Meghan and Rebecca and Safe Schools

I was reading an article that focuses on school safety in the state of New Jersey.    On March 22^nd  of this year a fire at James Monroe Elementary in Edison New Jersey, broke out when a custodian tossed an unfinished cigarette into a trash can.  James Monroe Elementary School had to shut down due to the damages from this fire.  Oddly enough, there were no sprinkler systems in the building.  The reason for no sprinklers is that most schools in New Jersey were built before the law was written that required schools to have a sprinkler system, and there is no law that requires local districts to retrofit their campuses.  State Senator Stephen Sweeney is an advocate of providing a safe environment for students when being they are at  school.  Sweeney believes that several upgrades need to be done to schools throughout New Jersey such as sprinkler systems and air conditioning. 

         

          I personally did not know that by law school campuses are not required to have sprinkler systems; as a future teacher this is unsettling.  I believe that all schools should be required to have functioning sprinkler systems throughout their buildings.  As aspiring teachers, how do you feel about this safety issue? How do you think parents feel about this issue?  I am also happy that this issue was brought to the public’s  attention.   Do you agree that in order to have an extended school year, school buildings are going to need upgrades?  Through your field experience can you suggest any other safety-related necessities that need to be addressed?

http://www.nj.com/middlesex/index.ssf/2014/04/stephen_sweeney_on_school_safety_sprinkers_should_be_in_all_our_schools.html#incart_river

Colleen and Bullying

Bullying is a very important issue that is affecting children of all ages. It is also a topic that is very dear to my heart, from being bullied as a child to being accused of being a bully in high school. I have also had to witness the early stages of bullying in the classroom and in places like a summer camp. Schools all over the world have implemented anti-bullying policies. But does this always work? Most of these programs only come into effect once an instance of bullying has already occurred.

I recently finished my research for my scholar’s project which is on this topic. I found that one of the biggest influences could in fact be to teach children empathy, kindness and compassion at a young age. Some of the ways of doing this could be encouraging generosity, fostering play, allowing for problem solving, active service, and exploring other’s perspectives. One of the ways of teaching empathy is through children’s books. This is what I focused on in my project. I wrote a book called “Superheroes: Defenders of the Heart” which teaches children that they are all different and unique and should not pick on someone just for being different. It also allows for them to think about what they would do if they saw someone being bullied. Attached is a link to my website where there is a PDF copy of my book.

https://sites.google.com/site/msbegleyssocialstudiesworld/home/superheroes-defenders-of-the-heart

My Question for you is: What would you do to stop bullying before it happens?

Alexandra and beginning reader concerns

         My cooperating teacher recently told me something that shook me to the core. The program they use in kindergarten in the school in which I am observing, is called Open Court. This gives the students  several weeks to work on one letter and to learn the sounds that  it makes. Because of this approach, the program appears to limit the amount of letters a student can learn over the course of a year. This week they should be on the letter K. This is scary to me because there are only two months left of school.

          To make matters worse their reading program does not align with this Open Court program. Students began reading two months ago. Luckily,  my teacher did not follow the  Open Court  program totally and the students all know every letter and the sounds that those letters make.    If my teacher had followed the Open Court approach to beginning reading there is no way that the students would be on  track.

          I will be teaching in less than a year and it scares me that there can be two programs that I need to work with that do not agree with each other. As a future teacher would you follow this Open Court program or would you implement your own beginning reading program?  What kind of reading programs and which teaching strategies that you have observed that you feel will be helpful to you as you begin to teach emergent readers?    

Theresa and libraries

The Board of Education in the district in which I am observing has decided to implement a full day kindergarten program, as of September 2014.  In an attempt to make more room for a second kindergarten classroom, the superintendent fired all of the librarians in the elementary schools within the district. This would allow the schools to turn the libraries into classrooms.  There will no longer be elementary school librarians in the district.  When I asked what was going to happen with all those books, one of the teachers told me that the superintendent was requiring that all the books be placed in the classrooms.  I am still not sure how I feel about this situation.   Of course I feel badly for the librarians and the students, but I cannot help wondering if this decision is practical? 

          Do classroom teachers have the knowledge that librarians do about the latest books that are in print for young children?  Classroom teachers do not even have time to teach science and social studies, how could they possibly teach all of the necessary library skills? I fear that an appreciation for libraries and reading will be removed from the schools and the entire district.    What would school be like without library? What do you think? Should libraries be eliminated in order to make room for an all day kindergarten?   Can you think of another solution?    

MeganAnn and Common Core

          Recently, the President of New Jersey Education Association (NJEA)  has been meeting with school boards and members of the Assembly in order to address the concerns NJEA, teachers, and parents are having with the implementation of the Common Core Standards.   NJEA believes that there is a  disconnect between the Common Core and the new teacher evaluation system. The NJEA president wanted to make it clear that the NJEA supports the use of the Common Core Standards, but does not agree with the way in which the Common Core is being implemented at this time.  NJEA believes that  the implementation of the Common Core is being rushed and teachers have not been given enough time to understand the standards, to adapt and refine their schools curriculum to meet those very important  standards.   In addition, there is concern about the amount of time and professional learning opportunities available in order for teachers to learn about how they can adjust their teaching strategies.

            The second point the NJEA president, Wendell Steinhauer, made is that the NJEA, teachers and parents feel that, “the Department of Education is also rushing to implement a new evaluation and standardized testing regimen that in many ways is contrary to what the Common Core is designed to accomplish.”  Within the Common Core, teachers are encouraged to collaborate with other teachers. However, teachers are now being held solely responsible for their individual students’ test scores.   This link between student scores and teacher accountability is a huge part of the new evaluation system. So, even though the Common Core encourages collaboration, the test scores that are supposed to  evaluate teachers are not taking into consideration the fact that other teachers and other educational factors contribute to student success. Additionally, NJEA fears that by putting such  great weight on student test scores,  teachers in these grades will feel “forced to teach toward the test.”  Therefore,  the NJEA president has asked that the New Jersey Legislature help teachers by giving them the time and resources to implement the Common Core the correct way and, at the same time, help fix the teacher evaluation system so that it can measure what the Common Core truly values.

           

            Do you have any opinion about this  Common Core implementation? What do you hear teachers saying with regard to this Common Core implementation? Do you believe that there is a danger in having teachers rated on how well their students do on a standardized test?  Should teachers  be evaluated in connection with the Common Core?

The link to the article to which I am referring is listed below.    

http://www.njea.org/news/2014-02-10/what-s-right-about-common-core-and-how-nj-is-getting-it-wrong

Theresa and a math program question

The classroom in which I am observing is using a math program called enVision Math. This program is created by Pearson and is connected to the Common Core standards.   In fact, it is totally focused on the standards. This program has lessons for everyday of the year, chapter tests, and unit tests. Each day the lesson begins by having the students watch a video that introduces the concept they will cover in the lesson.   They then do a worksheet with the teacher and then one on their own, and then they have a homework page. The only thing the teacher is required to do is put the video on and help during guided practice. The program mixes math up a lot too. One day the students will be learning about subtraction,  the next day they will be learning about patterns. 

            I am not sure how I feel about this program. I think the strategies ( the way they teach students to learn math) are very difficult. I find the students in my classroom struggling, because this program is introducing a completely new way to teach math. I am also finding that the parents dislike it, because they are finding it harder to help students with their homework.  The parents are not familiar with the strategies. I believe that the teacher becomes too  reliant on the program. The teacher does not have to do anything.  It is almost like the students are being taught by a robot. This is the second year that I have observed this program and I am not a fan.

            What do you think? Do you think it would be better for teachers to work without this resource? Do you think that programs like these enable a teacher to really teach? Would you use a math program like this in your classroom? Would you prefer to teach math the old way? 

Rebecca has a question about bullying

We all know that bullying is a big issue in schools.   I recently read an article that said that a judge in Hunterdon County ruled that school districts can now sue the students who are found to be tormenting their peers.  It is believed that if a school district is able to sue a student who is participating in harassment and bullying that parents of those students will now be legally responsible for their  child's actions.   In turn, it is hoped that this ability to sue will force parents to take some affirmative steps toward demanding appropriate behavior from their child.    This is the first case to be brought forward by a school district since the new New Jersey anti-bullying law was passed.  

Obviously we know that actions need to be taken with regard to bullying,  but do you agree with this court decision?   Do you think that other courts in other counties in New Jersey  will do the same?  Do you believe that by involving parents in these law suits that bullying will decrease? I have inserted the article for your convenience.   

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2014/03/bullies_beware_groundbreaking_ruling_allows_schools_to_sue_students_who_harass_peers.html#incart_river