Tuesday Open Thread

In an interesting turn of events, the hearing on the nomination for Betsy DeVos to be Education Secretary has been postponed. For a week.

A both sad and hilarious piece from the author of not one, but two poems that are part of the Texas state assessment test.  From the Washington Post and author Sara Holbrook:

But here’s something new: The author of source material on two Texas standardized tests says she can’t actually answer the questions about her own work because they are so poorly conceived. She also says she can’t understand why at least one of her poems — which she calls her “most neurotic” — was included on a standardized test for students.

How in the name of all that’s moldy did this poem wind up on a proficiency test?

Hey, the Legislature got started yesterday and boy, did they get things done.  But I kid.  Here's how Crosscut put it:

Last Thursday, just before 10:30 in the morning, Washington State Sen. Christine Rolfes, D-Bainbridge Island, uttered what may become the watchword of the coming legislative session: “Doom.”

After both parties agreed to study the crisis during the latter half of 2016, Democratic legislators unveiled plans earlier this week to end the shortfall. But Republicans did not, instead providing only a set of “guiding principles.”

This slow start, said Rolfes, would doom the legislature to an overtime “special session,” and an incomplete solution.

 KING 5 reports that Bellevue parents are advocating for a dual language program... in Russian.

With the highest Russian population in the state on the east side of Puget Sound, the Russian community wants the district to include a language immersion program that honors their heritage. While the district says it's not considering it, the community isn't giving up.

The kindergarten enrollment event last night at Lake City Library apparently was widely attended.  There seemed to be some confusion over what is happening at Cedar Park Elementary which is a shame given the large number of attendees.
 
Re: meetings at SPS
- the community meeting about the reopening of Meany that was scheduled for tonight is postponed to a date TBD.

- Director Burke is having a community meeting at Greenwood tonight at 6:30 pm to talk about middle school pathways for Greenwood Elementary and Broadview Thomson K-8 students.  

-  Get your thoughts in today and tomorrow morning on the Student Assignment Transition Plan for next year as the School Board will vote on it tomorrow afternoon at their Work Session.  (I will be attending and attempting to live blog and tweet.)  The portion of the Work Session on this topic starts at 5:45 pm.  

To note, the public may attend but there is no public testimony at Work Sessions.  If you would like to submit comments for the Board’s consideration, you may do so by emailing schoolboard@seattleschools.org.

What's on your mind?