Something to think about.
Great video...not all of these methods will work for every student every time. However, they do learn from technology more than any other generation before them. We need to get with the program and teach them the way they learn and process information.
Watch TV and notice how many times the image changes in a 30 second commercial. This is because of the way the consumers (our students) process information. If something is too stagnant the channel will be changed. Corporate America has spent billions researching this and we should take advantage of the money they have spent and use some of their ideas.
Do we fight progress or do we move forward? Fighting it and thinking that children today are the same as they were 20 years ago does not help our students now. I am an advocate for more technology in the classroom.
This is not to say traditional methods are completely outdated. Goader is right. There is a huge technology gap and not every student has access to technology at home. We must use a variety of methods to teach to all students.
Tell me what you think
Friday, June 22, 2007
Pay Attention
One of the main reasons I ran for school board
Was drop out prevention. I am a little concerned about the direction I see other districts taking when it comes to budget cuts.
Originally in the conversations surrounding property tax cuts the Florida legislature guaranteed they would hold school districts harmless. Then during special session, in the final throws of getting the legislation passed, the verbs changed and they said they 'intend' to hold schools harmless. I don't know about you, but I get a little nervous when verbs change.
Back to my original reason for this post...I am going to work very hard to see that drop out prevention programs are not one of the first and largest areas cut during this budget crunch. One of the last places we need to cut the budget is anywhere that directly impacts the classroom. We have already seen that happen with the schedule change Superintendent MaryEllen Elia instituted recently.
We are currently facing a loss of funding for our school resource officers and school crossing guards with local municipalities under statutory obligations to cut funding. These are areas we are going to have to cover the shortfall. Combine this with the classroom size reduction amendment, the rising cost of insurance, and many other funding issues we have the perfect storm.
Originally in the conversations surrounding property tax cuts the Florida legislature guaranteed they would hold school districts harmless. Then during special session, in the final throws of getting the legislation passed, the verbs changed and they said they 'intend' to hold schools harmless. I don't know about you, but I get a little nervous when verbs change.
Back to my original reason for this post...I am going to work very hard to see that drop out prevention programs are not one of the first and largest areas cut during this budget crunch. One of the last places we need to cut the budget is anywhere that directly impacts the classroom. We have already seen that happen with the schedule change Superintendent MaryEllen Elia instituted recently.
We are currently facing a loss of funding for our school resource officers and school crossing guards with local municipalities under statutory obligations to cut funding. These are areas we are going to have to cover the shortfall. Combine this with the classroom size reduction amendment, the rising cost of insurance, and many other funding issues we have the perfect storm.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
This was not a conversation I wanted to have publicly
School District Demotes 2 Chiefs
By MARILYN BROWN The Tampa Tribune
Published: Jun 13, 2007
TAMPA - Although most grumbled, six of seven Hillsborough County School Board members voted Tuesday to reassign two veteran employees running the district's ailing transportation and purchasing departments.
Read full text here.
Questions raised over board's hiring
By LETITIA STEIN The St Petersburg Times
Published June 13, 2007
TAMPA - Two school district managers recently replaced by outside hires during reorganizations of their departments secured new jobs Tuesday night.
The moves sparked an unusual debate among School Board members, who typically approve the superintendent's personnel decisions with little discussion.
Read full text here.
Thoughts?
By MARILYN BROWN The Tampa Tribune
Published: Jun 13, 2007
TAMPA - Although most grumbled, six of seven Hillsborough County School Board members voted Tuesday to reassign two veteran employees running the district's ailing transportation and purchasing departments.
Read full text here.
Questions raised over board's hiring
By LETITIA STEIN The St Petersburg Times
Published June 13, 2007
TAMPA - Two school district managers recently replaced by outside hires during reorganizations of their departments secured new jobs Tuesday night.
The moves sparked an unusual debate among School Board members, who typically approve the superintendent's personnel decisions with little discussion.
Read full text here.
Thoughts?
Should Jennifer Porter return to teaching?
State officials may decide next month if Jennifer Porter, the Hillsborough teacher who fled the scene of a 2004 accident that killed two children and injured two more, can return to a classroom.
You can read full St. Petersburg Times Gradebook blog entry. Read April 19, 2007 St. Petersburg Times article. Or follow the progress of the Porter case online at the State of Florida, Division of Administrative Hearings.
I have already stated publicly that I am opposed to her teaching in Hillsborough County Schools, let alone anywhere else.
You can read full St. Petersburg Times Gradebook blog entry. Read April 19, 2007 St. Petersburg Times article. Or follow the progress of the Porter case online at the State of Florida, Division of Administrative Hearings.
I have already stated publicly that I am opposed to her teaching in Hillsborough County Schools, let alone anywhere else.
Saturday, June 9, 2007
What do you think of the busing overhaul?
Did you know Hillsborough County does more courtesy busing than any other county in the state?
Levels of service are about to change. Where some students may not be picked up right in front of their home and have to walk a couple of blocks to the bus stop, other students who have not been arriving to school on time and arriving home late will be on time.
Safety will of course be paramount in planning the bus stops.
One argument brought up by another board member during discussions was not only amusing. It made a lot of sense.
There were some people debating on the side of more bus stops and students having to walk too far to a bus stop. In an insightful moment one member stated that in a time when we are dealing with the rise in childhood obesity, why are we worried about students walking a couple more blocks to a bus stop? This was an aha moment for me.
Again, safety will be our number one concern in planning bus stops.
Click here to read full Tampa Tribune story.
Levels of service are about to change. Where some students may not be picked up right in front of their home and have to walk a couple of blocks to the bus stop, other students who have not been arriving to school on time and arriving home late will be on time.
Safety will of course be paramount in planning the bus stops.
One argument brought up by another board member during discussions was not only amusing. It made a lot of sense.
There were some people debating on the side of more bus stops and students having to walk too far to a bus stop. In an insightful moment one member stated that in a time when we are dealing with the rise in childhood obesity, why are we worried about students walking a couple more blocks to a bus stop? This was an aha moment for me.
Again, safety will be our number one concern in planning bus stops.
Click here to read full Tampa Tribune story.
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
We dodged a bullet...literally
I have been writing about my concern for our student's safety and my fear that school resource officers would be cut due to funding shortfalls at the local level.
Just hours ago we had a gunman walk onto Middleton High School's campus and fired a gun through a door. Thank God no one was injured or killed.
We don't have all the details yet. I will post once I have them.
I hope our Mayor, City Council members, and County Commission keep the safety of our children first and foremost as they make their decisions on where to cut funding.
Click here to read Bay News 9 breaking news and the follow up stories from the Tampa Tribune and St. Pete Times.
Just hours ago we had a gunman walk onto Middleton High School's campus and fired a gun through a door. Thank God no one was injured or killed.
We don't have all the details yet. I will post once I have them.
I hope our Mayor, City Council members, and County Commission keep the safety of our children first and foremost as they make their decisions on where to cut funding.
Click here to read Bay News 9 breaking news and the follow up stories from the Tampa Tribune and St. Pete Times.
School Board Reacts
By Marilyn Brown Tampa Tribune Published June 6, 2007
TAMPA - Hillsborough County high school teachers didn't get the reprieve they wanted from a new mandate to teach six instead of five class periods, but they seem to have made an impact.TAMPA - Hillsborough County high school teachers didn't get the reprieve they wanted from a new mandate to teach six instead of five class periods, but they seem to have made an impact.
Click here to read full text
TAMPA - Hillsborough County high school teachers didn't get the reprieve they wanted from a new mandate to teach six instead of five class periods, but they seem to have made an impact.TAMPA - Hillsborough County high school teachers didn't get the reprieve they wanted from a new mandate to teach six instead of five class periods, but they seem to have made an impact.
Click here to read full text
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
The devil is in the details
The Florida Legislature is meeting this month to discuss property tax relief.
As a home owner and elected official I am looking at this issue from two perspectives. One as someone who has taken property taxes into consideration when thinking about buying a new home. And two as as an elected government official who is going to have to deal with the ramifications of the proposed cuts.
I believe the best thing coming out of the discussions that have taken place recently is that governments, state and local, are looking at how they can cut waste and streamline spending. However, I see (and you keep hearing me say) knee jerk reactions to the tax crisis we are facing.
Between property taxes and property insurance we are pricing teachers, first responders, and much needed blue collar workers out of home ownership in Hillsborough County. We need to solve this problem, but we need to be mindful of the long-term issues that could arise because of the decisions we make in order to solve this problem. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath water.
Watch a live stream of a discussion on the issues regarding property tax cuts on WEDU's Florida This Week
As a home owner and elected official I am looking at this issue from two perspectives. One as someone who has taken property taxes into consideration when thinking about buying a new home. And two as as an elected government official who is going to have to deal with the ramifications of the proposed cuts.
I believe the best thing coming out of the discussions that have taken place recently is that governments, state and local, are looking at how they can cut waste and streamline spending. However, I see (and you keep hearing me say) knee jerk reactions to the tax crisis we are facing.
Between property taxes and property insurance we are pricing teachers, first responders, and much needed blue collar workers out of home ownership in Hillsborough County. We need to solve this problem, but we need to be mindful of the long-term issues that could arise because of the decisions we make in order to solve this problem. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath water.
Watch a live stream of a discussion on the issues regarding property tax cuts on WEDU's Florida This Week
School safety follow up
On Thursday, May 24th I wrote about school resource officers, the decreased funding for the 'safe schools' grant, and the possibility of local governments cutting funding for officers in our schools.
There was movement in that direction by Clearwater City Council members on Monday who, during a workshop, declined to talk about extending a contract that would keep school resource officers in Clearwater High and Countryside High.
They want the Pinellas School Board to shoulder financial responsibility.
This is in my opinion, a knee jerk reaction that does not take into consideration the long term ramifications of this decision. We can not forget the recent tragic event in Virginia. Aside from academic achievement we must make sure our children are safe.
There was movement in that direction by Clearwater City Council members on Monday who, during a workshop, declined to talk about extending a contract that would keep school resource officers in Clearwater High and Countryside High.
They want the Pinellas School Board to shoulder financial responsibility.
This is in my opinion, a knee jerk reaction that does not take into consideration the long term ramifications of this decision. We can not forget the recent tragic event in Virginia. Aside from academic achievement we must make sure our children are safe.
Monday, June 4, 2007
Share the wealth
An article on the Gradebook blog discusses shared accountability for FCAT results.
Marshall Ogletree, the chief lobbyist for the Florida Education Association is asking about Hartcourt's accountability in recent FCAT scores. Hartcourt's spokesman and former Jeb Bush press secretary has not conceded anything, saying "We stand by the validity and reliability of the test".
What are your thoughts?
Marshall Ogletree, the chief lobbyist for the Florida Education Association is asking about Hartcourt's accountability in recent FCAT scores. Hartcourt's spokesman and former Jeb Bush press secretary has not conceded anything, saying "We stand by the validity and reliability of the test".
What are your thoughts?
Friday, June 1, 2007
I hate to say I told you so...but
Read the article on the Gradebook blog and the latest OPPAGA report to understand my frustration.
Here is a statement I made on my campaign blog in March of 2006. "We need to graduate students who are ready for higher education on day one without needing remedial courses to catch up. We must be mindful that not every child is college bound. We must give them every opportunity to develop the skills they will need for a well-paying trade. Only then can Hillsborough County attract and keep businesses that pay high wages".
We have got to do a better job preparing our children for the real world. Whether they are going to college or straight into the workforce.
Here is a statement I made on my campaign blog in March of 2006. "We need to graduate students who are ready for higher education on day one without needing remedial courses to catch up. We must be mindful that not every child is college bound. We must give them every opportunity to develop the skills they will need for a well-paying trade. Only then can Hillsborough County attract and keep businesses that pay high wages".
We have got to do a better job preparing our children for the real world. Whether they are going to college or straight into the workforce.
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