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the following articles are from the July 3rd Issue of the Oakwood Register...
Five years ago Congress passed the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. It is being considered for renewal right now but if it is to be renewed there must, in my personal opinion, be some major changes/improvements made in the law.
The huge emphasis on paper-pencil, mostly very short answer testing is as a “one-size-fits-all” single method of assessment has proven to be a major flaw. Human beings are NOT widgets produced best on an assembly line process with much of the work done by robots. We are diverse, complicated, and resist being told that we must all fit into the same container, be the same size, and act the same way as the current NCLB seems to seek.
Suppose the federal government decided to “improve” our nation’s health care system and demanded that our doctors run test after test after test after test on EACH patient. Think of the time of these professionals being consumed by all of the testing and how much less time would then be available to actually treat each patient. Yet this is close to exactly what now is happening in our schools as we have taken weeks of teaching/learning time away from our children in favor of practice testing time!
Now add to this very real problem of reduced instruction another major “flaw in the law” (I like this phrase-has a bit of a ring to it!) which is the failure of the national government to pay even a reasonable fraction of the costs of the testing, the tutoring, the record keeping, the in-service for faculty, etc. Over the five years of the law these mega costs have, instead of being paid by the federal government, have been forced onto the local taxpayers. The law has been under-funded by billions of dollars from what Congress itself said would be the costs when the act was passed in 2002.
The goal of addressing and meeting the needs of ALL of our children is a solid one and needs to be kept. But the administrative regulations and the problems cited above MUST be changed. Accountability is a two-way street and the feds must meet their responsibilities just as must the local schools. I am a strong believer in accountability, but if it is not fair, it will not be supported by the public, and the result will be a loss of faith in the government itself.
The new student registration day for Oakwood Junior High School is Wednesday, July 25 from 9 -11:30 a.m. and 1-3 p.m. Please bring a copy of your child’s birth certificate, immunization record, and a copy of your purchase or rental contract to the Oakwood Junior High Office at 1200 Far Hills Ave.
If you would like a registration packet mailed to you or if you have any questions, please call Dawne Roeckner at (937) 297-5328. Please visit the website for additional information about Oakwood Schools at www.oakwoodschools.org.
Local McDonald’s restaurants are once again offering MAC Grants to help teachers Make Activities Count for their students. McDonald’s recognizes that lessons often become more meaningful when demonstrated with hands-on experiences. The MAC Grants program provides financial support so teachers can supplement regular classroom curriculum with activities that the school’s budget may not allow.
The MAC Grants program has awarded more than $115,000 to area teachers over the past 4 years, and is available to teachers in the Miami Valley, Richmond, IN and the Greater Lima area.
Kindergarten thru eighth grade teachers may apply for up to $500 for interesting and educational projects in their classrooms. Teachers can use grant money to energize a science lesson by building a weather station or make history come alive by recreating pioneer life with butter churning and candle dipping. Because McDonald’s is soliciting ideas from teachers, project ideas are limitless.
Teachers can find out more information and submit an application online at www.mcohio.com/macgrants. Completed applications must be postmarked by October 1, 2007. A limited number of grant recipients will be chosen on or before November 1, 2007.
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