Feedback on Registration

Fall school registration has normally rated somewhere just above a root canal in terms of favored activities for most parents of school-age children.

Principals have worked on shortening the process and making it quicker and easier for parents. It would be nice if we could do on-line registration for parents but we aren't ready for that yet.

In the meantime, principals have been trying to shorten your visit to the school.

I am open to feedback in the comment section. We would appreciate any positive comments you might have as well as suggestions for improvement. Please indicate the school building you were registering at so that we can pass the information along to principals.

Thank you!

Wawasee Welcomes New Teachers

Wawasee Schools has new teacher orientation activities this week. This orientation is for all new teachers on regular contract as well as teachers filling temporary contracts for teachers on leave. New teachers will be discussing instructional process, crisis prevention, personnel paperwork, meetings with building principals, a million other things, and time to work in their buildings.

We give a warm Wawasee welcome to the following:

1. Christopher Berg - Wawasee High School - English
2. Emily Quandt - Wawasee Middle School - Special Education
3. Julie Harkema - Wawasee High School - Family and Consumer Science
4. Kelly Holbrook - Syracuse Elementary - Special Education
5. Kari Flanigan - School Psychologist
6. Jamie Baker - Syracuse Elementary - First Grade
7. Christie Holst - Wawasee Middle School - Sixth Grade
8. Gina Bordones - Milford Middle School
9. Andrew Dittmer - Milford School - PE
10. Mason McIntyre - Milford Elementary School - Fifth Grade
11. Todd Lucas - Syracuse Elementary - Fourth Grade
12. Danielle Wells - Wawasee High School - Special Education
13. Carla Winegardner, Wawasee Middle School - Special Education Teacher

Good luck to all!

Parents - the key?

Parents are so important to a child's progress in school and success in life that it is difficult to overestimate their influence.

Here the Indy Star weighs in on the topic.

Do superintendents matter?

Just like there is more to being a teacher than looking at how students score on a test, there is more to being a "boss" in the school district than just looking at how students are doing on standardized tests. Yet again, when looking for data, test scores always show up on the list.

A recent study by McRel (found here) looked at 6 areas of superintendent responsibilities: 1) goal setting process 2) relationships with schools 3) board alignment 4)monitoring and evaluating 5) resource alignment 6) goal adoption

The study looked at 1400+ school districts and found the following:

The impact on students whose superintendent is considered in the "top half" of superintendent performance is that 62.5% pass standardized tests versus 37.5% that fail. Students with superintendents identified as performing in the bottom half of their cohort group are reversed with 37.5% pass and 62.5% fail.

The study also found what it refers to as a "bonus finding" that "stability in superintendent leadership matters." A positive effect of superintendent tenure "appears after two years and is evident through year ten." The average effect based on the research models is seven years of a superintendent's tenure is .75 which is three times the average general effect anticipated.

We always thought we mattered to some degree but I guess now someone has actually tried to quantify it. Nothing like a little more pressure!! :-)

Friday's Funnies

Here are a few more excerpts supposedly taken from history exam essay questions.

Then came the Middle Ages. King Alfred conquered the Dames, King Arthur lived in the Age of Shivery, King Harlod mustarded his troops before the Battle of Hastings, Joan of Arc was cannonized by George Bernard Shaw. Finally, the magna Carta provided that no free man should be hanged twice for the same offense.

In midevil times most of the people were alliterate. The greatest writer of the time was Chaucer, who wrote many poems and verse and also wrote literature. Another tale tells of William Tell, who shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son's head.

The Renaissance was an age in which more individuals felt the value of their human being. Martin Luther was nailed to the church door at Wittenberg for selling papal indulgences. He died a horrible death, being excommunicated by a bull. it was the painter Donatello's interest in the female nude that made him the father of the Renaissance. It was an age of great inventions and discoveries. Gutenberg invented the Bible. Sir Walter Raleigh is a historical figure because he invented cigarette. Another important invention was the circulation of blood. Sir Francis Drake circumcised the world with a 100-foot clipper.

The government of England was a limited mockery. Henry VIII found walking difficult because he had an abbess on his knee. Queen Elizabeth exposed herself before her troops, they all shouted "hurrah." Then her navy went out and defeated the Spanish Armadillo.

There, now don't you feel enlightened? Maybe they won't become authors but they might be able to write for Letterman or Leno although these essay answers are more likely to be "urban legends."

American education: Is the glass half empty or half full?

Here are two articles in the Stanford Magazine. Two leading American researchers and authors were asked to weigh in on their opinions of American education.

They couldn't be more different.

Read the Bracey article carefully and note his comments about poverty. THIS appears to be the dirty little American secret no one will talk about openly. America leads the civilized nations in the percentages of students living in poverty. It was only the American schools with more than 75% poverty that were below international averages on test scores. The problem? We have so many of them.

Bracey's point? It's a poverty issue not an educational issue.

He points out that it is only our poorest schools that score low. Even if our schools with 25% - 49% poverty rates were considered a separate nation, they would have placed 4th in the world.

The Unasked Question

What are schools for?

Schools are mirrors of social belief, giving back what citizens put in front of them. But they are not fixed in one position. They can be moved up and down and sideways, so that at different times and in different venues, they will reflect one thing and not another. But always they show something that is there, not of the schools' invention but of the society that pays for the schools and uses them for various purposes. (From Neil Postman's "The End of Education: Redefining the value of school." pg 59-60)

So what are schools reflecting now? What purposes and motivations are driving American school reform efforts? What are schools being USED for now?

In Neil Postman's book he describes different purposes that play a role in influencing American education. One of the most obvious purposes in today's educational world is what Postman calls Economic Utility. In this view, the main purpose of schooling is to provide an economic benefit to society. Postman says...

It is a passionless god, cold and severe. Addressing the young, if offers a covenant of sorts with them: If you will pay attention in school, and do your homework, and score well on tests, and behave yourself, you will be rewarded with a well-paying job when you are done. It's driving idea is that the purpose of schooling is to prepare children for competent entry into the economic life of a community. It follows from this that anything that takes away from this is a frill or a waste of time. (Postman)

Postman would argue that using schools for economic purposes takes the view that America is not so much a culture as it is an economy and that our nation's economy rests upon high standards of achievement and rigorous discipline. He would consider this a fairly narrow view of schooling.

My opinion? Of course parents are hopeful that their children will have gainful employment that will keep them from hardship. Yet I can't help but feel this only represents a minimum of what parents truly hope schools will help provide. I believe most parents want their children to get along well with others, to be happy, to feel a sense of accomplishment and purpose, to be empathetic, to be compassionate, to be a contributing member in our democracy, to be civic minded, and YES to read, write and do math. Postman would say that it is these deeper things that have created and sustained what it is to be American.

Postman also argues that one of the greatest traditional benefits that schools provide society is teaching children how to behave in groups.

You cannot have a democratic - indeed civilized - community life unless people have learned to participate in a disciplined way within a group. (Postman)

So why has America gone down the road of overhyped standardized testing, ranking and rating schools and overbearing curriculum standards that are too voluminous to be taught at any grade level?

Is it not because America is captivated by what is easiest to measure? Could it be that the murky world of psychology, motivation, soft people skills and human interaction is more important but harder to measure and is therefore being ignored or at least just given lip service?

NE Kosciusko County's Declining Population

Northeastern Kosciusko county is the only part of our county with a declining population. That's us.

Click here for image. Click here for more information about the rest of Indiana.

The last few years Wawasee has posted the lowest student enrollment in many years and this chart seems to support the reasons.

I suppose Dana Corporation's major reductions have most likely contributed and while rumors are out there that more industry is on the way, it hasn't happened yet.

Registration is this week so we will see what happens to student enrollment this year.

New student enrollment law for divorced parents

Public Law 13-2006 (Senate Enrolled Act No. 39) added IC 20-26-11-2.5 to the Indiana Code, creating an election for parents who are divorced or separated but live in different school corporations.

The parent with physical custody (or the student, if the student is 18 years of age or older) can elect for the student to have legal settlement in the school corporation where the mother lives or the school corporation where the father lives—but the election must be made not later than fourteen (14) days before the first student day of the school year.

All that is required is for the parents to complete a special form at school registration.

Caring About Kids

Educational author and consultant, William Glasser once said, "Before kids care what you know, they have to know that you care."

Here is a great article by Dorothy Rich. (Requires registration) :-( Dorothy is the author of MegaSkills which are the list of life skills you see posted inside the Wawasee elementary schools. Here is an excerpt:

When I am asked about the key factor that makes students like school, study hard and stay in school, the answer is "caring." Students have to feel needed. Parents have to feel needed, teachers, too. This is the human element in education. Connectedness is a protective factor in children's lives. Schools and homes have to find ways of helping everyone feel important, essential and connected.

It's all very well to talk about test scores. But we have to remember that we build test scores by building people, children and adults included. Education is a very human, "messy" enterprise. Even in the age of computers, education is still a person-person connection.

May we not forget it.

Friday's Funnies

The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples.

The nun made a note, and posted it on the apple tray: "Take only ONE. God is watching."

Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies.

A child had written a note, "Take all you want. God is watching the apples."

So how bad is it?

So how bad is it? The high school dropout rate. If you haven't researched it then your answer is probably predicated on how you already feel about public schools in general.

Is the glass half empty or half full? Here are some excerpts from, "Rethinking High School Graduation Rates and Trends," by Lawrence Mishel and Joydeep Roy.

The overall high school graduation rate with a regular diploma is between 80% and 83%, with the best data (NELS) showing an 82% rate. All of the household and longitudinal data sources show a higher graduation rate than the two-thirds rate computed using the school-based enrollment/diploma data.

Estimates of the black rate of graduation from high school with a regular diploma range between 69% and 75%, with the NELS showing a 74% graduation rate. This is substantially higher than the frequently alleged 50% rate for blacks, reported from the school-based enrollment/diploma data. Moreover, the NELS data suggest that the alleged 50% dropout rate is double the actual dropout rate for blacks. In fact, the dropout rate for blacks is closer to 25% and roughly half of those obtain a GED, which allows entry into post-secondary education, the military, and other second-chance systems. Estimates of Hispanic high school graduation rates with a regular diploma range between 61% and 74%, with the NELS showing a 74% rate. This is substantially higher than the frequently alleged 50% rate for Hispanics reported from the school-based enrollment/ diploma data. Further, these data do not account for the additional 9% to 12% of Hispanics who receive a GED, which allows entry into post-secondary education, the military, and other second-chance systems.

There remain substantial race/ethnic gaps in graduation rates with regular diplomas. Analysis of census data shows that in 2000, for those ages 25-29, there was a black-white gap of about 15 percentage points and a Hispanic-white gap of 23 percentage points.

High school completion (either by diploma or GED) grew substantially from 1960 to the early to mid-1990s. This study looked at those aged 25-29 and found that in 1962 only 41.6% of blacks and 69.2% of whites completed high school, a 27.6 percentage point racial gap. By 1980 the racial gap had been cut by 63% to 10.3 percentage points, with both blacks and whites improving their graduation rates (to 86.9% for whites and to 76.6% for blacks). The racial gap was closed further to 6.0 percentage points by 1994 and to 5.0 percentage points by 2004.

Trends in Hispanic graduation rates are difficult to track since it is important to be able to identify recent immigrants who were not enrolled in U.S. schools. This can be done with the data from 1994 and more recent years and the data reveal that the Hispanic completion rate (either by diploma or GED) has grown from 76% to 81.3% from 1994 to 2004.

The overall conclusion of this study shows that American high school graduation rates are at the highest levels in history. The "Chicken Little - The Sky is Falling" rhetoric regarding dropout rates is not standing up to researcher's peer reviews.

While it is true that the rate of increase in graduation rates has slowed in recent years, that too must be viewed in light of the increased academic rigor that most states have added to the high school program.

Registration Reminders

Registration for Wawasee K-8 students will be on August 2 and 3 from 12:00 - 7:00 PM.

Registration for Wawasee 9-12 students will be on August 8 and 9 from 12:00 - 7:00 PM.

Additional information was mailed to your home in the Wawasee Reporter. If you didn't receive one you may stop by the administration office in front of the high school and pick up a new one.

How's the shopping for new school clothes going? :-)

China and Education

Every decade or so there is a surge in American paranoia about losing economic superiority in the global marketplace. For awhile it was the Japanese but since their economy tanked we haven't heard much about them. Next it was the Chinese and more recently it has been India.

Whenever this happens there is a new round of handwringing and another new phase of school reform efforts.

Well what type of education are the Chinese aspiring to?

Here is an interesting take on the subject. Blog post here. You may have to scroll down a few posts.

Click on the chart showing one Chinese curriculum expert's opinion of where Chinese instructional strategies have been and where they need to go.

Now, think hard. Does that end vision look like American drill and kill standardized test mania that has predominated American education reform? Probably not.

American wins gold in international Math competition

It's good to see an American student at the top in an academic area. Add this to Tiger Woods and Floyd Landis and it was a good week in competitions for Americans!

Arnav Tripathy (16) is Orissa’s “beautiful mind”. The teenager, who lives with his parents in the US, took home the gold in the 47th Math Olympiad held recently in Slovenia, beating off competition from 90 countries.

Article here.

ISTEP Teacher Assistant Needed at WHS

I don't normally use the blog site to post employment positions but this one has been posted for awhile without any takers.


Wawasee High School ISTEP Remediation Paraprofessional needed. Must possess computer skills, language arts skills and math skills at the Algebra 1 level. Must have organizational skills and be able to work with students in grades 9-12.

This is a part-time postion at $8.87 per hour. The hours are 10:45 a.m. until 3:00 p.m with a lunch break.

Contact Principal Ellen Stevens at 457-3147 for more information.

Career and Technical Education Funding Approved

Congress has evidently extended funding for vocational education for a few more years. Article here. This will be good news for Wawasee vocational students since enrollment in our Wawasee Career and Technical programs is at an all-time high despite the lowest total student enrollment in at least 10 years. Classes like Cosmetology are always full, while others like Building and Trades and Automotive may fluctuate a little more.

Newer classes like Project Lead the Way try to attract college-bound engineering students into classes with some "hands-on" experiences. Wawasee faculty members, Mr. McAdams and Mr. Coblentz have been attending extensive training classes this summer in order to implement these classes that try to attract more college-bound students to vocational classes.

In fact, there will be a new diploma offered in the future called a "Core 40 with Technical Honors" which will be an honors diploma for students completing the Core 4o college prep courses with a focus on the vocational classes in their electives.

Our Vocational Director, Mr. Metcalf, was worried about this legislation, but it looks like our programs may not be affected negatively.

Saturday Satire

Sorry I missed the Friday's Funnies posting. Here is some Saturday Satire to make up for it.

Here is a satirical grade change form for a college or high school student. I won't embarrass you by asking you if you actually thought about using any of these in your college days.


Universal Grade Change FormTo: (professor/teacher/instructor)________________________
From:_____________________
I think my grade in your course,_________________, should be changed from___to___for the following reasons:
____The persons who copied my paper made a higher grade than I did.
____The person whose paper I copied made a higher grade than I did.
____This course will lower my GPA and I won't get into:
__Med School __Dental School __Chiropractic School__Acupuncture school __Grad School __Mickey Mouse Club
____I have to get an A in this course to balance the F in ___________.
____I'll lose my scholarship.
____I didn't come to class and the person whose notes I used did not cover the material asked for on the exam.
____I studied the basic principles but the exam wanted every little fact.
____I studied the facts and definitions but the exam asked about general principles.
____I understood the material; I just couldn't do the problems.
____I can work the problems, but your exam expected understanding.
____You are prejudiced against:
__Males __Females __Protestants __Chicanos __Jews __Catholics __Muslims __People __Blacks __Whites __Minorities __Jocks __Students __Young people __Old people
____If I flunk out of school my father will disinherit me or at least cut my allowance.
____I was unable to do well in this course because of the following:
__mono __acute alcoholism __drug addiction __VD __broken finger __pregnancy __fatherhood __I have allergic reaction to brain work __I am intellectually challenged.
____You told us to be creative but you didn't tell us exactly how you wanted that done.
____I was creative and you said I was just shooting the bull.
____The lectures were:
__too detailed to pick out important points
__not explained in sufficient detail
__too boring
__all jokes and no material
__too serious--not enough entertainment to keep me awake.
____All my other profs have agreed to raise my grades.
____I don't have a reason; I just want a higher grade.
____This course was:
__too early, I was not awake.
__too late, I was tired.
__at lunchtime, I was hungry.
____My (dog, cat, gerbil) (ate, wet on, threw up on) my (book, notes, term paper) for this

Wawascene Stats

Here are some interesting statistics for you:

Between June 1 and today at 1:00 PM The Wawascene has had...

1. 6,887 First Time Visitors
2. 17,247 Returning Visitors
3. 24,134 Unique Visitors (all visitors)

The Statcounter program defines the terms as:

Returning Visitors - Based purely on a cookie, if this person is returning to your website for another visit an hour or more later.
First Time Visitors - Based purely on a cookie, if this person has no cookie then this is considered their first time at your website.
Unique Visitor - Based purely on a cookie, this is the total of the returning visitors and first time visitors - all your visitors.
Page Load - The number of times your page has been visited.

The busiest summer day so far was this Monday with 2,113 page loads. The highest we have so far was over 7,000 in one day.

Summer site traffic is way up this year and based on current trends it looks like The Wawascene will clear 1 million hits by February.

Thank you for embracing the technology. It has provided me as superintendent a unique and interesting way of communicating and interacting with staff and public.

If you have ideas for postings, articles you think would be interesting for me to link too or frequently asked questions you hear in the public that you would like answered, remember to e-mail them to me. There is an e-mail link on the side bar. I can't promise to use every link or idea submitted but I will use the ones that I deem best and most appropriate.

Student Wellness Policy

A recent commenter asked if the student wellness policy the school board was discussing was posted anywhere for public comment. Here it is. First...some background.

This spring the Indiana General Assembly passed a law requiring each school to have a student wellness policy. This policy was reviewed by a group of people including representatives from administrators, parents, cooks, and nurses. The policy started with a sample taken from the Indiana School Boards' Association and was modified by a committee of Wawasee people. Then it was reviewed and modified again before going to the school board for review. It has been reviewed twice by the school board. It will be up for adoption at the August school board meeting. This current revision is essentially a restatement of what the school law and federal lunch rules require.

STUDENT WELLNESS POLICY

The Board of School Trustees of the Wawasee Community School Corporation supports increased emphasis on nutrition as well as physical activity at all grade levels to enhance the well-being of the school corporation’s students. Therefore, it is the policy of the Board to:

· Provide students access to nutritious food and beverages;
· Provide opportunities for physical activity and developmentally appropriate exercise; and
· Require that all meals served by the school corporation meet the federal nutritional guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

In grades 9-12 vending machines dispensing healthy snacks and drinks such as bottled water, fruit juice, milk, dried fruit, and nuts, may be made available throughout the school day, after school, and at all extra-curricular activities.

Vending machines will provide the appropriate percentages of healthy foods as per current law.
This is mostly a high school issue because there will be virtually no vending machine usage by students during the school day K-8. In the high school they will be phasing out the carbonated beverages altogether over time. Currently half the machines already have healthy choices in them.

Minimally nutritious snacks and drinks may not be sold on lunch lines as a la carte items.
While ALL a la carte items currently meet these guidelines - the cooks have agreed to take a more restrictive view for next year than what is required by federal nutrition guidelines.

All school-sponsored events and celebrations of special occasions during the school day shall include healthy beverages and/or food among the choices available to participants.
Principals will work to create a more reasonable policy next year on things like "reward parties and birthday parties" etc. They will not be eliminating such things - just trying to avoid the situation where three parents bring cupcakes to the same room on the same day.

Each elementary school day shall incorporate several minutes of physical activity or exercise as determined at each building level in addition to the physical education curriculum.

Nutrition, health, and fitness topics shall be integrated within the health education curriculum taught at every grade level, K-12, and coordinated with the school corporation’s food service program. These topics may be integrated with other curriculum areas as deemed appropriate.

The superintendent and each building principal or designee shall jointly share the operational responsibility for ensuring that the provisions of this policy and its regulations are met.


LEGAL REFERENCE: 42 U.S.C. 1751

Self control - secret to success?

Somehow we've entered a world in which we obsess over structural reforms and
standardized tests, but skirt around the moral and psychological traits that are
at the heart of actual success.

This quote comes from an online news article that is worth a read.

The premise being that the ability to exercise self-control and delay of gratification might be the secret to success.

However, doesn't it still come down to where you stand on the "nurture or nature" debate? Are children born with these tendencies or do they acquire them through their environment?

Article here.

Friday's Funnies

No Dentist Left Behind

My dentist is great! He sends me reminders so I don't forget checkups. He uses the latest techniques based on research. He never hurts me, and I've got all my teeth. When I ran into him the other day, I was eager to see if he'd heard about the new state program. I knew he'd think it was great.

"Did you hear about the new state program to measure effectiveness of dentists with their young patients?" I said."No," he said. He didn't seem too thrilled. "How will they do that?"

"It's quite simple," I said. "They will just count the number of cavities each patient has at age 10, 14, and 18 and average that to determine a dentist's rating. Dentists will be rated as excellent, good, average, below average, and unsatisfactory. That way parents will know which are the best dentists. The plan will also encourage the less effective dentists to get better," I said.

"Poor dentists who don't improve could lose their licenses to practice.""That's terrible," he said."What? That's not a good attitude," I said. "Don't you think we should try to improve children's dental health in this state?"

"Sure I do," he said, "but that's not a fair way to determine who is practicing good dentistry.""Why not?" I said. "It makes perfect sense to me."

"Well, it's so obvious," he said. "Don't you see that dentists don't all work with the same clientele, and that much depends on things we can't control? For example, I work in a rural area with a high percentage of patients from deprived homes, while some of my colleagues work in upper middle-class neighborhoods. Many of the parents I work with don't bring their children to see me until there is some kind of problem, and I don't get to do much preventive work. Also many of the parents I serve let their kids eat way too much candy from an early age, unlike more educated parents who understand the relationship between sugar and decay.To top it all off, so many of my clients have well water, which is untreated and has no fluoride in it. Do you have any idea how much difference early use of fluoride can make?"

"It sounds like you're making excuses," I said. "I can't believe that you, my dentist, would be so defensive. After all, you do a great job, and you needn't fear a little accountability."

"I am not being defensive!" he said. "My best patients are as good as anyone's, my work is as good as anyone's, but my average cavity count is going to be higher than a lot of other dentists because I chose to work where I am needed most.""Don't' get touchy," I said."Touchy?" he said. His face had turned red, and from the way he was clenching and unclenching his jaws, I was afraid he was going to damage his teeth. "Try furious! In a system like this, I will end up being rated average, below average, or worse. The few educated patients I have who see these ratings may believe this so-called rating is an actual measure of my ability and proficiency as a dentist. They may leave me, and I'll be left with only the neediest patients. And my cavity average score will get even worse. On top of that, how will I attract good dental hygienists and other excellent dentists to my practice if it is labeled below average?"

"I think you are over reacting," I said. "'Complaining, excuse-making and stonewalling won't improve dental health'...I am quoting from a leading member of the DOC," I noted."What's the DOC?" he asked."It's the Dental Oversight Committee," I said, "a group made up of mostly lay persons to make sure dentistry in this state gets improved."

"Spare me," he said, "I can't believe this. Reasonable people won't buy it," he said hopefully.The program sounded reasonable to me, so I asked, "How else would you measure good dentistry?""Come watch me work," he said. "Observe my processes.""That's too complicated, expensive and time-consuming," I said."Cavities are the bottom line, and you can't argue with the bottomline. It's an absolute measure."

"That's what I'm afraid my parents and prospective patients will think. This can't be happening," he said despairingly."Now, now," I said, "don't despair. The state will help you some.""How?" he asked."If you receive a poor rating, they'll send a dentist who is rated excellent to help straighten you out," I said brightly.

"You mean," he said, "they'll send a dentist with a wealthy clientele to show me how to work on severe juvenile dental problems with which I have probably had much more experience? BIG HELP!""There you go again," I said. "You aren't acting professionally at all."

"You don't get it," he said. "Doing this would be like grading schools and teachers on an average score made on a test of children's progress with no regard to influences outside the school, the home, the community served and stuff like that. Why would they do something so unfair to dentists? No one would ever think of doing that to schools.

"I just shook my head sadly, but he had brightened. "I'm going to write my representatives and senators," he said. "I'll use the school analogy. Surely they will see the point."

He walked off with that look of hope mixed with fear and suppressed anger that I, a teacher, see in the mirror so often lately.

forwarded by others from somewhere out in cyberspace

Interpreting the Governor's Press Release

Most of you by now will have seen the glowing press release talking about the state paying back the money it "owes" to schools.

What does it really mean?

It just means they sent the money to us in July instead of September. Better late than never, and better on time than late.

That's all it does. Nothing more...nothing less...spin doctoring and press releases notwithstanding.

Article here.

Indiana tops US list for terrorist targets?

Say what?

Evidently Indiana leads the nation with over 8,000 sites listed as potential terrorist targets in a national data base kept by the Department for Homeland Insecurity.

Our favorite target listed is Amish Country Popcorn. Total employees - five.

Article here.

I know what really happened. The feds called Mitch up and asked him to make a list of Targets. Mitch said, "We don't have that many Target stores in Indiana but I can make a list of smaller outlets that will go out of business after Wally Mart is done taking over the world. "

To which the secretary to the undersecretary who was filling in for the Gal Friday (who was out ill) replied to Mitch, "Sure, like whatever, just have your list here by Friday."

Presto, Indiana now leads the nation in terrorists targets in the top secret world of The Department of Homeland Insecurity.

Everyone feel safer now? :-)

School Board Meeting Update

At last night's board meeting, the board:

*Accepted a $500 donation to Syracuse Elementary from the Syracuse-Wawasee Chamber of Commerce for the Taste of Home Cooking show
*Accepted a donation of 2 new computers and software to the Wawasee Auto Program from Alan Teehan
*Honored 2006 retiring teachers
*Approved claims, minutes of previous meetings, personnel items, single purchase extra-curricular items over $500 as per law, and renewal of the North Webster Head Start Lease
*Heard a report on the year-end athletic financial report
*Approved financial report
*Heard second reading on Student Wellness Policy
*Approved Joy Swartzentruber as 401(a) trustee
*Heard a report from the Superintendent on the Warrior Open Golf Outing
*Heard a report from the Director of Curriculum on the summer writing workshops
*Reviewed the upcoming budget meeting schedules

Schools Pull Rank

Evidently a number of school districts around the country are eliminating the system of class rankings over the vicious competition that takes place for the top spots.

TIME magazine article here.

Warrior Open Success

Wawasee Athletic Department held the 12th Annual Warrior Open at Maxwelton Golf Course on July 10th. Fifty-nine teams and two hundred thirty-six golfers participated in this fundraising event. Community members, local businesses and friends of the Athletic Department also participated by sponsoring Tee and Green signs, sponsoring the luncheon or donating gifts for the raffle. Wawasee Athletic Director Mary Hurley stated, “We enjoyed a wonderful day at Maxwelton Golf Course. Obviously, the real winners in the event were the athletes that wear the green and gold of Wawasee. Wawasee schools enjoy tremendous community support and an event like the Warrior Open is certainly a great community activity with all the support. On behalf of the coaches, the student athletes and the administration of Wawasee High School we extend a big thank-you to all our participants.”



Contest / event winners:

Mens’ AM Team Champions: Dennis Hively, Jeremy Malick, Jerry Celvenger, Jim Ziebarth

Mens’ AM Runners-up: Phil Dick, Rich Dick, Matt Dick, Mike Grill

Womens’ AM Team Champions: Joy Swartzentruber, Ann Seward, Janet Lant, Judy Osha

Mixed AM Champions: Steve Coverstone, Elena Duncan, Denny Duncan, Brian Dawes

Mens’ PM Team Champions: Bob Miller, Jason Miller, Rick Morris, Dave Schumakur

Mens’ PM Runners-up: Randy Pearson, Rick McKibbin, Buddy Overholser, Brent Warren

Women’s PM Team Champions: Tammy Melendez, Heather Fianot, Shelly Rogers, Becky Moore

Mixed PM Team Champions: Dave O’Connor, Dave K. O’Connor, Mike O’Connor, Linda O’Connor


Overall Winner for the Day: Bob Miller, Jason Miller, Rick Morris, Dave Schumakur (-16)

Putting Contest: Steve Plummer
50/50 contest closest 2nd shot on #9: Jay Garr
Closest to the Pin # 3: Dennis Hively
Closest to the Pin # 8: Brent Warren
Closest to the Pin # 13: Dennis Hively
Longest Putt # 18: Don Strouse
Longest Drive Mens’ # 16: Jay Garr
Longest Drive Senior Mens’ # 6: Jack Zimmerman
Longest Drive Senior Womens’ #14: Ann Seward
Longest Drive Womens’ #4: Kristi Harkenrider

Friday's Funnies

If you added up all of the time spent on non-teaching activities, and separated the time spent on each into eight-hour days, you would find that over a thirty-year teaching career you would have spent:

-- Five months telling students to get to work
-- Fifty--six days telling students to sit down
-- Eleven days waiting for a student to finish sharpening a pencil
-- Five months taking attendance
-- Almost two years sitting in meetings
-- Eleven days waking sleeping students
-- Twenty--two days rearranging the desks
-- Nine days saying "no"
-- A month passing out papers
-- Three weeks collecting papers
-- Four weeks listening to morning announcements
-- Two weeks reminding students that the period is not over yet
-- Two months redirecting inappropriate student behavior
-- Six months reading memos, completing surveys, and doing other paperwork
-- Twenty days writing hall passes
-- Seven months wondering what happened to the students with the hall passes

Whoops -maybe reminding you of that wasn't so funny!

Have a great weekend!

Warrior Open Golf Outing

The annual Wawasee Athletic Department fundraiser will be held on Monday, July 10, 2006 at the Maxwelton Golf Course in Syracuse. The raindate will be July 17.

Florida Scramble Format * Contests, Prizes and Raffles
Register a Foursome or an Individual Golfer
$60 Entry Fee per person / Covers Green Fees, Cart and Meal
Raffle and Contest package - $25 per person

Call the high school at 457-3147 and ask for the athletic department and ask how you can be an athletic supporter. :-)

Syracuse to open home for women with addictions

Kosciusko county women battling drug addictions may soon have an area shelter and program for overcoming their addictions.

The home formerly used by Lifeline, a local after school program for at-risk youth, has been donated to the Rose Home, modeled after the drug program and women's shelter in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Article here.

Have a safe and happy 4th!

More on Graduate Students

All you former and current graduate students can relate to this.

Graduate students, especially those who work AND go to grad school will readily admit that it is very hard to do without support and understanding from the family, both spouses and children. Even your friends get tired of the excuse, "No, I can't come over and watch the show tonight, I have a paper due in the morning and 3 chapters left to read before morning."

However, sometimes their help and support comes in the form of holding us accountable.

My favorite story comes from my son when he was in the third grade. One Sunday evening he was playing computer games and I started nagging him about homework. "Do you have your homework done?"

He never looked up from the computer. He just replied, "Have you got your dissertation done?" Now, I knew he didn't know exactly what a dissertation was, but he did know that I had a huge homework assignment that I wasn't working on.

Racked with guilt, since I hadn't touched it for weeks, I put the newspaper down, slinked over to the desk, opened up the laptop and three-ring binders and started in. I never said a word to him about his homework.

But, I noticed about 15 minutes later he had all his papers out on the table and was working quietly on his work.

Sometimes accountability is a mutual task.

Friday's Funnies

I dedicate this post to all those teachers who have dedicated themselves to continuing their education at the graduate level and also to the spouses and family members who tolerate them during this time!

You just might be a graduate student if...

you are startled to meet people who neither need nor want to read.
you rate coffee shops by the availability of outlets for your laptop.
everything reminds you of something in your discipline.
you have ever discussed academic matters at a sporting event.
you have ever spent more than $50 on photocopying while researching a single paper.
there is a microfilm reader in the library that you consider "yours."
you actually have a preference between microfilm and microfiche.
you can tell the time of day by looking at the traffic flow at the library.
you look forward to summers because you're more productive without the distraction of classes. you regard ibuprofen as a vitamin.
you consider all papers to be works in progress.
professors don't really care when you turn in work anymore.
you find the bibliographies of books more interesting than the actual text.
you have given up trying to keep your books organized and are now just trying to keep them all in the same general area.
you have accepted guilt as an inherent feature of relaxation.
you reflexively start analyzing those greek letters before you realize that it's a sorority sweatshirt, not an equation.
you find yourself explaining to children that you are in "20th grade".
you start refering to stories like "Snow White et al."
you frequently wonder how long you can live on pasta without getting scurvy
you look forward to taking some time off to do laundry
you have more photocopy cards than credit cards
you wonder if APA style allows you to cite talking to yourself as "personal communication"

Have a safe and happy 4th!

Government Efficiency Committee on K-12 Hits Roadblock?

Recent publications have indicated a potential dispute in state government brewing over the role of a state appointed Government Efficiency Committee on K-12 Education. The committee, appointed by Governor Daniels, has evidently studied some emerging research that indicates around 70% of the variation in Indiana's ISTEP+ scores can be attributed to factors outside the school's control.

The biggest factor attributed to the ISTEP score variation was community poverty.

Some educational newsletters are reporting that the governor's office has attempted to squash the research, stating that the Government Efficiency Committee is operating outside it's mission. These sources indicate the governor's office is afraid that the research will give credence to the ISTA lawsuit that claims the Indiana school funding formula has not been properly applied across the state.

One article about the dispute is here.

Board Meeting Update

At last night's special school board meeting the board:

Voted to accept the superintendent's recommendation to reject the lone bid for the high school plumbing project and to rebid the project in January with the work to be done next summer.

Mr. Lahrman and Dr. Stock explained that there was only one bid, most likely due to the tight summer work schedule. It was possible that other likely bidders had summer projects already lined out. It is hoped that by starting the advertising process in January there may be additional bidders interested in the job.

The board approved the following personnel actions:

• Bob Long - retirement from Milford
• Kelly Holbrook - hired as special education teacher at Syracuse
• Jamie Baker - hired as temporary grade 1 teacher at Syracuse
• Kari Flanigan - hired as school psychologist intern for the corporation
• Kem Zolman - two year coaching contract - Girl's BB
• Joe Rietveld - two year coaching contract - Football
• Phil Mishler - two year coaching contract - Boy's BB

Unemployment hurts kids!

I am struggling to believe a few of the statistics reported in the Indy Star from the Casey Foundation's report. After my recent experience breaking down Wawasee's alleged "dropout" statistics student by student - I have a real problem believing that Indiana has the highest dropout rates in the nation. The other stats are astonshing as well.

• 33% of Indiana's children live in families where no parent has a full-time job
• The number of Hoosier children living without secure parental employment grew 22% between 2000-2004
• Indiana's high school dropout rate is the highest in the nation

Quoting from the Star's article:

A third of Indiana's children live in families where no parent has a full-time job, setting them up for problems ranging from educational struggles to poor health, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation's 2006 Kids Count Data Book. The number of Hoosier children living without secure parental employment grew 22% from 2000 to 2004. That jump was the fourth-largest in the nation for the period and seven times the national increase. The president of the Indiana Youth Institute said the loss of about 100,000 manufacturing jobs since 2000 is having a dramatic and negative ripple effect on children. Two other problem areas identified for Indiana in the new report were the percentage of children living in poverty, which increased 7% from 2000 to 2004, and a high school dropout rate that is the highest in the nation.

There is no doubt that unemployment hurts kids. Poverty is a huge problem for children and more important than poverty itself is the actual social problems that create the poverty.

However, there is something rotten in the state and national dropout statistics. More on that later.

Boys Catching Up to Girls

For some time now conventional wisdom has held that boys don't do as well as girls in school. Some pundits have gone as far as to claim it is a "crisis."

Everyone has their favorite theories but new evidence appears to show that there is no crisis and that boys are closing the gap. Here is what the Washington Post says about a new study that is to be released today.

A study to be released today looking at long-term trends in test scores and academic success argues that widespread reports of U.S. boys being in crisis are greatly overstated and that young males in school are in many ways doing better than ever.

The "boy crisis," the report says, has been used by conservative authors who accuse "misguided feminists" of lavishing resources on female students at the expense of males and by liberal authors who say schools are "forcing all children into a teacher-led pedagogical box that is particularly ill-suited to boys' interests and learning styles."

"Yet there is not sufficient evidence -- or the right kind of evidence -- available to draw firm conclusions," the report says. "As a result, there is a sort of free market for theories about why boys are underperforming girls in school, with parents, educators, media, and the public choosing to give credence to the explanations that are the best marketed and that most appeal to their pre-existing preferences."

Friday's Funnies

These are alleged to be actual student responses to essay questions taken from history exams - written they way the students responded. Too funny to be true!

The inhabitants of Egypt were called mummies. they lived in the Sarah Dessert and traveled by Camelot. the climate of the Sarah is such that the inhabitants have to live elsewhere, so certain areas of the dessert are cultivated by irritation. The Egyptians built the Pyramids in the shape of a huge triangular cube. The Pramids are a range of mountains between France and Spain.

The Bible is full of interesting caricatures. In the first book of the Bible, Guinesses, Adam and Eve were created from an apple tree. One of their children, Cain, asked "Am I my brother's son?" God asked Abraham to sacrifice Issac on Mount Montezuma. Jacob, son of Issac, stole his brother's birthmark. jacob was a partiarch who brought up his twelve sone to be partiarchs, but they did not take to it. One of Jacob's sons, Joseph, gave refuse to the Israelites.

Pharaoh forced the Hebrew slaves to make bread without straw. Moses led them to the Red Sea, where they made unleavenbed bread, which is bread made without any ingredients. Afterwards, Moses went up on Mount Cyanide to get the ten commandments.

David was a Hebrew king skilled at playing the liar. He fought with the Philatelists, a race of people who lived in Biblical times. Solomon, one of David's sons, had 500 wives and 500 porcupines.

Without the Greeks, we wouldn't have history. The Greeks invented three kinds of colums - Corinthian, Doric and Ironic. They also had myths. A myth is a female moth. One myth says that the mother of Achilles dipped him in the River Stynx until he became intolerable. Achilles appears in "The Illiad", by Homer. Homer also wrote the "Oddity", in which Penelope was the last hardship that Ulysses endured on his journey. Actually, Homer was not written by Homer but by another man of that name.

Socrates was a famous Greek teacher who went around giving people advice. They killed him. Socrates died from an overdose of wedlock.

In the Olympic Games, Greeks ran races, jumped, hurled the biscuits, and threw the java. The reward to the victor was a coral wreath. The government of Athens was democratic because the people took the law into their own hands. There were no wars in Greece, as the mountains were so high that they couldn't climb over to see what their neighbors were doing. When they fought the Parisians, the Greeks were outnumbered because the Persians had more men.

Eventually, the Ramons conquered the Geeks. History call people Romans because they never stayed in one place for very long. At Roman banquets, the guests wore garlic in their hair. Julius Caesar extinguished himself on the battlefields of Gaul. The Ides of March killed him because they thought he was going to be made king. Nero was a cruel tyrany who would torture his poor subjects by playing the fiddle to them.

More next week.

Have a great weekend!

Shanna Zolman Night

Come support Shanna Zolman
Syracuse/Wawasee Community Night
with the INDIANA Fever

Indiana Fever vs. San Antonio Silver Stars Saturday, August 5, 2006 Tipoff - 7:00 p.m.
Doors Open - 6:00 p.m.*
*Subject to change

As a member of Syracuse/Wawasee community, you, along with your family and friends, are invited to participate in a McDonald's Family Night presented by The Indianapolis Star with the Indiana Fever! Come cheer on Shanna Zolman, former Wawasee High School player who now plays with the Silver Stars.

By purchasing tickets through this offer, you will also:
*receive a food voucher good for one FREE hot dog, bag of chips and small soft drink!
*receive a FREE T-shirt!
*receive a 10% discount coupon good for either Home Court location!
*see your group's name in lights on the scoreboard during halftime of the game!

To place your order, complete and return the order form below, along with payment, or visit http://consecofieldhouse.com/groupsfever.asp
Event #1424. Your group ID is SZ.

They must receive your order by Wednesday, August 2, 2006.

2006-2007 School Year and Registration Information

While I am really not trying to rush us through summer, I thought some might want to be able to plan ahead!

K-8 registration for the 2006-2007 school year will take place at the student's home school on Wednesday, August 2 and Thursday, August 3 from 12:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. Wawasee High School registration is on Tuesday, August 8 and Wednesday, August 9 from 12:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

Textbook fees are as follows and were approved by the school board at the June meeting:
Kindergarten $58.30; Readiness $75.40; Grade 1 $100.05; Grade 2 $99.45; Grade 3 $117.60; Grade 4 $101.70; Grade 5 $100.75; Grade 6 $108.15*; Grade 7 $106.75* ; Grade 8 $102.35*

*Some fluctuation will occur at grades 6, 7, and 8 depending on the courses in which a student is enrolled. High school textbook rental fees are based on the courses in which a student is enrolled.

If you want to view the corporation calendar for the 2006-2007 school year, click here. You can click on 2006-2007 Corporation Calendar and view and print the calendar.

Friday Fun

Since I don't have any Friday Funnies, I thought I might provide a couple of links just for fun.

If you have ever wondered how we ended up using the @ symbol in so many ways, check out this link.

If you have been following the World Cup, you might be interested in this prediction. Hmmm, I wonder if these guys have heard of March Madness.

Summer Reading List for Students

Superintendent of Public Instruction Suellen Reed has released a summer reading list. Her June 9th press release states, "Summer reading has been proven to improve students' academic performance in reading and other school subjects."

The list contains more than 300 book titles which were suggested by educators. There are three grade spans for the lists: primary; intermediate and middle school; and high school.

Take a look at the list here and click on Summer Reading List 2006 Edition.

Encourage your child to choose some books to read over the summer.

Wolfe Third in State - Golf Team Sixth

The Wawasee boys' golf team finished sixth (not fifth as previously reported) in the IHSAA golf state finals. Congratulations to Coach Coverstone and the Warrior golfers for a successful season! See state final team results here.

Senior Andrew Wolfe finished third in the state in individual scoring. He shot scores of 70 on Tuesday and Wednesday. See individual results here.

Dr. Stock Published

While Dr. Stock is out of the office, those of us here at central office want to take a moment to share with you one of his recent accomplishments.

Dr. Stock was recently published in the May edition of The School Administrator for this blog site, The Wawascene. The publication highlights the various means superintendents are using to communicate with the school community.

You can access the article here.

Thanks, Mark, for moving the Wawasee community into a new age of communication!

Video Games, What Are They Good For?

With apologies to Edwin Starr and the Indisputable Truth. Here is an article praising video games that give your brain a workout.

Here is an article illustrating how West Virginia schools will be using video games to combat childhood obesity.

Here is another article discussing the positives and negatives of technology and students.

How Does Indiana Rank?

According to an Indianapolis Star article printed last Saturday, Indiana ranks 32nd in the nation in the amount of school revenue that goes toward classroom teaching. You can read the article here. That information was taken from a report done by an independent research group called Federal Funds Information for States (FFIS). The article also provides a link to the full report. The report shows a number of state rankings and comparisons that relate primarily to various levels and sources of school funding across the nation. The specific ranking that is spotlighted in the Star ranks all fifty states in the amount of K-12 spending devoted to instruction in 2003-2004.

I would encourage reading the full report, and I would offer a few observations:

1. As the Star article indicates, it is difficult to compare statistics across states since it is almost impossible to know if everyone is defining terms in the same way.

2. The recently enacted HB 1006 provides for the State Board of Education to define terms for Indiana in four (4) areas: 1)Student Academic Achievement, 2) Student Instructional Support, 3) Overhead and Operations, and 4) Non-operations. Of course, this doesn't mean that the definitions determined by Indiana's board will be the same as any other state.

3. The same report that ranks Indiana 32nd in the amount of revenue dedicated to K-12 spending also ranks Indiana 13th in the nation in terms of the outcomes on the Armed Services Qualification Test for 2003 (the most recent available). According to the Congressional Quarterly's State Fact Finder 2006, "The results provide the best single measure of performance of high school graduates being tested by an employer using criteria approximating aptitude for work."

4. The FFIS report concludes with the following: "For some states-such as Iowa, Minnesota, New Jersey and New Mexico-the rankings (between the amount devoted to K-12 instruction and the outcomes on the Armed Services Qualification Test) are similar. But for others-such as Alaska, Georgia, Oregon and New York-they are disparate. This suggests there there is more at work than just the share of total spending devoted to instruction, notwithstanding the appeal of a simple solution to a complex problem."

Guest Bloggers on the Docket

I will be taking an 8 day vacation trip starting next week so there will be guest bloggers keeping the fires burning here at The Wawascene.

Ms. Swartzentruber our Director of Curriculum and Mr. Evans our Director of Finance will be filling in.

Stay tuned.

I tried to leave a low baseline for them so it won't be too hard for them to exceed the blogging standards I have set so far!

See ya when I get back.

Wawasee Golfers Headed to State

The Wawasee boys' golf team is headed to state to compete for the state championship.

Article here.

Friday's Funnies

I'm walking into the building this morning, and one of my little second grade boys says, "Hi, Mrs. S., today's Show-n'Tell!!" in a very excited voice.

Understand that my caffeine hasn't settled into the brain yet - I muster a smile and say, "Really?" - almost enthusiastic. "

Guess what I brought? (Pause) I found it at the bus stop......" (uh-oh)(you'll never guess and I'm not making this up.)"Wanna see?"

"Sure" I said, a little concerned, definitely awake now and VERY curious. (At this time, I'd like to add that this child finds his way to the principal's office regularly!)

"Loooook!" - and he opens his backpack. And, up against his books and homework, is a possum. A dead possum. From last year. You know the kind, flat as a pancake, roadkill, just fur and bones. Completely intact. Eye sockets looking back at me.

I peered in, smiled and said, "COOL!" (Well, it was....) And off he went to his classroom - I wasn't going to spoil his fun. And I went to my classroom and died laughing.

Board Meeting Highlights

At Tuesday night's 7:00 PM board meeting, the board:

• approved a $1,119.57 donation to Small Engines Class at WHS from Alan Tehan of Precision Automotive
• approved minutes, claims, personnel items, a resolution allowing Superintendent and Dir. of Special Services to sign student residential placements, and approved FFA summer activities
• heard a report from Ms. Fry, Director of Guidance, regarding future changes in graduation credit requirements that would affect incoming freshman
• approved financial report and Text Book Rental Fees
• approved administrative contract extensions including a 2007 change that will include administrators paying the same insurance premium percentages as the teachers
• approved permission to advertise for purchase of 5 new buses
• first reading of the state required new Student Wellness Policy, there was much discussion on this and there may be revisions and more discussion
• heard a report from Dr. Stock on the 2006 senior class (similar information that was posted previously on the blog site here)
• established June 27th at 5:00 PM for a short meeting to approve bids on the WHS valve and plumbing project

The meeting adjourned around 8:00 PM.

Correction

The funeral for Mrs. Hursh will be Thursday at 11:00 AM at Calvary United Methodist Church in Syracuse. Sorry if this created any confusion.

Thank you to the individual commenter who corrected me.

Mrs. Hursh

It is with great sadness we announce that Mrs. Beth Hursh, former Wawasee French teacher, passed away this week after a long battle with cancer. She was well known, not only for her passion for foreign language, but also for her long time involvement with Wawasee's highly competitive Academic Super Bowl teams.

Even after her retirement for health related reasons, she continued to support the Academic Super Bowl teams when able.

The funeral will be Thursday, June 8, 2006 at 11:00 at the Yoder Culp Funeral Home in Goshen.

Friday's Funnies

When you have had a rough day, here is an option, consider resigning from adulthood. I found this on a teacher website.

A "just for fun" idea for an overstressed day...

I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year-old again.

I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four star restaurant.
I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make a sidewalk with rocks.
I want to think M&Ms are better than money because you can eat them.
I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.
I want to return to a time when life was simple; When all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know and you didn't care.
All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good.
I want to believe that anything is possible. I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
I want to live simply again. I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness, and loss of loved ones.
I want to believe in the power of smiles,hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind, and making angels in the snow.
So . . . here's my checkbook and my car-keys, my credit card bills and my 401K statements. I am officially resigning from adulthood.

And if you want to discuss this further, you'll have to catch me first, cause........ ......"Tag! You're it."

Wishing staff and students a safe and happy summer.

And hoping parents stay sane. Have yours said, "I"m bored," yet? Give 'em a day or two.

More about the class of 2006

It has been popular in various media outlets, especially the Indy Star to publish dropout rate statistics using exiting 8th graders or incoming 9th graders and projecting those numbers out to the senior year and claim that those not “graduating” are “dropouts.” Using the Indy Star’s methods this year's senior class at Wawasee would have what looks like a 74 % graduation rate and/or a 26 % dropout rate. These methods ignore the complexity of modern circumstances.

Here are some statistics from this year’s senior class at Wawasee that refute some of the doom and gloom claims by the Indy Star.

In the spring of 2002 there were 275 students leaving 8th grade.
In the fall of 2002 there were 282 incoming freshman.
In the spring of 2006 there are 208 graduating seniors from that incoming class .
On the surface that looks like a 74 % graduation rate and/or a 26 % dropout rate.

However, here is the rest of the story:

12 students received certificates of completion or attendance. 7 were students with diagnosed special learning needs and 5 were foreign exchange students

18 students are in still in the Alternative School working on the diploma track or working on a GED. They may graduate – just not in four years

6 have already earned a GED

4 are working on the GED somewhere else

1 student passed away

29 transferred to other schools

14 transferred into WHS and graduated on time this year

14 of the 208 graduating received their diploma through the Wawasee Academy

0 Transferred to home school

1 was expelled and never returned

12 students left or disappeared and we withdrew them eventually without receiving a transfer request

5 dropped out (through the exit interview process)

If we consider the 12 who disappeared + 5 who dropped out + 1 who was expelled and never returned, that makes 18 students we know have left the system. Assuming they are all "dropouts" and that they have not continued school somewhere else, would make the drop out rate 6%. If all of those in the alternative school dropped out too, then it could go up as high as 12% from this incoming group of freshman.

Assuming realistically that several of them will graduate, I would guess the true drop out rate is closer to 7 % or 8% not the 26% you will read in the newspaper.

The most amazing statistic is that 93% of the 208 students graduating were here for all 4 years.

And that folks is the rest of the story.

WHS Commencement Reminder

The graduating seniors will be honored on Friday, June 2, 2006 at WHS at 7:00 PM.

Thanks to all the parents, grandparents and educators that played a part in their lives. Earning a high school diploma for some students is more difficult than it has been in my lifetime.

And still...a high school diploma is just a first step towards achieving independence.

The following changes have taken place, many of them in just the last 10 years or so:

1. High school graduation exit exam: This exam was first required in 2003. It was made more difficult in 2005 by increasing the academic standards. It also added more Algebra questions to it, almost turning Algebra I into a "gatekeeper" course to graduation. The test is given to 10th graders in the fall, although students get numerous chances to try again.

2. Eliminating lower level classes: In the last decade Indiana high schools have eliminated almost all lower level Math and English classes except for some for students with special learning needs.

3. Core 40 has become the default curriculum in the high school: It used to be that parents chose the college preparatory curriculum for their 8th graders entering high school. Now the Core 40 college prep courses are the default high school program and parents have to "opt out" of it if they don't want their children taking those classes.

4. Students with special needs must pass the same classes and take the same tests to receive the same diploma: They are allowed more accommodations although the academic standards tested must remain the same. Nevertheless, some students with special learning needs used to receive a diploma and now some of those students may receive a certificate of completion or attendance for going to four years of high school.

Statistics as of Wednesday, May 31, 2006:

The 2002 class of 8th graders had 275 students enrolled at the end of the year. The incoming freshman class showed a beginning enrollment of 282 students. The senior class of 2006 will graduate 208 students. Amazingly enough, according to guidance department numbers 194 students in this class were here all four years of high school.

There were 10 certificates of attendance and 2 certificates of completion given.

Commencement will be Friday, June 2, 2006 at 7:00 PM in the high school auditorium.

2% circuit breaker: Will it blow the circuit?

The last state legislative session ended in a flurry with state lawmakers passing a law that has become known as the "2% Circuit Breaker." It's intended purpose was to cap your property tax payments at 2% of the assessed valuation of your property. Sounds simple and logical on its face. The side effects however, could be higher interest payments due to declining bond ratings; loss of funding for some schools, cities, libraries and towns where the total rate is over 2%; and possible loss of services and programs.

Proponents say people are worried over nothing. They evidently believe that rising property values will make this a non issue. (Reported here, in The Star.) Critics say the law was passed with absolutely no plan for replacing the lost funding. Critics also point out that if rising property values will keep the rates under 2% of assessed valuation then it's all a political lie anyway. If you still pay the same in property taxes then, "WHAT WAS THE POINT?" Was it just to pretend they lowered property taxes? Was it a pre-election year move?

Only time will tell if the lawmakers had intentions of passing some other type of revenue replacement for all the towns, cities, municipalities, schools and libraries that could lose funding as a result of this law. Or, only time will tell if property values rise so fast that most taxing locales end up under the 2% cap anyway.

Story from the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette this weekend is here.

Charlton Scholarships Announced for Wawasee Students

1st Source Bank as Trustee for Donald L. Charlton has announced the establishment of the Donald L. Charlton Scholarship.

This scholarship trust was funded at Don's death in July 2004 and has assets in excess of 1.4 million dollars.

Don was a lifetime Milford resident and he created this scholarship fund for the benefit of graduates of Wawasee High School. While the amount of each scholarship will vary, there will be around $65,000 available the initial year. These scholarships may be renewable and also may be available to students already in 2 or 4 year colleges at the present time. Preference is given to students who reside in Van Buren or East of Jefferson Township and go to Wawasee High School. This was Don's wish as this is where he was born and raised. By spending only a small percentage of the fund in any year, this scholarship fund should provide ongoing financial support to qualified applicants for many years.

For more information contact John Elliott, Vice President and Trust Officer at 574-268-1207.

We are blessed to live in a community where our students are valued and remembered in such a manner.

Friday's Funnies

This has made the rounds before, but here is a modified version. Have a great weekend!


Jesus took his disciples up to the mountain; and gathering them around him, he taught them, saying:
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the meek.
Blessed are they that mourn.
Blessed are the merciful.
Blessed are the pure in heart.
Blessed are the peacemakers.
Be glad and rejoice, for great is your reward in heaven.

Then Simon Peter said, "Are we supposed to know this?
And Andrew said, "Do we have to write this down?"
And James said, "Will we have a test on this?"
And Philip said, "I don't have any paper!"
And Bartholomew said, "Do we have to turn this in?"
And John said, "The other disciples didn't have to learn this!"
And Matthew said, "May I go to the bathroom?"
Then one of the Pharisees who was present asked to see Jesus' lesson plan and inquired of Jesus, "Is this compliant with Title I federal regulations? Does it align with the Indiana state standards and the NCLB?

And Jesus wept.

Summertime Blues

I have been an avid wakeboarder for around 6 years. Skiing is pretty boring (take that Ora Freeman!) compared to the freestyle fun of wakeboarding. However, lately my wife has been nagging me to act my age which I am pretty sure means "quit."

Our boat is a Supra Launch with a 37 gallon gas tank. In order to throw a really big wake we weigh it down with around 2,000 lbs of water filled "fat" sacks . The bad news is that when you pull the wakeboarder out of the water you can practically watch the gas gauge go down. The good news is that you can go "big" and crash in ever more creative ways.

I easily went through a half tank of gas in an early morning Saturday session.

With gas pushing three dollars a gallon I'll probably end up anchored in the middle of the lake on Saturday mornings with my feet dangling off the swim platform of a decked out wakeboard boat. Just sitting with a cane pole, watching the bobber bob up and down in the waves...just tryin' to act my age.

Oh well, that's not all bad.

The Academy at Oakwood

I am making a plug for The Academy at Oakwood and its summer retreats. This youth leadership program provides a variety of customizable leadership activities for youth, adults, churches or businesses. And...its right here in our own backyard.

Check out their Grand Opening on June 1, 2006 from 4-6 PM when they unveil their state of the art 50 ft climbing wall, boulder room, giant swing and a 300 yard Zip Line. That's right! It's time to let that "inner James Bond" out!

Check out their web site describing their many programs at www.leadershipaao.org

What is a "failing school" under NCLB?

Recent news releases continue to publicize the "failing schools" under the federal law, No Child Left Behind (NCLB). What is a "failing school" under this law?

Essentially there are 37 ways for a school to "fail" and one way to succeed. To start with, the definition of "failing" is misleading. Under the law, "failing" means the school didn't meet its progress goals that go up each year until the goal is 100% in 2013-2014.

A school must meet its goal of all children passing ISTEP tests by 2013-2014 and it must continue to have more students pass each year in order to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

In order for a school to avoid "failing" it also must have all subpopulations make progress till it makes 100%.

What are the subpopulations? Special Education students, Poverty students, Limited English students, White students, Asian students, African American students, Hispanic students, Native American students etc.

If any of these populations do not make their AYP towards 100%, than the entire school is labeled "failing."

Example: Let's say that everyone in the school passed the ISTEP tests except some Special Needs students with diagnosed handicaps. And let's say their AYP goal was 80% but only 75% of the Special Needs students taking ISTEP, passed it. In this scenario, the entire school would "fail."

By 2013-2014 most schools in America will be labeled "failing." Achieving perfection is certainly a noble goal to shoot for. However, labeling the entire school as a "failure" is misleading, and even disingenuous.

Here, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette lays out some of the NCLB issues.

Friday's Funnies

Open Wide...
On the morning announcements, a first grader announced, "Please get ready for a moment of silence and medication."

You Found it Where?
I teach 8th grade U.S. history. I constantly remind my students that accurate spelling is very important in social studies. Despite this, during our unit on colonization I cannot describe how many settlers were seeking religious freedom in William Penn's colon!!!

Cops & Robbers
Little Johnny's kindergarten class was on a field trip to their local police station where they saw pictures, tacked to a bulletin board, of the 10 most wanted criminals. One of the youngsters pointed to a picture and asked if it really was the photo of a wanted person. "Yes," said the policeman. "The detectives want very badly to capture him." Little Johnny asked, "Why didn't you keep him when you took his picture!"

Would you Believe...?
It was my first year of teaching, and I was blessed to teach 8th grade Language Arts. They had to do an autobiography of themselves. One male student did not turn his in till almost two weeks later. This is what he wrote: The biggest moment of my life was when I got my period for the very first time.

Maybe next time this gentleman will read the report before "borrowing" it for a grade.

Have a great weekend!

Pools and Press Boxes

Someone in the community recently posed a question similar to this... "How come the school board delayed and agonized over whether or not to reopen the high school pool for $30,000 but never batted an eye over replacing the press box on the high school track and football field for $130,000?"

• The high school press box is a one time expense and might not have to be replaced for 20 or 30 years. It was the original box.
• 
  The money for the high school press box comes from construction funds which do not affect instructional programs
• 
  The press box was dangerous (I poked my finger through the rotting ceiling which was also supporting the floor for the deck on top)
• 
  The high school swimming pool cost of $30,000 is an annual cost from the General Fund which comes from the same fund as intructional programs
• 
  The swimming pool decision also included $43,000 in estimated upgrades and repairs that came from construction funds

These are just a few of things that the school board had to consider when wrestling with the issue.

More on video games

Many parents of middle schoolers may have noticed the amount of time their children spend on the internet playing "Runescape." It evidently is the latest thing.

Runescape is a multiplayer internet game where people play against each other by trying to get ahead in an imaginary world. Participants, borrow, trade and barter in an imaginary universe that is basically a giant global economy in cyberspace. They have to deal with unethical players as well as ethical players. If they enter unprotected areas (known as "the wild" according to my son) they can have their goods stolen. ("That's why I never go there," he told me. ) As they get more money and goods they are able to sell them to improve their weapons so they can protect themselves against bigger "monsters" which is evidently how they achieve higher ratings. While there is some violence it isn't your typical "shoot-em-up" graphically violent video game.

The irony is that students will likely remember more about economic interdependence through Runescape then they will by reading and testing on the chapter on "American Capitalism."

It isn't all good though. Sometimes my 12 year old won't even go outside for hours on end. Eyes are glazed. He forgets to eat. Chores? What chores?

A recent commenter on the first post wondered what the impact of all this is on teachers.

Current brain research is proving that students today seemed to be "wired" differently. They are growing up in a visually intense, highly stimulating world. Their need for novelty, fun, and interaction appears to be much higher than previous generations. I think it means as educators we need to provide much more variety in instructional methodologies than we currently do.

That's my take on it.

Video Games: Maybe they are not ALL bad.

EDUCATIONAL IMPACT OF VIDEO GAMES: INDIANA TEACHER REPORTS FINDINGS

A group of Indiana high school students traded in their textbooks for a multi-player video game and achieved higher test scores than students learning the exact same material the old-fashioned way.Under the watchful tutelage of David McDivitt, an enterprising Social Studies teacher at Oak Hill High School in Converse, 64 sophomore students played "Making History," the historical simulation game from Muzzy Lane Software. Another group of students used their standard history textbooks along with the usual lectures and assignments that define a typical day in high school.Both groups were attempting to learn the same material: the political and economic causes of World War II.Both groups were tested on their knowledge of key events, such as the 1938 Munich Conference and their general knowledge of European geography.

One group—the students who played "Making History"—learned more facts and wrote more sophisticated essays in tests conducted after a week of game play. According to Mr. McDivitt, "Making History" also addresses several key components of Indiana's state curriculum guidelines for secondary education."For every teacher using a video game in the classroom there are probably a hundred others watching and wondering about the real educational impact of this technology," says Mr. McDivitt."I am not an expert in statistics unless it has to do with points allowed by my defense on the Oak Hill Golden Eagle football team. But what I am seeing here is the game players are doing better on assessment. The kids who played the game scored as well or better on every single test question we administered."Mr. McDivitt applied a common set of questions to both groups of students prior to game week, and then tested the students with the same questions after each group had completed their learning cycles.What he found was a noticeable and in some cases stunning difference in the degree to which the game-play students improved compared with the textbook students.Here are some of the highlights (percentages indicate the relative increase in performance from the pre-lesson test to the post-lesson test):

Identify the countries of Europe on a blank map outline:
Game Players: 70%
Non-Game Players: 45%
Explain the significance of the 1938 Munch Conference:
Game Players: 90%
Non-Game Players: 55%
Define the reasons for the start of World War II:
Game Players: 67%
Non-Game Players: 35%

"I am not saying that games are the panacea for all of education's problems," says Mr. McDivitt. "But there is no doubt anymore that the right video game integrated properly with traditional curriculum has a clear and meaningful impact on the quality of learning."

Flame away! :-)

Graduating Early

Indiana has a seven semester rule which essentially means that students must complete at least 7 semesters of high school before graduating. Leaving after only three years requires special exceptions.

It has seldom if ever happened at Wawasee, but here is an article regarding some students who did and some students who were eligible to leave early and didn't.

With trimester credits there will be more students with enough credits for graduation but that doesn't mean they all will be ready for college a year early. Decisions like that are probably best made on a case-by-case basis.

2 hour delay Tuesday

Wawasee is on a two hour delay Tuesday.

The fog formed out of nowhere. It was clear around 5:00 AM and then it socked in.

Medium thick fog everywhere. Of course it could change again by the time this gets typed!

Drive carefully.

More on MySpace.com

Most parents are aware that children today do a lot of communicating through the internet. A number of interactive websites such as MySpace.com have become very popular. Like most things in this life, it isn't ALL good. Because there has been some abuse of these sites both by young people and by adults, there are people trying to limit their use.

Here, the LA Times reports a bill that would attempt to ban these sites from schools and public libraries.

First of all, many schools have already blocked access to these sites just to keep students "on task" if nothing else.

Here is a provocative article defending the use of such sites by children.

My position on this issue is that these trends are impossible to halt through simply passing laws that ban their use at school . It's like the current laws banning the sale of pop at school. It isn't that big of deal to ban pop at school. BUT, does anyone really think that this will change obesity patterns in society?

Parents must continue to monitor and be a part of their children's daily lives in a positive way. And, schools must support those efforts. That includes monitoring when possible what they put in their minds and what they put in their bodies. And still, children will push the limits and parents and schools will not always be looking over their shoulder.

Let's hope the values and ethics you have taught them as a parent will carry them through the day.

Friday's Funnies

Newly discovered quotes from mom's of now famous people:

ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S MOTHER:"Again with the stovepipe hat, Abe? Can't you just wear a baseball cap like the other kids?"
BARNEY'S MOTHER: "I realize strained plums are your favorite, Barney, but you're starting to look a little purple!"
MARY'S MOTHER: "I'm not upset that the lamb followed you to school, Mary, but I would like to know how he got a better grade than you!"
BATMAN'S MOTHER: "It's a nice car, Bruce, but do you realize how much the insurance will be!"
GOLDILOCK'S MOTHER: "I've got a bill here for a busted chair from the bear family. You know anything about this Goldie?"
LITTLE MISS MUFFET'S MOTHER: "Well, all I've got to say is if you don't get off your tuffet and start cleaning your room, there'll be a lot more spiders around here!"
ALBERT EINSTEIN'S MOTHER: "But, Albert, it's your senior picture. Can't you do something about your hair? Styling gel, mousse, something....?"
GEORGE WASHINGTON'S MOTHER:"The next time I catch you throwing money across the Potomac, you can kiss your allowance good-bye!"
JONAH'S MOTHER:"That's a nice story, but now tell me where you've really been for the past 3 days!"
SUPERMAN'S MOTHER: "Clark, your father and I have discussed it, and we've decided you can have your own telephone line. Now will you quit spending so much time in all those phone booths!"
And finally...
THOMAS EDISON'S MOTHER:"Of course I'm proud that you invented the electric light bulb, dear. Now turn off that light and get to bed!"

Board Meeting Highlights

Last night at the school board meeting the board...

1. Recognized students in several activities/events:

Mileage Competition in Indy
KYLA students
KEYS students
Danyl Wallace selected to IU Molecular Science program
WMS Academic Super Bowl Students
WHS Art students taking 1st place at Winona Lake

2. Approved Milford PTO donations and donations from Frontline Maufacturing
3. Approved claims, minutes and personnel items
4. Heard a report from Mr. Metcalf on the Career and Technical program
5. Approved the financial report
6. Approved Mr. Steve Perek as the new Dean of Students for WHS for 2006-2007
7. Aproved student handbook changes for 2006-2007
8. Approved 2007-2008 school calendar
9. Approved additional textbooks for various courses and subjects for 2006-2007
10.Discussed moving the June board meeting to June 6

A Tribute to Mom

This was posted last year in honor of upcoming Mother's Day.

My mother passed away a few years ago, leaving behind a wonderful tribute and family legacy. On Mothers' Day it seems appropriate to remember her.

When I was 8 years old, my father passed away after losing a battle with a brain tumor, leaving my mother a widow at age 32 with three children under the age of 8. Mother had been a stay-at-home mom and dad was an airline mechanic for Delta Airlines. Mom did not have marketable job training that would provide a living wage.

Unsure of what to do, she moved our family from Michigan to Ohio to be closer to her parents. She bought a small home and enrolled in college at Wright State University in Fairborn, Ohio. Her goal was to become a classroom teacher.

My brother, sister and I can still hear her late into the night, studying by reading outloud to herself. I can hardly imagine the stress and workload of a single, widowed mother of three young children taking a full load of classes at the university.

Mother graduated with academic honors in four years and got her first full-time employment as a third grade teacher at the age of 38. I can still remember how excited us children were that mom could finally afford to buy soda-pop for a family treat.

From my earliest memory, I knew that I was going to go to college because mom did, yet the greatest gift my mother left us was her spiritual example. She overcame all obstacles placed before her, and although her life could never have been described as easy, she was satisfied in what life had brought. She never complained, but set a solid example of honesty, integrity and work ethic that has remained a legacy, not only to her children but all who knew her. She never remarried, but chose to dedicate her life to God, her family and her elementary school students.

From her example of going to college and working hard, her three children continued their education as well. In her last few years while fighting cancer, she helped me finish my doctoral dissertation by entering all my data into spreadsheets. My sister completed her college degree and passed her CPA exams and my brother went back to school to finish an MBA.

The research says that one of the highest correlations for educational achievement for any individual is found by tracking the educational degree of the mother. It certainly seems true for our family.

Here in America, the greatest land of opportunity the world has ever known, let us be thankful for caring and dedicated mothers who model the values and work ethic that made America great. Especially those single mothers who must play many roles for their children.

Mothers, take courage, your children will not forget the legacy you leave them. May it be a positive one.

Friday's Funnies

A little girl came home from school and said to her mother, "Mommy, today in school I was punished for something that I didn't do."The mother exclaimed, "But that's terrible! I'm going to have a talk with your teacher about this ... by the way, what was it that you didn't do?"The little girl replied, "My homework."

The teacher came up with a good problem. "Suppose," she asked the second-graders, "there were a dozen sheep and six of them jumped over a fence. How many would be left?""None," answered little Norman."None? Norman, you don't know your arithmetic.""Teacher, you don't know your sheep. When one goes, they all go!"

The child comes home from his first day at school.Mother asks, "What did you learn today?"The kid replies, "Not enough. I have to go back tomorrow."

Have a great weekend.

No Fog Delay Wednesday

Mostly light fog in our area with just a few medium-heavy spots.

Regular time today. It was worse around 5:00 am.

Have a good day.

What makes a high school great?

If you have 10 minutes, here is an interesting article on the question, "What makes a high school great?"

In the next 5 years there is going to be a great deal of national attention paid to the structure and curriculum of the American high school. Here is a look at what some are saying and doing about it.

Note: It is the Washington Post and it could require you to register.

WMS Academic Super Bowl Results

WMS teams finished in the following places on the state level at the recent state competition (in Class 2):

Math: 3rd
English: 9th
Science: 1st
Social Studies: 13th
Interdisciplinary: 9th

The science and math squads will get a plaque and individual medals from the state. The English and Interdisciplinary squads will get a certificate.

Well done, coaches and students!!!

The Great American Boycott

If any of you wish to follow the national boycott today, Education Wonks has put together a blog post with several national links that show how this is developing across the nation today.

Click here to follow the links.