Teacher Evaluations

In Michigan, teacher evaluations have been in the news since January 4, 2010 when Governor Granholm signed legislation that required school districts to have a "rigorous, transparent, and fair performance evaluation system."  The system required the following (among other things):
A.  Evaluates the teacher's or school administrator's job performance at least annually while providing timely and constructive feedback.
B.  Establishes clear approaches to measuring student growth and provides teachers and school administrators with relevant data on student growth.
C. Evaluates a teacher's or school administrator's job performance, using multiple rating categories that take into account data on student growth as a significant factor.

The state school code then changed to state that job performance and job accomplishments shall be a significant factor in determining compensation and additional compensation.

All of that sounds good in theory.  But according to an article in the New York Times rating teachers using test data is fraught with difficulties.

I do not believe that any teacher or administrator objects to being held accountable.  We recognize that our job is to educate the students who attend our schools.  We welcome the opportunity to educate the students who come to our schools.

But, as seen the the New York Times article, creating the system is difficult.  

The New Year: A Time to Look Back and Look Ahead

Waking up on January 1^st is really no different than waking up on December 30^th or January 2^nd.  But we, it seems, see January 1^st differently. 

January 1^st has become a day for reflection and anticipation.  We look back to see what the past year was like and we look forward hoping that the New Year will be better than the old one.

As I look back on this past year, I can see that we have changed.  Our district spent time reinventing itself.  We closed buildings, created new ones, and attempted to address our structural budget deficit. 

What we did was painful.  While we changed the look of the district, we also changed much of our history and our traditions.  It was not, and is not, easy.  Yet, it was necessary. 

We had a structural deficit.  We were spending more money that we were receiving in revenue.  We could not continue to operate that way.  A new direction was not only needed, it was necessary.

In deciding to change, it was important to create positive educational environments.  I think that plan that was created attempted to do that.  We created an early childhood and kindergarten center, which concentrates staff time and attention.  At Neff, teachers, aides, administrators, and support staff all focus on the needs of our kindergarten and early childhood students.

Our four grade 1-6 buildings keep our preteens – students up through age twelve – together.  We have provided professional development in reading and writing instruction to our teachers, attempting to create consistent instructional practices between classrooms and buildings.    

A grade 7-8 building was created at Hayes.  Here all the students in the district come together.  Staff can work together to focus on instructional practices and create educational experiences for our students that are consistently and deliberately provided.

Our high school has had the students who were in our Sawdon Alternative High School folded back into the building.  A Student Success team focuses on providing support for students who struggle.  Continued and expanded opportunities for advanced placement are provided as well.  As with Hayes, at the high school we are focusing in providing consistent and deliberate instruction.

Looking back on last year reminds me of the tremendous changes that have been made.   Not everything went as smoothly as I had hoped.  We planned and thought through as much as possible, but there were obvious areas where we fell short.  We continue to strive to improve and make the educational experience of our students as positive as possible. 

Now January 1^st has come.  The New Year beckons to us.  Right now the possibilities are endless.  What will happen?  How will life change?  What will be different than last year?

My resolution is to continue working to create the district that all of us want - a district that provides quality educational experiences for every student. 

Our stated goal is to be considered one of the best districts in the state and nation.  I believe we can accomplish that goal.  It will take hard work.  In the current economic climate I do not anticipate that we will receive additional resources.  In fact, we might see reduced resources.

Yet I remain hopeful.  Why?  We have the most important ingredient we need to be successful - people who care.  From our employees to our parents to our community members, I have been overwhelmed by the passion and the commitment that has been displayed. 

People have rolled up their sleeves and dug in to help recreate our district.  The challenges have been, and will continue to be, difficult.  Yet, people have stood up and made a commitment to work hard for our district.

I do not know what the New Year will bring.  I do know that together we will continue to shape and change our district so that our students will receive the education that they need and that they deserve.

Let's here it for student achievement!

I look at a lot of data.  This week I looked at summaries of how our students did during the first trimester of this year at the high school.

We had 43 9th graders earn all "A"s or "A-"s  on their first report card in high school.  Of those 43 students,  17 of them earned all "A"s.

We had 42 10th graders earn all "A"s or "A-"s during the first trimester.  Of those 42 students, 24 of them earned all "A"s.

We had 32 11th graders earn all "A"s or "A-"s during the first trimester.  Of those 32 students, 13 of them earned all "A"s.

The senior class had 40 students who earned all "A"s or "A-"s during the first trimester of this school year.  Of those 40 students, 19 of them earned all "A"s.

Overall, we had 157 students who earned all "A"s or "A-"s.  Of that group 74 earned all "A"s.

The freshman class had the most students who earned all "A"s or "A-"s with 43 students.  The sophomore class had the most students who earned all "A"s with 24 students.

Grades are clearly one indicator that we have to look at to see how well we are doing.  Grades help us answer the question - Are our students learning?  

But grades are just one indicator.  We need to look at test scores, survey our community, get feedback and insight from a variety of sources.

But for today I want to celebrate the achievement of these 157 students.  They worked hard and I want to say to them, "Job well done!"

Oh the weather outside is frightful!

When I grew up in Albuquerque, New Mexico, snow was a big deal.  While Albuquerque is a mile high – we always considered Albuquerque, not Denver, the Mile High City – winters were typically cold but dry.  The Sandia Mountains, which frame the city on its eastern side, always had snow in the winter but it was rare in the city itself.

Growing up, I can recall only a handful of days when school was cancelled because of the snow.  Most Michiganians would chuckle at the decision making process that was used.  If Albuquerque had more than an inch of snow, school was usually postponed or cancelled. 

Why?  Albuquerque had no snow removal equipment or system.  Well, that is not completely accurate.  There was a system.  It was called the “waiting for it to warm up” system.  If there was snow, the city’s process for removal was to wait for it to warm up.

Here in Michigan, and in Grand Ledge specifically, we have to deal with snow on a regular basis.  Cancelling a day of school or delaying school for two hours is a decision that is not made lightly.  What is considered when we cancel or delay school because of the weather?

First, and most important, we consider the safety of our students.  Will our students be safe as they wait for buses, ride to school with their parents or on a bus, or walk to school. 

Cold weather is a factor, but this is Michigan.  It is going to get cold.  If the temperature or wind chills are below minus 20 we will consider cancelling or delaying school.  We have a wind chill temperature index from NOAA that we rely on to help us calculate how cold the air feels on human skin. 

This chart includes a frostbite indicator, showing the points where temperature, wind speed, and exposure will produce frostbite on humans.  This chart gives us an estimate of the time it would take for a person who is outside to be in danger of getting frostbite. 

We know that many of our students have to walk to bus stops or walk to school.  We consult this wind chill chart to make sure that students who are outside waiting or walking will not be placed in a dangerous situation.

We also consider the safety of our students as they wait for buses to arrive.  Are the roads that our students wait on safe?  This week with the ice and cold temperatures many of our roads were dangerous.  Having students stand by the side of a road that is ice covered may expose them to danger.  Delaying school allows traffic to clear and roads to be less hazardous.   

After the safety of our students, we consider the delay that snow will cause.  Our buses can maneuver in almost anything.  They will rarely get stuck.  But that is not true for cars.  There are many times when our buses could continue a route but a car is stuck and they cannot get around it.  If we delay for two hours it usually allows for most of the traffic to get out of the way and makes it easier for buses to run their routes on time.

Snow also causes problems on some of the country roads that our buses travel.  Many of these roads are not plowed and end up being one lane.  While our buses can usually travel these roads it is not unusual for cars to get stuck.  When this happens in front of a bus the bus is then put in a difficult situation.  It can attempt to go around the car, but often it is hard to see where the road ends and the ditch starts.  Or the bus can back up, which is a very difficult thing to do under normal circumstances.  Put forty to sixty students on the bus and backing up becomes very challenging.

Snow has become more of a problem in the past couple of years as cities and counties try to cut costs by reducing when and how much they plow.  I can sympathize with the cities, townships, and counties as they work to manage their budgets.  What it means for us is that roads are often not ready first thing in the morning like they used to be.

It is important to know that we have someone who drives the roads in the morning.  We are not just guessing that the roads are bad or that the snow is deep.  We know the conditions because someone has been on the road.

Getting students and staff to school safely and in a timely manner is important.  We are cautious.  When you receive that early morning wake up call that lets you know that school is cancelled or delayed I apologize for the inconvenience that it causes.  However, the decision was not made lightly and it was done for what I consider to be good reasons.

What do grades tell us?

Below are the passing rates for the first trimester of this school year at Hayes.  These are for core curriculum courses.

Core Curriculum
Course	Enrolled	Pass	Fail	% Passing
English
English 7	337	331	6	98.20%
English 8	371	350	21	94.30%
Math
Math 7	319	297	22	93.10%
Algebra A	199	180	19	90.50%
Algebra AB	141	141	0	100.00%

Core Curriculum
Course	Enrolled	Pass	Fail	% Passing
Science
Science 7	343	324	19	94.50%
Science 8	379	348	31	91.80%
Social Studies
Social Studies 7	354	347	7	98.00%
Social Studies 8	393	369	24	93.90%

What am I trying to do when I generate data like this?  Am I trying to suggest that we grade too easy or too hard?  Am I trying to suggest that we are failing too many students or passing too many students?

Data like this gives us information.  It allows us to examine our practice.  More importantly it allows us to reflect on who the students are that are not succeeding and gives us a chance to ask ourselves what can we do for those students.  How can we help them?

Students need to pass their classes.  Yet they must earn their grade.  We should not just give a student a passing grade unless they can demonstrate to us that they have learned the material.  When we see our passing rates it allows to ask ourselves questions, to see if we are accomplishing our goal.

What is our goal?  That every student will make at least a year's growth in a year's time.  That every student will learn.

Student Success in Grand Ledge High School

Are students successful at Grand Ledge High School?  That is a simple question that is actually harder to answer than one would think.

Here is one way to examine if students are successful.  The following charts show how many students were enrolled in our high school Michigan Merit Curriculum courses.  They also show how many students passed each of these courses during trimester one of the 2010-2011 school year and how many students failed.  A passing percentage can then be calculated for each course.

As an example, 207 students were enrolled in our freshman level English course - BCL A.  Of those 207 students who took the course during the first trimester of this school year, 187 students passed and 27 students failed.  That means 87% of the students who took the course passed the course.

Course	Enrolled	Pass	Fail	Passing %
English
BCL A	207	180	27	87.00%
Hon Eng 9a	51	51	0	100.00%
ACL A	130	123	7	94.60%
ICL A	182	158	24	86.80%
GCL A	168	159	9	94.60%
Math
Algebra 1a	77	65	12	84.40%
Algebra 1b	143	119	24	83.20%
Algebra 2a	182	155	27	85.20%
Algebra 2b	49	49	0	100.00%
Geometry A	195	164	31	84.10%
Geometry B	33	21	12	63.60%

Course	Enrolled	Pass	Fail	Passing %
Science
Biology A	331	288	43	87.00%
Chemistry A	234	201	33	85.90%
Chemistry B	11	11	0	100.00%
Physics A	64	54	10	84.40%
Social Studies
Civics	126	121	5	96.00%
Econ	171	167	4	97.70%
US History A	184	173	11	94.00%
World History A	278	260	18	93.50%

Several thoughts and questions pop into my mind as I look at these numbers.  First, the passing percentage is really a neutral number.  It is not good or bad.

What is more important is to know what is behind the number.  Who is failing?  Why are they failing?  did they not do the work?  Do they not have the skills to do the work?

Could we have identified who these students were earlier and tired to intervene?

How much earlier could we have intervened?  Did these freshmen have trouble in 8th grade or 7th grade?

How do these grades relate to the MEAP tests and other standardized assessments that we give students?  Do those assessments identify for us students who will struggle in class?

 

Random Thoughts on How Many Students Should Pass a Class

As the Superintendent, I can access information that shows me how many students passed each class that was taught at the high school.  

During the first trimester at Grand Ledge High School, we offered 173 courses.  The chart below identifies passing rate ranges and how many courses were in that range.  For example, in the 100% range - where 100% of the students who took the course passed - there were 87 courses.  In 87 courses offered last trimester at Grand Ledge High School 100% of the students enrolled passed.  There were 53 courses offered in the 1st trimester of the 2009-2010 school year at Grand Ledge High School where 90-99% of the students who took the course passed.  

	Number	Percent
100% of Enrolled Students Passed	87	50.3%
90-99% of Enrolled Students Passed	53	30.6%
80-89% of Enrolled Students Passed	23	13.3%
70-79% of Enrolled Students Passed	7	4.0%
60-69% of Enrolled Students Passed	2	1.2%
50-59% of Enrolled Students Passed	1	0.6%
Below 50% of Enrolled Students Passed	0	0.0%
		100.0%

What am I to think of this information?  Is what I see good or bad?  Does this kind of information help me get a better sense of how we are doing or does it give a distorted and incomplete picture?


Part of me says that this kind of information is helpful.  When students fail it is a problem.  I want students to pass.  I want teachers to be aware of students who are struggling and offer assistance.  If a student is failing a course I want the district and the school to take notice and try to find a way to help that student succeed.


But I don't want us to think that passing a class is the goal.  Learning the material, understanding the content - that is the goal.  I do not want teachers to think that they should "give" a student a grade just to pass them.  Students need to earn their grade.  If students don't do their work or if students don't turn in assignments or if students do not do well on tests, then they should not pass the class.  The goal is not 100% passing.  The goal is 100% learning.


Everyone of us connected to learning in the district should focus our effort on helping every student learn.     

Grand Ledge Parade

The GLHS band performs in the Grand Ledge Christmas parade.

Miss Fox Reviews Today's Schedule

Miss Fox spends time with her class reviewing the day's schedule with her students at Delta Center.

Greek Myths at Delta Center

Mrs. Soria talks with her class about Greek myths as they prepare to read stories like Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief.

Wrestling at GLHS

Tonight at Grand Ledge High School the Comets had a quad meet. First match was against Eaton Rapids.

Do Parents and Students Use PowerSchool?

When I was in high school and my parents asked how school was going I always said, "Alright."

When they asked if I had turned in my assignments, I said, "Yes."

When I received my "D" in the first quarter of Algebra 2 they were surprised.  How was that possible when I was doing all of my work?  Little did they know that I really wasn't doing all of my work.

Parents don't have that excuse anymore.  

Power School is our student management system.  Parents and students can access Power School to view grades and see attendance.  

It's a good tool for both parents and students.   How often do parents and students access Power School?  Here are some stats from a Power School report on the high school that I looked at today.

It appears that both parents and students are taking advantage of this tool.

3rd Grade Math @ Beagle

Mrs. Bedard works on math with her 3rd grade class.

Word Work at Beagle

Mrs. Hoort works with Mrs. Beach's 4th grade class on learning about some of characteristics of words.

An Update on Our Progress

Today - November 29 - marked the start of the second trimester at the high school.  One-third of the school year is gone.

Our district engaged in significant restructuring this year.  There was staff movement, student movement, and significant changes.

With one-third of the school year gone, what have we learned?

I have been in every building multiple times.  I know that good instruction is taking place.  Students are learning.  Teachers and staff are engaged.  Students greet me with smiles and seem genuinely happy at school.

Yet, I know that not everyone is satisfied with how the restructuring has gone.

Transportation in and around Hayes in the morning is problematic.  Some days everyone arrives on time.  Other days there are long waits.  Some parents, frustrated by the long wait on Nixon, let their sons or daughters out of the car and expect them to walk along Nixon to Hayes.  That is a problem.

Every school is larger than it was last year.  Adjusting to more students in the hallways and on busses and at lunch has created some concern among students, staff, and parents.

While the restructuring was done to save money, the promise was made that this would lead to educational improvements as well.

I am still confident that the plan that was created and implemented is working and will work, but I am also aware that all of us have had to make significant adjustments this year.  If you have concerns do not hesitate to contact me so that we can work toward solutions together.

Willow Ridge 2nd Grade

Mrs. Sampson talks to her class about what things they have in class that they use to do math. From the calendar to number lines to rulers the class could identify a lot of tools for math work and thinking.

What Good is Technology?

An article in the New York Times discusses the use of technology by students.  The article suggests that many students forgo homework and focusing on school because they are distracted by Facebook, text messages, and video games.

As I walk through the halls of our schools I see cell phones and ipods.  Students walk around with earbuds listening to music.  Is this good or bad?

Technology is part of the world that these students are growing up in.  They have no fear of technology and seem adept at figuring out how to use technology.  But are students learning?

Students listen to music, text, update their Facebook status and do homework all at the same time.  How is that possible?  Is that a good thing?

I don't want to sound like a Luddite but I worry and wonder about the ubiquity of technology - especially among our students.

I believe that technology has enhanced our lives and opened up possibilities and doors that were not able to be opened previously.  But is it too much?

Is technology a tool or is it an end in itself?

Believe in Our District; Work to Make It Better

 I sat in a first grade classroom today and talked with a teacher.  She was very positive.  She talked me through some of the concerns she had about her class and her classroom.  There were a lot of very good things going on. She communicated clearly to me about the district and her faith in her colleagues.  At the end of our time together, there were two messages that I took away from our conversation.  First, she believed in our district.  Second, she believed we could do better.

I also sat in a conference room at the high school today.  The assembled administrators were also very positive.  While they spoke of some of their frustrations, they had come to solve the problem not to get lost in complaining about the problem.  They talked about classrooms and students and working with teachers to help students succeed.  We talked about student progress toward graduation.  At the end of our meeting, I also thought that they had two clear messages for me.  One, they believed in our district.  Second, they thought we could do better.

I sat with parent leaders last week.  We spoke about the school year and what was working and what was not working.  They shared concerns about where the district was right now.  At the end of our meeting, I felt they also shared two messages.  They wanted to believe in our district.  They thought we could do better.

As I talk with people who work for the district, who have children who attend the district, or who are just connected to our district, the message is the same one.  They believe in us, yet they believe we can do better.

It is a frustrating time to be in education.  Funding, enrollment, graduation requirements – the list of items that could bog a person down is almost endless.

Yet as I go to buildings, visit with parents, and see our employees in action, I am buoyed by the commitment that I see around me.  I see employees working hard, going out of their way to make things better.  I see students focused on learning.  I hear from parents who want to make a difference. 

Progress is not always easy and it is not always fast.  I understand that every year that any child is in our school district, attending one of our schools, it is an important year.  We cannot take a year off.  We cannot take a month, or a week, or even a day off.

When events try to crowd into the school year and appear to threaten progress, people have a right to be concerned.  Yet what I have seen this year has been a resolve to solve problems, a resolve to continue making us better.

Why?  Because people believe in our district.  People – be they employees, parents, or community members - understand that every one of us has a responsibility to work together to make our district better.  People are willing to commit because they believe in the district.  Yet with the first message comes the unmistakable second message.  We can do better.

My commitment to our district is that I will work hard to continue to help us improve.  If you have an idea that will help us improve or a concern about something that might be holding us back, do not hesitate to contact me.  Together, we can continue to build a great district.   

Social studies at Beagle

Ms. Schuller helps students in her 6th grade Social Studies class begin a review of geographic terms - absolute location, relative location, movement of goods. Sixteen terms in all.

Delta Center Elementary

Mrs. Martin and her first grade class focus on rhyming words in the story "I'm a Turkey."

An Open Letter to Governor-elect Snyder

Dear Governor-elect Snyder,

Congratulations on your election night victory!  I look forward to working with you.

I know that you have many priorities.  It appears that education is one of them.  I appreciate that, for, you see, I am the Superintendent of the Grand Ledge Public Schools.  Education is one of my priorities as well.

In your ten-point plan, point number eight states that we need to reform Michigan’s educational system.  Sometimes words like that from a politician rankle people like me who spend their lives trying to ensure that every student receives a quality education.  But I will take you at your word when you say, “schools, teachers, and parents must renew their commitment to ensuring that each child is given the best possible preparation and education for life.”

I agree with you! We have three district goals. The first one states that every child should make at least a year’s growth in a year’s time.  If we can do that then every child who graduates from our high school will be ready for that next step in his or her life.

Our second goal calls for teachers and administrators to collaborate to find, use, and monitor effective instructional strategies.  When we use effective instructional strategies, our students will learn, which will increase the likelihood that each child will make at least a year’s growth in a year’s time.

Our third goal calls for every person in the district to work together to create a high performing organization.  Teachers, bus drivers, secretaries, food service workers, custodians, teacher aides, administrators, and Superintendents need to focus of creating an organization that helps every student learn.   

I believe you when you say that you want every student in Michigan to receive a high quality education.  But then in your Policy Central, where you give more detail on your policies, you cherry-pick data to paint a picture that every school district in Michigan is sub par.

For example, you show the ACT scores for four states.  You compare Michigan to Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Ohio.  You show that our ACT scores are lower than those four states.  But you do not note that Michigan tests 100% of its high school graduates, while Minnesota only tests 70%, Wisconsin only tests 69%, and Ohio only tests 66%.

When compared to those four states Michigan’s composite ACT score for graduating seniors is lower – anywhere from one to three points lower.  Yet you could have compared us to Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Wyoming.  These four states test 100% of their graduating seniors.  When compared to those five states Michigan’s composite ACT score is higher than two and lower than three.  But there is only a one-point range either way.

You also note that Michigan’s average salary for instructional staff ranks 4th in the United States.  While that is true when you look at all the districts in Michigan, it is not true when you look at specific districts.  For example, the average teacher salary in the Grand Ledge Public Schools is right at the national average. To suggest that every teacher in Michigan is overpaid is not appropriate or helpful.

You state that we should reduce overhead costs and become more efficient.  Yet every employee in our district who has health insurance pays between 18% and 31% of the premium.  In our district, which covers 125 square miles we spend almost two million dollars a year on school transportation.  Other districts in our area that are significantly smaller have no transportation costs.  Sweeping statements about efficiencies, when I believe that we have done a lot to control costs, does not create a spirit of cooperation and collaboration.

You are my Governor-elect.  I want you to be successful.  I believe you when you say that you want Michigan’s schools to be successful.  I would like to invite you to my school district to discuss what we can do together to create a Michigan school system that educates every student well.

Sincerely,

Steve Matthews, Ed.D.

Communication: Ever Changing

When I was growing up, life was different.  We had one television in our house.  To change the channel we had to get up off the couch, go to the television, and turn the dial.  We had five television channels - ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, and a local independent station.

Today, there are two hundred and forty million televisions in the United States.  Two million of them are in bathrooms.  There are over three hundred television channels.

We had one phone - one that you actually had to dial.  If someone call and we were not home, we did not have voice mail or an answering machine.  When I went away to college, if I wanted to call home I had to use the common phone located in the dorm hallway.  If my parents wanted to call me, they had to call that phone, hoped someone would answer it, and, if it was not me who answered, they asked that person to go and find me.

Today, thirty percent of U.S. households do not have a traditional phone line.  As of December 2009, there were over two hundred and eighty five million wireless subscriber connections in the United States.  That would equate to almost ninety-one percent of the U.S. population.

We had no computer.  There was no such thing as email, gmail, or hotmail.

Today, over seventy-six percent of Americans own a computer.  Some estimates say that there are over two hundred and forty email accounts in the United States alone.

When I was young and trying to woo my girlfriend who later became my wife, I wrote her letters.  Now people post messages on Facebook or tweet on Twitter to communicate.

Americans have access to over one trillion web pages, sixty-five thousand iPhone applications, ten thousand radio stations, five thousand magazines, and three hundred cable television networks.

The major television channels - ABC, NBC, and CBS - get about ten million unique visitors a month.  You Tube, Facebook, and My Space get two hundred and fifth unique visitors a month.  None of those websites even existed ten years ago.

Today it is easier than ever to reach people.  Yet, it seems harder to connect that it has ever been.

Ninety percent of the two hundred million emails sent everyday are spam.  Answering machines and caller ID make it easier to screen calls and not answer those call that you would prefer to ignore.

While there are any number of ways for people to connect, it seems like it is harder and harder to communicate.  Our school district wants to communicate important messages to students, parents, and community members.  We constantly wonder what is the most effective way to communicate.

Communication is hard.  Making sure that students, parents, and community members learn about what we are doing is important.  It is also important to be able to hear from our community.  My goal is to communicate with the people who care about our district - students, parents, community members, and employees.

At the end of this entry I have listed several of the tools that I use in an attempt to communicate about our district.  I invite you to join me - in person or virtually.  While life is different today than it was when I was younger, I believe that we need to communicate today more than ever.

The district website:  http://www.glps.k12.mi.us
The Superintendent's blog:  http://grandledgesuperintendent.blogspot.com
The Superintendent's twitter:  http://twitter.com/docsmatthews
The Superintendent's You Tube videos:  http://www.youtube.com/docsmatthews

The next two Superintendent's Coffees:  Wednesday, November 10; 7:30 - 9:00 AM at the Grand Ledge A&W; Thursday, December 9; 5:30 - 7:00 PM at the Grand Ledge Biggby on Charlevoix.

Neff PE

Mr. Stevens -our PE teacher - gets the students ready for a game of soccer.

JV Football Team Reads to Willow Ridge Students

Our high school JV football time recently spent some time at Willow Ridge Elementary reading to our students. A wonderful way for our team to give back to the community and to model the importance of reading!  Thanks goes out to the JV and varsity coaches and Ann Anderson our reading teacher at Willow Ridge.  

Lowell vs. Grand Ledge

Grand Ledge prepares to take on Lowell. A great night for a game.

Learning About Mozart

Today at Wacousta students learned about The Magic Flute in Mrs. Hoard's music class. Fun stuff for 4th graders.

Willow Ridge Fire Drill

I was lucky enough to be at Willow Ridge today when they had a fire drill. Students wonder why these are important but pre-planning is essential if there ever was a real emergency.

Disruption in American Education

Several weeks ago I was at a conference and Hall Davidson of Discovery Education was speaking.  His audience of Superintendents listened as he talked about the need to look for and use technology in interesting and powerful ways if we are going to reach students.  He was amazing in his ability to connect throughout his talk with websites and technology tools that helped his audience learn.

During the course of his presentation he made an interesting comment about how educators sometimes assume that things can't or won't change because we believe we are just too important.  He suggested that other industries have made the same fatal comment in the past.  His example was the newspaper industry, who, when faced with incredible challenges from technology, probably believed that their delivery system did not need to change because everyone needed a newspaper.  After all, where would one get daily news and insight.  How could anyone live without the daily newspaper being delivered?    

He said that educators sometimes act like the newspapers.  "Schools don't need to change.  We are as important as newspapers!"  Uh-oh!

I thought of that presentation as I read two articles this week.  One appeared in the New York Times and the other in the online version of Newsweek.  These two articles, unrelated except for their commentary on how life in the 21st century keeps changing, made me think about how education needs to be sensitive to the changes that are occurring all around us.

The Newsweek article talked about the difficulty an online company was having remaining competitive and finding a way to turn a profit.  The article said that this company was being replaced by a competitor that really was not supposed to be a competitor.  The author stated that the company was struggling and it was surprised "But this is how disruption happens in tech . . . something comes out of left field and provides a new way to do something."

The New York Times article provided a great example of how something is coming out of left field and will potentially change education. Students in Britain were being taught math online through tutors in India.

Is how we do things in American education the best and only way to do things?  I would like to say yes, but the evidence is accumulating that there are other ways to teach and learn.  Just because classrooms today look a lot like the classrooms of forty years ago or the classrooms of one hundred years ago, does not mean that the classrooms of next year will look the same.

This is how disruption happens.  Something comes out of left field and provides a new way to do something.  Those of us responsible for educating todays's youth need to be aware of and sensitive to the changes that might happen.  Instead of being shaken by the disruptive forces at work in our world, we need to be involved in shaping those disruptive forces to help our students learn.

Lunch at Beagle

Lunch time at Beagle. Salad, fruit, carrots. Lots of healthy options.

October 24 Independent

Here is the article that will appear in this weekend's Grand Ledge Independent.  

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The Greater Lansing Cross Country Invitational was the brainchild of Jim Brandt and Grand Ledge has hosted the event every year since 1989.  Almost forty schools sent boys and girls teams to participate in this event last weekend.

It was remarkable!  At the beginning of the race, all forty teams line up, the starter calls “On your mark,” the gun sounds, and almost two hundred runners storm towards the first turn.  This year – an even numbered year - the boys ran first and then forty-five minutes later the girls started.  Last year, the girls started first and then forty-five minutes later the boys started.    

By the time they came around the first big turn, the runners were spread out over more than fifty yards.  The winners crossed the finish line about sixteen minutes after the race began.  The last person to finish arrived about thirty-five minutes after the race started.

The most remarkable thing about the race to me was that the fifth place finisher on a team had as much, or more, impact on the team score than the person from the team who finished first.  This sport truly epitomizes the team concept.

As I watched the event last Saturday, I learned a little about how teams earn points and how you determine who wins.  Every runner earns points.  The points you earn are determined by where you finish.  If you finish first you earn one point.  If you finish second you earn two points.  

The team score is determined by adding up the points each runner earned.  Each team could run seven but could only count the top five scores.  If your team had runners in first, fourth, twelfth, twentieth, and thirtieth place, your team earned one, four, twelve, twenty, and thirty points.  Add those up and you have your team score.  The team that wins has the lowest combined score of its top five runners.  

It was important for each of the seven runners to finish as high as they could.  A team’s seventh place finisher could knock a runner from another team down a notch or two by finishing ahead of them.

This was the first cross-county meet I had ever seen in person.  I marveled at the effort each of the student-athletes gave.  The runners gave all they had, hoping to finish as they expended their last bit of effort.  Steve Gabriel, our high school principal, said to me, “Why would you want to have anything left when you finished?”  As I looked into the faces of these high school students as they finished the race, most of them had given everything they had.

This athletic event reflects the importance of the team, almost more than any other sport.  The fifth place finisher on your team helped determine if your team wins as much as the first place finisher.  In fact, the seventh place finisher on your team has an impact as well.

This made me think about our school district.  Our school district cannot be excellent unless everyone contributes to our success.  We can have a wonderful band program but if our academics are weak – using the cross-country analogy – our team will not score as well.  Or our academics can be strong but if our extra-curricular offerings are poor, the overall strength of the district is diminished.  If our building principals talk to parents and get to know the public but the Superintendent hides behind his desk, then our district suffers.

We have a lot to offer in our district.  Our academic programs, our bands and choirs, and our athletic teams are all strong.  Secretaries and custodians and food service employees and departments contribute to our success. 

When parents and students look at us, they judge our school district based on their experience with a wide range of departments, offices, schools, and employees.  My goal is for our school district to function as a team, recognizing that every part of our organization contributes to our success.  If one part of our organization fails, then every other part of the organizations suffers.

I learned a lot last Saturday as I watched the Greater Lansing Cross-Country Invitational.  One of the lessons that I was reminded of is that it is important for every part of the team to function well if we expect to win.  A weakness anywhere affects the team score.  

As we continue to work to improve our district, my goal is for us to be strong as a team so that we can meet the needs of every student who attends our schools.