| Board of Education Meeting; March 6, 2006 Your thoughts | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 5 2006, 11:27 AM (7,539 Views) | |
| Administrator | Mar 9 2006, 10:58 AM Post #151 |
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Administrator
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This research suggests that large impersonal schools are not the place for kids. It is based on Junior High (Typically 6-8). I think it further supports the reasoning why we should not put our 5th graders in large impersonal schools. And more http://www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/10/c020.html Many educators past and present have argued for large schools on grounds of curriculum quality. Following James Conant's original line of reasoning, they argue that larger schools can offer more numerous and more varied curricular offerings than small schools can. Therefore, goes the argument, operating small schools with more limited curricula is unfair to the students who attend them. While this has a certain common sense appeal, examination of the research reveals that there simply is no reliable relationship between school size and curriculum quality (Fowler and Walberg 1991; Gregory 1992; Howley 1994, 1996; McGuire 1989; Melnick, et al. 1986; Monk 1987, 1992; Monk and Haller 1993; Nachtigal 1992; Pittman and Haughwout 1987; Rogers 1987; Williams 1990). For one thing, researchers have found that "it takes a lot of bigness to add a little variety"—that is, "on the average a 100% increase in enrollment yields only a 17% increase in variety of offerings" (Pittman and Haughwout, 337). Moreover, "[t]he strength of the relationship between school size and curricular offerings diminishes as schools become larger. Increases in the size of very small schools are associated with greater curricular gains than increases in the size of larger schools" (Monk 1992). For another thing, researchers have found that the allegedly richer curriculum that larger schools are able to support tend to be made up, not of higher-level courses in, say, math or foreign languages, but rather of additional introductory courses in non-core areas. For still another, investigators have found that only five to twelve percent of the students in large schools avail themselves of the extra courses these schools typically offer (McGuire 1989; Monk 1992; Rogers 1987). Finally, Monk, in his 1987 study of the size-curriculum relationship, concludes that, "it is possible to offer at the 400 pupil level a curriculum that compares quite favorably in terms of breadth and depth with curriculums offered in much larger settings" (27). Beyond these findings, the development and use of distance learning and other technologies in isolated settings is increasing and can be expected to further ameliorate curriculum inequalities. |
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| NFarquharson | Mar 9 2006, 11:14 AM Post #152 |
Principal
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Part time data entry clerks (if needed) are much cheaper than administrators. |
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| me3D | Mar 9 2006, 11:17 AM Post #153 |
6th Grade
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but how many would you need?? We have 3 high schools and we want to see it in middle and elementary too?? Again I ask please be patient with me as I'm torn in so many directions. |
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| NFarquharson | Mar 9 2006, 11:19 AM Post #154 |
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Principal
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Of course our children are the first priority, but none of us wants to see teachers cut. We should look EVERYWHERE else for savings first. That being said, if the LI moves forward and many people pull there children out of LPS and into private school or move away, teachers will likely be cut. Even if no one moves or puts their kids in private school, having larger schools give them the ability to better balance the numbers in each classroom, which still may lead to teachers being cut. That is just reality. The idea that the LI somehow saves more teacher positions is faulty in my opinion. Smaller schools save more teacher postions! |
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| NFarquharson | Mar 9 2006, 11:24 AM Post #155 |
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Principal
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Honestly I have no idea. I was just trying to show that there are many ways to get work done. If we have teachers or administrators spending hours entering data, it may not be the best use of their time. Teachers should be focusing on what happens in the classroom. Someone else with far less education and a far lower rate of pay can enter grades into a data base. I'm sure it could be worked out. |
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| cmic | Mar 9 2006, 11:45 AM Post #156 |
Principal
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Boy would I love that!!!!!! Now that I could support! LOL |
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| Grant1 | Mar 9 2006, 11:46 AM Post #157 |
We have just begun to fight!
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one option - student admin assistants already perform some tasks another option - be smart, explore applications that are integrated to the spreadsheets the teachers currently use to maintain for grading/tracking and link to a product like pinnacle viewer...let it "read" exactly what the teachers already maintain, why do things twice? |
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| NFarquharson | Mar 9 2006, 11:55 AM Post #158 |
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Principal
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Right on, brother! |
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| insupport | Mar 9 2006, 12:02 PM Post #159 |
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Principal
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Regarding student assistants This is no longer an option at the middle schools since last year. The state no longer accepts this for credit or something like that. Does anyone know if this is true for highschool or not? I went to the orientation for Churchill but I don't remember this coming up. Sorry this is a little off topic but I thought someone might know the answer to this. |
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| TigerMom | Mar 9 2006, 12:18 PM Post #160 |
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Principal
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Not fact...just an educated guess. CHS currently has several student assistance. They work in the attendance office, answer phones, write passes. I believe there is a least a few student assistants in the main office and I know of at least 3 teachers that SA's this semester. With this many students choosing this option, they must get some kind of credit...although probably not a letter grade....just credit/no credit. I logged-on to the Parent Internet Viewer for the first time and saw that an excused absence was incorrectly marked as unexcused. After making a phone call, it was taken care of in literally less than 2 seconds. Love that technology. For those of you with no HS students, when you call in your student's absence you are given a confirmation #. If you keep that # on your calendar, you always have proof of the call. As for the need to hire data entry people to input teacher data....I sincerely doubt that is a necessity but perhaps one of the teachers that posts here and has stated they use a similar program in their school district could comment. As with anything, start-up will take time and the more organized teacher will have an easier time of it. But my current understanding, at least at CHS, is that there is no set time for how often a teacher updates their web grade book. It may only be every 2 weeks. Although it would be great if it could be daily, I doubt that will happen at the HS level. Some teachers take over 2 weeks just to grade and return large assignments. 
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| DTEDad | Mar 9 2006, 12:43 PM Post #161 |
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5th Grade
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It would NOT be appropriate for student assistants to enter other students grades! That information is personal between the teacher, the student, and the parents. As Grant1 stated, a properly written software program could very easily incorporate the one task of recording grades into the formats for both the teacher records AND pinnacle viewer type records. How often do they test or need to do this entry? Once a week? Write it in the book, log it into the efile... the software does the rest. This is certainly less work for teachers than answering 30 emails about kids from their parents. as some have suggested they should do. |
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| Grant1 | Mar 9 2006, 01:30 PM Post #162 |
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We have just begun to fight!
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...a properly written software program could very easily incorporate the one task of recording grades into the formats for both the teacher records AND pinnacle viewer type records. How often do they test or need to do this entry? Once a week? Write it in the book, log it into the efile... the software does the rest. Challenge the students with gradeable projects that help develop these technologies. Work Smarter - Not Harder |
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| Cindi | Mar 9 2006, 05:31 PM Post #163 |
Principal
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I have not seen the actual sites where teachers can log the grades etc in the computer, but I question, where do they log it now? Is it in a book? Why does it take anymore time to log it in the computer and parents have access to it? I log almost everything on my computer. My entire checkbook is logged into the computer. It is quicker and more efficient. I might be missing a large portion of this picture? |
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| Cindi | Mar 9 2006, 05:40 PM Post #164 |
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Principal
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There are a total of 84 student service people employed by LPS this year. |
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| NFarquharson | Mar 9 2006, 06:40 PM Post #165 |
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Principal
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I think that includes social workers, psychologists, speech pathologists, etc. It's not students per se, be people who provide services to students. |
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