tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post2100432221433186558..comments2024-03-28T02:21:17.452-07:00Comments on Seattle Schools Community Forum: Reminders and Open ThreadMelissa Westbrookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17179994245880629080noreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-24848919418198947932010-05-27T16:45:08.105-07:002010-05-27T16:45:08.105-07:00Schools to receive the grant funds are:
Sealth an...Schools to receive the grant funds are:<br /><br />Sealth and Ingraham, for IB, and RBHS and Cleveland for AP, and their respective feeder middle schools (Aki, Denny and Hamilton).<br /><br />Since Cleveland won't be offering AP the grant funds will go toward strengthening the science and math offerings.<br /><br />Grants were given (not sure if the grant required this?) to schools that had 40% or higher FRL.seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-84151914855316760042010-05-26T22:23:31.188-07:002010-05-26T22:23:31.188-07:00That is great news about the grant for AP and IB! ...That is great news about the grant for AP and IB! Hopefully it will be used wisely. Now if we could get the International schools to be option schools and to have a pathway through to High School like the AP kids have, we'd be getting somewhere!wsnorthhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03795943009142572757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-41722414795678255332010-05-26T13:00:10.930-07:002010-05-26T13:00:10.930-07:00So two of the four high schools are the IB schools...So two of the four high schools are the IB schools, Sealth and Ingraham. Do they need more IB classes?<br /><br />Does anyone know the other two high schools that will be the recipients of this grant?seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-34023655104167775732010-05-26T12:29:39.639-07:002010-05-26T12:29:39.639-07:00Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalau...<i><b>Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB)</b> courses in four high schools and three <b>middle schools</b>.</i> <br /><br />What can this mean? Do (can) any middle schools offer AP? IB doesn't even start in SPS until 11th grade. Are they rolling it down to MS, where?Maureenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18444916440000921599noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-24363508138662401922010-05-26T09:17:39.151-07:002010-05-26T09:17:39.151-07:00Here is a description of the grant from the US Dep...Here is a description of the grant from the US Dept. of Education:<br /><br />PR/Award #: S330C090065<br />Award Amount: $697,117<br />Grantee: Seattle Public Schools (WA)<br />Contact: Robert Vaughan<br /><br />Seattle Public Schools (SPS) will increase student enrollment and success in Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) courses in four high schools and three middle schools. Two of the high schools will focus primarily on the expansion of AP courses, while the remaining two high schools will focus on enhancing their implementation of the IB Diploma Program. All seven schools will work to implement foreign language programs in Chinese and Japanese. The project will align instruction and curricula from middle to high school to create articulated course pathways, provide academic coaches to enhance teachers' content knowledge, and provide academic and social supports to low-income students with the potential to succeed in advanced academic coursework. SPS will provide teachers at the high schools with four types of sustained professional development, including instructional coaching in English, math, and science; dedicated time for collaborative planning, peer observations of instruction; and attendance at AP or IB workshops.SPS momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07868844486562389924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-34870175975415961522010-05-26T09:02:53.191-07:002010-05-26T09:02:53.191-07:00The Advanced Learning office is overseeing a grant...The Advanced Learning office is overseeing a grant to increase AP offerings at specific schools - can't remember which ones.SPS momhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07868844486562389924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-58828319780744097572010-05-26T08:16:21.667-07:002010-05-26T08:16:21.667-07:00Uoxlo, I don't know whether the decision to of...Uoxlo, I don't know whether the decision to offer more AP classes will be left up to principals in the future?? Nor do I know if the Hale principal would have any say in the decision to house the APP program in the building? <br /><br />The fact is that Hale and Ingraham are the only two high schools north of the ship canal that have space. I don't think the district would house APP in Ingraham because they offer IB (I don't know if IB would work just as well as AP or not, but it would "look" inequitable to have the north APP get something different than the south APP). <br /><br />So if Hale is the only building with the space and program necessary to house APP north of the ship canal, then I don't think the principal will get much input in the decision. And if she is really opposed to it, MGJ will just transfer her.......seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-14394707116198381312010-05-26T06:54:39.653-07:002010-05-26T06:54:39.653-07:00AP-for-all sounds like the failed Honors Language ...AP-for-all sounds like the failed Honors Language Arts- for-All once offered at Garfield. Students need to learn how to meet the requirements of a college course, not simply be required to take them. However, colleges expect "top" applicants to take the most difficult courses offered at their school. <br /><br />Hale has avoided AP classes for years. The principal was opposed to offering Spectrum when she was a middle school principal. She took an active role in watering down the APP program as a member of the Highly Capable Review Committee. I would not look to Hale for an APP high school program.uxolohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01595802010492801183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-21609103950787288692010-05-25T14:07:25.445-07:002010-05-25T14:07:25.445-07:00Linda Thomas is the one who used to have a P-I blo...Linda Thomas is the one who used to have a P-I blog, right? I didn't know she was working for KIRO now. (http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=130&sid=272991) Good for her.<br /><br />Helen Schinskehschinskehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10316478950862562594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-69262457381643833462010-05-25T13:22:52.040-07:002010-05-25T13:22:52.040-07:00There is no AP American Literature, just AP Englis...There is no AP American Literature, just AP English Literature and AP Language and Composition. <br /><br />The fact that they cannot or will not tell you how many students sit for exams is telling. <br /><br />Roosevelt claimed their AP HG required for all 10th graders was a success because in the first year about 50% of the kids took the AP test. Well, up until then, about 50% of 10th graders chose to take AP Euro course, but now were not allowed to. Therefore, the 50% taking the AP HG exam shows that they really did not increase AP participation, even though the AP HG exam is demonstrably easier (Covers less material, only two hours instead of the more typical three hours, no essays, just "short answer"...)<br /><br />Some funny definition of success, if you ask me. Just like Hale calling their required for all LA classes AP seems a little funny.Dorothy Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17108759281089768738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-10016402916675085602010-05-25T12:44:46.661-07:002010-05-25T12:44:46.661-07:00Thanks for the link, Arch, but as usual, the comme...<i>Thanks for the link, Arch, but as usual, the comments following the story were pretty horrifying.</i><br /><br />Yeah, the crackpot posts for talk radio blogs are pretty depressing and off the wall - much worse than the newspaper comments. <br /><br />Mostly, I was surprised to hear them mentioning it on air this morning since most local media are mum when it comes to parents dissatisfied with SPS administration. I didn't find an audio link so I posted the blog link. <br /><br />Perhaps things are so obviously bad that the media can't continue to ignore it.ArchStantonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10746480698492983438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-29251070482918770582010-05-25T09:35:05.420-07:002010-05-25T09:35:05.420-07:00Dorothy,
I checked today and this is what I found...Dorothy,<br /><br />I checked today and this is what I found out<br /><br />At Hale:<br /><br />AP11 = American Literature<br />AP12 = Composition<br /><br />Teachers are AP qualified.<br /><br />I'm sure they know, however, nobody could tell me how many or what percent of kids take the AP exams.seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-28792645515406139522010-05-25T09:04:53.337-07:002010-05-25T09:04:53.337-07:00Thanks for the link, Arch, but as usual, the comme...Thanks for the link, Arch, but as usual, the comments following the story were pretty horrifying.<br /><br />Who knew that the problem with Dr. G-J is that she's a commie liberal intent on turning our schools into gulags to blah blah blah blah....<br /><br />Reminds me of the old Simon and Garfunkel lyric: "a man hears what he wants to hear, and disregards the rest."Josh Hayeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17242600011474990770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-36678761564783017962010-05-25T08:32:19.427-07:002010-05-25T08:32:19.427-07:00The Native American program has been evolving for ...The Native American program has been evolving for awhile now. The main thing the loss of the funding means are the two teachers who helped the students with academics. Now, the program will be more a family support/afterschool thing with a little bit of tutoring thrown in. <br /><br />I know that Hale had, back in 2006, at least 3 teachers who were eligible to teach AP History but didn't want to and that's why they have no AP History. I can't speak for teachers in other disciplines.Melissa Westbrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12588239576000641336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-62558999100401597802010-05-25T07:55:00.245-07:002010-05-25T07:55:00.245-07:00Did anyone catch that the CPPS survey on the super...Did anyone catch that the CPPS survey on the superintendent got some airtime on KIRO FM? <br /><br /><a href="http://mynw.com/?nid=646&sid=324531" rel="nofollow">Superintendent Goodloe-Johnson gets low grades from parents</a>ArchStantonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10746480698492983438noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-80811939764262622082010-05-24T22:56:28.451-07:002010-05-24T22:56:28.451-07:00I wonder if perhaps the "high school AP split...I wonder if perhaps the "high school AP split" thread should be granted its own thread? Hard to imagine someone finding it under "reminders and open thread".<br /><br />How large is the Huchoosedah program, anyway? How much room, and instructor support, does it need? Could it be salvaged by colocation with some somewhat-underenrolled school? Could it, perhaps, be housed at Marshall, for instance, which has space for rent, according to the signs out front?<br /><br />Or is it just screwed, and the kids who would benefit from it also screwed, because SPS administration screwed the pooch on getting funding lined up? This is the kind of thing the lackey press (read: Seattle Times) will never EVER report, because it makes administrators look bad. I sure hope someone reports it out anyway.Josh Hayeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17242600011474990770noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-87094429345059067902010-05-24T20:54:04.804-07:002010-05-24T20:54:04.804-07:00More questions for Hale. Have the teachers done th...More questions for Hale. Have the teachers done the AP professional development? Do Juniors take an exam? Because if only or mostly seniors take the exam, and they only take one of them, well, then they are getting the material at half the recommended pace, eh?Dorothy Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17108759281089768738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-55921024437244425142010-05-24T20:47:38.232-07:002010-05-24T20:47:38.232-07:00Ah, it is a mystery, isn't it? How can Hale ge...Ah, it is a mystery, isn't it? How can Hale get away with such a broad generalization and nothing specific on their course description to help a student and parent understand what the AP means? Wouldn't that be like a class being called AP Mathematics? How useful would that be in a course description, eh?<br /><br />When you ask for specifics, could you also please ascertain what percent of the students take the exams and what the score distribution is? Is the percent of test takers and scores more like a stand-alone true AP class where the students self select the challenge or more like the percent of kids who turn American History into AP by doing extra work?Dorothy Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17108759281089768738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-50192787658932086032010-05-24T20:40:51.337-07:002010-05-24T20:40:51.337-07:00For the middle school APP split, the emphasis was ...For the middle school APP split, the emphasis was on making sure that Hamilton had as much as Washington, but what happened for 8th grade all but one of the APP teachers went to Hamilton. Washington 8th graders definitely got the short end of that split.LGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11805460941535289584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-74458188521859027302010-05-24T20:18:30.000-07:002010-05-24T20:18:30.000-07:00Dorothy what does it mean that the college boards ...Dorothy what does it mean that the college boards don't have an LA 11 or 12 course? How can Hale say the class is AP class if it isn't an AP class? Maybe the classes are AP Lit and AP Composition and Hale just generalizes and calls them LA11 and 12?? I'll ask a counselor and report back.<br /><br />Anybody else have more info on this?seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-37602617673548668002010-05-24T19:34:55.670-07:002010-05-24T19:34:55.670-07:00I have finally realized that this district is brok...I have finally realized that this district is broken beyond repair. <br /><br />I have had the misfortune of being employed in the district and frankly as I travel between the schools and see the huge discrepancies between schools, staff and students you have to wonder if anything can be done.<br /><br />I am writing a book, a horror book, about my experiences. The bulk of the problems is of course SES of the students and the compromise of the nearby community. <br /><br />South Seattle struggles financially and their children are a reflection of it. They are angry adults and their children are equally angry. The language, the behavior, the way they treat each other and the adults creates an environment of intense stress all around. Many staff and particularly the Administrators are deeply vested in believing that any transgression, slight or issue is in the eye of the observer. Meanwhile walk into numerous classes and you see the chaos and know its far more systemic and customary than you are lead to believe. <br /><br />The north end schools with families vested in their child's school and ultimate success shows. From resources to attitudes you feel a breath of fresh air. <br /><br />No one wants to deal with the elephant in the room and the problems that largely fall to race and economics. So instead it gets swept under further attempts to move people, change programs or academics and fundamentally delay the obvious. <br /><br />I meet few, if any, decent administrators and mostly resigned if not burned out teachers in these schools. They are fueled by paranoia, frustration and FEAR. FEAR of parents who threaten lawsuits in lieu of accepting accountability. Students have by far more power than is necessary and teachers are of course the whipping boys.<br /><br />This is blame seeking and laying district. I would rather starve in the street than continue to subject myself to this insane bureaucracy of incompetence.<br /><br />The fish stinks from the head. You can start at the top of the food chain and work your way down to understand the real problems.Veronicahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10237654065130103317noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-12873661476807833792010-05-24T16:56:59.098-07:002010-05-24T16:56:59.098-07:00The College board has not curricula nor offers any...The College board has not curricula nor offers any exam in a course called LA11 or LA12.Dorothy Nevillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17108759281089768738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-76253047543738089872010-05-24T16:29:54.506-07:002010-05-24T16:29:54.506-07:00Helen this is from the current year Nathan Hale co...Helen this is from the current year Nathan Hale course catalog (pg. 5). You can view it on the NH website.<br /><br />“Stand-alone courses that provide preparation for the AP Exams in LA 11 & 12, Japanese Language and Culture, Spanish Language, Calculus, Statistics, and Environmental Science."<br /><br />and<br /><br />"Coursework that may be done on-line or in an addendum meeting with teachers outside of regularly scheduled class time providing for AP Exam preparation in United States History"<br /><br />In the past almost all of the Hale AP classes were done online and in addendum to a regular class, with no direct AP instruction from a teacher. Thankfully though over the past few years Hale has moved away from that style of teaching AP and they now offer 7 of their 8 AP classes as stand alone courses. Only one class remains as an online/addendum class and that is US History. <br /><br />Though all kids take AP LA 11 and 12 it is still technically a stand alone course since the entire class is taught to the AP curriculum (though I understand it may be watered down). <br /><br />My issue is with the slim pickings of AP courses. There are only 8 to choose from which is far less than many of the other SPS high schools, and they offer no honors classes at all.seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-87985540727141485922010-05-24T16:26:34.174-07:002010-05-24T16:26:34.174-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01231800476411684686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28765366.post-54440669709568280962010-05-24T15:31:36.784-07:002010-05-24T15:31:36.784-07:00"As a result, the offering of AP curricula at..."As a result, the offering of AP curricula at Nathan Hale takes different forms:<br />“Stand-alone” courses that provide preparation for the AP Exams in LA 11 & 12, Japanese Language and Culture, Spanish Language, Calculus, Statistics, Environmental Science.<br />Coursework that may be done on-line or in an addendum meeting with teachers outside of regularly scheduled class time providing for AP Exam preparation in United States History."<br /><br />That looks like seven stand-alone courses to me, *including* the lit courses that everyone has to take (and honestly, unless they make everyone take the exams, doesn't that end up being essentially the same situation as the history?), and in reality almost no one would take both the Japanese and the Spanish, so in effect it's more like six. <br /><br />But yeah, I was probably thinking of the honors situation.<br /><br />Helen Schinskehschinskehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10316478950862562594noreply@blogger.com