This and That

In Brownsville, Kentucky, a superintendent has closed the entire district for all of next week:

"Yesterday and today, attendance has dipped to 85%.  At 85%, we are losing money by staying open.  
With this in mind, we will be closed on Monday 11/21/22 and Tuesday 11/22/22.  These will be NTI days 1 and 2 for the 2022-2023 school year.  This will give students an opportunity for 9 days away from each other so that we can hopefully curtail the spread of Flu A & B and Strep, which seem to be the culprits of our sickness.

This is a tough decision to make; however, it is what is best for the kids of Edmonson County at this time."

The district is losing money but don't kids need to be in school? I'm not sure that would have been my lead if I were writing this notification.

Second, it's not COVID. It's flu and strep. That's a lot of sickness that spread around.  How's it going at your child's school?

One side note: 

  • Extracurricular activities will be allowed through Tuesday.  

  • Wait, they will still have basketball games and such? 

    Interesting data from the Network for Public Education on virtual charter schools.

    Last October, this post examined state 2020-21 enrollment data indicating that large numbers of students had during the coronavirus pandemic moved to virtual charter schools, which are notorious for being the lowest performing schools in the charter sector. Researchers and advocacy organizations, including the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, had previously been highly critical of virtual charters.

    The final numbers are now in from the Common Core of Data, and the findings are confirmed. During the 2020-2021 school year, an additional 175,260 students enrolled in virtual charters, bringing the total enrollment in virtual charters to 483,871. Even more important, that shift accounted for over 70 percent of the increase in charter school enrollment between the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years, an increase that was heralded as a victory by school-choice advocates.

    Interesting webinar coming up  - Beyond Borders: Global Perspectives on Digital Media and Children. It's on Thursday, December 1st at 12:30 Eastern via Zoom. (These webinars are available on YouTube.)

    How are different cultures and countries managing a new generation of youth increasingly using screens for social connection, entertainment, and education? Are children using digital media in the same ways around the world?  What can we learn from what other communities are doing to protect and advocate for children?


    Join us on Thursday December 1st at 12:30 pm ET for our next “Ask the Experts” webinar, “Beyond Borders: Global Perspectives on Digital Media and Children,” as our international panel of experts examine the latest trends in youth media habits, research, policies and parenting perspectives from around the world. While borders may be easily blurred in the digital commons, this special webinar will explore the variances in regional and cultural perceptions and responses to the impacts of digital media on youth and families, and how these different approaches might be applied to advocacy for children in every community.

    Comments

    Patrick said…
    Disappointed by the attitude the schools only exist to be a profit center.
    This That said…
    It is being reported that Washington Middle School aka Technology Access Foundation (TAF) is asking teachers to buy their own paper. TAF is run by a private entity with public dollars. It is sort of shocking that TAF is asking to buy paper because TAF receives an additional $180K per grade.
    Trish Dziko said…
    @This and That, let's start with some facts instead of assumptions and hearsay.

    1. Washington Middle School is a district school run by the district and TAF. If you care to learn about the co-management model, you can read the publicly assessible Joint Operating Agreement.

    2. TAF does not receive any money from the district, sans about $30K/year for teacher training at our August training. The model requires 1:1 laptop and a teaching staff allocation to ensure all student get what they need to succeed - all this comes from the district directly to the school.

    3. TAF invests over $700K in support staff for students and teachers, extended learning opportunities for students, Makerspace equipment and staff as well as Engineering equipment and staff.

    4.The school was running low on paper and the paper order is late. Staff was asked to go light on printing until the paper comes, and to be mindful of how much they are printing. None of the teachers have asked TAF to bridge the gap.

    If you have the courage to give your name, I'm happy to walk through how we show up at Washington Middle School, successes and challenges, what we can do, what we can't,
    etc. If you're not interested, then fine but I hope you'd refrain from spreading gossip.
    Anonymous said…
    It is entirely reasonable to expect that teachers at any public school in Seattle have the resources needed to teach. If copy paper isn’t available or is being rationed then criticizing the district and the management at WMS is appropriate. It would be better for TAF leaders to be busy attending to their teachers’ and students’ needs rather than getting defensive on a public website. TAF doesn’t have to co-manage WMS, and public accountability is part of the job they accepted.

    Supply Sider
    Anonymous said…
    Im not even sure it is legal to require an employee to purchase supplies needed for work without reimbursing them. But that claim is quite different than telling teachers to go easy on using the copier. What a silly, distracting rumor.

    Paper Cat
    Look, I believe Dziko that teachers were not asked to get their own copy paper. I would say also that I know Dziko and her staff ARE attending to student needs as well as teachers.

    All that said, it is unclear how this experiment is going at Washington Middle School.
    Unknown said…
    TAF's Project Based Learning model is more necessary than ever for the SPS students I teach who need the agency, self-determination, and creative opportunities that they provide their students. We should hope our students at Washington are thriving, so the model and TAF's reach can grow.

    Every school I've taught in has paper or other supply issues. If that's your biggest gripe, Washington is off to a good start.

    SP
    Anonymous said…
    @ Trish, thank you so much for clarifying although I am afraid This That will not be interested in learning more because gossip is all they care about. I saw such gossip somewhere else but of course, people have no interest in actually learning about the amazing job your teachers and staff do day to day.
    I am grateful Superintendent Juneau had the courage to go into a JOA with TAF. I have read it and fully support it. Giving the opportunity to central area students to access the benefits TAF brings was a great move to help dismantle the racist HCC model at WMS. You and your organization are appreciated by many, me included. We don’t care about gossip.

    Gossip Sucks
    uber said…
    Hi Trish, I have questions, as an SPS parent and a tax payer. What's in it for TAF? What are your success metrics with students? Do they differ from other SPS schools? Why does WMS require a co-management model?
    -skeptical parent
    This That said…
    Thanks Supply Sider.
    Stuart J said…
    I looked at the Data Portal to try to see any type of metrics, but the data points are not current. There appear to be three different years used in the various sources. I saw some data from 18-19, some from 21-22, and some from 20-21.

    https://washingtonstatereportcard.ospi.k12.wa.us/ReportCard/ViewSchoolOrDistrict/101167

    I had looked at the data while ago for TAF in Federal Way. I looked again. There have been two major shifts along the way, with TAF moving to Saghalie in the 17-18 school year, the Covid impacting 19-20 and 20-21. It does appear the middle school program is consistently bigger than the high school program.

    https://washingtonstatereportcard.ospi.k12.wa.us/ReportCard/ViewSchoolOrDistrict/106056

    Anonymous said…
    Trish, I'm wondering what outcome measures are being assessed to see how TAF is performing. We do not hear much about outcomes, whether its increased performance, student happiness, student confidence. Before expanding TAF, it would be good to have an understanding of how its performing.

    Thanks!

    BLUE SKY
    My worry about data at WMS is that a VERY long-term experiment had started at TT Minor Elementary with Stuart Sloan (who had owned QFC chain) giving about $1M a year for better outcomes.

    There was turmoil over TT Minor for several reasons and my perception was that no one could truly say what the $1M went for. TT Minor was closed (it's now the home of the World School) and the money went to another mostly POC school that struggled, South Shore Pre-K-8.

    South Shore somehow managed to get onto a BEX list before other schools that had worse buildings. The perception was that there was pressure put on the district from the group giving the $1M. (I have very old minutes from meetings on SS that show the group giving the money was saying they might walk if the building wasn't renovated.)

    South Shore is in a nice new building and still - decades later - receiving an extra $1M a year.

    So what is the outcome from this long-term partnership? I've never seen any document saying what the outcomes are. Never heard with detail where that $1M goes. I can only imagine what an extra $1M could mean to so many elementary schools.

    That's why it is important to have detail about any partnership between an outside group and SPS. Not to finger-point but just to know how it's going.

    Anonymous said…
    A few years ago (pre COVID), the League of Education Voters hired for someone to oversee the progress at South Shore-never heard what happened there. -FormerTeacher
    Historian said…
    Technology Access Foundation (TAF) was a top down initiative brought into the district by DeWolf, Harris and Juneau. The effort effectively dismantled the Highly Capable pathway in the poorest section of town.

    Teachers voted AGAINST placing TAF into Washington Middle School (WMS). Teacher voice didn't stop Juneau and the board from forcing TAF into WMS. They just took a top down approach and forced TAF into the school.

    AAM parents showed-up to board meetings and asked that the Highly Capable pathway not be destroyed because their students were thriving. Parents feared behavioral issues, medication recommendations and disproportionate discipline.

    Community meetings are on You Tube. Board minutes and Board Action Reports are archived.

    Despite best efforts, community members didn't show-up for community meetings. There was never a ground swell of support for TAF.

    TAF seems not to prioritize test scores.

    TAF is a neighborhood school. Thousands and thousands of students will pass through TAF over the decade. IMO, TAF should have been an Option School.







    Anonymous said…
    Trish, I wish you wouldn’t disparage parents who have legitimate questions about this public/private partnership.

    This That has a point
    Seattle Parent said…
    It's easy enough to compare the 2017-18 results to the 2021-22 results for WMS using ospi Washington state report card.

    The percentage meeting standard has gone down for ela, math and science for all students at wms.

    The percentage meeting standard went down for African-American students for ela, math, science.

    The percentage meeting standard went down for Asian students for ela, math, science.

    The percentage meeting standard for white students went down for ELA and up for math and science.

    For Hispanics Ela was essentially flat, math has gone down, and science has gone up.

    For low income Ela math and science have all gone down.

    For non low income Ela and math have gone down and science has gone up.

    The percentage of students receiving level fours on Ela math and science all went down significantly. The percentage for non low income level 4th went down for Ela math and science. Same for low income. Same for white students. For black students the numbers were about flat. For Asian students all went down.

    Enrollment at wms has dropped from 712 to 553.

    The percentage of white students has dropped and the number of white students has dropped from 275 to 142.

    The percentage and count of African-American students has gone up.

    It's been covid so the numbers have been impacted.

    If we look at Madison Middle school. The percentage meeting standard during the same period went up for ELA went down slightly for math and went up for science. The percentage receiving level fours went up for ELA and math and down for science.

    It seems like some white and HCC students left wms, and perhaps some went to Madison This probably pulled down the overall wms numbers. But the low income test scores have also gone down, perhaps because of covid.

    Likely some HCC students are returning to their attendance area schools as the program has ended. Probably we end up with more segregation between schools than within schools.

    I'm not trying to rip on Washington Middle school.






    Anonymous said…
    Seattle Parent

    I wouldn’t compare ANY test scores to the 2021-22 school year. Schools had just reopened after 18 months of terrible learning, students were feral, kids were housed in the gym because so many teachers were out due to COVID, etc. This years test scores should be a better measure.

    Just Sayin
    Anonymous said…
    I still cannot believe how awful last year was.

    Any votes to rename this section "Tittle Tattle"?

    Popular posts from this blog

    Tuesday Open Thread

    Breaking It Down: Where the District Might Close Schools

    Education News Roundup