“Twitter” by Scott Beale / Laughing Squid/CC/flickr
Today’s Top Picks:
Here’s your chance to digitally meet this year’s Utah State School Board candidates.
http://goo.gl/BcXbq (SLT)
U issues a report on chronic absenteeism in Utah schools.
http://goo.gl/hrCz4 (SLT)
or a copy of the report
http://goo.gl/doOxO
Sen. Reid comments further on sex education.
http://goo.gl/BEsBb (DN)
Teen shows educators how to Tweet.
http://goo.gl/QRVTG (Mashable)
————————————————————
TODAY’S HEADLINES
————————————————————
UTAH
18 candidates vie to lead Utah education State school board » Nine seats up for election.
Davis School Board candidates agree: Needs of students come first
Webb, Snyder agree on education, differ on funding
1 in 7 Utah kids chronically absent from class Study » Absences often tied to academic troubles.
West High School grieves student’s death Crash » 14-year-old died after being hit by car in crosswalk.
Boy with burn scars gets visit from West Valley firefighters Fire safety » Firefighters befriend young boy to combat the social stigma that comes from having burn scars on his face and hands.
Park Elementary says goodbye to longtime crossing guard
Davis High marching band prepares for Rose Bowl Parade performance Work ethic » Students’ dedication and drive on the field spill over into other aspects of their lives.
Obama wins! At Two Rivers High, at least …
Alpine district plans to continue space center program
Comments sought on school calendar
Local students volunteer for Haunted Cave project Event a fundraiser for School District Foundation
First school ‘snow day’ comes early to Utah
At charter schools, high enrollment, low oversight bring mixed results
Younger Americans still opening the books
Disabled students enjoy a day of ice skating
Boys win bike, helmet for safe walking practices
Daily Herald wins award for providing resource to students
OPINION & COMMENTARY
Is Mia Love part of the 47 percent?
GOP apology tour?
Public Lands: Utah Pursues Balanced, Win-Win Approach
Sex education is a parental responsibility
Bursting the administrative bubble
Digital learning summit: How ‘blended learning’ works
Why Was “Education” the Answer to Every Debate Question?
Obama’s education campaign puts Romney on the defensive.
NATION
Teen Takes Educators to Twitter School
National Board Seeks to Boost Its Impact on Teaching Profession
Oklahoma education board decides to press ahead with school report card calculations
Charter school spent more on principal than teachers, students
High School Teacher Lesson Plans Go Open Source Educators can download free teaching materials and get paid to share their lessons.
————————————————————
UTAH NEWS
————————————————————
18 candidates vie to lead Utah education State school board » Nine seats up for election.
It just might be the most important race this election year that you’ve never heard of.
Eighteen candidates are vying for nine seats on the Utah State Board of Education. Whoever wins will make decisions about what’s taught in Utah classrooms, the tests students take, how teachers across the state are evaluated, which charter schools may open and a number of other far-reaching issues.
But many Utahns won’t recognize the candidates’ names or what they represent when they look at their ballots on Election Day.
http://goo.gl/BcXbq (SLT)
Davis School Board candidates agree: Needs of students come first
FARMINGTON — Davis School Board incumbent James Clark is being challenged by Larry Smith for the District 2 seat.
Although the two men come from different career backgrounds, they both have strong feelings about improving technology in education and placing the needs of students first.
http://goo.gl/jrA1b (OSE)
Webb, Snyder agree on education, differ on funding
LOGAN— Incumbent District 5 State representative Curt Webb agrees with his Democratic challenger that more money is needed for education especially for kindergarten through 12th grade. However, Webb disagrees with biotechnology executive Al Snyder of Mendon who has an idea for more funding.
Webb said a big problem is that in Utah there isn’t enough access to the federal lands that could generate money for education. The two candidates debated Monday on KVNU’s Crosstalk show, and both candidates agreed that Utah needs to spend more money for education because education is the engine that causes business to expand.
Snyder and Webb said they believe the severance tax is one way to get more money for education. Snyder would like it to come from oil, gas, and coal. Webb, however, thinks the state should sell some of its public lands.
http://goo.gl/jXD0U (CVD)
1 in 7 Utah kids chronically absent from class Study » Absences often tied to academic troubles.
More than 13 percent of Utah students were chronically absent from school in 2010-2011 — a problem often tied to lower test scores and higher dropout rates, according to the Utah Education Policy Center at the University of Utah.
Researchers from the policy center presented their findings during a webinar Thursday hosted by the Expanded Learning and Afterschool Project, in which school leaders from across the country talked about absenteeism and how after-school programs can help curb the problem.
“Chronic absenteeism is a red alert that students are headed for academic trouble and eventually for dropping out,” said Hedy Chang, a webinar speaker and director of Attendance Works, a national initiative to promote awareness about the importance of school attendance.
http://goo.gl/hrCz4 (SLT)
A copy of the report
http://goo.gl/doOxO
West High School grieves student’s death Crash » 14-year-old died after being hit by car in crosswalk.
Still reeling after the death of one of their own, students and faculty at West High School came together for a moment of silence for Edwin Cardoso, a 14-year-old freshman who was killed after he was hit by a car while crossing the street on his way to school Wednesday morning.
A group of his closest friends sat silently after the end of classes Thursday. Their faces were somber with a residual amount of shock still left in their eyes. Some smiled as they remembered Edwin and who he was — a good person who enjoyed being with his friends. As the classrooms began to empty and more students started streaming into the halls, this core group of friends soon found themselves the focal point of a growing circle. They embraced, they sobbed, they thought about Edwin’s family.
http://goo.gl/BzE1c (SLT)
Boy with burn scars gets visit from West Valley firefighters Fire safety » Firefighters befriend young boy to combat the social stigma that comes from having burn scars on his face and hands.
West Valley City • All eyes were on first-grader Mason Fackrell at Whittier Elementary on Thursday, and for once, it wasn’t because of his scars.
When Mason was 18 months old, a pan of hot cooking oil fell on him. The accident resulted in significant scarring to his face and hands.
“He gets stares all the time,” said Mason’s aunt, Aliesha Doxey. “That’s hard for a little kid, you know, [he] gets self-conscious.”
So Mason’s family asked the West Valley City Fire Department to step in and help boost the boy’s confidence. Firefighters on Thursday granted that request, visiting Mason’s school to educate the boy’s peers on fire safety. In the process, they made the 6-year-old feel more comfortable with his appearance.
http://goo.gl/ujaKC (SLT)
Park Elementary says goodbye to longtime crossing guard
SPANISH FORK — The crosswalk south of Park Elementary in Spanish Fork will never be the same again.
On Thursday morning the staff and students lined the sidewalks around the elementary school with signs and flags as Ernie Taylor, best known as Grandpa Taylor, made his final trip around the school. Taylor died on Friday in Spanish Fork and his funeral procession made a special trip around the block of Park Elementary.
http://goo.gl/TiykB (PDH)
Davis High marching band prepares for Rose Bowl Parade performance Work ethic » Students’ dedication and drive on the field spill over into other aspects of their lives.
Kaysville • It is 80 degrees outside, but huge snowflakes fly across the field and Christmas carols are being performed.
It’s all part of Davis High School Marching Band’s preparation for its upcoming performance at the 124th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif., on New Year’s Day.
http://goo.gl/0Kaji (SLT)
Obama wins! At Two Rivers High, at least …
OGDEN — The early votes are in at Two Rivers High School, and mock election polls indicate a solid lead for President Barack Obama.
Of course, many of the teen students skipped over Obama and Mitt Romney on the exit-poll form and penciled in their own names for their presidential choice.
“Maybe we should take off the write-in option,” said Bryan Hatch, who teaches social studies at Two Rivers along with teachers Amy Anderson and Annette Pham.
http://goo.gl/u0m6N (OSE)
Alpine district plans to continue space center program
PLEASANT GROVE — The Alpine School District has been inundated with phone calls and emails since it announced on Oct. 24 that it’s closing the Christa McAuliffe Space Education Center because of concerns for student safety and upgrade costs.
Several former students, volunteers and center staff said they were alarmed to find out the program was closed permanently. According to Rhonda Bromley, Alpine district spokeswoman, the district has every intention of preserving the program.
http://goo.gl/EBfbu (PDH)
Comments sought on school calendar
FARMINGTON — Davis School District is seeking comments on three proposed calendar options for the 2012-13 school year.
Each option includes a two-day fall recess, three-day Thanksgiving recess, and winter recess beginning Dec. 21.
http://goo.gl/z2iy1 (OSE)
Local students volunteer for Haunted Cave project Event a fundraiser for School District Foundation
More than 50 students from local high schools have volunteered their time to host a Haunted Cave in Washington City, a fundraiser for the Washington County School District Foundation.
The foundation reached out to local high school principals in July asking for student volunteers to create sets and act in the Haunted Cave. This is the inaugural year for the event.
http://goo.gl/9cjSm (SGS)
First school ‘snow day’ comes early to Utah
MORGAN, Utah — It’s what students hope for all winter. But in Morgan it happened in the fall. Elementary school students got their first snow day of the school year.
District officials decided to cancel classes at the two area elementary schools after upwards of eight inches of snow fell in the area. Snow plows tried to keep roads clear, but the storm proved too heavy and too fast for school buses.
http://goo.gl/zDfER (KSTU)
http://goo.gl/Niust (KTVX)
http://goo.gl/YI0nG (KNRS)
At charter schools, high enrollment, low oversight bring mixed results
Across the country, communities continue to put energy and dollars into charter schools, despite the lack of both oversight and convincing results.
http://goo.gl/XU91g (DN)
Younger Americans still opening the books
When teens pull out their cell phone it might be to read an e-book instead of a text. According to the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, 41 percent of those under 30 years old are reading e-books on their cell phone.
The report was conducted to help the library and publishing world discover evolving literacy habits of those 16 to 29 years old, according to the report.
http://goo.gl/sZUzt (DN)
Disabled students enjoy a day of ice skating
COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — Students with disabilities enjoyed Thursday on the ice thanks to some generous high school students.
Students at the Kauri Sue Hamilton School, a center-based school for students with significant disabilities, participated in Wheelchairz on Ice, which was created by Skyline High School students Deo and Marianne Newell. The service project gave the Hamilton School students the experience of ice skating at no cost to the school, the students or their families.
http://goo.gl/SdMbF (DN)
Boys win bike, helmet for safe walking practices
Jordan Buck, a seventh-grader at Lehi Jr. High, appeared shocked Wednesday when he received a new bike and helmet just for walking to school.
Buck was chosen from more than 7,000 other students from throughout the state who participated in UDOT’s Student Neighborhood Access Program annual Walk More in Four challenge.
http://goo.gl/P6oxH (PDH)
Daily Herald wins award for providing resource to students
Five members of the Daily Herald staff won top honors in innovation Thursday for Student News, an effort in 2012 to rethink the way news is used by students in the classroom.
It is the second innovation prize for the Herald in the past two years and one of only a handful awarded in various categories by parent company Lee Enterprises in its 2012 President’s Awards, an annual competition that is judged independently. The awards recognize a person or team at a Lee property for creating or advancing an idea that has helped better serve the community.
Student News is an online approach that reinvents the Daily Herald’s Newspapers in Education program, providing lesson materials, local sports and other content written especially for classrooms. It includes topics ranging from bullying to government and health.
http://goo.gl/ve78Q (PDH)
————————————————————
OPINION & COMMENTARY
————————————————————
Is Mia Love part of the 47 percent?
Salt Lake Tribune commentary by columnist Paul Rolly
Fourth Congressional District candidate Mia Love has said throughout her campaign that she knows how to save money.
Recently, she proved it.
A few days before the Utah Education Association convention last week, Love’s campaign contacted the UEA about having a booth in the exhibit hall. The association forwarded the registration information to the campaign, but never heard back.
On Friday, during the convention, Love showed up with T-shirts and campaign pins in hand. Her staff proceeded to hand out the campaign items inside the hall, which was a violation of the rules. When asked to stop, she gave the campaign items to a trampoline vendor — Waithouse Trampoline Park of Park City — who had a booth inside the show, which also violated the rules since vendors agree only to display items identified on their contract.
Convention coordinators told the trampoline vendor to stick with its own promotion materials. But the vendor insisted it was his right of “free speech” to distribute Love campaign items. Love continued to canvass the convention hall, speaking to vendors and attendees.
Love spokesperson Alisia Essig said the plan all along was to have the trampoline vendor, a supporter, hand out the materials, so it wasn’t necessary to buy a booth. She said Love paid for her own admission to the convention so she could mingle.
“She loves teachers,” Essig said.
Meanwhile, Love’s opponent, Congressman Jim Matheson, paid the $455 to purchase a booth, which was staffed for the duration of the convention.
http://goo.gl/ZqIBj
GOP apology tour?
Salt Lake Tribune commentary by columnist Paul Rolly
The Utah Republican Party has sent out yet another mailer giving voters a reason to vote against Republican legislative candidates.
I’ve already written about GOP-sponsored mailers slamming Democratic legislators for taking hotel reimbursements that they don’t need, even though every Republican but one did the same thing. And I’ve written about a GOP-endorsed mailer slamming a Democratic legislator for an adverse property tax law that was sponsored and passed by Republicans.
Now, a GOP-funded mailer on behalf of Republican candidate Christy Achziger slams Democratic Rep. Tim Cosgrove of Murray for the dismal funding the Republican-dominated Legislature has given to public education over the years.
At least the state GOP is consistent.
http://goo.gl/ZqIBj
Public Lands: Utah Pursues Balanced, Win-Win Approach Utah Policy commentary by Utah Lt. Gov. Greg Bell
The pending ballot proposal in Arizona claiming jurisdiction over the air, wildlife and minerals within the state’s borders is the latest manifestation of a growing frustration many westerners feel at being prevented from governing the places they inhabit. While Utahns can certainly sympathize and understand the sense of bureaucratic paternalism felt by our Arizona neighbors at having a majority of their state managed by a distant landlord, Utah has undertaken a different path to achieve our shared objectives. For example, in Utah, we do not claim state control over our National Parks or over congressionally designated wilderness areas. We believe that Zion, Arches, and other areas of national significance should remain under federal control.
Utah’s participation in the proper management of its lands and resources is very limited today, because nearly two-thirds of our state’s land is controlled by the federal government, which has imposed its agenda on western states and dictates local land management. Slowly but surely, the national government has lost its ability to effectively manage the West in a way that assures access and balanced management; let alone the sustainability of western communities. Simply put, as our national government becomes more cumbersome and increasingly gridlocked in bureaucracy, it can no longer properly care for the vast spaces, resources, and unique ecosystems in the West.
http://goo.gl/MaBKQ
Sex education is a parental responsibility Deseret News op-ed by Sen. Stuart C. Reid
During this year’s legislative session, there was considerable debate over sex education in Utah schools. The issues debated covered many ongoing concerns, including whether sex education should be offered in schools at all, “abstinence-only” should be taught, instruction on contraception should be allowed, “opt-out” of sex-education should be permitted and what kind of human sexuality should be taught. Legislation was proposed, passed and then vetoed by the Governor. As these issues were argued, parental responsibility was not focused on or advanced.
There is really nothing new in the sex education debate. In one form or another similar debates have been ongoing since the early 1960s, when sex education was initiated at the dawn of the so-called “sexual revolution” — a revolution that continues today with all of its consequences. Some have described the sexual revolution as the enlightenment of a new morality for society, while others identify it as nothing more or less than the old immorality.
Nonetheless, with the advent of the sexual revolution, government determined that parents were ill-equipped to manage the sexual education of their own children in their homes. Since then, many parents have conceded the point by fully abdicating the responsibility for sex education to the government. Not surprisingly then, the recent round of debates ended with the popular notion of maintaining the government controlled, sex education status quo.
http://goo.gl/BEsBb
Bursting the administrative bubble
Deseret News commentary by columnist Mary McConnell
Several blog readers have responded grumpily to my posts suggesting that states might be better off investing incremental education dollars in raising teacher salaries rather than hiring more teachers. Fair enough. But one point many of us have agreed on is that too much of the education budget has gone to hiring more and more administrators. I’ve linked to at least one study that supports this point. Now I’ve got much better ammunition!
http://goo.gl/6BfHq
Digital learning summit: How ‘blended learning’ works Sutherland Institute commentary by editor Pamela Whitmore
Blended learning is an education strategy that combines aspects of digital learning and a more traditional school setting. It offers superb flexibility and high quality to students who use it.
And it’s happening right now in Utah’s public school system.
Utah’s Digital Learning Summit in Salt Lake City earlier this month focused on “blended learning,” which was defined as this:
http://goo.gl/8KhQs
Why Was “Education” the Answer to Every Debate Question?
Obama’s education campaign puts Romney on the defensive.
Slate commentary by Sarah Butrymowicz, a staff writer at The Hechinger Report
In the final moments of the third presidential debate, a somewhat exasperated moderator, Bob Schieffer, tried to regain control of a conversation that had veered wildly off topic. The original question was about China’s currency manipulation, but after some back and forth, Republican nominee Mitt Romney was once again explaining why, despite his love of teachers, he doesn’t think hiring more of them would help the economy.
“I think we all love teachers,” Schieffer interjected.
It wasn’t the only time the candidates strayed from foreign policy—the topic of the debate—to American classrooms. Earlier in the night, President Obama had steered a discussion about America’s role in the world to his education policies, saying “We didn’t have a lot of chance to talk about this in the last debate.”
In fact, both Obama and Romney returned to education again and again in all three debates—often in response to questions that had little to do with the topic. The surge of interest in education in the final weeks of the campaign, including campaign ads that attack Romney’s views on class size and sidetracked answers during debates, follows months in which both candidates mostly ignored the subject. Education’s sudden popularity has to do mainly with Obama, who has pounced on it as a way to draw a contrast between himself and Romney on the most important issue in the campaign—the economy.
http://goo.gl/ft7kL
————————————————————-
NATIONAL NEWS
————————————————————-
Teen Takes Educators to Twitter School
Mashable
Fifteen-year-old Adora Svitak knows students nowadays “live, work and play” social media.
“We’re used to the characteristics of social media: participation, connection, instant gratification,” she tells Mashable, “and when school doesn’t offer the same, it’s easy to tune out.”
To help more educators learn about the benefits of using social media in the classroom, Adora recently taught nearly 3,000 teachers, principals and administrators how to implement Twitter and Facebook into their lives.
http://goo.gl/QRVTG
National Board Seeks to Boost Its Impact on Teaching Profession Education Week
At a time of competing pressures around teacher evaluation and career development, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, which provides an advanced certification for educators, is retooling itself in an effort to increase its influence in the field, according to officials with the organization.
The process may ultimately result in significant changes to the group’s flagship certification program, including streamlined procedures, tie-ins to the Common Core State Standards, and integration of student-achievement measures. Also under development is a separate teacher-leader endorsement for educators who are no longer in traditional classroom roles.
http://goo.gl/xeWd2
Oklahoma education board decides to press ahead with school report card calculations Tulsa World
OKLAHOMA CITY – Superintendents who opposed the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s calculation methods for school report cards were left scratching their heads Thursday after the state Board of Education did an about-face after having heeded their concerns only three weeks earlier.
At a Thursday morning meeting, the board voted unanimously to approve the first school report cards based on a controversial method of calculating average student growth – the bar against which all schools are measured for nearly 20 percent of their grade.
Many board members expressed frustration with the recent criticism lodged by school superintendents against the Oklahoma State Department of Education, as well as a desire to move forward with the grading system, even though they acknowledged that it likely is flawed.
http://goo.gl/ZjqIf
Charter school spent more on principal than teachers, students Orlando (FL) Sentinel
An Orange County charter school that gave its principal a $519,000 departure payout was an academic failure that struggled to provide its students with basic materials and qualified teachers, an evaluation by the school district shows.
In 2011-12, NorthStar High School’s directors paid Principal Kelly Young more than twice as much money as they spent on the school’s educational program.
Including her annual salary, bonuses and payout, Young took home at least $824,000 in taxpayer money that year, not including payments she continues to receive for winding down the school’s operations.
By comparison, the school spent $366,042 on instruction, including teacher salaries, last school year, according to an audit paid for by the school.
http://goo.gl/mXQ6L
High School Teacher Lesson Plans Go Open Source Educators can download free teaching materials and get paid to share their lessons.
U.S. News & World Report
Teachers can share lesson plans with colleagues nationwide using sites such as Share My Lesson.
For a high school French teacher looking for a creative approach to verb conjugation, new lesson plans are only a website away. The same is true for a biology teacher covering a unit on mammals, or a history teacher trying to spice up a lesson on the Gettysburg Address.
Educators are beginning to embrace the type of open source content championed by software programmers by sharing their expertise online: lesson plans, classroom activities, and homework assignments.
http://goo.gl/tJZhS
————————————————————
CALENDAR
————————————————————
USOE Calendar
http://tinyurl.com/5x9oh9
UEN News
http://www.uen.org
November 1-2:
Utah State Board of Education meeting
250 E. 500 South, Salt Lake City
http://www.schools.utah.gov/board/Meetings/Agenda.aspx
November 8:
Utah State Charter School Board meeting
250 E. 500 South, Salt Lake City
http://1.usa.gov/Axtt5K
November 13:
Executive Appropriations Interim Committee meeting
1 p.m., 445 State Capitol
http://www.le.utah.gov/Interim/2012/html/00002224.htm
November 14:
Education Interim Committee meeting
2 p.m., 30 House Building
http://le.utah.gov/asp/interim/Commit.asp?Year=2012&Com=INTEDU
Recent Comments