Seattle Schools Community Forum:
Seattle Schools Community Forum
Local Ed News
The AP is reporting that the State Supreme Court will announced on Friday that it would consider if the charter law of Washington State violates our state's constitution. I would say that's a rather large piece of news as I have been repeatedly told that it was "highly unlikely" this would happen. Oral arguments are scheduled for Oct. 28th. I just might have to go and listen. A King Co
From Two Sides: Ed Reform versus the Most Famous Teacher in the U.S.
That teacher would be 5th grade teacher Rafe Esquith from Hobart Elementary School in Los Angeles. He has taught for nearly 30 years and written several books. But I'll let Valerie Strauss of the Washington Post's Answer Sheet tell you more:*When he goes to China he is so popular he needs security guards to protect him from the crush of the crowds. *He is the only K-12 teacher to be awarded the
Friday/Saturday Open Thread
I've been out of town so a bit behind on this.I see that teacher John Greenberg has been reinstated at The Center School (this from a story in the PI). The story does NOT say what if he will be teaching his Citizenship and Social Justice class. The petition for a new principal at Garfield (on the heels of the outrage over the investigation of a rape on a Garfield overnight field trip) has over 2
AUG 12
Advanced Learning Task Forces' Recommendations
Advanced Learning Task ForcesReport & Recommendations August 2014The Advanced Learning Task Forces met for more than 50 hours during the 2013-2014 school year to studyidentification and service delivery models for Highly Capable students. They found that many aspects of our Highly Capable/Accelerated Progress Program work well and do not require changes. The task forces believ
Seattle Landmarks Board Votes to Hit Pause on Wilson-Pacific
From Indian Country Today media network:Plans to demolish a public school with strong ties to Seattle’s Native community have been sent back to the drawing board.The Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board voted 7-1 on July 16 to designate Wilson-Pacific School a city landmark. That prevents Seattle Public Schools officials from proceeding with plans to demolish the school so a new school can be buil
Tuesday Open Thread
A bit of dark place I find myself in. Robin Williams, a giant talent who I saw twice live in San Francisco (and once in a little bookstore), killed himself. Very sad.Then there's the essay by Joe Williams of DFER who says that "Suburbs Hold Key to Resolving Democratic Party's Tensions over School Choice."It's hard to know which is worse - the idea that the "school choice" is
AUG 11
Highly Capable News
Just kidding.There are no recs in the handout at the C&I meeting. Apparently they will be in the Friday memo sent out by the Superintendent. So unless someone who is on the Committee wants to let us know about them, I have no idea what they are. There was a funny moment when it was pointed out how old the Board's policy is (from 1993).They will be working with secondary counselors on what 9-
Seattle Schools' Sped Director Goes on Leave
Update: The Times is reporting that Williams leave is based on the issue around the consultant hired to work on the C-CAP. The district says it is not disciplinary but that they are investigating.end of update.From Deputy Superintendent Charles E. Wright (bold mine):Dear Seattle Public Schools principals, teachers and staff, I am writing today to let you know that Wyeth Jessee, who is currently
Reclaim Your Domain - Who Owns Your Student's Work?
Ramping up to the start of school, I hope to (finally) get several threads on student data privacy going. I also hope to draft a template letter that I'm going to offer to parents to ask their school about any kind of signing up for online groups that a school asks students to do. I don't know why the district would not think this important enough to even inform (no less ask permission from) par
OSPI HC Program Requirements
On another thread, nitpicker referenced the Highly Capable Program Requirements for All Districts document produced by OSPI. The 2013-2014 school year was the transition year, so everything is supposed to be implemented and up and running at the opening of school in a few short weeks. We're likely to be missing some required elements here in Seattle. And that's saying something because the OSPI ha
AUG 10
Charters - The Gift that Keeps on Giving
There's almost something humorous about charter stories today. They come faster and faster; stars who start charters that fail, financial scandals, and promises made and then broken.What's the funny part? Well, the supporters of 1240 said "we have a lot to learn from charters." I would agree and in more ways than one. We should be the state to be uber-careful about who comes through
AUG 09
Gifted Students: What are the Coming Changes for Seattle Schools' Students?
I came across two articles recently on gifted students. One is quite good, the other somewhat useful but over the top (and the tone is distracting from the content, in my opinion).NOW, to start, if you don't agree that there are gifted students or the need for gifted education, please don't comment. Because many readers here already know that conversation.Tomorrow we will find out what the Advan
Seattle Schools This Week
As a heads up, the district is offering (at nearly every elementary and K-8), Jump Start for kindergarteners. Sounds like a great program. From the flyer: It is a weeklong experience for new kindergarteners and their families to learn about their new school. Children will become familiar with the school building, staff, and typical school-day activities and practices. This summer, over 50 eleme