Rain Fly

When drizzle turns to rain drops, break open the camp box for a tarp, nylon line, and zip ties to cobble together a rain fly. Grab the cooler and the kids. Marvel at how content everyone can be, huddled together in a space smaller than any room in the house. Watching it rain. 

Court Cases Which Could Impact Educators In The 2015-16 School Year

School law may be the most dynamic factor affecting educators. Every year courts set new precedents. Below are a few notes on cases discussed at the Mickes Goldman O'Toole school law seminar on July 26.

Estate of Smith v. Brown Local School District (2015): 

The case centered on the school's efforts to warn parents of a student's  risk of suicide. Ethics require educators share concerns about suicide with families. The reality of litigation demand these efforts in communication be documented. Schools should have clear protocols for dealing with students who present a risk of suicide. 

McArdle v Town of Dracult/Dracult Public Schools (2013):

The case warns districts to consider time spent outside the school day, when considering if an employee has reached the 1,250 hour mark to receive FMLA benefits. Teachers will likely meet this mark quicker than the typical employee that works eight hour days. Teachers won't have these hours documented as employees who receive overtime do.

Obergefell v. Hodges (2015):

The Supreme Court ruling on same sex marriages means districts must extend FMLA leave to employees to care for same sex spouses, even if they were married in a state that recognized same sex marriages before the district's state was required to do so by the ruling. FMLA benefits do not extend to un-married partners. 

K.M. v. Tustin USD (2014):

The case involved a parent's request for a CART system for a hearing impaired child, when the district recommended an FM system. The court ruled in favor of the parents. The case reminds districts that an IEP team's determination of  FAPE may not shield a district from 504 or ADA Title II litigation. Districts must document consideration of parent's requests and reasonable alternatives. Districts may need to prove a request substantially alters their programs. 

Red Snapper and Blind Fisherman

Great gifts are usually the result of great efforts, as was certainly the case when my wife sent me fishing in the gulf while she took three kids to the beach by herself.

Before the chartered boat pulled from the dock, laughter erupted when a fisherman in sun glasses continued to ask a kid, who was telling a "one that got away story" to tell him how big it was. The kid kept responding by holding his hands apart. The deck hand and the captain knew the man in glasses, a regular customer, was blind- and a prankster, but the kid didn't. Each time he was asked the question, he took the bait, at his own expense. Over the course of the eight hour trip, I found it hard to not be aware of the man. Of how he baited the hooks with cut squid on his own. Of how he talked Auburn football and trash on his brother when he was out fishing him. Of how he called out predictions of weight to the deck hand for each fish he caught. 

I also found it hard to not be aware of how he experienced the day. The texture of the line under my thumb as the bait dropped beneath the boat. The tension of the bent rod during the fight. Warmth of the sun, scent of the bait and snapper, the steady churn of the deisel and rush of water against the boat.

Later that night I took note of how fine my daughter's hair felt as she leaned against me, an act that happens with less frequency as she moves through middle school. We sat in lawn  chairs with the thick fillets cooking on a grill before us. The charcoal smoke, the melting butter, and softening onions. We tore off edges of fish as it crisped against the grill and commented on how all the flavors, salt, pepper, lemon, butter, and fish, combined. Our campsite was close enough to the Santa Rosa Sound to hear water against sand. A great moment.

I was grateful for the chance to spend a day out on the water catching fish. And a little perspective.

The State of Testing in Missouri

A recent headline claiming the Missouri state legislature has dumped the common core added confusion to an already confusing year for teachers and students. Today I had the good fortune to attend an assessment Q and A session with two DESE officials, Sharon Helwig, assistant commissioner, and Shaun Bates, director.

Their comments to the North East Missouri Association of Secondary School Principals helped clarify some of the challenges Missouri schools faced this year in the shift to online testing. They also shared goals for testing this school year. 

A few notes from the meeting:

-Contrary to the headline, Missouri House Bill 1490 maintains the Missouri Learning Standards, which include Common Core Standards in mathematics and English for the 2015-2016 school year. Currently there are work groups developing new standards, but their progress has been inconsistent, and their deadline is not until October 1st.

-The Missouri legislature has prohibited DESE from working with the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium for future state testing.

-The relationship with Smarter Balanced was strained at best this year, as vendors failed to meet deadlines in delivering interim assessments and summative results to DESE. These vendors will not be paid for the services not delivered. 

-DESE is currently working to develop new tests, to comply with federal law, for the spring testing cycle in 2016. Several goals for those tests were communicated:

    New tests should be computer based and use the same platform as previous tests.

    New tests should be aligned to the same standards as previous tests.

    New tests should be comprised of roughly the same number of items as previous tests.

    New tests should include the same percentage of constructed response items as previous tests.

    New tests should be compatible with as many devices as possible.

-By having more control over which vendors are involved with test development, DESE hopes to avoid the confusion produced this year, as many changes were communicated in a short amount of time: unavailabilty of interim assessments, incorrect timelines for results, etc. 

-This year's test results will not be used for accountablility but they will be published. 

Helwig and Bates were gracious with their time and very understanding of the pressures that changes in testing place on students and teachers. They answered questions and took notes as they listened to stories of the challenges teachers faced in administering the test: faulty sign language applications for hearing impaired students on the listening portion, the absence of character counters when answers had character limits, difficulty with the equation editor. 

As a principal, I gained a new appreciation for the complexity involved in delivering state testing. While I know it's my responsibility to keep current on testing updates, I also felt an urge to serve as a good filter for the teachers in my district. While I should always be willing to serve as a source of information for teachers who desire details, I want to make sure teachers don't feel pressured to adjust their practice to every announcement that will inevitably come during the next year regarding testing. 

Our teachers need to be primarily concerned with using their professional judgment to provide the best learning environment possible for the unique learners before them. This is what teachers did with excellence last year and this is what they will undoubtably do next year. 

As for testing....last year in the spring we fulfilled our obligation to evaluate our students with tests that were computer based and contained constructed response questions. While it seems DESE has an enormous task before them, right now it appears next year's testing cycle will be very similar. 

The Monsters of Cove Creek

Before bedtime my son and I took the canoe out. High water from a week of heavy rains gave us an opportunity explore where we hadn't previously, and to escape into our imaginations. On the far side of the lake there is a triangle of shallow water that extends into the woods: The Cove. The cove is where the Monster Fish hunt. We paddled back into the cove, hoping to startle one from the lake bottom, to feel the displaced water rock our canoe. As we paddled to the back of the cove, we realized water was still flowing out of the woods into the lake. A tiny creek, usually a dry bed, was almost to the top of its banks. 

We decided to paddle to its source. The channel grew narrow, and the thick grass grew high from its banks, blocking our view to the right and left.  The creek made a sharp bend and then the trees enveloped us. The entire way my son peppered me with questions. 

"Are we in the woods, Dad?"

"There are not monsters in the woods, right Dad?"

"Is hate a bad word, Dad?"

"Are there snakes here, Dad?"

"Can I say I hate snakes, Dad?"

"Only dragons breath fire, right, not dragonflies, right, Dad?"

I was focused on my unrealistic hope that the creek would spill out into another lake, or Big Cedar Creek.....or Narnia, so I gave a short answer to each question. 

"Yes, of course."

Before the creek reached Narnia, it ended, predictably, in a mudbank. Feeling a little silly for indulging my imagination and wasting time, I paddled back to the lake to resume teaching my son to bass fish with a jig and plastic worm, an activity that is most definitely not a waste of time.  He wanted to fish from the Big Rock.

When I looked at him later he had set his Buzz Light Year pole down, pulled several feet of line from the reel, and taken the plastic worm from the weighted jig. He stood on the rock and with great concentration threw the jig over and over at a passing dragon fly, pulling the line back in, hand over hand, with each miss. In his mind he was a knight, protecting his castle from the dragon that flew over his moat. 

"That monster is trying to get us. Do you think I can catch him like this, Dad?"

I smiled, lost in his imagination. 

"Yes, of course."

Video evidence of the monster fish.

Placing Faith In Educating Students In Foster Care

I am the proud principal of Harrisburg Middle School, the school for Coyote Hill, a home for children in foster care. Our school is small, and with eight percent of our students living at Coyote Hill, they are an important part of our family. I am confident that when I retire, many of my fondest memories will be of the tremendous personal and academic growth I’ve been able to witness in the lives of these talented students. While ultimately, the credit for the success of these students is due to their own persistence, they are certainly aided by a talented teaching staff and support from the broader community of Harrisburg.

I readily admit that I am still learning, but I believe there are a few important fundamentals that help us serve these students well.

Maintaining high standards through high supports:

Growth, both academic and behavioral, only comes from being held to high expectations; however, some students, especially those in foster care, may need more support to reach those standards. . At times the support takes the form of limit setting and consequences. Sometimes the support comes in other ways: encouragement, additional opportunities, second chances.The mantra holds true: “Fair isn’t everyone getting the same thing. Fair is everyone getting what they need to be successful.”   

Respecting families:

When working with students in foster care it is essential to respect their families, both foster and biological.  Every student’s story is unique and assuming anything about a student’s life is a mistake. Educators also show respect for their students by respecting the bonds of the foster family. Work to get to know the foster parents. Learn what their priorities are for the student. Be as open with them about the student’s successes and failures as you would with any parent.

Listening well:

The most important skill for respecting students is the ability to listen non judgmentally. Foster care involves major transitions for students. Often times students are dealing with intense emotions. Not all students will want to discuss their feelings with educators, but those that do absolutely need people in their lives who will listen without taking advantage of their confidence or offering trite suggestions.

Seeking out best practices:

Educators need to embrace what science teaches us about the plasticity of the brain and the ability to modify intelligence. All students need skilled teachers, but students in foster care are especially dependent, as they often have a lot of academic ground to make up. Jackson and Jensen’s work on best practices and the importance of high expectations will serve educators of students in foster care well.

Encouraging hope:

Students in foster care have been through a lot. They will certainly have scars, but their scars do not outweigh their potential. Students in foster care deserve to only have teachers who believe in them. It’s important that these teachers believe in themselves and their talents for teaching. Sometimes the progress is hard to see, but teachers of students in foster care need to have  faith in what they're doing, hope for their students’ future, and love for the kids in their care.

Reflecting on the Arts

Tonight I had the pleasure of watching my daughter participate in our district's celebration of art, music, and drama, MusArt. She was a second chair flutist, back up vocalist, and stage hand in a gym adorned with the artistic creations of her talented classmates. She made me proud of the way she committed to her roles. The event provides an excellent occasion to reflect on the many benefits of art, music, and drama in our schools. Here is an inadequate list of a few things the arts promote:

-discipline

-intellect

-creativity

-community

-mentoring relationships

-culture

-fun

As an educator and as a parent I'm thankful when I see these values instilled in kids, especially mine. We have plenty of reasons to support art, music, and drama programs, as well as the talented folks that lead them.