How's Your Legislative Lingo?

Here in Olympia, we're busy preparing for the 2010 legislative session, which begins Monday. Part of our preparation process is familiarizing (or refamiliarizing) our members with legislative terms and front-burner issues. Need to brush up on your leg vocab? Tacoma News Tribune columnist Peter Callaghan has got you covered. Check out his "Glossary of Legislative Terms," guaranteed to provide comic relief—much needed as we brace ourselves for 60 days of apprehension and angst.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all our principals, assistant principals and building administrators throughout Washington state! We're delighted to be kicking off 2010 with you!

For most AWSP members—and for the AWSP staff—it was "back to business" today. We hope you're easing back into the school year after some well-deserved R+R.

As you dive into the new decade, how about this for a New Year's resolution: Sign up for the AWSP Facebook page! Just log in to Facebook and search for "AWSP," then click on the page with the green AWSP logo. (Because it's a private group—open only to AWSP members—you'll be asked to submit a request for approval.)

!looc woH

That is, in Shorewood-speak, "How cool!"

Back in November, we reported on a lip-dub video created by Shorecrest High students to the tune of Outkast's "HeyYa." After their video went viral with a vengeance on YouTube, Shorecrest students challenged rival Shorewood High to top their production.

Shorewood did not disappoint. Check out the students' answer to the video challenge below, a lip dub to Hall and Oates' "You Make My Dreams." About 30 seconds into the video, you may start wondering, "How'd they do that?" Here's a clue: sdrawkcab. The students filmed everything backwards, even learning to lip sync the lyrics in reverse!



Who's winning? Shorewood's video boasts an impressive 586,412 hits—more than double Shorecrest's 254,442 hits. Looks like the ball's back in Shorecrest's court!

And just what does this have to do with education? Consider the following excerpt from "The New Untouchables," an op-ed by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman from Oct. 20, 2009:

A Washington lawyer friend recently told me about layoffs at his firm. I asked him who was getting axed. He said it was interesting: lawyers who were used to just showing up and having work handed to them were the first to go because with the bursting of the credit bubble, that flow of work just isn’t there. But those who have the ability to imagine new services, new opportunities and new ways to recruit work were being retained. They are the new untouchables.

That is the key to understanding our full education challenge today. Those who are waiting for this recession to end so someone can again hand them work could have a long wait. Those with the imagination to make themselves untouchables — to invent smarter ways to do old jobs, energy-saving ways to provide new services, new ways to attract old customers or new ways to combine existing technologies — will thrive.

A class of "new untouchables" right here in Washington state? Sure seems like it!

To the Rescue!

Good news from the Olympia School District: Thanks to the tireless efforts of parents and families, the fifth-grade field trip to Cispus has been saved—at least for this school year. Parents rallied the troops to raise $49,000, which is enough to keep the Oly school board from following through on its original plan to ax the fifth-graders' annual rite of passage. Things are looking good for the Tumwater School District, too, where families are reportedly close to reaching the $30,000 goal needed to rescue their kids' Cispus trip.

In October, The Wall Street Journal ran an article that opened with Clayton Lundstrom, a Tumwater sixth-grader, who, in his own words, has "been waiting to go to Cispus basically since first grade." The article focused on field trips getting cancelled or downgraded as a result of the economy.

AWSP thanks all those who helped keep outdoor learning a part of our students' education!

A Gap Fixation?

Closing the Achievement Gap. It's a prominent, if unavoidable, topic in educator circles these days (and the cover story for the next issue of The Principal News).

So, when we see a headline like "Why I have no use for the achievement gap," it catches our attention. This is the theme of today's column from Washington Post education writer Jay Mathews, who offers an unusual perspective on our nation's "gap fixation."

"You see it. It's simple," Mathews says. "It forces us to hope that white kids, or middle class kids, or high achieving kids, don't improve."

Referring to a case in which both African-American fourth graders and white fourth-graders improved over the course of two years—the first group gaining three points, the second gaining eight—Mathews remarks, "Both groups of kids got better, Why is that a something we want to avoid?"

A popular opinion? Probably not. Food for thought? Definitely.

Battle-Weary, but Appreciated

Need a pick-me-up on this chilly Friday morning? Try this recent blog entry from Shelton educator and sometimes-blogger Pamelia Valentine. Published earlier this week in Partnership for Learning's blog, The Hall Monitor, Valentine's piece recognizes the efforts of her "battle-weary" principal.

"I’ve come to the conclusion that a school has to be one of the most complicated systems in which to bring about desired transformation," writes Valentine. "Luckily for us, our leader is tenacious and willing to work shoulder to shoulder with all staff in order to create the school that he envisions."

She continues: "...I have a suspicion that this principal will not be leaving soon, and I have a deep and abiding hope that he will make lasting sustainable changes for the benefit of our students. Consistency trumps intensity every time."

Holiday Hassles: Sound Familiar?

The holidays, for some principals, are a headache. With pressures coming from all sides of the community, the expectation for schools to be both fittingly festive and respectfully areligious can turn even the jolliest educator into a grinch. It's a difficult balance to strike. When it comes to holiday activities and decorations, what's legit? Check out this "Survival Guide for Christmas Decorations at School," by Oregonian associate editor Susan Nielsen, and be of good cheer!

Another Year of Cutbacks

This morning, Gov. Gregoire released her 2010 supplemental budget, designed to fill the state's $2.6 billion shortfall for the remainder of the 2009-11 biennium. Among her recommendations for K-12 cutbacks, Gregoire called for the elimination of the following in the 2010-11 school year:

• Levy equalization assistance, which provides funds to "property poor districts" (for the 2011 calendar year)
• Enhanced K-4 staffing ratios
• Initiative 728 funding
• State-subsidized all-day kindergarten
• The one remaining state-funded Learning Improvement Day (LID)
• Several K-12 grant programs, including Readiness to Learn, CTE and Reading Corps grants
• The state's K-12 Highly Capable Program and associated professional development

In a letter to Washingtonians issued by the Office of the Governor this morning, Gregoire says she submitted the budget "with the greatest reluctance." "This document is not true to the values I believe in and which have guided me through a 30-year career in public service," she writes. "It is not a budget I can live with nor is it one I believe Washingtonians can live with."

So, what can she/we live with? Stay tuned for more proposals from the governor, including a new budget that she'll submit to the Legislature in January (and perhaps a tax package, too?).

To watch Gregoire's announcement, click here.

Have You Registered Yet?

What's the Response?

It's nearly a week after Supt. Dorn's announcement regarding math and science graduation requirements ... and what's the response? Take a look:

Gov. Chris Gregoire: "We're not backing down. The superintendent is concerned about the graduation rate. I am concerned about the bigger picture — preparing kids for life. I think parents share that concern."

From The Seattle Times: (11/20/2009): "Dorn lets students off the hook with a proposal to delay graduation requirements until 2014 for math and until 2017 for science ... Another delay is unacceptable. It sends a disheartening message to students who want to excel and who understand that the route to higher education — whether college or trade school — is by meeting high standards."

From The Tacoma News Tribune (11/20/2009): "Dorn’s plan is exactly the wrong approach for tough economic times. Settling for less from Washington’s students means settling for a lesser future for the state. Our collective well-being depends on high school graduates whose diplomas mean something, on students who are ready to compete in the world. Math and science are increasingly important factors in that equation."

From The Everett Herald (11/20/2009):

"It's too early to raise the white flag. High expectations are useful motivators, as was shown when the state's graduation requirements in reading and writing kicked in four years ago. The year those tests first counted, test scores saw their biggest jump."

From The Spokesman-Review (11/21/2009):
"The problem with math instruction has been well known for years. It’s confounding that other states can teach the subject competently but Washington keeps turning in an 'Incomplete.' The rationale for extending deadlines is always the same: 'Are we really going to block the graduation of large numbers of students?' By that logic, the state will only institute math and science requirements after it’s been demonstrated that a higher percentage can pass. This is like watching high jump practice and then deciding where to place the bar so that most competitors will clear it. When the consistent message is that the state will call off accountability, then it’s impossible to gauge students’ best efforts."

From The Tri-City Herald (11/24/2009):

"We're reminded of that Orwellian euphemism for retreat — 'Advance to the rear.'"

From The Wenatchee World (11/24/2009):
"This is an interesting way to hold students accountable, by not holding them accountable. It is an interesting way to set the bar high, by lowering the bar."

From The Walla Walla Union-Bulletin (11/24/2009):
"Dorn is taking education — and education reform — in the wrong direction."

What are your thoughts on Supt. Dorn's proposal for changing/delaying the math and science graduation requirements? And what kind of a reaction are you seeing in your schools?

A Retreat on Math and Science?

A "two-tier" bar for passing the state math assessment? End-of-course assessments for science? A delay of both math and science graduation requirements?

Those are just a few changes Supt. of Public Instruction Randy Dorn will be proposing to the 2010 Legislature, according to a statement released by OSPI this morning. Dorn announced his recommended changes today at the WSSDA Annual Conference in Seattle. (To see Dorn's presentation materials, click here.)

"It's time to set our graduation bar for math at the right level," wrote Dorn in an op-ed piece for The Seattle Times. Gov. Gregoire disagrees. According to the Associated Press, "Gregoire says the superintendent is concerned about the state's graduation rate but she is concerned about preparing kids for live."

Get the Scoop

The focus of tonight's episode of TVW's The Impact: Schools.

In the segment below, Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn gives his perspective on the State Supreme Court's recent ruling in the “fair funding” lawsuit. Be sure to check out the end of the interview, when Dorn drops a few hints about the "major policy speech" he'll deliver tomorrow at the WSSDA Annual Conference. (Think "math" and "science.") In his words, "I know that it's probably going to make one group not so happy, and everybody's going to say different things. But I believe we're actually increasing the standards in the future in math ... I believe going to end-of-course exams in science is better than the culminating tests..."



And in this segment, State Board of Education Executive Director Edie Harding discusses the SBE's proposal to require state intervention in persistently low-performing school districts.

Hey Ya!

To the tune of Outkast's "Hey Ya," Shorecrest High School students are taking YouTube viewers on a fast-paced, high-energy tour of their hallways, packing 4 minutes and 29 seconds with entertaining school spirit. The "lip dub"video, which has gotten more than 18,000 hits on YouTube in less than two weeks, is the product of an assignment by Shorecrest teacher Trent Mitchell. After just six rehearsals and some impressive choreography, the students nailed it one take. Take a look for yourself!



Will we see more knock-out videos from the Shoreline School District? Looks like it. In a new twist on "school rivalry," Shorewood High's video production students have accepted a challenge from Mitchell to produce a better video.

'Meet the Press' Tackles Race to the Top

President Obama's Race to the Top program was in the news quite a bit last week (read here, here and here), when the U.S. Department of Education announced its final set of rules for states planning to compete for RTTT funds. (Among the competitors will be our own Washington state.)

The topic of RTTT also found its way onto yesterday's Meet the Press, during a segment that featured Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and civil rights leader Al Sharpton. Duncan, Gingrich and Sharpton recently teamed up for a national, multi-city education tour, which has focused on the need to reform public education. (As they say, "Politics makes strange bedfellows.")

The panel of three had a lot to say about the many thorny issues wrapped up in RTTT. Check out the clip below for a discussion of teacher accountability. Or, to watch the panel discussion in its entirety, click here.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Reading + Running = Time for Teachers + Parents

An article in Monday's Skagit Valley Herald focuses on a reading-and-running program at Mary Purcell Elementary (Sedro-Wooley SD), in which students spend the last 15 minutes of the school day either reading a book or running laps outside.

According to the article, "The end-of-day reading and running program is meant to keep the kids occupied as their teachers use the time to contact parents on student progress."

The previous school year, students were sent to art and music classes and occasionally the library while teachers contacted parents. But, because the music teacher, art teacher and librarian positions were cut this year, the school came up with a Plan B: reading and running.

It's an interesting solution to the issue of teacher-parent contact time—time that had almost been cut from teachers' schedules until an 11th-hour agreement in contract negotiations brought it back. But the solution is not without problems. Some parents say the end-of-the-day program amounts to a "complete waste of time," while many teachers are still concerned about the broader issue of losing the specialists in art, music, technology and library.

Are there any other schools out there with a successful reading and running programs? If so, we'd love to hear from you!

See You in Yakima!

It's time! The 2009 AWSP Principals' Conference kicks off tomorrow in Yakima! It's not too late to attend. Simply download the walk-in registration form and bring it to the AWSP registration desk at the Yakima Convention Center. We'll be happy to sign you up for the program, right there on the spot.

And, remember: A one-day registration option is available! Only able to attend the kick-off sessions on Sunday? Want to catch Mike Schmoker's keynote session and the other Monday events? We can make it work! Check out our Sunday-only and Monday-only registration fees.

See you there!

Feeling Squeezed?

News from "the other" Washington: "Principals are squeezed from both sides."

OK, so this may not be a shocker to you, no matter which Washington you're from. But it's worth a read all the same.

When Washington Post columnist Robert McCartney recently spent time with principals of the year from the D.C. region, he asked them about their work and how it's changed over the years. Their answers, says McCartney, were "disturbing."

Chalk it up to micromanagement, NCLB, tight budgets, low morale, impatient parents, the pitfalls of the Internet and the looming threat of swine flu. Sound familiar?

McCartney marvels at the principals' high level of job satisfaction, despite the many demands they face, and concludes: The rest of us should be grateful that these valuable public servants are happy in their work, considering all the grief we're dumping on them.

An Experience Worth Fighting For

Here in Olympia, we've been hearing a rallying cry for AWSP's very own Cispus Learning Center.

When parents from Tumwater and Olympia learned their schools' annual student trips to Cispus could be the victim of district budget cuts, they took action. (Check out the "Save Cispus for Thurston County Students" page on Facebook.)

Recently, The Olympian and KIRO-TV ran stories about the parents' efforts to preserve the outdoor education programs. And today, we hear from The Olympian that the "Cispus school trips might survive." Turns out, the parents are making a difference by bringing this issue to the attention of their school boards and communities.

In Tumwater, the board will hear a proposal that the community be allowed to raise the $36,000 needed to continue the sixth-grade Cispus program next spring. In Olympia, parents have received welcome news: The amount they'll need to raise—$49,000—is about $21,000 less than what they originally expected.

According to Tumwater parent Raechel Laneer, the students' experience at Cispus is one that can't be replaced. (We agree.) Richard Louv would be proud.

Fight the swine...online?

The H1N1 virus is is expected to rear its ugly head again this fall—a prediction that has prompted a wave of outreach efforts to schools, administrators, parents and students. Among those efforts: publications, press releases, press conferences and...a video game?

That's right, if you need practice battling the swine flu virus on a worldwide scale, look no further than The Great Flu, a new online video game recently unveiled by Dutch researchers. Players have the power to stockpile vaccines, set up surveillance systems and (gulp!) shutter schools—all on a limited budget (at least that part is realistic!).

If you're looking for more practical tools for preparing for H1N1, Part Two, try the new communication toolkit from the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of Health and Human Services. This toolkit, designed to help school administrators better prepare for and respond to influenza outbreaks during the 2009-10 school year, includes action steps for schools, teachers and parents as well as template letters and a Q+A section.

Good Luck, Chris!

Today we're sending our good luck wishes to Christine Lynch, 2009 Washington State Middle Level Principal of the Year.

Chris is currently in Arlington, Virginia, where she is interviewing for the prestigious MetLife/NASSP National Principal of the Year Award. As a national finalist, she joins two other middle level principals and three high school principals in the interview process. In September, NASSP will annnounce one one middle level and one high school principal as the 2010 National Principals of the Year.

If it seems like Washington principals are on a hot streak lately, you're right! Chris is the fifth Washington state administrator to be a contender for a national principalship award since 2005. Earlier this year, Michael O'Donnell of Cle Elum-Roslyn High, Cle Elum-Roslyn School District, was named one of three finalists for the National Assistant Principal of the Year Award. In 2008, Stacey Locke from Eisenhower High, Yakima School District, was a finalist for the National High School Principal of the Year. In 2006, Springy Yamasaki of Skyridge Middle School, Camas School District, was named National Assistant Principal of the Year, and in 2005, Bellingham High’s Steve Clarke, Bellingham Public Schools, was a finalist for National Principal of the Year.

We couldn't be prouder of Chris and the rest of our AWSP members, who—whether in line for a national award or not—deserve a standing ovation.

Congratulations, Sen. Tom!

Yesterday, AWSP announced that it will be honoring Sen. Rodney Tom with the 2009 Torch of Leadership Award. The award recognizes a state-level public servant who has demonstrated support of principals and the principalship in the education of all students.

Sen. Tom who represents the 48th district, kept education a top priority this legislative session, even when the demands of a downward economy made it difficult to do so.

As a member of the Basic Education Funding Task Force, he helped craft ESHB 2261, which ushers in a new plan for full funding of basic education in Washington state. He also backed bills supporting the state’s principal internship program and the Washington State Leadership Academy.

“Principals will play a vital role as we move forward with education reform within the constraints of stagnant revenues," said Tom, upon learning of the award. "Very few areas in education give us better leverage than making sure every school has a great principal. There is not a great school in Washington state that does not also have a great principal; the two go hand-in-hand."

The senator will be honored with a formal presentation of the award at AWSP’s 2009 Principals’ Conference, Oct. 18–20, in Yakima.

'Younger and Freer'

"Principals Younger and Freer, but Raise Doubts in the Schools," says the headline of New York Times article published earlier this week. The article focuses on principals under 35 in New York City.

According to the article, 22 percent of the city's principals are under 40, compared with 6 percent in 2002, and about 20 percent have less than five years of teaching experience, double the percentage in 2002.

The NYT makes a few jabs at the New York City Leadership Academy, an intensive training program for aspiring principals. Data from the city's report card system indicates that Academy graduates were less than half as likely to get A’s as other principals. However, those graduates ofter face greater challengers, accepting placement in NYC's lowest achieving schools.

The article's conclusion offers an analysis that, well, isn't exactly breaking news to principals, novice or veteran: "Experience counts."

AWSP on TVW

Yesterday, Don Rash, AWSP's director of middle level programs, joined TVW's The Impact for a 10-minute discussion about teacher lay-offs in Washington state. Appearing with John Dekker of the Washington Association of School Administrators, Rash spoke with host Jennifer Huntley about the challenges that principals and students face when a school loses its teachers.

Sexting: More than an Awkward Situation

Sexting. If you're an educator, you've no doubt heard about it. In fact, chances are, you've already dealt with it in some form of the other.

If just hearing the word "sexting" sends shivers down your spine, consider the case of Ting-Yi Oei, assistant principal at Virginia's Freedom High.

"My Students. My Cellphone. My Ordeal," which recently appeared in The Washington Post, offers a first-hand account of the devastating spiral effect of one sexting incident. Oei responded to a reported case of sexting, and ended up on the wrong end of a criminal investigation into child abuse and child pornography. (To hear the defense attorney speak about Oei's case, click here.)

The lack of clarity around sexting is posing some real challenges to building administrators. Recent sexting incidents, including Oei's, illustrate just how easily schools, communities and personal lives can be thrown into upheaval. While procedures and policies are being hashed out, principals and assistant principals are in a precarious position, having to navigate their way through uncharted waters.

For helpful resources, including tips for parents and teens, visit the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy’s Sex and Tech Web page.

A Quick Update on H1N1

If you have access to a television, radio, newspaper, Internet connection or, well, any conscious human being, you probably know that swine flu has (probably) hit Washington state.

The Department of Health has identified six suspected swine flu (H1N1) cases in our state. One of those cases involves a student at Madrona K-8 in Seattle. The child's mother chose to keep him home from school when he became ill (good job, mom!). As a precaution, however, Seattle Public Schools and Seattle/King County Public Health decided to close the school through Wednesday, May 6.

"While this is a time to prepare, it’s not time to panic," warned Supt. Randy Dorn in a statement released this afternoon. We couldn't agree more. Most likely, principals and assistant principals are responding to a high degree of anxiety (and maybe a bit of panic) in their school communities.

Need some level-headed conversation about swine flu? Education Week will be hosting a live chat tomorrow, 12-1 p.m. PST (3-4 p.m. EST), on "Helping Schools Plan and Respond." The chat will feature Massie Ritsch, deputy assistant secretary for external affairs and outreach, U.S. Department of Education, and Jeanne McCann, managing editor at edweek.org. If you are interested in participating in this chat, click here.

In the meantime, if you have sample letters or advice you are willing to share with fellow principals, please send them to jennifer@awsp.org ... or just post a comment here!

Preparedness for Swine Flu

Lots of headlines about swine flu lately...giving us all pause to consider, Are we prepared for a pandemic?

According to the Washington State Department of Health, there are no known cases of swine flu in Washington. However, as a precautionary measure, the state will be receiving antiviral medication for about 230,000 people from the federal Strategic National Stockpile.

For helpful resources, check out these links:

Preparing Schools for Swine Flu (OSPI)
Swine Flu Information and Resources (WSSDA)
Swine Flu Information for Washington State (Washington State Department of Health)
Swine Flu Guidance for Schools (U.S. Department of Education)
Swine Influenza (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Celebrating Our Principals of the Year

“None of us is as smart as all of us.”

Those words of wisdom come from Kennewick's Bruce Cannard, who was recently named the state’s top elementary school principal of the year.

Bruce was selected as the 2009 Washington State Distinguished Principal by AWSP and its elementary component board, the Elementary School Principals Association of Washington.

For Bruce, it's all about the power of collaboration. Since stepping into the principalship at Edison Elementary—a school with a large number of English language learners and a high level of poverty—he has built relationships among colleagues, students and parents. Known for his strong rapport with Edison students, Bruce is often spotted joining students for a chat over a brown-bag lunch, or practicing his Spanish skills to make a new student feel welcome, or getting a laugh out of the students as his alter ego, Bernard. Congratulations, Bruce!

Congratulations also to the Association's other Administrators of 2009, who were named earlier this year:

High School Principal of the Year: Aaron Leavell, Bremerton High, Bremerton SD
Every decision he makes, says Aaron, “has students at the center of it.” Leavell’s dedication to student achievement touches young people who otherwise may have given up on their education. He has established several programs to provide individualized learning, including a full-time online academy for students struggling with credit recovery, a center for students who have children or hold jobs during the school day, and a program for students with severe behavioral problems.

Middle Level Principal of the Year: Christine Lynch, Shaw Middle, Spokane PS
Christine is known throughout the school for bringing passion and purpose to her job as principal, which, she says, is “the best job in the world.” She has rallied the Shaw community to take collective responsibility for its students’ success. Supported by this sense of partnership, she is committed to making her motto—powerful instruction for all students—a reality. Says Christine, “I could never do this work alone."

Assistant Principal of the Year: Mike O'Donnell, Cle Elum-Roslyn High (Cle Elum-Roslyn SD)
Mike has fostered a culture in which students are empowered—and expected—to perform to their potential. His development of a student achievement database has allowed staff to gather, organize and share assessment data. With the database in place, the school has seen increased dialogue between students, advisers, teachers and parents. He also implemented a new program that links the earning of academic credit to attendance, yielding a 62 percent decrease in tardies and absences in just one year. Mike was a one of three national finalists
for the 2009 NASSP/Virco National Assistant Principal of the Year Award!

Relationship-Based or Technology-Based: Is It One or the Other?

Having just recently returned from the 2009 NAESP Annual Convention in New Orleans, my mind is racing. And it's not from too many beignets!

On Thursday, I had the opportunity to attend a pre-conference workshop on "Relationship-Centered Leadership." The presenter, Tom Wojick of The Renewal Group, explored the power of strong relationships with students, staff and faculty. His discussion of emotional and social intelligence clearly resonated with workshop attendees, who were eager to apply his insights to their work in schools.

The following morning, keynote speaker Ian Jukes officially kicked off the convention, delivering a rapid-fire presentation on the exponential growth of technology. His phrase, "Info-Whelming," certainly hit the nail on the head. As attendees left the presentation, I overheard many describing the information as "scary," "daunting" and even "painful."

On Saturday, former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell (Ret.) knocked our socks off with a presentation that brought attendees to their feet. In his address, Gen. Powell called for young children to get "more lap-top time"—not more time on their computers, but more time "on the laps" of families members who care for them. At the core of his remarks was a focus on relationships between children and parents, family members, principals, teachers and mentors.

And, finally, on Sunday, I attended a breakout session by Matthew Hayden, elementary/technology teacher, Bristol Township SD (Levittown, PA). Hayden did a nice job of answering the question, "OK, I realize technology is changing the classroom—but how is that relevant to me and what can I do about it?"

With each day of the conference, it became more apparent that we all are trying to reconcile the implications of technology with human relationships. Can an education leader value technology and relationships equally? Or does technology result in a "disembodied" education for a children?

In a breakout session, Jukes offered this thought: "If you are an educator who can be replaced by a computer, then you deserve to be replaced by a computer." In other words, technology is a great tool—but it is not a substitute for human-based teaching and learning.

Happy Square Root Day!

Today, 3/3/09, is rare holiday: It's Square Root Day, a celebration that happens only nine times every century. Ron Gordon, a Redwood City (California) teacher, describes the holiday as a "calendar comet."

"You wait and wait and wait for them, then they brighten up your day—and poof—they're gone," Gordon told the Associated Press.

Mathlete or not, better enjoy Square Root day while it lasts. The next observance is not until 4/4/16.

Here at the AWSP office, we're gearing up for Pi Day, 3/14...

Inauguration Day 2009

Whether or not you voted for Barack Obama, you can't deny the historic magnitude of this day. That's how educators across the country see it, anyway.

The New York Times recently reported on how the "Inauguration Is Inspiring Classrooms Nationwide," describing ways that teachers and administrators planned to incorporate this morning's ceremony into their classroom instruction. The article quotes Linda Lane, deputy superintendent of instruction in Pittsburgh: “We are totally committed to reading, writing, science and history. But we also know that some history doesn’t come out of a book. Some history you get to be part of.”

Schools have snapped up this opportunity to engage kids. And why not? Each generation lays claim to a "history-in-the-making" moment in the classroom—a moment when students are permitted to put away their books and focus their attention on news as it unfolds. For many of us, "our" moment was one of great tragedy and sadness (think Kennedy's assassination, the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger or September 11, 2001). Whether it's about diversity, democracy or the peaceful transfer of power in the United States, this morning's chapter in history had a decidedly positive undercurrent for kids who remember it as "their moment."

Farewell to a Leader

A tip of the hat and a round of applause for Dr. Terry Bergeson, Washington's Superintendent of Public Instruction for the past 12 years. Today is Dr. Bergeson's last day in office. Throughout her career, she has been tireless in her dedication to students, relentless in her advocacy for K-12 education. For that, we say Thank you!

We wish Dr. Bergeson and her departing staff at OSPI the best of luck as they head off into very bright futures.

Hold on Tight

It is official: The 2009 Legislature is now in session.

So, Happy First Day of Session! Well, it may not be so "happy," given the state's current $5.7 billion deficit. The budget crisis promises a 105-day roller coaster ride for lawmakers, with plenty of twists, turns, drops and bumps.

Educators will need to hold on tight, too. You may not be able to avoid the twists and turns that affect K-12 education, but you can help your legislators navigate the course. Contact your elected lawmakers and let them know what matters to you.

Click here to look up contact information for your legislators. For practical tips on communicating with elected officials, log on to www.awsp.org and click on "Contact Your Lawmaker" under the "Legislation" tab.

Tune In: Principals on the Tube

Set your DVR! The new season of TruTV’s The Principal's Office kicks off this Thursday. Included in the reality show’s cast of characters: Kalama High School principal Mike Hamilton and vice principal Nate Salisbury.

In October of last year, Mike and Nate allowed a TruTV film crew to follow them on the job for a period of two weeks. The daily challenges of life in the principal's office were "caught on tape" — and soon will be revealed to curious viewers across the country. Your first chance to watch the Kalama administrators in action comes Thursday with the episode, "Dirty Dancing," which features Nate attempting to thwart potential outbreaks of freak-dancing.

Will we see more of Mike and Nate through the season? Watch and find out! “The Principal’s Office” airs Thursdays at 10 p.m.

Oh, and if Kalama High School looks familiar, don't be surprised. Twilighters will recognize it as Edward and Bella's school building in the film "Twilight." Alas, to see the real high school featured in Stephenie Meyer's novel, you'll have to make the trip to Forks.

Happy 2009!

Happy New Year! After a bit of a hiatus, The Comp Book is back in action for 2009! Thanks for your patience.

We’re starting off the new year with one of our favorite topics: technology in education.

In today’s Washington Post, education columnist Jay Mathews discusses "this year's educational buzz phrase": 21st-Century Skills.

When President-elect Barack Obama introduced Arne Duncan as his nominee for secretary of education, he said, "We need a new vision for the 21st century education system, one where we aren't just supporting existing schools but spurring innovation." If we are to believe Obama's campaign promises, new technology will be an important part of work in the classroom—and in the White House. Word is, sometime this week (tomorrow, according to the BBC) Obama will name his Chief Technology Officer, a new cabinet-level position.

So, what is "a 21st-century education system"? Is it characterized solely by the technical demands and capabilities of our schools today, or is it more pedagogical than that? Mathews prompts his readers to ask if the 21st-century education is really a new concept or just another name for effective teaching.

A 21st-century education purportedly prepares students for a new and changing world, the world they'll encounter when they enter the workforce. But is that any different from what educators have always aimed to do in the classroom, i.e., prepare their students to succeed after graduation?

Is technology the only thing that defines a 21st-century education, or is there more to it than that? What are your thoughts?

Principals' Conference Begins!

Greetings from the 2008 Principals' Conference! It's a beautiful Sunday morning in Spokane, where principals and assistant principals from across the state are gathering for three days of outstanding breakout sessions and keynote speakers.

Pre-conference begins today with three sessions:
- Creating a Strong RTI System for Reading and Math
- Diversity Is Here to Stay: How to Understand, Accept and Unite Cultures in Your Schools
- New Mathematics Standards and Changes to Assessments

This afternoon I'll be speaking to a fun group of elementary principals about using technology. Looking forward to their enthusiasm!

Silver Lining to a Very Grey Cloud

Could there be a silver lining to the bailout plan?

Hard to imagine when, just last week, Edward R. Kealy, executive director of the Committee for Education Funding, soberly told Education Week, "This bailout is basically going to suck the air out of education funding for years to come" (unless, that is, the next president is committed to boosting education spending).

But for some schools in Washington state, the plan brought good news: The revised bailout bill, which was approved by Congress on Friday, included a timber provision, extending the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act for four years and $3.3 billion. The money will go to 700 counties in 39 states—states that once depended on federal timber sales to pay for schools, libraries and other services.

The federal program, which legislators had been trying to renew for years, had been set to expire last week with the end of the fiscal year. As it turns out, Wall Street wasn't the only place to experience a wave of relief last Friday.

With the program back in place, Washington state will receive $43 million.

Now, what to do about having the air sucked out of education for years to come...

E-quipping Our Students

By the end of this month, middle and high school students in Kennewick will have their own district-based e-mail addresses, according to an article in yesterday's Tri-Cities Herald. Students will use the e-mail to submit and receive assignments and communicate with their teachers. (Sorry, kids, dogs don't eat e-homework!)

Meanwhile, neighboring Pasco School District is using Moodle, an online course management system that provides exciting opportunities for collaboration between staff and students.

Kudos to the Kennewick and Pasco School Districts! Changes like this—as basic as they may seem—show a true commitment to meeting the challenges of the 21st century.

How is your school or district using technology to strengthen its learning community?

Itz a gr8 dy 2B an editr

Before SMS (a.k.a. "text talk") became a language, the statement above would have read: "It's a great day to be an editor." Oh, the language woes that have befallen us since the dawn of text-messaging.

While spelling may be the primary victim of the SMS Age, punctuation has had its share of hard knocks, too.

Editors, language arts teachers, grammarians and generally fastidious writers—take heart. This is your day to shine! Today is National Punctuation Day, an opportunity to boldly and shamelessly embrace the correct usage of commas, colons, semicolons, apostrophes, brackets and quotation marks.

Go ahead, tell your students or colleagues the difference between an em dash, an en dash and a hyphen. Show 'em how to insert an ellipses. Justify the use of the serial comma. And strike the ampersand from that sentence. All in the name of good punctuation!

Get Your Head in the Clouds

Did you find yourself wondering, as you watched the Democratic and Republican conventions, just how often the topic of education found its way to the podium? If so, here's a tool to help clear things up (or cloud things up, as the case may be): word clouds.

"Word clouds" — yet another child of Web 2.0 — illustrate the frequency at which words occur within a certain text, such as a speech. The more often a word occurs, the bigger it appears in the cloud.

These word clouds, recently created by Wired.com, provide a quick snapshot of how many times the national convention speakers used certain words and phrases. Look for "education," "schools" and "students" in these clouds — it's more challenging than you might expect. The New York Times also developed word clouds for the convention speeches, but their clouds don't even include education-related verbiage. Check out what words were deemed cloud-worthy by the NYT here.

Speaking of the national conventions... Do you think the candidates failed to adequately address education at their party conventions? The (Vancouver) Columbian agrees.

Over the next few months, The Comp Book will be watching McCain-Palin and Obama-Biden for their responses to tough education questions. For a brief overview of each candidate's position on NCLB, the achievement gap, merit pay and more, go to Edutopia 's recent Guide to the 2008 Presidential Candidates' Education Agenda.

FYI: You can create your own word cloud for any text using wordle.net. Just plug in the text and, voilà, out comes your word cloud. Great potential as a fun classroom tool!

This is a word cloud for today's blog entry.
http://wordle.net/.

Little Man, Big Voice, Huge Message

As kids return to the classroom this week, they face a barrage of back-to-school messages from principals, teachers, parents and other adults. How about hearing a word or two from the students themselves?

Check out this keynote address by Dalton Sherman, a student from the Dallas Independent School District. Who says young people today aren't taught the art of oration?

The AYP Blues

A little blue this morning?

It's no surprise if you're a school official in Washington state, where this morning's headlines are peppered with phrases like "failing," "falling short" and "missing the mark."

Those characterizations spring from yesterday's AYP update from OSPI — specifically, that 628 schools and 57 districts are in "improvement" status, up significantly from last year's 280 schools and 30 districts.

But lost somewhere in much of the coverage is an explanation of why we are seeing such a drastic increase in schools "needing improvement." Consider:

• 2008 is a “step year.” According to Washington state’s stair-step approach to AYP, the percentage of students who must meet proficiency increases in three-year increments. This year, because it is a step year, the percentage of students who must meet proficiency has increased for all grade spans — elementary (3-5), middle (6-8) and high school.
  
  
• The “n size” changed to 30. Within each grade span, schools and districts are accountable for the performance of all students and several student subgroups: American Indian, Asian, Black, Hispanic, White, English language learners, special education and low-income. Before schools and districts can report on a subgroup’s performance, there must be a minimum number of students in that subgroup to ensure statistically reliable data. Prior to 2008, 40 was the minimum number of students required in the English language learner and special education subgroups. This year, however, the minimum number of students for accountability calculations is 30 across all subgroups.

Ah, the complexities of No Child Left Behind. If only the challenges we face were as simple as a short, punchy headline.

Newsflash: Principal Returns to School

Since when does a principal heading back to school in August make headline news? Since the name on the door to that principal's office is "Ms. Phelps."

When Debbie Phelps, mother of Olympic phenom Michael Phelps, returned to Baltimore recently, the media spotlight followed her — from Beijing right to Windsor Mill Middle School, where Monday she welcomed back 600+ students.

No doubt, Phelps’s version of "What I Did On My Summer Vacation" will outshine most at Windsor Mill, but the students aren't complaining. They'll reap the benefits of having a celebrity principal, who has her sights set on gold-medal performances in the classroom — and on the Maryland School Assessment for reading. This week, The Baltimore Sun reported:

Earlier this month, Phelps presented her students with a challenge called "Read Your Way to Beijing." On Aug. 8, the students received recorded phone messages asking them to read as many 100-page, age-appropriate books as possible between then and Sept. 8, she said. The winners of a drawing will get to spend an afternoon or evening with her son at the ESPN Zone, she said.

Together, Debbie and Michael Phelps have raised awareness of other education issues, including bullying and learning disabilities. Read about Michael Phelps's struggle with A.D.H.D. in the New York Times article "Phelps’s Mother Recalls Helping Her Son Find Gold-Medal Focus," and watch this joint interview with mother and son, in which Michael applauds his mom's commitment as a principal and describes his memories of being bullied in school. (Hint: To watch the video, download Silverlight when prompted and bear with the commercial; then, to view the mother/son portion of the interview, slide the arrow directly under the screen to the 15:00 mark.)

The Blog Hot Summer

There is a long-held believe that summer is a quiet time in the education world.

Quite the opposite here at AWSP, actually. The office is more like a bee hive!

In fact, in the last few weeks, things appear to be getting busier. First, there's the AWSP/WASA Summer Conference June 29-July 1 in Spokane. We're the office of record this year, so AWSP has full responsibility for the planning and execution of the event. Our staff is working like crazy to provide a quality end-of-year professional development experience for our members and those at the superintendent's association.

This is also the time of year when our membership department goes into overdrive, tracking all of those position changes in the districts. By August, they'll know the whereabouts of just about every school principal, assistant principal and superintendent in the state. AWSP relies on some wonderful retired members to then take information out to new administrators to talk with them about the benefits of joining the Association. If you know of a new principal in your school or district, be sure to let them know why you like being a member!

Add to this the Basic Education Task Force hearings on school funding, the State Board of Education's work on the revised 9-12 mathematics standards, their Meaningful High School Diploma/Core 24 initiative and the systems accountability project. Plus there's the Higher Education Coordinating Board's proposal to revamp minimum college entrance requirements. Oh, and there's that continuing battle at the federal level over NCLB (Washington principals will be visiting with state Congressional reps next month in D.C.). And don't forget the statewide races for governor and superintendent of public instruction!

Last, but not least, there's some staff changes taking place at the office this summer. Our long-time director of elementary programs and professional development. Terry Barber, will be retiring at the end of the month. North Thurston Principal Paula Quinn will be joining the team in September to assume his duties. And I will also be moving on this month to oversee communications for another statewide association here in Olympia, the Association of Washington Business. The search is on for a new communications director who will take up this blog and all the other good work at AWSP.

Starting this blog was one of my favorite projects at AWSP and I look forward to seeing this and other technologies take off in the months ahead here. Thanks for reading and stay tuned: with everything going on, this could be a blog hot summer!

Jocelyn McCabe

National Math and Reading Standards?

The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) has announced its support of the development of national standards in mathematics and reading. Education Daily also has a story on it today:

NASSP Director Gerald Tirozzi said the coun­try must shift to national standards to resolve the longstanding inability of educators, administrators and policymakers to make accurate state-by-state student performance comparisons under NCLB. The law allows each state to define its own content stan­dards in reading and math and set its own definition of proficiency attainment relative to those standards.

“In that wonderful year 2014, we’re going to have 50 ships showing up at Lake Wobegone and waving a different flag saying they’re proficient,” Tirozzi said, referencing NCLB’s overarching dead­line for having all students scoring on grade level. “Reading is reading, and no legislature can change the defining law of algebra. All states should be held accountable to address higher standards.”

What do you think about a move to national standards in these two core subjects/content areas?

Today's the Day: Class of 2008

At 10 a.m. today, State Superintendent Terry Bergeson will release the WASL pass rates for this year's graduating class. This is a moment that has been 15 years in the making, since the landmark education reform act was first passed in 1993. You can view the presentation live on TVW (watching it on TV or on your computer).

Editorials are slowly coming forth, but the tone so far suggests that credit deficiencies are the greatest barrier to graduation -- not the WASL.

Check out today's Longview Daily News editorial here.

Let Your Fingers Do the Walking

Or the searching, as the case may be.

Bob Mc Mullen, our director of high school programs, recently discovered this quick and handy shortcut while looking for a particular citation.

Administrators may be interested to know that the RCWs and WACs for Washington state are all searchable via the Washington State Legislature's Web site. You can do a quick keyword search ("graduation requirements" might be a good, and popular, example right now).

Thanks, Bob! Search on!

Did They Vote For Kids?

Well, did they?

That's what the Children's Alliance wanted to find out, and you can, too when you download their 2008 legislative scorecard. The group analyzed the votes of Washington state lawmakers on children's issues during the 2008 legislative session. Each legislator received a score of 1 to 5 stars based on the percentage of votes cast "for children."

And yes, there were some perfect scores.

Let's Put Some Responsibility on the Students

So says Kelly Flynn, an education columnist with the Flint (Mich.) Journal.

Her column, which appeared in her paper over the weekend, comes at time when Washington state students are on the cusp of graduating with the most rigorous graduation requirements in state history (though some take issue with that, too). Says Flynn in her column:

Let's put some responsibility back on the student.

See, what we seem to forget is that it's all there for the taking. If you want an education in this country, you can have it. The information, textbooks, workbooks, journals, reference books, videos, technology and lab equipment are available, to one degree or another, in every single school.

Is this up-by-the-bootstraps, tough love approach on the mark or off the charts?

Memorial Day

We're closing the pages of The Comp Book for the holiday weekend.

More fun and games next week as we start the march toward graduation and summer break.

High School on TV

Like many things, high school is always a little cooler on TV or in the movies.

So naturally, the Culture and Lifestyle editors at Newsweek couldn't let the hard news side of the office have all the fun with their "Top High Schools "report. Check out their analysis of the fictional high schools from TV and the movies against those on the magazine's real life list.

From Grease's Rydell High School (the real-life Venice High in California) to Ferris Bueller's Glenbrook North High in suburban Chicago and Napoleon Dynamite's awesome Preston High in Idaho, find out how the Hollywood high school alma maters fared here.

America's Top High Schools

Newsweek is out with its annual ranking of the country's "top" (their adjective) high schools.

The ranking is based on a ratio created by Washington Post education columnist Jay Matthews. According to the magazine, the secret recipe is:

the number of Advanced Placement, Intl. Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school in 2007 divided by the number of graduating seniors. All of the schools on the list have an index of at least 1.000; they are in the top 5 percent of public schools measured this way.

All told, 23 schools in Washington made the complete list of 1,300 top schools. But four Washington state schools made the top 100; all four were in Bellevue. They include the International School (number 10), Newport High (31st) and Interlake (45th) and Bellevue High (62nd).

You can view the list of all 23 Washington schools here.

Principals on the Class of 2008

Today, State Superintendent Terry Bergeson asked a group of high school principals to talk with her about the pending graduation of the class of 2008. This was a great opportunity for AWSP members to share their thoughts on the critical issues facing their schools, students and staff in the wake of the first graduation of kids under the (now not so) new graduation requirements. Today's participants included:

• Stacey Locke, principal, Eisenhower High (Yakima P.S.)
• Whitney Meissner, principal, Chimacum Middle/High (Chimacum S.D.)
• Vicki Puckett, principal, Woodinville High (Northshore S.D.)
  
• Scott Seaman, principal, Tumwater High (Tumwater S.D.)
  

These folks were candid with the superintendent and shared some gritty examples of students on the bubble - and not just because of WASL deficiencies. In fact, credit shortages are more likely to prevent kids from graduating in June than WASL. Here's some of the exchanges I captured during today's session:

• "There's been a lot of extra work on the part of assistant principals and counselors to track each member of this class."
  
• "There are two things that keep me awake at night: I'm afraid I've missed someone and the fact that WASL tracking and administration is a full-time job."
  
• "It feels like the kids [this year's seniors] are really taking this seriously. It's interesting to watch this year's juniors and sophomores and how they've all of a sudden stepped into the planning."
  
• "We've put a lot of responsibility on these kids and have tried to build the structures to help them. "
• "The focus we've had on these students for the last 12 years -- on trying to prepare them for success once they leave -- it's clearer than it's ever been before."
  

It's clear from listening to these leaders that they deeply care about the success of every student in their schools and that they are concerned for the adults in the system who are trying to make sure no students slip through the cracks.

They've Got Game!

And you better bring a sharp pencil!

The students in Thomas Jefferson High's Math Team were recently profiled on KING 5 News in Seattle. This is a dream team for any principal: the team attracts students of all ages (freshmen and seniors!), boys and girls of all races and backgrounds. And they mean business!

The group has been in the top 10 in the nation for 13 years straight and is sending 50 kids to the national math championships this summer. Congrats to TJ Principal Mark Marshall, Team Coach Tom Norris and to all the students (and parents) involved in this great program.

WA Scholars Event

Tomorrow, AWSP and the Higher Education Coordinating Board will be hosting the annual Washington Scholars ceremony and luncheon here in Olympia.

The morning session will begin at 9:45 in the chambers of the House of Representatives where friends, family and educators will join in recognition of their achievements. This is an award that is given by the state to three graduating seniors in each legislative district. Students are in the top 1 percent of their graduating classes and are selected based on their academic achievement, in addition to their leadership, community involvement and other extra-curricular activities.

The reward?

A four-year scholarship for tuition at any four-year public or private university in Washington state.

The Legislature started the program in 1981 as a way of honoring these kind of students. But it also helps ensure some of the state's best and brightest advance their education here in Washington. You can read more about the scholarship program here.

TVW will be covering the morning program live tomorrow. Our five morning interest sessions on the role of state government in lobbying, media/communications/the law and the Supreme Court will also be broadcast via the TVW Web site.

Then tomorrow at noon, the Scholars and their families will be joined by their legislators at a special luncheon at Saint Martin's University in Lacey. Gov. Gregoire and State Superintendent Terry Bergeson are among the honored guests speaking at the luncheon.

It should be a nice day for these students, their families and accompanying principals and teachers.

Deadline Nears for Special Circumstances Appeals

High school principals, heads up!

The deadline for filing special circumstance appeals for high school students who missed the math WASL is looming on the horizon. To be considered for the appeal, applications must be received by OSPI by Thursday, May 1. Supporting documentation can be filed after the deadline, but must be received by May 12.

You can download the appeals application here. Or go here to learn more about the special circumstances process.

According to OSPI:

"The appeal was created for students in their senior year who, because of 'special, unavoidable circumstances,' were unable to demonstrate their skills and knowledge on the high school WASL or another appropriate assessment. For example, OSPI has been alerted about numerous cases where students missed one or both days of the WASL because they were ill. Although that doesn’t guarantee an appeal will be approved, that special, unavoidable circumstance certainly qualifies as an appeal. In order for an appeal to be granted, documentation demonstrating that the student has the skills to meet standard must be provided.

Core 24

No, this does not have Kiefer Sutherland in it. (But that would be interesting!)

The "Core 24" is the short form for a new proposal by the State Board of Education to increase the minimum number of graduation credits from 19 to 24. The Meaningful High School Diploma project is one of the Board's major initiatives this year. In order to earn a diploma under the MHSD model:

"...every student will develop and follow a coherent personal plan of study that prepares them for the next step after high school- whether it's a trade, an apprenticeship program or college."

The increase would vary depending on the pathway -- work ready, college and work ready or college ready. Here's the comparison of work ready vs. work and college ready vs. college ready (differences in bold) and they each involve 24 credits:

WORK READY

• 4 credits of English
  
• 3 of mathematics
• 3 of science
• 3 of social studies
• 3 in career and technical ed
• 2 in art
• 1.5 in fitness
• .5 in health
• 4 elective credits

WORK & COLLEGE READY

• 4 credits of English
  
• 3 of mathematics
• 3 of science
• 3 of social studies
• 3 in career and technical ed
• 2 in world languages (the same language)
  
• 2 in art
• 1.5 in fitness
• .5 in health
• 2 elective credits

COLLEGE READY

• 4 credits of English
  
• 3 of mathematics
• 3 of science
• 3 of social studies
• 1 in career and technical ed
• 2 in world languages (the same language)
  
• 2 in art
• 1.5 in fitness
• .5 in health
• 4 elective credits

AWSP is working with its high school board on this issue and will be discussing it with the AWSP board later this week.

Do you support the overall concept and goal of the Core 24 proposal? What specific concerns do you have, if any, about the proposal?

It's Official!

Now the work really begins!

The revised K-8 mathematics standards were approved yesterday by the State Board of Education (SBE) in a brief, 40-minute session held at OSPI. Asa result, OSPI will now shift into professional development mode and begin the task of training the state's K-8 teachers before next fall. The state has already set in motion a professional development plan to ensure this happens.

This summer, OSPI, the ESDs and several of the state' s largest school districts will be hosting trainings to get teachers up to speed on the new standards. At the same time, OSPI is also moving forward with a curriculum review to support the revised standards. The agency has six months from the time the standards are approved to conduct the review and make recommendations to the SBE for three basic curricula for grades K-5 and three for grades 6-8. The review will begin in June and will involve a team of approximately 50 educators from around the state who were selected through a competitive process.

Are you an elementary principal? Have you heard about the summer mathematics trainings in your district or ESD?

National Board Certification Bonuses

Did you know that principals in Washington state who earned their National Board certification as teachers can now claim their state bonus as principals?

This year, the Legislature approved a bill that would allow teachers who become principals to take their $5,000 annual bonus with them into the principalship. The only catch? You must have been a teacher first -- you can't go back now as an administrator and earn the NBPTS certification in order to claim the bonus. This may be something the Legislature reviews in the next legislative cycle, according to AWSP's Director of Governmental Relations, Jerry Bender.

The original bill, Senate Bill 6930, sponsored by Sen. Rodney Tom (D-Medina), died last session but the idea was recouped in the final budget. Unlike the National Board bonus for teachers, the principal provision is not yet in statute. The bill was considered a way of encouraging teachers who earned the bonus and certification to consider next steps into school administration.

There are approximately 16 principals in Washington state who are affected by this new proviso.

Leadership Academy

Here's a new Web site to check out when you have a moment: The Washington State Leadership Academy has a new site with some preliminary information about the new venture.

The WSLA was created by last year's Legislature as part of an effort to further enhance leadership in school administrators. AWSP and WASA serve as the co-administrators of the group, in conjunction with a design team of practicing principals and superintendents from around the state. Former Bellingham Supt. Dale Kinsley is the executive director.

Do you have questions about the WSLA? Let us know.

Thanks, USDA!

This item falls under the header "You're Not Serious, Are You?"

The folks in Texas have apparently struck gold (or would that be green?) when it comes to resolving the school lunch/childhood obesity struggle and healthy snacks. The solution?

Frozen Pickle Pops. Think Otter Pops with a gherkin twist.

Yes, it's the tastiest treat sweeping schoolyards everywhere. Frozen pickle juice in a handy to-go package!

You'll be glad to know the USDA has approved the PickleSickle --frozen pickle juice pops -- for distribution in public AND private schools (see their proud stamp of endorsement on the logo above at left). And don't worry! Booster clubs can get in on this action, too... Check out this Washington Post story about it, complete with a video of one lucky student taste tester!

Mmmmm!

Elementary Honor Society

Elementary principals, listen up! There's a new program designed to help elementary schools recognize younger students for outstanding academic success.

The National Association of Elementary School Principals announced this week the creation of a new National Elementary Honor Society (NEHS). The new group is the result of a partnership between NAESP and its sister organization, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, which administers the National Honor Society and National Junior Honor Society programs. Currently, there are more than one million students represented in the 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico and Guam who participate in the NHS and NJHS, plus 536 chapters overseas.

Under the new agreement, any school containing grades 4-6 can establish a National Elementary Honor Society chapter. For more information or to start an application for your school, visit the NEHS Web site.

Advocacy Resources

As a school administrator, keeping pace with state legislation is tough enough. The federal stuff? Even more so. But two online resources bubbled to the surface this week at the NAESP Convention in Nashville:

• THOMAS - The Library of Congress' official Web site contains a staggering number of resources and data. Looking for federal bills or resolutions? There's specific resources for teachers, too.
  
• LEAD - NAESP's Leading Educators' Advocacy Dashboard gives you all the tools you need to write your Congressional representatives -- or the media in their legislative district -- about issues affecting K-12 education. Their online advocacy service provides legislative updates, information on key bills and links to local and national media outlets. You can sign up for regular updates on the issues from this site, too. Just go to the NAESP homepage and click on the LEAD icon on the list on the right-hand side of the page.

Do you have a favorite online advocacy resource you'd like to share?

SchoolTube -- Not YouTube!

Are your students interested in new technology, but you'd like to find a more positive outlet for their files than YouTube? Want a new way to jazz up those old morning announcements?

Be sure to check out SchoolTube, a safe and fun alternative to the other video sharing Web site. All videos loaded to the site must have the approval of an adult within the school -- be it a teacher, administrator, advisors, etc. The site is free and provides a nice and easy outlet for schools that want to encourage students' (appropriate) use of new media.

Differentiated Leadership

We're all familiar with the term, "differentiated instruction," but what about "differentiated leadership"?

This morning in Nashville, Minnesota leadership consultant Jane Kise made the case for differentiated leadership based on eight personality types she and her business partner, Beth Russell, have identified eight personality preferences and 16 personality types that can be identified and used to adapt school leadership as well as classroom instruction. Here are the four she covered in the session today:

• Extraversion or Intraversion: How are you energized? Do you gain energy through action and interaction, or though reflection and solitude?
• Sensing or INtuition: How do you gather information? Do you gather information with your senses or through connections and hunches?
• Thinking or feeling: How do you make decisions? Based on logic and principles or values?
• Judging or Perceiving? How do you approach life? Do you plan your work and work your plan or do you stay open and let things happen?

These tendencies are "hardwired" into each of us, Kise said. While she conceded some of this sounds like a lot of common sense, she can also offer example after example of situations where the school principal lead by their own personality preferences, which put off teachers, parents or other administrators who had opposite preferences. Most teachers--especially elementary teachers--are "feeling" types, whereas most principals are "thinking" types. She put things in perspective when she likened it to Singapore math. Singapore math works for so many people (especially those who are math phobic) because it appeals to both thinkers and feelers. Said Kise:

Be a better leader by knowing your personality preferences and those of your staff and students. The successful leader knows what their style is and tries to look for the other side to balance things out."

Politics Far From Usual

Today's keynote speakers were the national political duo James Carville and Mary Matalin. While many people scratch their heads in wonder over their red state/blue state relationship, it quickly became clear why these two work so well together: they have razor-sharp wits and sincere respect for one another. As a result, attendees at today's NAESP afternoon keynote session were not disappointed.

Matalin and Carville's professional experience read like a who's who of 20th (and 21st) century politics and mass media. Bush I, Bush II; Bill and Hillary Clinton; Meet the Press; Fox News and on and on. She's an unapologetic conservative and he's an unabashed liberal. They have two school-age daughters and now look at education through the lens of a parent rather than as campaign strategists and consultants. Speaking to the audience today, Matalin noted:

"You [principals] are at the epicenter of the most political issue of all political issues...There is nothing more important in the lives of families than what you do."

Carville and Matalin took turns addressing the audience, both exchanging friendly fire with one another while sharing their thoughts on the 2008 presidential races, politics and their own relationship. Carville likened the Democratic ticket to a game of blackjack or "21". Obama, Carville said, holds cards that amount to 20 and Hillary is holding at 15. In the world of gambling stats, Obama has the better hand, he said. But stay tuned -- both he and Carville said this race is unprecedented in American history. Both predicted a busy fall leading up to the election.

It was hard to keep up with the verbal barrage, but here are some of my favorite quips from today:

• Matalin on the question of her bi-partisan marriage: "You know how this works: He has selective husband thinking and I tell him I'm out of estrogen and have a gun!"
• Carville on the D ticket: "On the D side, we like to say we have the Mamma and Obama."
• Matalin on the 2008 campaign: "It is good for all of us...to watch the horserace. No matter who is elected, it will be a fascinating presidency."
• Carville on the campaigns: "The theater of the whole thing is just staggering...You can't keep your eyes off this thing."
• Matalin on Hillary: "I can relate to a Yankee who has a big-mouth Southern husband who doesn't know when to shut up..."
• Carville on education: "The impact as a human being of their first educational experience stays with that person for the rest of their lives...They're going to take these experiences with them deep into their lives."

I'm not even going to try to capture the stories they told about one another -- how they met, their fallout after a November appearance on Meet the Press. But it's clear both are passionate about each other, their families and the American political system. This session gave everyone a little something to chew on and laugh about.

News about NAESP

Have you noticed NAESP's new logo? The national office rolled out its new look this weekend in conjunction with the 87th annual convention. The Association also rolled out two major publications:

• Visions 2021: Transformations in Leading, Learning and Community.
• Leading Learning Communities: Standards for What Principals Should Know and Be Able to Do (second ed.)

Both are available for purchase on the NAESP Web site; a free copy of Leading Learning will be distributed to NAESP members this fall.

Howdy From Nashville, TN!

Greetings from the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort!

The NAESP Convention is off to a fine start, with sessions covering an array of interests. Content strands include:

• Adult Learning
• Community Engagement
• Data & Decision-Making
• Expanding the Continuum of Learning
• Leadership/Distributed Leadership
• Student Learning
• Vision

Today I had the chance to attend two sessions. The first was world renown psychologist Dr. Jack Singer, who wrote attendees a prescription for three heaping teaspoons positive rational self-talk, optimism and laughter daily to beat back the stress of everyday life. Singer noted that children laugh about 300 times a day. Adults? Just 17 times. "You need to let that little child in you out," Singer advised. "You need to laugh!" The good doctor helped the audience work toward that goal with a warm, funny presentation.

The second, Diane Hodges, also focused on the positive. Hodges, a former secondary and elementary school principal, has parlayed her passion for staff morale into a successful consulting business. Frankly, it was hard to keep up with her -- the ideas were coming fast and furious during her presentation. I included some of those tips in my article for the NAESP Convention Newsletter.

Good News For People Who are Sick of Bad News

On the dropout front...

In the wake of the report issued yesterday by America's Promise Alliance pegging the national dropout rate at 50 percent comes this story about the Clover Park School District in Lakewood. Thanks to a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation -- one of the underwriters of the APA's dropout study -- Clover Park High was able to restructure itself and keep students with the same teachers for all four years.

The payoff? A 30 percent + drop in the dropout rate , or, more positively expressed as a 30 percent increase in diplomas granted. According to John Seaton, principal, Clover Park High:

"You've got a relationship that is so tight with those kids that they're willing to share their life with you," Seaton explained. "So you can become part of the solution for their problems."

Food Allergy Guidelines

Here's something school principals should review and share with their staffs...

On Monday, OSPI released its Food Allergy Guidelines, created in conjunction with the Food Allergy Advisory Committee, a group comprised of parents, school nutritionists, nurses, administrators and pupil transportation staff. In 2007, the Legislature appropriated $45,000 OSPI to convene a workgroup to finalize draft guidelines and develop school food allergy guidelines and policies for districts to implement beginning in 2008-09.

The guide includes recommendations, forms and procedures school personnel need to anticipate and respond to situations involving students with these potentially life-threatening issues. The publication also includes a complete reference of all related Washington state laws and federal regulations.

According to the Food Allergy and Anphylaxis Network (FAAN), about 12 million people in the U.S have food allergies; 3 million of them are children. Eight foods account for 90 percent of all food-allergic reactions in the U.S.: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (e.g., walnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, pecans), wheat, soy, fish, and shellfish. You can read additional facts about food allergies here.

Let us know if your school has implemented any particular procedures or practices that have helped students become more aware of food allergies or better manage them schoolwide.

Blogging with a Tennessee Twang

Just a reminder that I'll be packing up the ol' kit blog and heading for Nashville later this week to capture the good times and great speakers at the 87th NAESP Convention. In addition to blogging about the convention, I'll be doing some writing for the NAESP office, covering the following sessions for their online convention newsletter:

• April 4: Dr. Jack Singer - Known as the "Patch Adams of Psychology," Dr. Singer is recognized among the world's leaders in promoting fun, humor and laughter as the most powerful antidotes to stress and illness.
• April 4: Diane Hodges - Hodges is one of the foremost authorities on staff morale, staff dynamics, development and training.
  
• April 7: Jane A.G. Kise - Kise is an educational consultant specializing in teambuilding, coaching and school staff development.
  

I also hope to post some pics of Washington state principals and assistant principals who will be attending this year's event. So if you're going, get ready to say "Cracker Barrel!"

You can check out all the convention offerings here. Stay tuned for more later this week!

More On Math

When we last left off, we were recapping the news about the demise of the math WASL and the status of mathematics testing under the new legislation signed by Gov. Gregoire. On Friday, OSPI issued a statement to clarify the specific requirements. It's worth sharing with staff at all grade levels and might be something worth linking to on your school's blog, Web site or in a school newsletter.

Math Hokey Pokey

You put the math WASL in, you take the math WASL out...

This week, Gov. Gregoire approved a plan that would phase out use of the math WASL and eliminate it as a graduation requirement. But don't let your students think they're off the hook entirely. Here's how things will work:

• The changes announced this week will NOT apply to this year's seniors.
  
• Students in grades 3-8 will still sit for the WASL in mathematics, as required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
• The graduating class of 2013 (this year's seventh-graders) will have the option of taking an passing either the math WASL or individual end-of-course (EOC - yes, a new acronym) exams. In 2014, the math WASL will be no more and only end-of-course exams in subjects like algebra and geometry will be used.
• $3.2 million was allocated this session for development of the EOCs.
  
• High school students will still be required to take and pass the reading and writing WASLs, in addition to completing a high school and beyond plan, culminating project and any credits required by the district to graduate.
  

This week's bill signing marks yet another change schools must communicate about graduation and testing requirements to teachers, students, families and the community.

What do you think about the decision? Will end-of-course exams work better than the WASL for assessing students skills in areas like algebra and geometry? Do you think we will see different test results?

How are you sharing the changes with your key audiences at school?

Save the D-A-T-E!

It's spring, and that can only mean one thing: It's [Spelling] Bee Season!

Middle and elementary schools all over the country are buzzing with spelling champ wannabees, hoping to make their way to the big Scripps National Spelling Bee May 29 and 30. According to the official Web site:

The Louisville Courier-Journal started the event with nine contestants in 1925. In 1941 Scripps assumed sponsorship of the program. There was no Scripps National Spelling Bee during the World War II years of 1943, 1944, and 1945. Co-champions were declared in 1950, 1957, and 1962. Of the 83 champions, 43 have been girls and 40 have been boys.

You can view the complete list of previous champs and their winning words online. The Scripps program has a great Web site with links to several great resources, whether you're competing in The Bee or just need a handy online reference guide for your daily correspondence. (I'd better hit spell check on that last one...)

Technology: Fight It or Learn It?

Do you have a MySpace page?

Not for networking, but for keeping up with technology -- for staying connected to how students are communicating? (Or, just keeping tabs on your own child?)

That's the issue raised today at a meeting of statewide education association communication professionals. The group meets to discuss ongoing projects in our respective organizations, cross-market events and help each other solve communications and PR challenges. The subject of new media came up-- in particular the connection between bullying and the use of sites like Juicy Campus, where people can post anything about anyone anonymously. Use of the site has already caused a flare up in the Marysville School District, which has blocked access to Juicy Campus, though most posts occur outside of school hours via non-school resources.

For many educators, just keeping up with e-mail is a chore. But in order to better understand today's students, should professional development for administrators and teachers include regular updates on technology?

Should educators know about Twitter and MySpace and Juicy Campus in order to address issues that arise from these newfangled version of old school graffiti? Or, should more attention be placed on school culture, to prevent the bullying and harassment these tools seem to encourage?

Licensed to Teach - At Home?

Naturally, any time the subject of education appears in the media, it has our attention. So when the teaser for the CBS Evening News declared Saturday that you now need a teaching certificate to homeschool your child in California, we tuned in.

Last month, the Second District Court of Appeal in California was asked to weigh in on a case that would require the parents of eight children to send them to a regular public or private school, where their welfare could be monitored. A lower court had ruled that the parents had a constitutional right to home school their children. The appellate court found no such right existed, and further, that because the parents did not have teaching certificates, they could not educate their children.

As with all legal issues, this one will take some time to sort out and has raised educational and parental rights issues.

You can read the ruling here. You can also read Gov. Schwarzenegger's statement on this issue here.

More Pi!

Another fun site: http://www.piacrossamerica.org/

Go Ahead! Drop Out!

Go on! Go!

That's the advice coming from Michael Goldstein, founder of the MATCH Charter Public High School in Boston, to students lacking an interest in their formal education.

His hypothesis, as outlined in a recent e-mail to Washington Post education columnist Jay Matthews is as follows:

"I've got a nutty idea. When half the kids in most U.S. cities essentially reject the basic product called 'school' -- many would leave a lot EARLIER if they were allowed by parents and the law -- then the best path forward is not ONLY different schools (with caring, discipline, and rigor), but also offering a different product entirely.

"Here's the different 'product': What if a 16-year-old could drop out but bank the money that the school district spends per pupil ($15,000 here in Boston, but I'm sure it's more in D.C.), the amount that otherwise would have been spent junior and senior year, like a medical savings account or an IRA? Then it can't be touched for at least two years -- force-feed kids the feeling of the dead-end life they're embarking on.

By Goldstein's estimation, most of the kids who might drop out under his scenario would enjoy their newfound freedom...temporarily, then realize that being in the real world with no job, no marketable skills or a formal education isn't such a good idea. Meanwhile, the campaign to get them back in school would continue:

"The dropout would get a statement every quarter in the mail, like a mutual fund, which shows the $30,000 (plus interest) or whatever available for their education. In each statement, there would be an easy-to-read story about an inner-city kid who'd used the education funds to turn things around. Constant reminder.

Schools could bank savings by hiring fewer teachers. Teachers would "like their jobs more" according to Goldstein, not having the added social work duties that sometimes come with potential dropouts.

It's a pretty dire view, but is there a degree of truth to what Goldstein's saying? You can read the entire exchange in Matthew's column here. Check out this great post about it on The Core Knowledge Blog.

Save Your Fork, There's Pi!

Today is a high holy day for math enthusiasts, and with Washington state's new math standards nearly put to bed, we couldn't pass up this opportunity to celebrate. Plus, who doesn't love pi(e)?

March 14 has become the high holy day for math enthusiasts. Represented numerically, March 14 is 3.14 -- the same as the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, represented by the Greek letter Pi. And no, we are not making this up. (Someone already beat us to the punch on that one.)

Are your math classes doing anything to commemorate today's big day?

Threat Down: Credits vs. WASL

It's WASL testing week for Washington state's high school sophomores and any juniors or seniors (especially seniors) that want to retake or need to take the reading and writing tests to graduate. With this year's seniors bearing the title of the first to graduate under the state's new graduation requirements, there's a lot of focus on passing the WASL. But what about passing P.E.? Or Spanish?

That's the focus of today's article in The Seattle Times, which looks at several districts north of Seattle where credit deficiencies threaten graduation plans -- not the WASL. In Marysville, the district reports there are about 10 times as many students that are not on track to graduate due to credits rather than WASL scores.

"It's not these other factors that are impeding students from graduating — it's the low credits," [Ray Houser, Marysville executive director of teaching and learning] said.

"We realize that it's not necessarily the assessment or the state requirements, but the inability to successfully navigate the classes," he said.

High school principals: Is this something you're seeing in your own schools?

What Would You Fund?

The Washington State Legislature is just two weeks away from concluding its regular 60-day session on March 13. But they won't adjourn sine die until both chambers (and the governor) agree on a budget. Given where the two sides are -- and despite a Democratic majority in both houses -- this could take some negotiating.

Case in point: The House has included a 1 percent COLA increase for educators in its budget, though to the detriment of all-day kindergarten. The Senate, conversely, funds all-day K but makes no provisions for the 1 percent increase.

The League of Education Voters just released this handy comparison of the two budget proposals as they relate to early learning, K-12 and higher ed. Take a look and then tell us what you would fund. Or not.

The Smarter Generation?

Yesterday, we shared news of a national survey suggesting that today's 17-year-olds lacked common historical or literary references. Today, we offer another view on the topics, this column, "Why Teens are Smarter," from the Seattle P-I.

Apparently a New York Times story this week found that fewer 16-year-olds are in possession of drivers' licenses. In the article, the Federal Highway Administration noted that over the decade the proportion of 16-year-olds with driver's licenses has fallen from about half to less than one-third. Some of this could be connected to the introduction of graduated licenses. Fewer driving schools and increase costs of insurance and gas may also have something to do with it, too.

But Dale McFeatters, the columnist for the Scripps Howard News Service who wrote today's piece, suggests the decline it may be blamed on something else altogether:

One factor in the Times story was particularly eye-catching: The greater willingness of parents to drive their children around, that is, act as their chauffeurs.

Now who's the smarter generation.

I'll Take History for $500, Alex

We all laughed when Animal House's John Belushi accused the Germans of bombing Pearl Harbor ("Forget it. He's rolling.") But a new poll out about high school students' knowledge of history and literature suggests Bluto is alive and well.

According to a new study, "Still at Risk: What Students Don't Know, Even Now," today's high school students lack basic historical and literary facts and references. The research was compiled by Common Core, a non-partisan research group dedicated to "strengthening liberal learning in K-12 education."

Overall, the 1,200 high school students surveyed earned a "D." Among the findings:

• Nearly a quarter cannot identify Adolf Hitler, with ten percent thinking Hitler was a munitions manufacturer.
• More than a quarter think Christopher Columbus sailed after 1750.
• Fewer than half can place the Civil War in the correct half-century.
• A third do not know that the Bill of Rights guarantees the freedom of speech and religion.
• Half have no idea what the Renaissance was.
• Nearly half think that The Scarlet Letter was either about a witch trial or a piece of correspondence.

Thankfully, the survey did have a few bright spots. Of those surveyed, 97 percent knew the "I have a dream" speech was given by Martin Luther King Jr. And, 88 percent knew the bombing of Pearl Harbor led the USA into World War II.

(Take that, Bluto.)

On the serious: Is a study like this fair -- to students, to the K-12 system, to teachers? Or should we expect all students to have a common familiarity with this knowledge?

Public School Insights

There's a new education Web site you might want to check out. The national Learning First Alliance just launched "Public School Insights," an online education community that includes a blog, a toolkit section (with free downloads like their communications toolkit) and a success stories section where you can share your school or district's achievements.

In case you're not familiar with them, the Learning First Alliance is a non-profit partnership of 18 major national education associations that collectively represent more than 10 million teachers, parents, principals, superintendents, teacher educators, school board members, school counselors and other school and district staff. Washington is one of several states that has developed its own chapter of the LFA.

The Magic Number

And no, it's not 3.

Last Friday, I mentioned an NASSP report about a slight increase in middle and high school principal salaries. I was also curious to know the average principal salary here in Washington state.

It took a little digging on the OSPI Web site, but in the school finance section, you can find it (see table 2). So according to the state, the average principal salary is $92,103. Unfortunately, the salaries are not broken out by component levels.

Principal Salaries

Good news to end the week: Secondary school principals nationwide saw a little more green this [school] year thanks to salary indexes equal to or better than the Consumer Price Index.

That's the good word out today from the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP). The average salary reported by school districts for junior high and middle school principals in 2007-08 is $91,486; for high school principals the average is $97,496. According to NASSP:

The 2007-08 average salary for senior high school principals is 4.9% higher than that for 2006–07. This compares to an increase of 2.8% for the Consumer Price Index, thus resulting in a slight gain in purchasing power—on average—for these principals. The CPI is the Department of Labor’s measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services and is often used to estimate increases in cost of living.

The Educational Research Service compiled the report, Salaries & Wages Paid Professional and Support Personnel in Public Schools. Salary tables for middle and high school principals and middle and high school assistant principals are also available on the NASSP Web site.

Time to hit the data files on the OSPI Web site to find the average principal salary here in Washington state... We'll report back when we find it!

You Better Think (Think, Think)

Developing "critical thinking skills" are all the rage in K-12 education these days. We often hear the phrase bandied about in debates about the need for higher standards and a push to provide students with skills that will meet the demands of the new economy.

But what does that phrase really mean?

An article in Monday's Washington Post explores this very question with some who think they know, others who think it means nothing and still more folks who think you should just challenge everything anyway ("Question Authority.").

How has an emphasis on "critical thinking skills" played out in your school? Are students better prepared now than they were five, 10 even 20 years ago?

When Kids Vote

According to Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed's office, more than 4,800 students participated in this year's Mock Presidential Primary. The Secretary of State's office has worked diligently in recent years to develop grade-appropriate curricula aligned with state and federal standards to teach civics and voting; the mock primary is just one piece of this effort.

Here's how things shaped up in the Democratic Presidential Primary (3,519 students voted):

• Joe Biden - 1%
• Hillary Clinton - 23%
• Chris Dodd - 0%
• John Edwards - 1%
• Mike Gravel - 1%
• Dennis Kucinich - 1%
• Barack Obama - 73%

Some observations on these results: First, Mike Gravel is not exactly a household name, so I had to Google him and apparently there is a man by this name running for president. (I guess I'm not smarter than a fifth-grader!) Second, John Edwards only garnered 1%?

Here's the results from the Republican primary, where 1,300 students cast votes:

• Rudy Guiliani - 3%
• Mike Huckabee- 25%
• Duncan Hunter - 2%
• Alan Keyes - 2%
• John McCain - 51%
• Ron Paul - 7%
• Mitt Romney - 8%
• Fred Thompson - 2%
  

Again, I flew to Google to find out more about this Duncan Hunter person and yup, he's got a hat in the ring, too. Guess I need to read that issue of Newsweek on my nightstand more carefully...

You can learn more about the Mock Primary on the Secretary of State's Web site.

Did your school participate in this year's Mock Election? If so, how did things go? What did your students learn as a result of this process? What did you or your staff learn?

Roses are... oh forget it.

Today is Valentine's Day, which, if memory serves, was a frenzied day for schools. Nutrition and obesity concerns have stripped many schools of any presence of sugary items, and the idea of being "sweet" on someone at school can quickly run afoul.

So how do you set the tone at school when it comes to days like today? Did your students get involved in a community project (Valentines for Vets)?

Or, was it business as usual?

Caucuses

There were an awful lot of people who had the chance to visit public schools in Washington state this weekend as a Democrats and Republicans converged on their respective caucuses. This was a great opportunity to showcase student artwork or other school projects to the public.

Did your school host a caucus event? If so, did you do anything special to showcase your school for these guests?

2008 Assistant Principals' Leadership Conference

Washington is one of the few states that offers its own conference designed just for assistant principals.

This year's event is being held at the beautiful Hilton Vancouver Washington, and about 160 APs, deans of students, principal interns and associate principals made the trip down, despite some nasty winter weather. For two days, conference-goers will participate in large and small group sessions around issues like dealing with gangs and gang-related issues; student management; discipline; school law; and interviewing for APs going into the principalship and interns going into assistant principalships.

This morning, attendees were treated to a keynote update on the revised math standards (think deeper, not broader). Bergeson said the urgency over math in this state and country is "like Sputnik times 10" and that we all owe it to students to develop new attitudes about the importance and value of mathematics.

Today's portion of the conference is also a time to honor the state Assistant Principal of the Year. This year, the award went to Granite Falls Middle School Assistant Principal David Bianchini, who, it was announced today, will be moving up in the ranks next year to assume the principalship at the same school. (Dr. Richard Panagos is retiring at the end of the 2008 school year.) Bianchini (at left, with AP Conference Chair Mary Lou Bissett) is credited with increasing the personalization at his school -- helping teachers zero in on 127 students who were just drifitng through the educational process Bianchini's honor is one of several garnered by the district, which also includes the 2007 National Teacher of the Year (music teacher Andrea Peterson) and the 2007 National Science to Service Award. Good things are happening in Granite Falls!

After two more rounds of breakout sessions and a fun dessert social with exhibitors, the day ended with relaxed social where attendees could chat with one another in a cabaret-style atmosphere, enjoying music from the Portland-area group Tall Jazz.

Tomorrow: more breakout sessions and a special presentation at lunch by 2007 Assistant Principal of the Year James Hester from Washington High in the Franklin Pierce School District.

What You Don't Know About Poverty...

Could dramatically affect the teaching and learning in your classrooms. That was just one of many powerful messages presented today by Dr. Donna Beegle at AWSP's 2008 Assistant Principals' Leadership Conference in Vancouver. Beegle's personal history (she's one of five children, and the only member of her family who has not been incarcerated) makes her analysis of poverty and its affects on students and educators so compelling.

In her remarks, Beegle emphasized the importance of understanding basic facts about poverty and the value in educators really knowing their students--that element of personalization. She shared traits of the various kinds of poverty -- generational, immigrant, working class--that all bring different language, culture and values to the table. And she underscored the critical importance of helping all students in poverty understand the language of school, to help them understand why what they do in class is of value to them as individuals, as citizens.

"If I don't know why I'm in school, how can it be important?" Beegle said. "Imagine how the world of poverty affects what you pay attention to...Tell your students why education matters and show them that people who do jobs [that require education] are like them."

Beegle's presentation provided an eye-opening glimpse at a world many teachers or school staff neither know nor understand, and provided many practical tips on how schools with high poverty populations can engage students, parents and families. Examples:

• Hold focus groups with parents to find out the best ways to communicate with them or engage them in school conferences and events.
• When conferences are held, offer meals and/or child care to entice family participation
  
• Work with community service groups and local stores to donate money, services or vouchers to offset these costs

"If we don't know the situation [students come from], we tend to exacerbate the problem. you have to know your communities," said Beegle. "Solutions have to come from within your building."

*********
Some random facts about poverty Beegle dropped into her presentation:

• 350 households are disconnected from water service for payment failures every day in Portland (where Beegle calls home). What's the number for your community?
  
• About two-thirds of people in poverty work 1.7 jobs, per the U.S. Census (per Beegle) How many jobs are your parents working to make ends meet?
  
• The average reading level of today's prison inmate? 8th grade.
  
• There is a five-year wait for housing in the U.S.
• It costs about $30,000/year to house one inmate in prison
• Do you know the minimum wage in Washington state? $8.07/hour

Tuesday Tidbits - Jan. 29, 2008

It's late on a Tuesday, but it's not too late for some tidbits. Here's a couple from today:

• What about education? That's what the National Association of Secondary School Principals wondered in their post today about President Bush's State of the Union Address Monday night. Education had a fleeting mention in the speech, which seems odd given the administration's landmark rewrite of the ESEA (No Child Left Behind).
  

• Is MySpace Overrated? According to Veronica Lim, a student at Heritage High in Vancouver, Wash., teens could be spending their time more wisely making real world connections. Check out her guest column in The Columbian.
  
  
• Should there be more money for teachers in high-need areas (like mathematics, science and special education)? No, according to Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire. A contributor to the USA Today's editorial pages, though, begs to differ.
  

Is WASL the Real Graduation Hang Up?

That's the question Everett Herald reporter Eric Stevick tackled in today's paper, and the answer may surprise some.

Apparently the real hang up when it comes to the class of 2008 is not passing the WASL, but rather, getting enough seat time. Credits are the single biggest threat to graduation in the districts within his readership (like Granite Falls, Everett Public Schools and the Edmonds School District). Take the seniors at Everett's Cascade High for example. According to Stevick:

As of Friday, the Everett school had 386 students in its class of 2008, but 63 were behind on credits they need in order to graduate on time.

Of the 323 students on track to earn enough credits to graduate, seven have not passed the WASL's reading mark, five have not passed writing and 15 have not passed both reading and writing portions of the 10th-grade WASL. Of the 27 students with WASL problems, about 40 percent have either not taken the tests or not had their WASL scores recorded.

Of 63 Cascade students behind on credits, seven haven't passed the reading test, nine haven't passed the writing and 11 have not passed either exams.

Are credits a bigger barrier to graduation for students in your high school than the WASL?

Tuesday Tidbits on Wednesday

It's just been that kind of week!

Here, in no particular order, are a few education items of note:

• U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings took time to visit with Gov. Gregoire, legislators, members of the State Board of Education and representatives from various education groups (including AWSP) today at Roosevelt Elementary here in Olympia to discuss No Child Left Behind. According to Jerry Bender, AWSP's director of governmental relations, the meeting did not afford a lot of opportunities for input, but he was able to underscore the importance of support for principals given the workings of NCLB. You can read more about the meeting---and other legislative happenings--in Jerry's blog, From Olympia and Beyond.
  
• Speaking of NCLB, you can view Washington state's achievement "dashboard" online. This PDF gives a snapshot of our progress toward the goals of the act.
  
• True Confessions: The Tacoma News Tribune reprinted this column from a senior at Puyallup (pron. Pew-AL-up) who admits he may not have given it his all as an underclassman. In the column, which originally appeared in the school's student newspaper, he encourages his fellow classmates to get more involved while they're still in school (while the support is there).
  
• Recess is big news again this year in the Legislature. Two bills have been introduced on the topic, aiming to give kids across all grades more fresh air and time to move. Our Association supports the concept, but has trouble with the implementation. You can read about one of the bills in today's Seattle Times. Has your school cut back on recess? If so, let us know. (If you've added more free time, let us know that, too!)

Tuesday Tidbits - Jan. 8, 2008

It's Tuesday, so it's time for a fresh batch of 2008 tidbits:

• Are gifted students being shorted under No Child Left Behind? That's what one former California educator asserts in this thoughtful piece about the Advanced Placement programs.
  
• The National Association of Secondary School Principals wants your input on what would best improve boys' academic performance. Check out their online survey here. Interestingly, teaching boys better organizational skills is one of the multiple choice options in the online poll -- something we recently posted about.
  
• More on the health of today's students: A study appearing in this month's Archive of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine suggests that a teen girl's view of herself in the school social scene has health consequences. The study of 4,000 girls (average age was 15) found that girls who did not think of themselves as popular were 69 percent more likely than other girls to gain weight -- an equivalent of about 11 extra pounds over their target body mass index.
  

Cooties!

Unfortunately, we're not talking about the fun plastic toy game from Hasbro.

Check out this funny video--a phony public service announcement about that dreaded louse.

And to further add to the randomness of this post, there's apparently a software program (the aptly named Cooties - see logo at right) designed to help teach students about the spread of disease.

In the words of humor columnist Dave Barry, we are not making this up!

Ed on the Campaign Trail

Welcome back to The Comp Book and to a new year!

For the last few days, the national media have been camping out in Iowa to cover the landmark "First in the Nation" caucuses. And while there continues to be a lot of talk about Iraq and the economy, the one major issue none of the candidates are really talking about is education.

One place to scope out the candidates' views is a Education Election, a great blog written by education reporters from around the country. They've posted links to all of the candidates and their education platforms. It's worth a couple of clicks to see just what the candidates are--and aren't--saying. Today's Ed Election post discusses a Bloomberg News story on Microsoft's Bill Gates--who is NOT running for president--but has spent $30 million on his Ed in 08 campaign.

Thirty million dollars and still no traction on the national scene?

Here in Washington state, 2008 is also an important year because this is the first class to graduate under the state's new graduation standards. This includes passage of the state test in reading and writing, as well as completing a culminating project and 13th year plan. For lawmakers up for re-election next fall, it could mean more scrutiny of their position on this key issue. Stay tuned: session starts Monday, Jan. 14.

How are you keeping pace with the presidential candidates and their stances on education?

Why Are Boys So Disorganized?

That's the question posited by researchers and educators in this recent New York Times article by Alan Finder. Why are boys more likely to bring home backpacks that resemble black holes, while their female classmates quickly adopt filing systems?

Some educators think the tutors are on the right track, whether or not there is science to back them up. “The guys just don’t seem to develop the skills that involve organization as early,” said Judith Kleinfeld, a psychology professor at the University of Alaska and founder of the Boys Project, a coalition of researchers, educators and parents to address boys’ problems.

What's your sense of things? Do male students have a harder time staying on track and keeping organized? Or is this another gender stereotype? What do your teachers do to help students stay on track organizationally?

Last Post for 2007

Today's post is the final entry in The Comp Book for 2007. We'll be taking winter break from Dec. 21 - Jan. 2 to celebrate, ring in the new year and recharge for what will hopefully be a great 2008.

Before we bid you "Happy Holidays," here are a couple of things worth noting:

• Community farmers and environmental proponents will be urging Washington state lawmakers to consider legislation that would ease state laws so that school districts could purchase produce from local farms. The campaign is called "Local Farms -- Healthy Kids" and you can learn more here.
  
• The U.S. Department of Justice is sponsoring a National Missing Children's Day Poster Contest for fifth-graders to help raise awareness and teach children about safety. State entires are due by March 14 and should be submitted to Susan Miller, Washington State Patrol, Missing Person Unit, PO Box 2347, Olympia, WA 98507-2347.
  
• Is the 180-day school year going the way of the rotary-dial phone? That's the theory behind this Dec. 17 editorial that appeared in the USA Today.
  

As always, let us know what's on your mind about these topics or any other K-12 or principal leadership issues.

Happy Holidays!

Middle School Math Teachers in the U.S. ...

... are not as prepared to teach the subject as their peers in five other countries according to a new study out by researchers at Michigan State University.

The study, Mathematics Teaching in the 21st Century (MT21), suggests the training of middle school math teachers in the U.S. is not sufficient to teach a demanding math curriculum. MT21 studied how well a sample of universities and teacher-training institutions prepare middle school math teachers in the U.S., South Korea, Taiwan, Germany, Bulgaria and Mexico. Specifically, 2,627 future teachers were surveyed about their preparation, knowledge and beliefs in this area.

According to the study:

Compared to the other countries, the U.S. future teachers ranked from the middle to the bottom on MT21 measures of math knowledge.

“What’s most disturbing is that one of the areas in which U.S. future teachers tend to do the worst is algebra, and algebra is the heart of middle school math,” said William Schmidt, MSU Distinguished Professor of counseling, educational psychology and special education, who directed the study. “When future teachers in the study were asked about opportunities to learn about the practical aspects of teaching mathematics, again we ranked mediocre at best.”

You can view the entire report online or listen to a podcast by William Schmidt.

Penny for Your Thoughts

The holidays--and recent flooding here in Washington state--make us all wonder what we can do to help. And for children, that question is an even more daunting. But the folks at the nonprofit Common Cents may have found a simple and easy solution to such a difficult question. And it's likely in your pants pockets, car ashtray or desk drawer.

The Penny Harvest was started by a four-year-old (yes, 4) and her father. In 1991, young Nora Gross asked her father how she could help feed a homeless man. Searching for the "right" answer to his daughter's question, Gross' father, Teddy, was inspired by a loose change bowl in their house. Fifteen years later, Common Cents and the Penny Harvest have helped schoolchildren find a way to improve things in their communities with the smallest gifts of change. Common Cents has developed Penny Harvest Kits that schools, school groups, individuals and communities can use to start their own projects. According to the site:

During the 05/06 school year, almost a half million children from 770 New York City schools took part in the Penny Harvest, collecting nearly 185 tons of pennies or $655,508.54. After months of research and study, more than 7,000 children sitting on 521 Philanthropy Roundtables made 1,283 monetary grants to non-profits, such as women’s shelters, animal rights organizations, community gardens and senior centers, and carried out 309 Neighborhood Service projects. Every penny collected goes back to the community.

Check out the current New York City Penny Harvest in Rockefeller Center, a collection of 100 million pennies that's as long and wide as a city block! There's also Penny Harvest Centers springing up in Colorado, Florida, Tennessee and right here in Washington state.

He Ain't Heavy (He's My Backpack)

With more and more schools opting to forgo lockers, the burden of carrying around a day's worth of books is falling heavily on the shoulders of today's students according to this article from The Olympian (republished in The Seattle Times). Parents in North Thurston Public Schools are asking district officials to provide secure storage for student backpacks and other gear since bags are now overflowing with binders, books, instruments and other school supplies.

Did your school phase out lockers? If so, what are you doing to help students better balance their academic luggage? Any thoughts of reinstalling them?

An "A" in Marketing

Schools in Seminole County, Fla. are taking some flak today over a partnership with local McDonald's restaurants. Apparently the district inked a partnership deal with the local restaurants to cover $1,600 in printing costs associated with their report card jackets (right) for the 2007-08 school year. Students who receive A's and B's received a free Happy Meal coupon on the jackets of their report cards, which they can redeem at local McDonald's restaurants.

You can read more about it here, here and here.

Caught Being Good

A nice editorial in today's Walla Walla Union Bulletin about students being singled out for positive behavior in the Walla Walla Public Schools. From raising their grades to keeping the school grounds tidy, students are being praised (e.g., noticed) for contributing in a positive way.

Does your school or district have a similar program in place? If so, how has it been received? Has it changed anything at your school?

Reporting or Sales?

Today's New York Times has a column questioning the ranking of high schools, such as the new U.S. News & World Reports ranking mentioned in Tuesday's post. Author Samuel G. Freedman posits whether the listing of high schools is more about selling magazines than about journalism or the search for quality secondary schools:

Whatever this list represents in terms of journalism or public service, it must be understood also as an exercise in business, in extending the U.S. News brand, in helping it survive in a financial and technological climate hostile to news magazines. Having devoted annual issues to ranking colleges, graduate schools and hospitals, U.S. News has now brought the same approach to secondary education.

What do you think?

Tuesday Tidbits - Dec. 4, 2007

It's Tuesday, so it must be time for some K-12 tidbits!

• The Dec. 10 issue of U.S. News & World Reports includes its first ranking of "America's Best High Schools." But don't look for Washington schools on the list. The U.S. News & World Report researchers' ranking formula evaluated schools based on how well students performed on state reading and math tests, participation in AP and several other factors. You can view the list of schools in Washington state here. Schools are sorted into Gold, Silver and Bronze categories, with scores given for Poverty Adjusted Performance, Disadvantaged Student Performance Gap, College Readiness Index, Minority Enrollment and Disadvantaged Student Enrollment.
  
• While we're on the subject of graduation and high schools, Tacoma News Tribune Columnist Peter Callaghan has a noteworthy column today on the debate over college readiness for all students. Should all students be required to take college prep courses regardless of their post-graduate plans?
  
• Experience vs. Degrees? Apparently experience trumps degrees when it comes to K-12 teaching, according to a new study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy. “In the first few years on the job, a teacher gains considerably in her or his ability to improve the academic performance of students,” the report concluded. Members of the state's Basic Education Task Force, will use the study in its analysis of basic ed funding. (Unfortunately, it does not look like this study has been added to the WSIPP site just yet.)
  

School in a Box

In case you missed it last night, CBS's "60 Minutes" profiled technology thinker Nicholas Negroponte and his "One Laptop Per Child" movement. The idea is simple: provide every child in the world with a laptop computer. But as with everything, the devil is in the details.

Negroponte, a professor at MIT, engaged some of his computer-minded colleagues to design a portable, battery operated computer (named the "XO") for use in a variety of conditions, since many of these laptops are given to children that live without electricity, let alone many of the other comforts of the modern world. The resulting machine (right) is waterproof and can operate in full sunlight (try that with your Dell) for about 10-12 hours. Outta juice? Try the hand crank or a device that looks like a salad spinner, and you can generate 10-20 minutes of online reading with a minute or two of turning, according to reporter Leslie Stahl.

From a technology perspective, this is groundbreaking. Negroponte, famous for his work at the MIT Media Lab, has created something revolutionary in the personal computing world. But as the professor observes in the "60 Minutes" piece and on his OLPC Web site, "it's an education project, not a laptop project."

But educationally, Negroponte has been taken to task by groups like Geekcorps for distributing the machines to students with no formal education. The professor counters that's even more reason for children and families in extreme poverty to have access to an XO:

"You’re saying give them a laptop even if they don’t go to school?" Stahl asks.

"Especially if they don’t go to school. If they don’t go to school, this is school in a box."

What do you think about distributing these machines to students with no formal education? And, what could your students learn from being involved in this project?

P.S.: If you are interested in buying an XO, try the "Give One, Get One" program: purchase one for yourself and donate another to the program.

Reading is So 20th Century

In our Nov. 20 issue of Tuesday Tidbits, we blogged about the fate of some school libraries, and the push by some parents and librarians to reclaim them. Now, coincidentally, comes a study indicating that U.S. student reading skills are stagnating or declining in comparison to their international peers.

Test results on the Progress in International Reading Literacy showed that U.S. fourth-graders are losing ground compared to other kids around the world. The test, which was administered last year, indicated that students scored at the same levels as they did in 2001, the last time the test was given. Students in 10 countries and three Canadian provinces scored higher than U.S. students. In 2001, only three countries were ahead of the U.S.

According to the Associated Press, the results also showed:

• Among jurisdictions that took the test in 2001 and 2006, scores improved in Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Russia, Singapore, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia.
  
  
• Average test scores declined in England, Lithuania, Morocco, the Netherlands, Romania and Sweden. England, the Netherlands and Sweden were the top three performers in 2001. Sweden still outperformed the United States this time, but average scores in England and the Netherlands were not measurably different from the U.S. average.
  
  
• Girls scored higher than boys in the United States and all other countries except for Luxembourg and Spain, where the boy-girl scores were the same.
  
  
• The average U.S. score was above the average score in 22 countries or jurisdictions and about the same as the score in 12 others. The U.S. average fell toward the high end of a level called "intermediate." At that level, a student can identify central events, plot sequences and relevant story details in texts. The student also can make straightforward inferences from what is read and begin to make connections across parts of the text.

Tracy Warner, the editorial page editor for The Wenatchee World, wrote this interesting piece ("Reading we mostly don't") about what the scores might say about our students and our culture in America. In it, he references a telling analysis of reading habits completed by the National Endowment for the Arts. "To Read or Not To Read" looked at 40 studies on the reading habits and skills of children, teens and adults. Among their key findings:

• Americans are reading less - teens and young adults read less often and for shorter amounts of time compared with other age groups and with Americans of previous years.
• Americans are reading less well – reading scores continue to worsen, especially among teenagers and young males. By contrast, the average reading score of 9-year-olds has improved.
• The declines in reading have civic, social, and economic implications – Advanced readers accrue personal, professional, and social advantages. Deficient readers run higher risks of failure in all three areas.

What do you think about the results? Are students in your schools less interested in reading for pleasure these days?

Coming Soon to NBC: Law & Order - TPU

That would be the Teacher Performance Unit in New York City.

Check out this recent story in The New York Times on a new task force compiled by NYC Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein. There are two groups, really: the Teacher Performance Unit comprised of five lawyers and a second team consultants that includes former principals. The mission of the TPU will be to remove tenured teachers for "ineffective performance" Klein told the Times.

The plan will reportedly cost $1 million a year to implement.

National Assistant Principals' Task Force

Assistant Principals will soon have their own task force through the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Earlier this month, NASSP appointed 15 members to its National Task Force on Assistant Principalship for Middle Level and High Schools. The group will examine the role of the assistant principal and challenges these practitioners face in today's middle and high schools. According to NASSP's Web site, the goals of the task force are to:

• Improve professional development for assistant principals.
• Deliver programs and resources to inform the day-to-day work of assistant principals as they manage the business of the school.
• Connect those day-to-day tasks to instructionally focused whole school collaborative leadership.

You can view a complete list of the new panelists, including full contact information for each, on the NASSP Web site.

Tuesday Tidbits - Nov. 27, 2007

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, here are a few "leftovers" to share with you in today's Tuesday Tidbits:

• NAESP is partnering with the White House Commission on Remembrance to host an official countdown to Memorial Day 2008. The event, Old Glory's Journey of Remembrance, will take place over the course of 23 Mondays between Dec. 7 of this year and Memorial Day 2008. The official Web site is still under construction (www.remember.gov), but here's the gist of the celebration:
  

On Dec. 7, a flag will fly on board the USS Arizona. On Monday, Dec. 17, that same flag will fly at a ceremony in Dutch Harbor, AK. The flag will then travel throughout the country, stopping at battlefields, memorials, and national cemeteries. At each of these stops, a ceremony will be held at 10 a.m. on a Monday morning.

The Commission is looking for 10 to 20 local school children, between third grade and sixth grade, who can attend the ceremony and help sing the National Anthem and a song, How Proud Are We, written especially for The Commission.

• Each year, AWSP tracks the movement of principals and assistant principals between positions in Washington state. In 2007, there were 670 principal and AP job changes in our state. Most of the changes (254) took place at the elementary level; there were 212 high school position changes and 162 at the middle level. About half (319) were advertised on the AWSP Web site. Need a point of reference? Last year, there were 605 changes (255 elementary, 131 middle and 195 high school). And in 2000, there were only 499 total job changes (205 elementary, 123 middle and 152 high school).
  
  
• The Washington State Supreme Court has held that surveillance video of students in public schools or in public school transit vehicles is public information. The case stems from a fight between two elementary school students in the Kelso School District. The students got into a tussle on a school bus which had security cameras on board. One of the parents of the students involved in the fight requested a copy of the tape, but was denied access by the district, which said it was part of the students' records. Said Justice Susan Owens in writing the majority opinion:
  

  Here, the surveillance camera serves as a means of maintaining security and safety on the school buses. The videotape from the surveillance camera differs significantly from the type of record the schools maintain in students' personal files.

Hey Mikey! He Likes It!

So much for the theory that kids won't eat healthy school lunches.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota found that school lunch sales don't decline when the daily fare includes healthy choices. Another bonus: healthy school lunches don't necessarily cost more to serve, either.

The study, which appears in the December issue of the Review of Agricultural Economics, analyzed five years of data for 330 Minnesota public school districts. It looked at compliance with federal standards for calories, nutrients and fats.

What has your school or district done to improve the nutritional value of school meals? Has it worked?

Dropout Factory Update

Oak Harbor High School has been removed from the now famous list of "Dropout Factories" generated by researchers at Johns Hopkins University. The national study compared the number of high school students entering with those graduating three years later.

Oak Harbor H.S. should not have been included in the original list according to the university. In a letter, Robert Balfanz, a Johns Hopkins University researcher, said:

"Oak Harbor High School does not currently meet the criteria for 'fitting the profile' of a dropout factory and should not be characterized as such."

According to a note in today's Everett Herald, students at Oak Harbor are not counted by year class, but rather, students advance based on credits and course grades earned.

Tuesday Tidbits - Nov. 20, 2007

In today's Tuesday Tidbits, we're cleaning out the inbox to make room for all those Thanksgiving leftovers we'll return to next week. Savor and enjoy!

• Recess, Then Lunch: At least three elementary schools in the Vancouver, Wash. area have flipped recess and lunch, allowing students to play first, eat second. The theory is that students have better appetites, make better meal choices, have fewer playground disputes and trips to the nurses office as a result. Read more on recess first here.
  
• What About Books?: Public school librarians are banding together to ensure school libraries don't go the way of chalkboards with a grassroots campaign. According to an article in The Seattle Times, budget cuts in the Spokane Public Schools reduced 10 librarians to half-time and other school libraries around the state are also looking for creative ways to bring students and staff back into the stacks. (Quick! Somebody call Nancy Pearl!)
• Customer Service: Here's a great customer service tip sheet for schools and district compiled by school PR leader Brian Woodland, APR, from Peel District School Board in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Think twice before someone in your front office says, "that's our policy..."
• There's Two Os in Proof: A printing error has invalidated U.S. students' reading scores on the Program for International Student Assessment or PISA exam. The test in reading, science and mathematics is administered every three years to evaluate the progress of 15-year-olds around the world. Apparently, directions sending students "to the opposite page" were blurred during the printing process, and the printing company changed the order of the pages, which interrupted the question flow. As the Washington Post reported, questions about two essays about graffiti instructed students to look at the "opposite page" when the essays appeared on the previous page.

All-Day K Too Much, Too Soon?

Does universal preschool and all-day kindergarten really pay long-term benefits for the state's youngest citizens?

That's the question researchers at the conservative Washington Policy Center set out to answer in their recent review of research on universal preschool and all-day kindergarten. According to WPC scholar Liv Finne, research on the topic suggests there is a "dosage effect," meaning there's a limit to the amount of institutionalized care young children can handle without "suffering harm to their social and mental development."

Finne looked at studies conducted by other researchers at Berkeley and Stanford on the effects of children enrolled in "institutionalized care" for 15 to 30 hours, as well as research conducted by the RAND Corporation. All of the studies suggested that "too many hours in structured care tends to undermine a child’s natural curiosity and turn him or her against the entire school experience," Finne writes.

In Washington state, early learning has been the subject of increased policy debate, particularly in light of the report issued by Gov. Gregoire's Washington Learns. As Finne notes in conclusion:

Policymakers should avoid using a blanket universal preschool or all-day kindergarten programs to provide free childcare to middle and upper-income families, while neglecting the social and educational support that low-income families need most.

Providing training and skills to parents of at-risk children, to help them develop close, nurturing relationships with their children is a wiser policy. This approach is more beneficial to more children in the long run and is the most likely to prepare them for a lifetime of learning.

What do you think? Does all-day K make a difference in the lives of your students?

State of Education Address

State Superintendent Dr. Terry Bergeson delivered her annual "State of Education" address this morning at the Washington State School Directors' Association annual conference in Seattle. You can read the full text of the speech here. TVW will also replay the speech and stream it online.

Handling the Holidays

With Thanksgiving just around the corner --and seasonal advertisements bombarding us from everywhere -- we're officially in the grips of the holiday season. Throw in winter break disruptions and weather delays, and schools can lose focus quickly this time of year. This can either mean headaches or holiday cheer, depending on how it's handled.

Our question today is: How do you handle holiday issues at your school and still maintain cultural sensitivities about Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and other observances?

Creativity Matters

Eric Liu is onto something.

"We are in the midst of a failure of imagination in public schools," said Liu, the former speechwriter for President Clinton and current member of the State Board of Education.

On Oct. 30, Liu gathered together more than 150 teachers, principals, superintendents, business leaders, legislators and philanthropists for "Creativity Matters: Teaching Creativity/Transforming Education," a summit was designed to address the value of creativity in public education. As he noted in the day's opening remarks, "Play, discovery, exploration are at the very heart of what it means to be an educator." Unfortunately, Liu asserted, many schools are depleting the very areas that may inspire student learning at a time when there is so much pressure to improve.

The day long session, held at the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts in Tacoma, was an offshoot of Washington Learns, Gov. Gregoire's education task force. For the next 12 months, Liu and colleagues will wage a campaign to support an infusion of creativity in schools. AWSP's Gary Kipp is a member of the steering committee for the event and future initiatives. Said Liu of the effort:

"A lot of things can get outsourced to other places at a cheaper cost... but a state and people's capacity for creativity cannot. Creativity matters because it is at the heart of what we are as a community...Creativity is no some magic fairy dust that is sprinkled around to some and not others. It can be reduced down to a set of habits that can be taught in the way we teach, in the way we lead."

These five habits of mind are:

1. Observing intently - Creativity begins with observing intently and deeply noticing.
   
2. Taking risks - Reckoning with the possibility of failure.
   
3. Persisting - Developing the capacity for resilience
4. Recognizing patterns
5. Making connections
   

You can read the case Liu and others have made for creativity in schools here. Also, it's worth noting that Liu's group has partnered with the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. Until recently, only New York public schools have been eligible for the Center's Imagination Award for teaching practices that encourage imaginative thinking across the curriculum. As a result of this partnership, middle and high schools in Washington state will also be eligible for the award.

E-mail: When in Doubt, Don't!

There are many life lessons to be learned thanks to the speedy and global reach of the Internet.

Today's cautionary tale of woe comes to you from Catskill, New York, where the superintendent's choice of words in a hastily composed e-mail has landed her in a heap of trouble with her union, families, students and herself.

According to this morning's New York Times, the superintendent, Dr. Kathleen Farrell, was at odds with teachers over fire and safety codes that required classroom doors to be shut while students were in attendance. Without air conditioning, the rooms became stagnant, causing teachers to prop the doors open. According to the paper:

Back and forth the discussion went, until Oct. 3, when Dr. Farrell wrote an e-mail message to the district’s director of facilities, John Willabay. She vented a bit and then allowed: “Please go KILL these people....Please, please, please.”

Then she sent it — not just to him — but, accidentally, to an unknown number of others as well, including Terri Dubuke, a sixth-grade teacher who was one of the critics. Ms. Dubuke read it in shock and referred it to the teachers’ union, and the matter was discussed at a closed-door school board meeting on Oct. 17.

You can imagine the fallout that ensued: apologies were exchanged. Punishment was demanded. Remorse was rampant. But did the reaction fit the infraction?

Granted, an student e-mail with these same words may likely have garnered equal, if not greater attention. But in looking more carefully at the context of the message, it was clearly unprofessional and inappropriate. But was this issue blown out of proportion?

What Would You Do for Your Students?

Here's a great story about Olympic Elementary Principal Brett Ellingson, who was featured in the Centralia Chronicle. Ellingson honored a promise to his students and PTA: if they raised $10,000 to support extras at the school (field trips, etc.), he'd trade in his tie for a hoodie, jeans and tennis shoes and be a student for a day. The result was really a win-win. The school $11,500 in the two-week fund raising window, the paper reported. Ellingson also had a great day in the school classrooms, connecting with students and staff. (Better make that a win-win-win-win.)

This story got us thinking of another principal who made good on a promise. Last week, Lake Roosevelt High Principal Karl Miller surfaced at the AWSP Principals' Conference in Vancouver sporting a fresh mohawk, courtesy a school fundraising event. (It takes a brave person to wager a haircut with students!)

Gold stars to these two principals for keeping their word and being so committed to their students and schools.

This also got us wondering: what's the wackiest thing you've ever done to support a student fundraiser at your school?

Teens and Substance Abuse: A Snapshot

A new report published last week, "A Day in the Life of American Adolescents," details the self-reported habits of 12-17 year-olds in 2006. The report is the work of the Office of Applied Studies, which is part of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the federal Department of Health and Human Services.

On an average day in 2006, researchers found that:

• Nearly 1.2 million teenagers smoked cigarettes
  
• More than 630,000 drank
• Approximately 586,000 used marijuana

To put the numbers in perspective, the nationwide number of adolescents using cigarettes on an average day equals more students than are enrolled in Washington state's K-12 school system.

A short form of the report is also available here.

Finland, Finland, Finland...

A riddle for you this blustery fall afternoon.

Question: What's blue and white and the world leader in K-12 education instruction?

Answer: Finland!

Yes, the country of 5 million people and a heck of a lot more reindeer is apparently the world's leader in education. Forget Japan. Forget the U.S. According to Andrew Hargreaves, the Thomas Moore Brennan Chair in Education at Boston College, the focus should really be on the small northern European country of Finland.

On Monday, Hargreaves captivated attendees at the AWSP Principals' Conference in Vancouver with his research on this country and its relevance to instructional leadership. As Hargreaves noted in his research and presentation:

In less than half a century, Finland has transformed itself from a rural backwater into a high-tech economic powerhouse, through its educational system.

By the way, that Nokia phone in your hand has a direct role in the country's regeneration. Today, 40 percent of the country's GDP is accounted for by Nokia and its suppliers. What was once a rubber products company (making everything from timber to galoshes to electrical cables for telephony), the company has "flexed, adapted and changed" as markets shifted. As a result, Nokia is now ranked #1 in economic competitiveness, Hargreaves said, and its educational system is a key player in this success.

In Finland, Hargreaves noted, teachers are seen as creators of the next generation. There is a strong mission. As a result, the Finnish youth are number one in the world not by an emphasis on testing but on teaching. High quality teachers, coupled with a culture of cooperation, clear guidelines (with flexibility within those guidelines) and, interestingly, a reverence for the music and science, have made Finland the highest performing country in the world on the PISA (Programme for International Student Achievement). This triennial assessment of 15-year-olds is administered by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Hargreave's presentation was very compelling and entertaining (he does an excellent Tony Blair impression, too). But what does all of this mean for leadership? Hargreaves boiled it down to three things:

1. All leaders must have been teachers. In Finland, it's the law. You can't be a principal without having first been a teacher.
   
2. All principals still teach, even for just two hours a week.
   
3. The job of the principal in Finland is to "pull all of this together -- not pull everything through it." In other words, Hargreaves said, principal are not competing with one another but, rather, boosting each other up for the betterment of all, as they believe they are ethically responsible for each student's success.

Hargreaves gave attendees a wonderful presentation, rich with data, witty anecdotes and substantive knowledge about educational leadership and change.

Did you attend the conference and hear Hargreaves speak? What did you think? Or, perhaps you've read his books/research? What do you think?

(Bonus points to those of you who remember the Monty Python tribute to "the country where [I] want to be...")

Going to the Experts

This afternoon's mathematics panel with students from the Washougal School District was as entertaining as it was insightful. Fourteen students ranging from freshmen to seniors shared their thoughts about the teaching and learning of mathematics with pre-conference attendees.

As mentioned in an earlier blog, the discussion was moderated by Washougal Superintendent Teresa Baldwin. The students she gathered for this conversation exuded an enthusiasm for math. Although, one student acknowledged it was his love of science that led him to a deeper exploration of math ("since math is the language of science" he noted.) But they're also putting their talents to use outside the classroom by volunteering, participating in the Model United Nations or through music and dance.

Perhaps the most telling discussion point of the afternoon came when Baldwin asked the students how they would change math instruction. Here's a quick synopsis of some of their suggestions:

• Show students how classroom instruction applies in real life situations. ("Repetition gets really boring.")
• Help ensure students understand tested concepts by making them retake classroom assessments until they correctly answer all questions -- then let them proceed to the next chapter or section.
• Make sure your teachers are sending positive messages about mathematics in the classroom. What they say has an enormous impact on student attitudes about math. ("It's bad when teachers have negative attitudes about math -- it transfers to the students.")
• Don't abandon those multiplication time tables! The foundational skills are essential and should be emphasized in elementary school.
  
• Teachers need to be able to explain things in different ways and be patient with students who need additional support.

It's Conference Time

Starting today, hundreds of Washington state principals, assistant principals and interns will converge on downtown Vancouver for the Association's fall conference. This event is designed by and for the component levels; members from the elementary, middle and high school boards planned the program around the needs of each grade band.

Today, the boards will meet and in the afternoon, a pre-conference with a special emphasis on the teaching and learning of mathematics will kick-off. Leading this afternoon's session is Teresa Baldwin, superintendent of the neighboring Washougal School District. Baldwin has compiled a great group of high school students from around the area to talk about their views about math. Then participants will break up into their respective grade groupings and tackle challenges specific to elementary, middle and high schools. More on that in a future post.

Then, tomorrow morning, the conference will get rolling with our keynote speaker, education researcher Andrew Hargreaves. Hargreaves is the Thomas Moore Brennan Chair in Education at the Lynch School of Ed in Boston. You can read more about him on his Web page.

All in all, should be a great start to things today.

Tuesday Tidbits - Oct. 9, 2007

Here's today's Tuesday Tidbits in K-12 education with a decidedly tech theme:

• The Los Angeles Unified School District has launched a new campaign to lower dropout rates by using the Internet -- particularly sites like YouTube and MySpace. According to the state of California, one in four of the district's 200,000 high school students dropped out of school in 2006.
  
• In a related note, the Toppenish School District has also launched an online school program, also aimed at dropouts. According to the article in this morning's Yakima Herald-Republic, the program will offer a free online curriculum aligned to state standards and will include home visits and tutoring from state-certified teachers.
  
• Let's just keep the online theme going: Walla Walla Public Schools' online grade program is giving families one more way to connect with schools. The online service allows parents to log in and view middle and high school grades, including information about how students performed on specific assignments. Today's Union-Bulletin praises the tool in an editorial.
  

Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?

In the vein of "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader" comes the online quiz, "Could You Pass 8th Grade Science?"

Amazingly (to me and, probably, to my eighth-grade science teacher) I did pass this little quiz; see my badge of honor below. The questions cover a range of content from photosynthesis to physics. And you can review the answer sheet at the conclusion of the "exam."

What's most interesting is that this is not a science-related site, but rather an Internet dating service called Just Say Hi. Not sure what an online dating site and science quizzes have in common. They have several other online quizzes, too (How Addicted to Coffee Are You? and The Germ Quiz -- How Many Germs Are There On Your Keyboard may also be worth a click.)

A fun diversion, anyway, amidst the heightened focus on math and science these days.

More Snow Days Ahead?

Difficult as it may be to fathom snowy weather and cold temps on this crisp, golden day in September, the weather wizards are already speculating about this winter.

According to weather experts at the University of Washington, western Washington may receive more snowfall this winter due to the La Nina effect. This cooling of the Pacific Ocean means we'll have more rainfall and varying temps in the coming months, researchers said. These conditions can mean more snow.

Last year, a series of bad weather instances -- ranging from wind storms and flooding to ice and snow -- dragged out the school year for many schools on the western half of the state until the end of June.

Did the weather disruptions affect planning for this school year? Does your school plan to do anything different to handle inclement weather as a result of lessons learned last year?

A Place for My Stuff

Like slide rulers and chalkboards, the school locker is quickly becoming a relic of school days gone by. Safety concerns, noise issues, constantly forgotten combos and the occasional student prank may all have contributed to the decline of the metal storage closets in today's modern schools.

The problem is, students still have all that, well, stuff. (Turns out George Carlin was right.) And a backpack can only handle so much.

Case in point: At Seattle's newest high school, a $67 million redesign of Cleveland High did not include lockers. However, given the amount of sporting equipment, books and other supplies students must tote, the school is rethinking the lack of storage. According to an article in this week's Seattle Weekly, 500 new lockers will be brought in to help stem the tide of bad backs and lost items.

So, about all that stuff: Does your school still have lockers? Or if yours doesn't, how are you helping students manage their school stuff? Extra classroom storage? (Bigger backpacks?)

And, if you don't have lockers, has not having them cut down on related problems?

New Face in School Safety at OSPI

The state department of education announced today that Tyson Vogeler is the new program supervisor for school safety and security. Vogeler has previously worked in the Naselle and Elma school districts and, according to OSPI, has extensive experience in working with at-risk youth.

In his new role at OSPI, Vogeler will be working on a new grant to enhance school safety planning (including the Prepared Response school mapping project AWSP has been involved with) and a new school gang task force.

The End of No Child Left Behind?

Well, in name, at least.

Today's Washington Post reports that Congress is considering a new name for the now infamous No Child Left Behind Act:

One reason, said Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), a key sponsor of the original bill that transformed K-12 education in the country by ushering in an era of high-stakes standardized testing, is that "No Child" is inextricably linked to Bush. And Bush, he said, has become unpopular.

Furthermore, he said, people simply don't like the name.

"People find it an incredible insult [to suggest] that we are deliberately leaving children behind," he said.

Marian Wright Edelman, president of the nonprofit Children's Defense Fund, isn't a big fan of the name either. According to the Post, Edelman supports the change because it borrows from the CDF's own federally registered trademark, Leave No Child Behind.

Let's say Congress invited you to their focus group. What would you rename the act? And as an added bonus, they want you to name one major change you'd make to the law, on behalf of principals. What would you recommend?

One More [Post] for the Road

One last post for the week. The nonprofit Partnership for Learning has a newly redesigned Web site that is definitely worth clicking around.

AWSP has worked with the Partnership, or "PFL", for many years now on campaigns to inform principals, teachers, parents, students, lawmakers, the media and the general public about changes in the state's education system and the ongoing improvements in student achievement. Be sure to take a tour of their new site, which includes their new public service announcements about why math matters -- part of their college and work readiness campaign.

You can find PFL online at http://partnership4learning.org.

Caution: Light Blogging Ahead

AWSP will be in "The Palm Springs of Washington" (Yakima) Thursday and Friday of this week for fall board meetings. These are always great venues