what happens when you don't do a background check and just look at her Haaaavard degrees. Kinda makes ivy league schools lose credibility.
To the administrator who referred to the person making a comment about PDT's as an "idiot", I found that uncalled for and unprofessional for someone in your position. The fact that you mentioned that you could do without some people in your building was also uncalled for. Have you ever stopped to think that those same people you could without perhaps do without you? PDT's are only one person on your staff who do their job they don't make your school, they are not the end all be all to effective education. Effective teachers, natural teachers, (I am assuming these people that you could do without are teachers), and all other staff, auxilary and ancillary are what make your school and keep you, the administrator, looking effective, whether they contribute alot or a little. I guess what I am trying to say is that if their are any administrators on this blog they should refrain from comments such as "people I could do without in my building." This comment I find unsettling because I value and think highly of all my staff members, for it is their building, not my building. Is it bliss? Heavens no! Not always, but in the end we all work to together for the children's educational sake, leaving the petty politics out of the focus of the student's education and productivity. Pettiness and politics is before 7:45 and after 4:00, discussed, dealt with by solution, if possible, and then we move on. If you can call a person who is making a personal opinion on a blog an "idiot", someone virtually unknown to you, it makes me wonder what do you call these "people that you could do without in your building" in the privacy of your own office and around others? If this is the way you feel about "these people" and complete strangers, who are just offering up an opinion then perhaps you should reconsider your role as an "educational leader administrator.", or you can take you role as an administrator seriously and speak to those people who you don't want in your school to resolve any issues that you may have with them. I do agree with you about PDT's, they are great. We would be would lost without ours, but you could have simply said this without the insulting sacarasm and mentioning the staff that you could do without, not cool. You should chose your words and comments a little more carefully considering that you are an "educational leader." Stop to think that perhaps there were some administrators that you worked under that could have done without you when you were a staff member. Makes me wonder what kind of an atmosphere do you have in your school. I apologize for the rant, but teachers have it difficult enough with having to wonder if they have to tread on eggshells. Remember, in the present climate of administration, here today, gone tomorrow. I for one take the good with the not so good, its part of being an educational professional, and makes school life, my family life, my life a lot easier. Your unthinkable comments, for me, overshadowed what you commented about. Which at this point I can't remember because your introduction about "idoits" and undesirables in "your building" mad more of an impression than what you were trying to communicate. Think about this.
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