KUOW Wants Your Input on Public Education
The KUOW Insight Network is looking for thoughts on public education. Specifically,
People often say that schools need to do more. It keeps coming down to teachers to make change and to deliver results. How much more can teachers really do? We're interested in your assessment as a professional or your observations as an experienced parent.
Help them out because it certainly will make for a better story (and possibly help those who aren't involved in public education have a better idea of what is going on in the classroom).
People often say that schools need to do more. It keeps coming down to teachers to make change and to deliver results. How much more can teachers really do? We're interested in your assessment as a professional or your observations as an experienced parent.
Help them out because it certainly will make for a better story (and possibly help those who aren't involved in public education have a better idea of what is going on in the classroom).
Comments
Presently, I am the only teacher being asked at my school to use popsicle sticks with student names (for individual accountability).
The administrators continue changing their story depending on who asks questions. I enjoy posting their comments and evaluations by my desk. It shows how completely uninformed (and uninvolved) they are about what they said and did yesterday and to whom.
All of my students have a language or special education classification. I have students that have a learning disability and don't speak English.
The union contract says that if my classroom is over 20% Title I, then I'm supposed to have another experienced adult in the classroom - there are three options for the school.
I'm the union rep who volunteered to take this class, because it has a dubious history. If you were a teacher, you'd probably want to walk out on this classroom too. Its happenned.
Schools like this are poison on both the profession and the communities they are supposed to serve. Raising achievement should not require failing or dropping more than half the student body.
RCW 28A 645.020 states:
Within twenty days of service of the notice of appeal, the school board, at its expense, or the school official, at such official's expense, shall file the complete transcript of the evidence and the papers and exhibits relating to the decision for which a complaint has been filed. Such filings shall be certified to be correct.
The District has yet to certify filings as correct in cases appealed. Although no filings by the District are certified as correct, Judge Inveen does not care. She denied the Appellant's motion for summary judgment based on an inadequate record.
This is clearly Judicial Activism. Judge Inveen decides whether to enforce the law or in this case and other SPS cases not to enforce the law as written.
"Such filings shall be certified to be correct." is not ambiguous. This is in regard to Briggs school closures or New Student Assignment Plan boundaries or New Tech Network contract .... the court thus far and the District ignore this requirement no matter what decision is appealed.
Now the District is asking for the return of evidence sent to Joy Anderson et al. in the appeal of the New Technology Network $800,000 contract. Anderson et al. (represented by Stafne) appealed the Board's 2-3-2010 and also Anderson et al. (pro se) appealed the 4-7-2010 decision.
Note the 4-7-10 certification attached and the enclosure from Greg Jackson outside legal counsel for the District, which requests return of portions of the transcript evidence provided to appellants.
Mr. Jackson states: The District inadvertently included documents in the administrative record that are protected by attorney client privilege. Perhaps if the District was not just arbitrarily dumping 20,000+ pages on the appellants, the District might know what is being sent.
It is quite clear that state law RCW 28A 645.020 is not being taken seriously by either Superior Court Judge Inveen or the District.
It seems clear to me that this should be headed to the Supreme Court in September.
It seems a Performance Management action for Superior Court Judges is needed.
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To summarize Public Education is now under the control of decision makers who ignore written laws in making arbitrary decisions and these arbitrary decision makers are not required to be in compliance with state law.
From the Tacoma Tribune's Callaghan ... who made my day.