i advocate to save the public school resource so much because the schoolhouse is the foundation of community. An educated community equals, safe and productive community. The attack on public resources is finally being challenged thanks to us being at the stand up or die period in the so called education reform. We have to come together and fight for our public resources or we will seriously be buying air in the near future.
i learned about the Pennsylvania State Board cutting scores of those standardized test in July. i recruited some advocacy friends at 15 NOW and canvassed the Strawberry Mansion community about what the state board did with the scores. I invited these neighbors to a forum in the park where we had food and conversation about teaching to the test. Never in a my life time would i have imagined the public schoolhouse as a place were our students are molded to take a test that deters them from rounded learning and cuts the scores of the test after the students have taken the test. Many regional leaders take a stand against the test, but not Dr. Hite for he is on the side of privatizing our schools and doesn't care about the Philadelphia communities.
i have been advocating with The Caucus of Working Educators and The Alliance For Philadelphia Public Schools because they are the only grassroots organizations that are raising awareness about fair funding for our schools, teaching to the test and what is really going on in our Philadelphia public schools. We talked with several hundred parents about the fact that our students are setup to fail with those standardized test and gave parents letters that they could present to the their school and opt their students out of the PSSA's for students 3rd-8th grade and the Keystone, PARRC or any PBA for high schoolers under federal law.
from facebook:
Gladys Smith Stefany Here is the whole story: Turkeyfoot school board eliminates Keystone Exam project requirement
By MATTHEW TOTH mtoth@dailyamerican.com | Posted: Tuesday, August 18, 2015 10:43 pm
Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District
The Turkeyfoot school board voted Monday to remove the Keystone Exam project-based assessment requirement for students until it receives definitive guidance from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
Keystone Exams are state-developed assessments designed to be taken at the end of algebra I, biology and literature programs. Students who do not score proficient on these exams will be required to take a project-based assessment in order to graduate, starting with the Class of 2017.
Many districts have criticized the assessment process, saying it creates higher dropout rates and additional costs for the school district.
Turkeyfoot Superintendent Jeffrey Malaspino told the board that the assessment is not cost-effective for the school and asked the board to eliminate the assessment as a graduation requirement. Malaspino said the process is a drain on resources and time.
“Until we get more definitive guidance from the Department of Education, the time we use for this requirement is time we could use to educate the students on something,” Malaspino said.
Malaspino said students will take the Keystone Exams at least twice, and students will be allowed to take the exam again if they choose.
The board unanimously agreed to remove the assessment.
The state Senate voted 49-0 in June to delay using the Keystone Exams as a graduation requirement until the 2018-19 school year. The bill was referred to the House Education Committee.
Rockwood French teacher Greta Carroll, Turkeyfoot foreign language teacher Holly Vogel and Turkeyfoot student Megan Hoover held a presentation for the board about the school’s exchange program. In June, 10 Rockwood students and nine Turkeyfoot students spent two weeks in France, touring sites that included the Eiffel Tower, Pointe du Hoc and Notre Dame.
Carroll thanked the board for supporting the program and said she hopes members will consider funding more students for the exchange in the future.
“I would definitely encourage students to go (on the exchange programs) because you learn something from it,” Hoover said.
The board hired William Cooney, of Meyersdale, as a cross country volunteer for the 2015-16 school year for a $500 stipend. The board also approved $300 to purchase 12 new uniforms for the cross country team. Principal Richard Berkley said that seven boys and three girls have already approached the school about participating, and heexpects more will sign up when school begins.
Bethany Frieri, of Rockwood, was hired as a long-term secondary English teacher at a salary of $119.57 per day. The board also hired Ashley Nichols and Rose Stimmell as substitute aides/secretaries for $7.25 an hour.
i learned about the Pennsylvania State Board cutting scores of those standardized test in July. i recruited some advocacy friends at 15 NOW and canvassed the Strawberry Mansion community about what the state board did with the scores. I invited these neighbors to a forum in the park where we had food and conversation about teaching to the test. Never in a my life time would i have imagined the public schoolhouse as a place were our students are molded to take a test that deters them from rounded learning and cuts the scores of the test after the students have taken the test. Many regional leaders take a stand against the test, but not Dr. Hite for he is on the side of privatizing our schools and doesn't care about the Philadelphia communities.
i have been advocating with The Caucus of Working Educators and The Alliance For Philadelphia Public Schools because they are the only grassroots organizations that are raising awareness about fair funding for our schools, teaching to the test and what is really going on in our Philadelphia public schools. We talked with several hundred parents about the fact that our students are setup to fail with those standardized test and gave parents letters that they could present to the their school and opt their students out of the PSSA's for students 3rd-8th grade and the Keystone, PARRC or any PBA for high schoolers under federal law.
from facebook:
Gladys Smith Stefany Here is the whole story: Turkeyfoot school board eliminates Keystone Exam project requirement
By MATTHEW TOTH mtoth@dailyamerican.com | Posted: Tuesday, August 18, 2015 10:43 pm
Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District
The Turkeyfoot school board voted Monday to remove the Keystone Exam project-based assessment requirement for students until it receives definitive guidance from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
Keystone Exams are state-developed assessments designed to be taken at the end of algebra I, biology and literature programs. Students who do not score proficient on these exams will be required to take a project-based assessment in order to graduate, starting with the Class of 2017.
Many districts have criticized the assessment process, saying it creates higher dropout rates and additional costs for the school district.
Turkeyfoot Superintendent Jeffrey Malaspino told the board that the assessment is not cost-effective for the school and asked the board to eliminate the assessment as a graduation requirement. Malaspino said the process is a drain on resources and time.
“Until we get more definitive guidance from the Department of Education, the time we use for this requirement is time we could use to educate the students on something,” Malaspino said.
Malaspino said students will take the Keystone Exams at least twice, and students will be allowed to take the exam again if they choose.
The board unanimously agreed to remove the assessment.
The state Senate voted 49-0 in June to delay using the Keystone Exams as a graduation requirement until the 2018-19 school year. The bill was referred to the House Education Committee.
Rockwood French teacher Greta Carroll, Turkeyfoot foreign language teacher Holly Vogel and Turkeyfoot student Megan Hoover held a presentation for the board about the school’s exchange program. In June, 10 Rockwood students and nine Turkeyfoot students spent two weeks in France, touring sites that included the Eiffel Tower, Pointe du Hoc and Notre Dame.
Carroll thanked the board for supporting the program and said she hopes members will consider funding more students for the exchange in the future.
“I would definitely encourage students to go (on the exchange programs) because you learn something from it,” Hoover said.
The board hired William Cooney, of Meyersdale, as a cross country volunteer for the 2015-16 school year for a $500 stipend. The board also approved $300 to purchase 12 new uniforms for the cross country team. Principal Richard Berkley said that seven boys and three girls have already approached the school about participating, and heexpects more will sign up when school begins.
Bethany Frieri, of Rockwood, was hired as a long-term secondary English teacher at a salary of $119.57 per day. The board also hired Ashley Nichols and Rose Stimmell as substitute aides/secretaries for $7.25 an hour.
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