High School E-Newsletter December 2001
HIGH SCHOOL E-NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 2001
1. Professional Development Task Force Report
2. Reclassification Regulations Approved
3. Report: Twice Exceptional Students
4. Free Parent Education Kits
5. School Websites Provide Valuable Information
6. Technology Standards for School Administrators
7. Two Reports: High School Graduation--Dropout Rates in the U.S.
8. Depts. of Ed. and State Support E-Learning Projects
9. Asia in the Schools: Preparing for an Interconnected World
10. Three Internet Companies to Label Sites for Questionable Content
11. Study: News Misrepresents Students in Coverage
12. Do You Know the Good News about American Education?
13. Cell Phones in Schools Being Re-evaluated
14. Nation’s Schools Experience Drop in Crime and Victimization
15. Schools Look at Bioterrorism Defense
16. Essays on American Symbols
17. Teachers Get Lessons in Ethics
18. Smaller Learning Communities Grant Award Timeline
19. Federal Grants for Special Education
20. Federal Grant: Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers Program
21. Federal Grant: Charter Schools Facilities
22. Grant: School Community Policing Partnership
23. Grant: English Language and Intensive Literacy Program
24. Grant: Technology Staff Development Program for Grades 4-8
=============================
1. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE REPORT
=============================
The California Department of Education has released the Professional
Development Task Force report "Learning. . . Teaching. . .
Leading . . ." as a blueprint for educator training. "It focuses on
how California can ensure that every child will have well-prepared
and capable teachers and administrators in the near future. The
shortage of trained teachers in this state is nothing less than a
crisis," states Superintendent of Public Instruction, Delain Eastin.
The 40-member task force, co-chaired by Linda Darling-Hammond and
Lionel Meno, made recommendations to create a coherent system for
teacher recruitment and retention which fall into three main
categories: 1) make teaching and school administration attractive
careers; 2) provide teachers and school leaders with the skills they
eed to improve student learning; and 3) create conditions that allow
teachers and school leaders to succeed. A full copy of the report
an be obtained from CDE Press Sales Office 800-995-4099 for $13.50. http://www.cde.ca.gov/news/releases2001/rel53.asp
=============================
2. RECLASSIFICATION REGULATIONS APPROVED
=============================
School districts are responsible for designing and operating a
process for the reclassification of English Learners that reflects
state law. Districts are responsible for the initial identification
of English Learners and their eventual reclassification. Regulations
for pupil reclassification were approved by the State Board of
Education during their October meeting.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/statetests/celdt/reclass1.htm
=============================
3. REPORT: TWICE EXCEPTIONAL STUDENTS
=============================
A special issue of Education Week (October 24, 2001) highlights the
issue of students who are “twice exceptional”---that is, they are
both gifted and learning disabled. “Twice exceptional students…are
one of the most underserved populations in schools, according to
research. Few schools have screening procedures to identify them.
Fewer still have special classes or programs to meet their goals.”
The article highlights three decades of studies as well as the work
that some districts are doing to provide services to these students.
http://www.edweek.com/ew/ew_printstory.cfm?slug=08twice.h21
=============================
4. FREE PARENT EDUCATION KITS
=============================
Paid for by the tobacco tax approved by California voters in 1998,
the California Children and Families Commission is distributing
bilingual parenting kits to the parents of every child born in
California. The kit includes information on parenting, a guide to
helpful organizations and a series of celebrity videos in English
and Spanish on a variety of topics including child safety, nutrition
and childcare. The text of the information can be found online.
This kit may be useful for teen parent programs.
http://www.ccfc.ca.gov/parentinfo.htm
=============================
5. SCHOOL WEBSITES PROVIDE VALUABLE INFORMATION
=============================
School websites are providing valuable information to parents,
students and the community. The Sacramento Bee (11-8-01) reports
on the efforts that a growing number of districts in the Sacramento
area are making to provide information on everything from homework
assignments to parent newsletters to job applications.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/1135297p-1203047c.html
=============================
6. TECHNOLOGY STANDARDS FOR SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS
=============================
The Technology Standards for School Administrators (TSSA)
Collaborative is a group of national and state educational
organizations as well as non-profit groups that have joined together
to develop, disseminate and support specific technology standards
for school administrators. The standards focus on the use of
technology that fosters the leadership that is needed to enhance the
learning of students and the operation of schools. The standards,
adopted in November 2001, are available on the website.
http://cnets.iste.org/tssa/framework.html
=============================
7. TWO REPORTS: HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION---DROPOUT RATES IN THE U.S.
=============================
The Manhattan Institute for Policy Research has published a report
by Jay P. Greene, Ph.D, on the high school graduation rates in the
United States. Greene reports the over-all graduation rate for the
class of 1998 is 74%. For white students it is 78%, for African-
American students it is 56% and for Latino students it is 54%.
For the same class, the National Center for Statistics places the
over-all graduation rate at 82%. The National Center includes those
students completing a GED and alternative diploma. The full report
may be found on the website.
http://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/cr_baeo.htm
The U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education
Statistics (NCES) has just released, “Dropout Rates in the United
States: 2000.” The event dropout rates for 2000 describe a
“proportion of youth ages 15-24 who dropped out of grades 10-23 in
the 12 months preceding October 2000…. Despite year-to year
fluctuations, the percentage of students dropping out of school
each year has stayed relatively unchanged since 1987.” The report
notes, “In 2000 the event dropout rate for Hispanics was 7.4%, 6.1%
for blacks, 4.1% whites and 3.5% for Asians/Pacific Islanders.” The
dropout rate for students from the lowest 20% of all family incomes
was six times that of their peers from families in the highest 20
percent.” The complete report can be found on the website.
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2002114
=============================
8. DEPTS. OF ED. AND STATE SUPPORT E-LEARNING PROJECTS
=============================
The Federal Department of Education (Oct. 23, 2001) announced “U.S.
support for an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) e-learning
initiative that will use the Internet to share best practices in
education and to promote international collaboration on Internet-
based learning among the economies that form APEC.” The U.S. is
involved in three web-based APEC projects that are listed in the
news release.
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/10-2001/10232001.html
=============================
9. ASIA IN THE SCHOOLS: PREPARING FOR AN INTERCONNECTED WORLD
=============================
The National Commission on Asia in the Schools: Preparing Young
Americans for Today’s Interconnected World, notes that “now, more
than ever, Americans face both opportunities and challenges that
originate beyond our borders. It is critical that more Americans
and not just experts be more educated about Asia. As the world’s
largest, most populous and fastest-growing region, Asia plays a
vital role in the continued prosperity of the United States.” The
Commission calls for “learning about Asia as a new education basic.”
The website offers best practices from schools, recommendations on
educational programs, resources for schools and a copy of the
Commission report. The Commission is supported by the Asia Society,
which was founded by John D. Rockefeller III as a national nonprofit,
nonpartisan public education organization dedicated to increasing
American understanding of Asia and broadening the dialogue between
Americans and Asians.
http://www.asiaintheschools.org/
=============================
10. THREE INTERNET COMPANIES TO LABEL SITES FOR QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
=============================
The Internet Content Rating Association (October 23, 2001) press
release announced, ”In an unparalleled display of public-private
partnership, the three most trafficked Internet destinations,
AOL (America On Line), MSN (Microsoft) and Yahoo! have adopted
the Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA) content labeling
system with broad support from the children’s advocates and the
First Amendment Community. The ICRA, a nonprofit company backed
by the Internet industry, allows websites to voluntarily describe
their content based upon a common set of categories. ”The free ICRA
system allows content providers to identify and label their websites
using neutral descriptors that empower parents from all cultures to
filter Internet content based on their individual values.” With the
system, parents would preset their Web browsers to selectively
block access to certain coded sites.
http://www.icra.org/press/p16.html
The website for the Internet Content Rating Association
http://www.icra.org
=============================
11. STUDY: NEWS MISREPRESENTS STUDENTS IN COVERAGE
=============================
In a study released by the nonprofit, independent policy and advocacy
organization, Children Now (October 2001), it was noted, “the
presence of children in society is under-represented (in local
news coverage) and the level of crime committed by and against
children is distorted.” The study, conducted before the Sept. 11
attack on America, examined newscasts on major affiliates in
New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Boston, Seattle and Des Moines for
a month, making it the most nationally representative study of
children in local TV news coverage to date. While kids account for
more than 25% of the nation’s population, they account for only 10%
of all local news stories. Nearly half of the stories that featured
children focus on crime (45%), followed by health (24%), lifestyle
issues (19%), education (9%) and politics and economics (3%).”
http://www.childrennow.org/media/local-news-study/index.htm
=============================
12. DO YOU KNOW THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT AMERICAN EDUCATION?
=============================
The National School Board Association’s website will let you access the booklet “Do You Know the Good News about American Education.” The booklet updates and adds data to the monthly issue briefs produced by the Center on Education Policy. Information highlights areas where American Schools have improved since the early 1980’s.
http://www.ctredpol.org/pubs/Good_News_final1.pdf
=============================
13. CELL PHONES IN SCHOOLS BEING REEVALUATED
=============================
Education Week (October 31, 2001) reports that school administrators are reevaluating the possession and use of cell phones by students in school. After September 11, Education Week notes that many parents now want their children to have access to cell phones in case of emergency. State lawmakers in Maryland and Oklahoma have rescinded their ban on cell phones.
http://www.edweek.org/ew/newstory.cfm?slug=09cellphone.h21
=============================
14. NATION’S SCHOOLS EXPERIENCE DROP IN CRIME AND VICTIMIZATION
=============================
The U.S. Department of Education announced, “Victimization in the nation’s schools has decreased since 1992.” In a report, “Indicators of School Crime and Safety, 2001” released by the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics and the Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics, it was noted that “between 1992 and 1999, violent victimization rates at schools generally declined from 48 crimes per 1,000 students ages 12 through 18 to 33 per 1,000 students.” This is the fourth report of this nature. The data is organized around a “series of indicators, with each indicator presenting data on a different aspect of school crime and safety.”
http://www.ed.gov/PressReleases/10-2001/10312001a.html
=============================
15. SCHOOLS LOOK AT BIOTERRORISM DEFENSE
=============================
Education Week (October 31, 2001) reports that the nation’s schools are now looking to national organizations to advise them on how to prepare for a bioterrorist attack. Not only do educators have to plan on dealing with actual problems, they are also coping with “copy cat” incidents.
At the present time, there are no clear guidelines about how schools should respond. “Even if schools are not prepared to respond specifically to bioterrorism, many are ready for general emergencies, safety experts say.”
http://www.edweek.org/ew//vol-21/09thiswk.htm
Some of the organizations and government agencies offering guidance on anthrax and biological terrorism:
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/
Federal Emergency Management Agency: Rapid Response Information System
http://www.humanitarian.net/cfpnet
Parents of Kids with Infectious Diseases
http://www.pkids.org
U.S. Postal Service
http://www.usps.com
Indiana School Safety Specialist Academy
http://ideanet.doe.state.in.us/isssa/lawrencegdlsanthrax.html
Kentucky Center for School Safety
http://kysafeschools.org/
Ohio Department of Health
http://www.odh.state.oh.us
=============================
16. ESSAYS ON AMERICAN SYMBOLS
=============================
The Veterans Administrations has published 14 essays on America’s
national symbols and customs on its website. They include topics
such as: The United States Flag, Guidelines for Display of the Flag,
The Pledge of Allegiance, The Story of Taps, The American Bald Eagle
and more. They can be downloaded for handouts or used to plan
curricular material.
http://www.va.gov/pubaff/celebam/caindex.htm
=============================
17. TEACHERS GET LESSONS IN ETHICS
=============================
The Christian Science Monitor (November 6, 2001) reports a number of
school districts are developing codes of ethics for its professional
staff as well as teaching ethics courses to students. The article
points to the fast pace of American life and the growing awareness
of lapses of conduct among educators as the cause of this focus.
The paper states, however, “There is no hard proof that moral
missteps are on the increase among teachers, more likely, they are
just getting greater publicity. What’s more, teachers overall are
more virtuous than the rest of the population: Less than 1 percent
get in legal trouble each year, compared with about 6 percent of
the general population.”
http://www.csmonitor.com/2001/1106/p11s1-lekt.html
=============================
18. SMALLER LEARNING COMMUNITIES GRANT AWARD TIMELINE
=============================
The U.S. Department of Education has published its timeline for
2001 grant awards. The purpose of the program is to assist large
high schools “make schools smaller---and create sub-school structures
and strategies that make schools ‘feel smaller.’” The Department
anticipates awarding up to $125 million in fiscal year 2001. At the
time of this publication, the application publication has not been
issued. It is anticipated that it will be issued in November or
early December. Interested parties are encouraged to check the
website regularly.
http://www.ed.gov/offices/OESE/SLCP/news.html#timetable
=============================
19. FEDERAL GRANTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION
=============================
The U.S. Office of Education has posted a number of grants for
special education on its website. The following grants are noted:
* Education, Related Services and Early Intervention Personnel to
Serve Infants, Toddlers and Children with Low Incidence Disabilities
Application Deadline: January 11, 2002
* Preparation of Leadership Personnel
Application Deadline: January 1, 2002
* Preparation of Leadership Personnel in Minority Institutions
Application Deadline February 1, 2001
* Improving the Preparation of Personnel to Serve Children with
High-Incidence Disabilities:
Application Deadline January 18, 2002
* Projects of National Significance
Project Deadline: January 25, 2002
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/announcements/2001-4/100901b.html
* For those who could not open this link, copy the entire URL and
paste it into your browser address window.
=============================
20. FEDERAL GRANT: MIGRANT AND SEASONAL FARMWORKERS PROGRAM
=============================
The U.S. Department of Education has invited applications for “for
vocational services to individuals with disabilities who are migrant
farmworkers…and to the families who are residing with those
individuals. The application deadline is February 5, 2002.
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/announcements/2001-4/103001a.html
* For those who could not open this link, copy the entire URL and
paste it into your browser address window.
=============================
21. FEDERAL GRANT: CHARTER SCHOOLS FACILITIES
=============================
The U.S. Department of Education has invited applications for the
Charter School Facilities Financing Demonstrations Program. The
grant will “provide one-time enhancement initiatives that assist
charter schools in accessing private sector and other one-time
Federal capital projects to address the cost of acquiring,
constructing and renovating facilities.” The estimated available
funds are $25 million. The application deadline is January 4, 2002.
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/announcements/2001-4/110801d.html
* For those who could not open this link, copy the entire URL and
paste it into your browser address window.
=============================
22. GRANT: SCHOOL COMMUNITY POLICING PARTNERSHIP
=============================
The California Department of Education has announced funding for the
School Community Policing Partnership (SCPP) of up to $325,000 per
recipient. Matching funds are required. The SCPP program is open to
“school districts or county offices of education that work with a law
enforcement partner to implement a school community policing approach
to dealing with school crime and safety issues.” The application
deadline is March 1, 2002.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/funding/profile.asp?id=155
=============================
23. GRANT: ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND INTENSIVE LITERACY PROGRAM
=============================
The California Department of Education announced a grant for K-12
grades of $400 per student for 120 hours of instruction in language
and literacy activities in after-school and summer school classes.
This is the third Request for Applications for this program. No match
is required. The application date deadline is January 11, 2001.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/funding/profile.asp?id=36
=============================
24. GRANT: TECHNOLOGY STAFF DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM FOR GRADES 4-8
=============================
The California Department of Education announced a grant that
provides ongoing funding so that training in education technology
can be integrated into ongoing professional development for
appropriate school staff serving grades 4-8. Funding of up to $20
per student will be provided to eligible schools…. School districts
would apply on behalf of public schools serving grades 4-8. They
must have at least a 10:1 student-to-computer ratio, using up-to-
date-computers and have Internet access in all 4th-8th-grade core
instructional classrooms.” No match is required. Application due
date is March 1, 2002.
http://www.cde.ca.gov/funding/profile.asp?id=160
This electronic newsletter is sponsored by the Region 8 California
Professional Development Consortium (PDC) administered by the
Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office. For more information about
the PDC call 661-636-4331 or send fax to 661 636-4135. To subscribe
or unsubscribe from this newsletter, email Chris Doyle at cdoyle@kern.org or
send a fax to 661 636-4135.
If you wish to receive our free electronic Professional Development
Newsletter, email Chris Doyle at cdoyle@kern.org, or send a fax to
562-922-6291.
|
