TEA News Release
November 20, 2009

AUSTIN – The State Board of Education today gave preliminary approval to revisions to two high school graduation plans to bring them in line with the Recommended High School Program.

This spring, the Texas Legislature eliminated some specific course requirements students must complete for the Recommended High School Program (RHSP), which is the graduation plan followed by most Texas public school students.

Legislators eliminated the requirement that students take a one-semester health class, a one-year technology applications class and reduced the amount of physical education classes high school students must take by one semester. By doing so, students are given more flexibility to take elective courses. Students who entered ninth grade in the 2007-2008 school year and beyond are still required to earn four credits each of math, science, English and social studies.

Because students sometimes transfer between graduation plans, the board took preliminary action to align the 22-credit Minimum High School Program and the 26-credit Distinguished Achievement Program (DAP) with the 26-credit Recommended Program.

These changes include:
• Eliminating the requirement that students take a health class;
• Eliminating the requirement that students take a technology applications class;
• Reducing the number of physical education credits required from 1.5 to one credit;
• Increasing the number of elective credits to 7.5 for the minimum plan and 4.5 for the DAP.

In addition, under all three graduation programs, students will be allowed to earn up to four credits for athletics. Team sports and individual sports will be replaced with four new courses.

Board members also added courses that may be taken for math, science, fine arts and speech credit. A Career and Technical Education class called Professional Communications could now be taken for speech credit under this proposal.

The board approved three courses that students will be able to take for math credit under the Minimum High School Program and the Recommended High School Program. Those are: Mathematical Applications in Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources; Engineering Mathematics; and Statistics and Risk Management. Students will be able to take Engineering Mathematics and Statistics for Risk Management under the DAP.

Additional classes will also be available for science credit. Students following the Recommended and DAP programs could receive science credit for classes such as Engineering Design and Problem Solving, Advanced Biotechnology, Advanced Animal Science, Advanced Plant and Soil Science and Food Science.

To comply with new legislative requirements, the board also added a fine arts credit to the Minimum plan.

All of these changes are subject to review and final approval at the Jan. 13-15 board meeting.

The board, which already had one of the most stringent ethics policies in state government, also revised ethics policies that govern board members and those bidding for work with the board or contracting with the board. Board members are now required to annually report all businesses in which they hold a substantial interest. This will provide transparency in determining whether any potential conflicts of interest exist.

The board also revised a disclosure requirement to bring it into alignment with the rules of the Texas Ethics Commission. The rule now requires those doing business with the board to disclose if they have spent more than $250 during the preceding four years on a board member. Previously, the board’s rule had a $50 disclosure requirement, which caused a disparity with Ethics Commission requirements.

The board adopted new English language arts and reading materials, which will make 2,200 new products available for use in Texas classrooms next fall. The state expects to spend about $465 million on these materials over the next year. The board refused to purchase a statewide license offered by one publisher.

Because the value of the Permanent School Fund has rebounded to almost $22 billion, the board voted to transfer $60.7 million to the Available School Fund, which provides funds to public schools. Earlier this year, it appeared unlikely that funds would be available for this transfer because of the downturn in the market.

Labels: Texas State Board of Education

posted by Patricia Lopez at 9:00 PM 0 comments Links to this post

This is so wonderful! We're trying to get a La Clase Magica/Magic School Room set up here in Austin, Texas, too!

Angela

Program helps children conjure up technical skills
By Nancy Preyor-Johnson – San Antonio Express-News / Nov. 19, 2009

What happens in Room 137 at Las Palmas Elementary during the after-school program, La Clase Mágica, really has nothing to do with magic. But educators, students and parents say the technology skills that students learn there are extraordinary.

The new pilot program, which is bilingual, aims to be a gateway to success for some of the city's most at-risk students in an increasingly competitive job market, both now and in the future.

Two groups of students benefit — about 20 University of Texas at San Antonio education majors are paired with Edgewood Independent School District elementary students who live on the West Side.

They teach and learn the latest technology, using iPhones and netbooks to create videos and presentations and to enhance core subjects.

Instruction is innovative but fun, officials said, and most students don't realize they're learning. Esther Rios, a UTSA bilingual education major, is eager to show a video production that she and 8-year-old Ronaldo Resendiz created. All UTSA students who participate in the weekly program are given an iPhone, a netbook and other equipment.

Sisters 10-year-old Maria Rosas and 6-year-old Brenda Rosas said their favorite part of the class is playing games. In her first free moment at a recent class, Brenda Rosas grabbed an iPhone and typed in “Tom and Jerry” on YouTube.com and watched it for a few minutes. That skill is one she learned at the program, said her partner, Diana Davis, a UTSA sophomore majoring in bilingual education.

Davis said the program has given her real classroom experience and exposure in teaching with mobile technology — details she will happily add to her resume as she tries to get her first teaching job.

Designed after and named for La Clase Mágica, a program started in 1989 by an associate professor at the University of California at San Diego, UTSA's version costs $60,000 for the school year. It's funded through a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Education Department that also covers other programs at UTSA's Academy for Teaching Excellence.

“We decided to step up what La Clase Mágica does but using the latest technology,” said Margarita Machado-Casas, the UTSA professor who leads the program. “I tell the students this is the only class where a professor will tell them to turn their phones on.”

Machado-Casas said some elementary students began the class knowing very little about computers. They awkwardly fumbled at keyboards and didn't understand basics about technology.

But just a few months in, the students are creating their own productions, and both the elementary and college students are more confident.

Elementary students' parents are starting to notice changes in the students, some as young as 4.

Vivian Trujillo, whose grandchildren pre-kindergartener Amaya Ward and first-grader Christopher Trujillo attend the program, calls it fantastic and beyond her expectations.

“We went on a trip to Dallas; my phone wouldn't work but Christopher and Amaya made it work. Then they told me I wouldn't understand if they tried to explain it to me,” Trujillo said. “They are both very, very computer-savvy now.”

Machado-Casas said many other parents now want their children in the program and many UTSA students want in as well.

“So far, this program has gone very, very well. It's changing kids,” Machado-Casas said. “We want to provide students with resources necessary to become global competitors.”

Information about La Clase Mágica will be shared during a Dec. 1 community fair from 2 to 4 p.m. at Las Palmas Elementary.

posted by Dr. Angela Valenzuela at 8:10 AM 0 comments Links to this post

State (Board) of Agitation

by Abby Rapoport | 11/19/09

Just this week, state Rep. Norma Chavez came in to lobby for more Latino historical figures to be in the social studies curriculum. By the time she was done, she was issuing barely veiled threats to the SBOE. Chavez, D-El Paso, noted her position on the Appropriations Committee and told the committee, “You want us to take [the issue] out to the public, the members of the Legislature will be happy to do that.”

While moderate Republican Pat Hardy pushed back by defending the curriculum, the outspoken, hard-right members who have made the board famous remained quiet. Two days into their quarterly meeting, and there’s been little spectacle. No fodder for Keith Olberman here, their actions seemed to say.

It’s a smart move. The board, which has showcased some intense philosophical fights, has drawn scrutiny from the Legislature and the public for becoming a partisan battleground. Legislative frustration and national efforts to standardize state curricula threaten to diminish the board’s authority, and for now, members are just trying to get along. But underneath the goodwill, rifts are still as big as ever.

“The legislators have made it very clear from both sides of the aisles that they are watching what we do and how we behave,” said Geraldine “Tincy” Miller, a Republican who’s not part of the far-right contingent.

Democrat Lawrence Allen concurred: “We have to be very careful not to look like we are partisan.”

Endangered authority?

The state board has traditionally had three primary roles: approving textbooks, defining curriculum guidelines and watching over the Permanent School Fund. Earlier this year, the Legislature moved much of the power over textbooks to the commissioner and away from the SBOE, and defined the recommended high school graduation plan (which a vast majority of students follow). Much of this week has been an effort to bring the other two high school plans — the (more rigorous) advanced plan and the easier minimum plan — in line with what the Legislature already did.

The school accountability bill, HB 3, took almost all elective requirements out of the graduation plan, including P.E. The SBOE must change the other two plans to be in sync, so that students who want to switch from the recommended plan to the minimum plan aren't faced with extra requirements. Many testified against the revisions, and while the board must make the changes for consistency's sake, members aren't pleased about it.

“The Legislature made the decision,” board member Bob Craig tried to explain at one witness. “You understand our situation?”

That situation may get worse. The board is still in charge of setting the Essential Knowledge and Skills standard for students, but a federal push to standardize states’ curricula may jeopardize that authority. Texas is one of only two states that did not sign onto the national effort for uniform core curriculum and because of that decision, is unlikely to get any of $4.35 billion in grant money that the federal government is offering states. Texas has already invested significant funds into revamping its own standards and has benchmarked them to national standards. But the pressure to take on the same ones as the other states may grow.

If Texas bows to such pressure, “this could be the last time you act on English Language Arts,” Education Commissioner Robert Scott told the board.

Hardy responded to Scott, saying, “This is all from the top coming down and we don’t need that.”

Without much control over curriculum and textbooks, the state board would be reduced to nothing more than oversight of the Permanent School Fund.

As a board member, “you would have to be aware of the possibility of your influence being marginalized because of that,” said David Anderson, a Hillco lobbyist who’s been a fixture at these meeting for years.

According to Education Commissioner Robert Scott, the board’s future will depend on “what the legislative mood is when they convene” next January. In addition to letting some types of textbooks bypass the board, the members are also under surveillance literally, with cameras in the meeting room to allow anyone to tune in to the meetings online.

Getting along

“They’re all behaving themselves very well,” Scott noted of Wednesday’s meeting.

Anderson agreed: “All the bills [during session] might have had an impact on some of them.”

Despite a few flashpoints — reminders of a walkout in July and debates over exactly what revisionist history is — members kept their cool on the whole. As the meeting dragged on almost 14 hours, emotions rose, particularly when discussing tactics from previous meetings and inclusion issues around social studies, but nothing got out of hand.

“There are a lot more eyes involved,” said Allen, referring to the online broadcast of the hearing. “It curtails some of the behaviors.”

Anderson also attributed the recent calm to Gail Lowe, the board’s new chair. While Lowe is part of the ultra-conservative bloc, she’s emphasized her commitment to focusing on the administrative side of her role and enforcing rules fairly.

Anderson says Democrats and moderates are happy they’re getting a voice and the right wants to see one of its own succeed.

“She’s really trying to give a fair deal to everybody,” he said.

Trouble under the surface

But getting along may not be enough. While members maintained civility, Texas State Teachers Association member Paul Henley pointed to “an undercurrent.” Moderate members had left early for the night, before the discussion on social studies curriculum could bring out ideologues across the spectrum

Many of the ultra-conservatives are facing challengers, in both primaries and general elections. Since some members are helping — or are accused of helping — the challengers to beat their colleagues, Scott says there are limits to camaraderie.

“They know that,” he said. “It’s what’s happening.”

Rick Agosto, a Democrat who’s been the swing vote between the conservative bloc and the rest of board, was open about his feelings of alienation. He has spent the last few weeks dealing with allegations of ethics violations. He says not only are the claims completely false, but that documents were “criminally leaked by a fellow board member.”

The allegations are “coming from the moderate Republicans in my opinion,” said Agosto, who is not seeking reelection.

The board still has two more days of meetings, to establish the tone. “They’ve been better behaved” until this point, said Anderson. “But I’d wait till Friday.”

Labels: Texas State Board of Education

posted by Dr. Angela Valenzuela at 8:06 AM 0 comments Links to this post

See earlier post, "The Edsel of Education Reform," to see what this is a response to. Tipler sets the record straight here in the Huffington Post.

-Angela

The Wall Street Journal on Education: Lies, Myths, and Yellow Journalism
by Eric Tipler / Nov. 20, 2009

Earlier this month the Ford Foundation made an exciting announcement: they're giving away $100 million to improve secondary education in urban schools.

This is fantastic news to anyone who cares about education, the American Dream, and the future of America's economy. Which is why I was so shocked by an editorial in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal. In the misleading, erroneous, and inaccurate "The Edsel of Education Reform," the Journal's editors lambaste the Ford Foundation for giving money away to a "failed liberal establishment" institution: teachers' unions. Specifically, the Journal 1) strongly implies that Ford is giving $100 million to teachers' unions and 2) accuses Ford of ignoring the best paths to reform.

In fact, both claims are false. So why are the editors of our nation's most prestigious financial journal misleading their readers?

First, let's look at what's really going on. Ford's press release (cited by the Journal) clearly explains that the $100 million is going to multiple grantees, including six "Early Grant" recipients, one of which is an innovation fund at a teacher's union. None of the other grant recipients are mentioned in the editorial; instead, the Journal implies that unions are getting all the money (read it yourself and you'll see exactly what I mean).

As if this wasn't bad enough, the rest of the piece is filled with misinformation. The Journal criticizes Ford for not supporting Teach for America or KIPP, but leaves out the fact that some of its grantees apply TFA and KIPP strategies like better teacher recruitment and training and longer school days to schools that KIPP and TFA don't yet reach. It compares Ford unfavorably to the Gates Foundation, but ignores the fact that Gates supports many of the same initiatives as Ford--including, oddly enough, the very teacher's union fund the Journal criticizes! Even more bizarre, the editors take Ford to task for not supporting some specific initiatives--more accountability, charter schools--that its grantees actually support. At the very least, some fact-checking is in order here.

Because this editorial is based on deception (or, more charitably, bad journalism), it's not surprising that harmful myths about education reform are also woven in. The myth that spending more money on poor and minority kids is a waste ("some of the worst school districts in the country spend the most money on students"), the myth that vouchers help kids from low-income communities (they haven't worked, which is why they're off the table), the myth that strict accountability will close the achievement gap (it won't, although accountability with clear standards, and with more capacity to meet those standards will), and the myth that teachers' unions are the enemy (they have problems, but reformers need to work with, not against them).

After all, even if Ford was giving away $100 million to a union innovation fund, would that be the end of the world? Especially when the fund in question supports innovations like charters. It's certainly not how I would spend $100 million, but the Ford Foundation is a charitable institution, not a government agency. In this country, they can do with their money what they please.

I'm usually a fan of the Journal. When they're good, they're good, cf. a recent piece on health care reform by the dean of Harvard Medical School. But this editorial misleads its readers on points of fact, and trades in bigoted and inaccurate myths that hamper reform efforts.

Shame on you, editors of the Wall Street Journal. Shame on you for taking cheap shots at teachers' unions and charitable foundations supporting much-needed reform. What is the nation's financial paper of record scared of? Do they hate the Ford Foundation's "liberal" priorities (which have included, among other things, ending apartheid in South Africa) so much that they're willing to mislead their readers and misrepresent facts to oppose them? Hasn't this decade seen enough dissembling on issues of national substance? Shouldn't kids come before agendas?


Follow Eric Tipler on Twitter: www.twitter.com/etipler

posted by Dr. Angela Valenzuela at 7:56 AM 0 comments Links to this post

In this day and age....
-Angela

Critics: Not enough Latinos in proposed school curriculum

Hispanic historical figures get short shrift, legislator and education board member say.

By Kate Alexander
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, November 19, 2009

Frustration over the dearth of Latinos in Texas' proposed social studies curriculum standards bubbled over at the State Board of Education on Wednesday.

State Rep. Norma Chávez, D-El Paso, ticked off the number of Latino historical figures who will be required learning under the new social studies curriculum standards.

In kindergarten: none. In first grade: none. In U.S. government: none.

"You are truly not looking at the entire history of this state and accurately reflecting individuals who should be included," Chávez, who was representing the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, told the board Wednesday.

"Your government section has none, as if we don't exist."

She said that although Latinos represent more than 40 percent of the state's population, there are only 16 Latinos among the more than 160 historical figures who would have to be taught under recommendations the board is considering.

"This is no longer just about César Chávez. This is about an entire community," Norma Chávez said.

This past summer, a recommendation to remove the late labor leader from the fifth-grade standards sparked controversy even before the first draft was written. César Chávez is listed in the latest draft of U.S. history standards for his role in the civil rights movement.

The board, which held a public hearing on the standards Wednesday, is scheduled to take an initial vote on the curriculum standards in January and give its final approval in March.

Board member Pat Hardy, a former social studies teacher, said aiming for a certain number of Latinos in the standards to mirror the size of the population would not necessarily be historically accurate.

"I contend that that is revisionist," said Hardy, R-Weatherford.

Hardy added that the standards are merely a framework for school districts to design the curriculum for their classrooms and that nothing precludes local educators from adding other historical figures into their curriculum.

Norma Chávez retorted that the historical revisionism is on the other side by "neglecting the true reflection of our great state."

Missing from the standards, said board member Mary Helen Berlanga, D-Corpus Christi, are the Latinos who were essential to the founding of Texas and the United States.

kalexander@statesman.com; 445-3618

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/2009/11/19/1119sboe.html

posted by Dr. Angela Valenzuela at 4:27 PM 0 comments Links to this post