AntiBVBL

Good news!  I just received the following from Delegate Jackson  Miller:

Today, Governor Bob McDonnell announced that he will undo the freeze to the Local Composite Index that former Governor Tim Kaine proposed before he left office.  Prince William County, Manassas City, and Manassas Park City Schools would have suffered greatly had he not made this bold move in support of our schools throughout the Commonwealth.  I applaud Governor McDonnell for his leadership and thank him on behalf of our community. 

Below is the press release from the Governor’s office: 

 

Anne Frank

Apparently Anne Frank  is not welcome in Culpeper County Schools.  In fact, this version  of Anne Frank,  ”The Diary of a Young Girl: the Definitive Edition,” has been banned from being taught in the classroom, based on the complaint of one parent.  Culpeper County Public Schools, like most school systems, has a process by which books with complaints are screened and evaluated.  The process was not followed in this case. 

According to the Washington Post:

“The Diary of a Young Girl: the Definitive Edition,” which was published on the 50th anniversary of Frank’s death in a concentration camp, will not be used in the future, said James Allen, director of instruction for the 7,600-student system. The school system did not follow its own policy for handling complaints about instructional materials, Allen said.

The diary documents the daily life of a Jewish girl in Amsterdam during World War II. Frank started writing on her 13th birthday, shortly before her family went into hiding in an annex of an office building. The version of the diary in question includes passages previously excluded from the widely read original edition, first published in Dutch in 1947. That book was arranged by her father, the only survivor in her immediate family. Some of the extra passages detail her emerging sexual desires; others include unflattering descriptions of her mother and other people living together.

Allen said that the more recent version will remain in the school library and that the earlier version will be used in classes. The 1955 play based on Frank’s experiences also has been a part of the eighth-grade curriculum for many years. The diary’s “universal theme, that there is good in everyone, resonates with these kids,” Allen said.

The Washington Post was able to outline the complaint process that normally takes place:

Culpeper’s policy on “public complaints about learning resources” calls for complaints to be submitted in writing and for a review committee to research the materials and deliberate, Allen said. In this case, the policy was not followed. Allen said the parent registered the complaint orally, no review committee was created and a decision was made quickly by at least one school administrator. He said he is uncertain about the details because he was out of town.

“The person came in, and the decision was made that day . . . and that’s fine. We would like to have had it in writing. It just did not happen,” Allen said.

 

Why would an administrator not follow county policy and make such a determination for the entire county?  Why doesn’t the director of  instruction immediately override the wimpy principals and put the book through the normal complaint process?  The Diary of Anne Frank has been read by more people than any  book other than the bible.  according to some sources.    It has been translated into many multiple  languages.  Very few complaints have been lodged against it. 

In most cases, parents who are uncomfortable with teaching materials are allowed to remove their child from being taught the  material in question or alternate materials are selected.  Why would one parent be allowed to make learning decisions for everyone else’s child in the county.  Culpeper County needs to re-evaluate this decision and follow its own rules.

For several decades, Virginia has used a  formula called the  local composite index (LCI) to  ensure that very poor localities had the funds to operate their school systems and that all children in Virginia had a shot at an equal education.  Basically the formula directs revenues  from wealthier areas into poorer districts.  Because situations change, the LCI is calculated yearly. 

From Del. Dave Albo’s website:

School funding in the Commonwealth of Virginia is determined by the Local Composite Index, or LCI.  The LCI is a result of a Supreme Court of Virginia ruling which stated that the Virginia Constitution requires all children to receive, to the extent practicable, and equivalent education.  Thus, the Court ruled that some funding formula must be used to direct money to areas that can’t afford to educate children. (The Court did not say what the formula has to be only that some redistribution must occur). Consequently, the purpose of the LCI is to ensure less affluent localities are able to provide for their students. The LCI is a figure that determines how much a school system must pay for its own basic education. (“Basic Education” is a set of minimum standards. For example, math must be taught, but band does not.)  The LCI, has a cap of .8000 (a locality must pay 80% of its own basic education) but has no minimum. Only 27 out of 136 schools are required to pay more than 50% of their basic education (e.g. have above a .5000 LCI).

The LCI is calculated through a complicated formula. The formula attempts to determine which school systems can afford to may more of their own basic education, and which systems cannot afford to pay. In determining who can pay, a formula has been developed which considers a bunch of different variables.

So what’s the problem? The LCI is changed yearly because conditions change. Governor Kaine placed a freeze until 2012 on recalculating LCI. Governor McDonnell is considering upholding this freeze. Northern Virginians are having a fit because it was hit harder than the rest of the state by foreclosures and a deflated housing market. They will lose millions on the old plan:

According to the Dixie Pig blog (Delegate Scott Surovell’s blog) the Northern Virginia School losses from not adjusting the formula this year  are as in the millions.  According to Delegate Surovell:

McDonnell’s office confirmed Friday that he would uphold the freeze implemented by Kaine. The outgoing governor proposed freezing the index until the 2012 fiscal year. He theorized that this would protect 97 school divisions that would lose money if the formula were re-calculated. McDonnell Freezes School Funding Formula, The Virginia Gazette (Jan. 25, 2010).

Yesterday, Governor McDonnell who campaigned on the idea that he was from Mt. Vernon and understood Northern Virginia’s needs confirmed that he is going to affirm this policy decision, not just for one year but at least until 2012.

This decision is a breach of the state’s responsibility to Northern Virginia’s children. Here are the top six affected jurisdictions according to the numbers I was given yesterday.

Fairfax County	$61 Million
Loudoun County	$34 Million
Prince William County	$22 Million
Stafford County	$4.5 Million
Fauquier County	$4.3 Million
Manassas City	$3.1 Million
TOTAL	$128 Million

 Northern Virginians are furious as well they should be.  They will have to make up the deficits and jurisdictions are already strapped.  It appears that we have been sold out by 2 governors.  So much for either Kaine or McDonnell being education governors.  And regardless of where he is from, Governor McDonnell obviously does not understand the educational problems of his own county.  According to Del. Surovell in an update, the new total is a $144 million dollar shortfall.  I hope Prince William and City of Manassas are prepared for 40 kids per class.  That number definitely is not considered ‘best practice.’ 

Northern Virginians should contact their delegate and senator immediately to require the  LCI formula to be recalulated as it is supposed to be.  This issue is definitely bipartisan.  Democrats and Republicans all have kids. So do Independents. 

A big thanks to Poor Richard for bringing  the Local Composite Index freeze to my attention and for providing background information.

[Ed. Note:  The LCI is calculated every TWO years rather than one as stated above.]

There is both good news and bad news on the gang front.  The bad news is that gangs are creeping down into middle schools and they have become the new epicenters for gang recruitment as well as gang activity.  Middle schoolers are typically aged 11-15. 

The good news is that gang activity and crime have dropped since 2004.  In 2007, gang offenses in public schools were down 37%.   Much of the good news is attributed to the efforts of the Northern Virginia Gang Task Force.

In releasing the Northern Virginia Comprehensive Gang Assessment, a study of the region’s gang activity from 2003 to 2008, officials emphasized that although middle school gang activity is a concern, gangs are less of a problem in Northern Virginia and its schools than they are elsewhere. They credited the task force and a strong regional economy.

Read more…

You Can Run But You Cannot Hide is the name of a punk rock anti drug group who organizes strong anti-drug motivational programs in high schools.  Many school administrators have taken a great deal of heat from parents and the higher ups because this group is not quite honest about who they are.  They are also not very transparent about their evangelical nature.  Once they get into a school program some things have gone down that are not supposed to be happening with a captive audience. 

According to the Minnesota Independent News:

“They talked about influencing and brainwashing people. Be wise to the fact that is what they were doing. They were using the same tactics,” Neis told the students at the assembly. Neis said he contacted other schools in the area and found that they had no idea that YCRBYCH was a Christian ministry.

In 2005, at a Eureka Springs, Ark., high school, students walked out of the assembly; afterward, the principal took heat from parents. According to the local paper, The Lovely Citizen, Eureka Springs superintendent Reck Wallis, said, “I take responsibility. We had no idea about their religious, right-wing message. They misrepresented their program. We want [Eureka Springs schools] to be open and all inclusive. … They won’t be back.”

At Pequot Lakes High School in central Minnesota in 2007, the group stirred controversy when students reportedly ran out of the assembly crying after the group showed graphic images of abortion and told the students that God wanted women to be subservient to men. John McDonald, Pequot Lakes High School Principal, told WCCO, “We were expecting something a bit different,” he said. “The thing we apologized to students for is the program wasn’t to the expectation that we thought it would be.”

This entire business sounds deceptive and it should not be going on in schools as it involves a captive audience and smacks of indoctrination. Michelle Bachmann should know better! She should know the laws of this country and follow them if she is going to remain in the House of Representatives. She would be the very first person to be stridently shrieking “Rule of Law!”

Full Story

Michelle Ammons is furious.  Her 16 year old son, a student at Breckinridge County High School in Kentucky,  was taken to a church on a school bus by the head football coach,  and he was baptised, without her permission or knowledge.  About 20 players were on this field trip and about half were baptised. 

The school superintendent  Janet Meeks was there at the service (it was her church) and did not object to school property being used or the field trip.  Supposedly, it was ok because another coach paid for the gas. 

Read more…

President Obama’s text from the speech he is giving to America’s school children, from Wakefield High School in Arlington, VA has been posted at whitehouse.gov. The entire speech can be found HERE.

Here is an excerpt from his speech:

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.
And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.

Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.

Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.

And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.

I orginially posted the speech. It was just too long, so I went back and linked to it. Please take the time to read it, especially if you have children in school. I can’t think of a better message to give to any kid on that first day.

It is the first day of school that really sets the stage for those other 180 days. If you miss the first day, its like buttoning up your shirt not matching the right button with the right button hole. You have missed the beginning.

I applaud President Obama for taking the time to welcome the kids back to school and for acknowledging the importance of doing well. The first day of school is the best time for such an address. In my opinion, he hit a homerun with this one.

ENTIRE SPEECH

The speech reportly lasts around 18 minutes.

Glenn Beck should be baying at the moon by 5 pm on Tuesday, September 8. Apparently he plans an hour long show dedicated to the endoctrination of America’s school children. He feels our republic is under attack:

To help us interpret all this insanity, perhaps its time for a good laugh from Keith Olbermann, who I rarely watch. The only thing left to do is laugh. There is no chance of reason here.

The sad thing is, too many people cannot think for themselves and rely on Beck, Hannity, and Limbaugh for their political foundation. Perhaps they would be better off with O’Reilly. He at least is a scholar and on occassion make sense. The others are third rate actors.

Actually, cyber bullying was already here.  Whatever happened to the good old days where the bullies just made everyone’s life miserable on the playground? 

Area schools and parent-teacher organizations are meeting to discuss the growing trend of cyber bullying where children and teens use computers, hand-held devices, cell phones and blackberries to harass torture and embarrass their peers. 

Apparently the problem is so epidemic that PW County Schools plan to include cyber bullying in the Code of Behavior.  Regular bullying is already a point of emphasis.  In the past few years, schools have become increasingly sensitive to the harmful affects of bullying.  Deputy Superintendent Rae Darlington has been a champion of the anti-bullying programs that already exist in the county.   

According to the News and Messenger:

The suggested changes to the Code of Behavior, which the School Board reviews and updates annually, would expand the definition of bullying to say that “cyber bullying, the intentional and/or repeated harm of others through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic or technological devices, is strictly forbidden.”

Clarice Torian, Director of Student Services for Prince William County Schools recently told the school board:

“The suggested additions to the code of behavior would apply to student behavior in school, and outside of school if the behavior impacts the school environment.”

News and Messenger also reports:

According to a study by criminology professors Sameer Hinduja and Justin Patchin, who started the Web site http://www.cyberbullying.us, 9.4 percent of middle schoolers reported being recent victims of cyberbullying and 17.3 percent reported being victims at some point in their lives.

The study also said that 8.2 percent of middle schoolers reported being recent cyber bullies themselves and 17.6 percent reported being cyber bullies at some point in their lives.

According to the study, some examples of cyber bullying are sending harassing e-mails or instant messages, posting insulting or slanderous things on online bulletin boards or social networking sites.

Does this behavior stop at adolescence?  Is this something kids outgrow or is it something we continue to see way into adulthood?  Certainly those of us who have traveled about the blogosphere are quite familiar with bullying.  Additionally, those of us who have dealt with political issues are certainly familiar with some of the bully tactics that are used in against the ‘enemy.’

What is adult cyber bullying?  Would those who bully do so on the playground or is the anonymity of a computer what brings out this disturbing behavior?  How does it manifest itself in the blogosphere?  The chat rooms?  Emails?

Over the weekend, let’s take a look at examples of cyber bullying as it relates to blogging and politics.  I am sure many of us have a story to tell. 

On September 30th, the County did a final head count of their student population only to discover that any supposed ’savings’ based on Chairman Stewart’s and Supervisor Stirrup’s ‘Immigration Resolution’ will be neglible AND now because of that miscalculation we are short millions of dollars in our school budget!

Update: According to the School system, they will be able to adjust their budget and all students will continue to receive the same level of services.

Here are the numbers from the Prince William County Schools.

Per your request, here’s the ESOL information from our Sept. 30, 2008 student enrollment count of 73,657:

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) 14.8% funded [ie receiving direct instruction]; 17.8% Total ESOL

Regarding the English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) student enrollment: Total School Division enrollment increased from Sept 30, 2007 to Sept 30, 2008 by 1,003 students for a revised total of 73,657 (336 over projection). During the same period, total ESOL student enrollment decreased from 13,409 to 13,130 or 279 students. Please note that the number of ESOL students classified in a “monitor” status and whom are monitored, but otherwise do not receive direct services decreased from 2,203 to 2,201 for a reduction of 2 students. The number of ESOL students receiving direct instructional services decreased from 11,206 to 10,929 for a decrease of 277 students.

However, it is important to note that during the FY 2009 budget process, the School Division base budget was reduced to reflect the decreases in student enrollment (and associated costs), including students receiving ESOL services, that were realized during the last school year. The September 30, 2008 actual enrollment for ESOL of 13,130, is 527 students greater than the 12,603 students included in the FY 2009 Approved Budget. The number of ESOL students receiving direct instructional services increased from 10,400 to 10,929 for an increase of 529 students. The School Division must now address the additional cost of these 529 ESOL students, without a commensurate increase in County funding.

Please contact me if I can be of additional assistance.

Note: The emphasis in the last paragraph is mine and did not come from the County.

How SOLs and AYP Work
Contributed by Guest Poster DB

SOL scores and AYP pass rates were made public at the end of August, and there have been many articles in various newspapers about which schools in our area made, or did not make AYP. AYP, or Annual Yearly Progress is how the federal government measures a school’s performance of the No Child Left Behind standards.

Understandably, AYP causes some confusion among those who do not work in the school system. This is how it works. Each year, students in certain grades take the Virginia SOL tests which are designed to measure how the students are progressing in the areas of English (Reading), Math, Writing, Social Studies, and Science. The state of Virginia looks at how the students perform on all of the tests. For AYP purposes, the federal government looks at ONLY the Math and English scores. The state of Virginia looks at the total pass rate for each test at each grade level. When it comes to AYP, the federal government does NOT look at the total pass rate for all students, but breaks the test scores into categories, and looks at the pass rate in EACH category.

If a school has students that fail in certain categories, the school does not meet AYP. The student population of every school is broken down into the following AYP categories: black, Hispanic, white, students with disabilities (i.e. an LD student with an IEP), disadvantaged students (those who receive free or reduced lunch), and LEP students (those considered to be ESOL). It is possible for a student to represent more than one category. A white student who receives free lunch will have his/her test scores counted in two categories: white and disadvantaged. A black student with an IEP who receives reduced lunch will have his/her scores counted in three categories: black, students with disabilities, and disadvantaged. So it is possible for schools to have students that pass or fail in more than one category.

Here is an example of one Manassas City elementary school’s test rates. The school is Baldwin. It is a K-4, Title I school which means that a high percentage of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch, and it has a medium- sized ESOL population. The overall pass rate for the English SOL was 77%; the pass rate for Math was 84%. Not too bad when you look at the total pass rates. In order to make AYP, a school must have a pass rate of 75% in Math and 77% in English. Looking at the overall pass rate, one would think that Baldwin made the cut. But once the scores were examined in the AYP categories, Baldwin did not make AYP because they did not achieve the 75% and 77% pass rate in each and every category:

Pass rates by category in English: black 66%, Hispanic 74%, white 91%, students with disabilities 68%, disadvantaged students 66%, and LEP students 68%.

Pass rates by category in Math: black 69%, Hispanic 81%, white 96%, students with disabilities 71%, disadvantaged students 77% and LEP students 80%.

When a school does not make AYP, the blame game often follows. It’s the fault of the ESOL students, or the teachers, or the curriculum, or the principal etc. It is important to remember that the students who take the test each year are different. Those who took the 3rd grade SOLS last year, are not the same as the students who took it the year before. It is also important to note that the SOL tests change every year. The test questions on the 07-08 SOL tests were different than the year before, and the test questions on this school year’s tests will be different as well. Another important piece of information to consider is that a school’s SOL or AYP scores do not include cohort data.

There is no data that considers those students who have attended an elementary school from K to grade three. Likewise, there is no data on students who have moved through 4 or 5 schools before even getting to third grade. There are many schools in Manassas City, Manassas Park, and Prince William County that have revolving students. Though SOLs are the same through out the state, different school jurisdictions use different curriculums, and not all of their Scope and Sequences (what you teach, and when you teach it) will match.

Does an achievement gap exist among students? Absolutely. Despite years of effort by teachers and school systems, closing the gap among white, black and Hispanic students has been difficult. As the years have gone by, the achievement gap between white and Hispanic students is decreasing, yet the black students still lag behind. The Hispanic students in many cases now out perform the black students. Raising the achievement of black students is an issue that schools have struggled with in the past, and continue to struggle with today.

https://p1pe.doe.virginia.gov/reportcard/

[Editors note: there is indeed a formula that few understand, and when the formula is applied to all categories, a school can fail AYP in a specific category even if the pass rates in that category are higher than the pass rates in another category. This information illustrates how convoluted the entire AYP process is.]