Seattle Schools Community Forum

Via Director Harris: Concord International Elementary School’s Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is hosting an informational meeting on testing and student assessment of learning . Dr Wayne Au, an expert in educational equity, high stakes testing, and educational policy studies will be presenting. The event is scheduled for Tuesday, October 18 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the South Park Neighborhood Center (8201 10th Ave S). For more information, please contact the Concord PTA president, Robin Schwartz at robinschwartz@hotmail.com

In election results related to education, it looks like it will be Erin Jones versus Chris Reykdal in the general election for state superintendent of public instruction.  I think it will be an interesting race as they both are qualified and yet seem to be coming at the job in different ways.  There was not a huge difference between first and second place so it's a very competitive race.

After three long days, the National Spelling Bee ended in...a tie...for the second year in a row.  The judges ran out of words on their list.   In a fun twist, both contestants have last names that might be a challenge to spell - Gokul Venkatachalam and Vanya Shivashankar.  Vanya correctly spelled the word "scherenschnitte" and Gokul correctly spelled the word "nunatak."  The story from CNN is great and the recoiling of one contestant who lost from his mother's sympathetic kiss is priceless (we've all been there if you have boys).  Show the kids the story from CNN - many great moments. Work Party at Hamilton Middle School on Sunday, May 31st from 10 am-noon.

I ran across some items about science and public education and wanted to share them. An article from the NY Times caught my eye about ADHD and sleep .  For some people — especially children — sleep deprivation does not necessarily cause lethargy; instead they become hyperactive and unfocused. Researchers and reporters are increasingly seeing connections between dysfunctional sleep and what looks like A.D.H.D ., but those links are taking a long time to be understood by parents and doctors. This article appeared in the journal Science about an interview with Ed Lazowska in UW's department of Computer Science and Engineering about the future of computer science.   (Public disclosure; I know Ed and the department very well.)  Some highlights:

Following up on the thread about the report in the Times on Special Ed, a scholarship just for students with ADHD.  It's called the Shire 2013 ADHA Scholarship Program: The Shire ADHD Scholarship recognizes and supports individuals with ADHD in the US who are seeking to obtain higher education. The Scholarship includes a $2,000 monetary award and a prepaid year of ADHD coaching from the Edge Foundation to assist in the transition to higher education. Fifty recipients will be selected in 2013, based on community service, volunteer and extracurricular activities, and a personal essay describing how ADHD has impacted their lives. Shire, a global specialty biopharmaceutical company, sponsors the Scholarship as part of its work to support patients who are diagnosed with ADHD, their families, and the professionals who help them. T