Allafrica.com
Gambia: FJC Explains Why Children Are Important
The Daily Observer (Banjul)
April 25, 2006
Alhagie Jobe
Honourable Fatoumatta Jahumpa-Ceesay, a nominated member of the National Assembly and chairperson of the National Assembly Select Committee on Women and Children, has reaffirmed government's commitment to ensure a bright future for Gambian children.
Speaking yesterday during the celebration of the Early Childhood Development week (ECD) at the National Assembly grounds on the theme: "Raising the profile of early childhood development in The Gambia", Hon Jahumpa-Ceesay said Gambians believe that children are a gift from God and are therefore precious. She maintained that they are to be well taken care of, especially in their formative years, which is between 0-8 years.
According to her, the Gambia government through collaboration with partners has been providing nutritional programmes for children as well as immunizing them against childhood illnesses such as hepatitis B, influenza, tuberculosis, diphtheria, tetanus and poliomyelitis.
She said this year's theme rightly suggests that social services provision for children between 0-8 years needs to be given greater prominence in the national agenda, noting that investing in the ECD is an opportunity that must be seized so as to achieve the Education for All goals, the Poverty Reduction Strategy Plans and the Millennium Development Goals.
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Iceland
Iceland Review on Line
Reykjavik
Free day care in the Reykjavík?
The parties contesting seats on the City Council of Reykjavík in the elections scheduled for May 27th have markedly different policies concerning day care, reported Fréttabladid.
The Independence Party wants to lower day care fees by 25% from next September and believes that parents should only need to pay fees for one child.
Quoting recent statistics that 70% of Icelandic parents leave their children in day care for 8 hours a day and 30% for 9 hours per day, Independence Party candidate for mayor, Vilhjámur Þ Vilhjálmsson, proposed lowering the fees for the entire day instead of for "only the first seven hours".
At a press conference on day care issues yesterday, the Social Democrats proposed that in the fall 2008 all fees for the first seven hours of day care would be abolished.
The Left Green Party wants the same rules to apply for day care and elementary schools and also believes that the fees should be abolished.
The Progressive Party wants day care to be free after the age of 18 months while the Liberals wish to speed up development day care with the goal of being able to offer all children over one day care.
Chinese
I was having lunch with Edith and ran into one of my treasured old friends and she was talking about wanting her wonderful twins to learn Chinese. Then I came across this story and thought it might be interesting to post:
WEB EXTRA: 3 Michigan Cities to Offer Chinese-immersion Preschool Programs
By ADAM LARK
The State News
Nicole Ellefson's wristwatch alarm goes off at 7 p.m. everyday — sometimes she forgets that she set it in the first place.
"I always tell my daughters that it's seven in the morning in Beijing," Ellefson laughs.
Beginning next fall, both East and West will overlap in the same classroom.
A Chinese Immersion Program for Lansing, East Lansing and Bay City schools will be established for preschool-aged children. The class will be open enrollment for the fall beginning May 15.
Ellefson, who is the senior project director of the program at the MSU's US-China Center for Research on Educational Excellence, said that students will spend the first two and a half hours of their day speaking Chinese, and the last half speaking English.
A part of a five-year, $5 million grant, the program is geared for parents with adopted children from China and parents interested in exposing their children to the Chinese culture.
"We're excited to be starting with three new schools," Ellefson said of the program's "bilingual, bicultural" experience. "Ultimately we want to see this model of education expand each year a little bit further."
Ellefson hopes that once the preschoolers move up to the next grade level, another immersion program can be formed at the kindergarten and first grade levels.
Based on Chinese teachings in reading, writing, math and science, the Eastern classroom will be taught by a Chinese bilingual instructor. Eastern arts like Chinese drawing and calligraphy will also be included.
Mandarin Chinese, currently the largest spoken language in the world with over 800 million native speakers, will be the language used in the Eastern classrooms.
In the Western classroom, the all-English teaching curriculum will be centered around the Reggio Emilia philosophy that teaches instructors to study the children's emerging interests and ideas.
Ellefson said the Western classroom is just like a typical American preschool.
"They are not going to be learning the language just for learning it," Ellefson said. "But to learn it for the sake of becoming users."
Wendy Wilmers-Longpre, assistant director of East Lansing Parks, Recreation & Arts, is looking forward to having one of the classes in the Bailey Community Center.
"If we can get a minimum enrollment of 10, I'm confident that it will a have a self-sustained funding," she said.
Both the Lansing and East Lansing programs attempt to follow in the footsteps of the immersion schools that have been established in the Portland, Ore., public schools. While enrollment in Portland schools are decreasing, enrollment for immersion classes continues to rise.
DeWitt resident Tammy Kinney, a member of the Families with Children from China, or F.C.C., is currently in the process of deciding if the program would be best for her 3-year-old adopted daughter from China.
"I'm weighing the options right now," Kinney said. "I don't live in East Lansing, so it's hard to get my child there. Otherwise it would be perfect."
Nancy Majzel, also an F.C.C. member, noticed that her 5-year-old daughter's preschool class is made up of a wide variety of ethnicities.
Although her daughter missed the age cutoff for the program, Majzel said the it's perfect for parents to understand the Chinese language.
"I was just listening and reading about all the jobs being outsourced to China," Majzel said. "I think these programs are ideal for the school system."
The Garden School Tattler
When the children opened their mouths to sing, Miss Judy was stunned. They were outstanding. Every song was as good as the next. You should see the party planned for Monday. The children nearly brought the house down - their voices loud and clear. They seemed to enjoy performing a lot.
It makes a big difference when they participate with heart. It make teachers feel as if we've done our jobs. My favorite song was the Canticle of the Sun - because they all knew all their lines and they stood so nicely and delivered with pitch and energy.
I was especially proud of the delivery of the psalm. Congrats to Jack who did an outstanding job.
Mr Ty was as clear as a bell. He remembered not only his lines, but Yuta's who has moved back to Japan. We miss him.
A big thanks to all the parents who brought snacks and who stayed to help clean up.
Today, Edith and I were over at school spring planning and cleaning. I am gutting my room and changing around a lot of things. We now have a brick patio and brick walls with bougainvillea and little black mice. I moved in two rather large banana trees that were graciously donated by Brian's grandparents.
I'm still in the market for a pair of chinchillas. The corner cage has been painted and cleaned and I'm looking for chinchilla homes. Not sure what I want.
Every room should be inviting. When I look at Edith's niche in the main room with its colorful rug and abacus and pretty things, I cringe. Kelly's room is bright and fun as well, so now my eyesore will finally bring merit.
Edith worked on the kitchen today to make it less cluttered and more child friendly. You will love her rabbits.
May is "Do you remember" month.
It makes a big difference when they participate with heart. It make teachers feel as if we've done our jobs. My favorite song was the Canticle of the Sun - because they all knew all their lines and they stood so nicely and delivered with pitch and energy.
I was especially proud of the delivery of the psalm. Congrats to Jack who did an outstanding job.
Mr Ty was as clear as a bell. He remembered not only his lines, but Yuta's who has moved back to Japan. We miss him.
A big thanks to all the parents who brought snacks and who stayed to help clean up.
Today, Edith and I were over at school spring planning and cleaning. I am gutting my room and changing around a lot of things. We now have a brick patio and brick walls with bougainvillea and little black mice. I moved in two rather large banana trees that were graciously donated by Brian's grandparents.
I'm still in the market for a pair of chinchillas. The corner cage has been painted and cleaned and I'm looking for chinchilla homes. Not sure what I want.
Every room should be inviting. When I look at Edith's niche in the main room with its colorful rug and abacus and pretty things, I cringe. Kelly's room is bright and fun as well, so now my eyesore will finally bring merit.
Edith worked on the kitchen today to make it less cluttered and more child friendly. You will love her rabbits.
May is "Do you remember" month.
Friday, April 28, 2006
Food for Little Kids
Trust is a big part of children's cooking. They have to know you won't pull a fast one.
The children's Chef:
A cook for a child care center knows how to please pint-sized palates
By Randi Bjornstad
The Register-Guard
Published: Wednesday, April 26, 2006
As finicky as most little kids seem to be, imagine cooking lunch for more than a hundred of them every day.
Sigrid Leppert does it - she's the "chef" at the University of Oregon's Child Care and Development Center at 17th Avenue and Moss Street - and even after 12 years at the task, she still loves it.
"In my early years, I worked in restaurants, and when I went to college, I majored in early childhood education," Leppert says. "Even when I was working as a toddler teacher, which I did for eight years, I kept on working in restaurants, too. So this is sort of a great combination."
Not surprisingly with all that experience in teaching and cooking, Leppert's got a lot of tips for child feeding that parents of little ones might want to try.
"I cook for four age groups, and each has different needs," Leppert says. "Of course, the babies have to have soft food because of the risk of choking. The preschoolers want everything separate - it's a texture and taste thing. So when I serve pasta salad, I put the pasta, the olives and the vegetables all out in different bowls and let them put it together themselves. They like that."
Older children want a bigger part in food preparation, and Leppert tries to accommodate their changing tastes.
"Sometimes I go out and sit with the kids and ask them what they'd like to have for lunch or snacks, and they have ideas," she says. "I try to honor that - after all, it's for them."
One day the older children who attend the center after their regular school day approached Leppert and asked her to provide ingredients for "smoothies," a nutritious blender drink usually made with fresh fruit, yogurt or milk, juice and ice cubes.
"They wanted to make the smoothies themselves, so I got the supplies and they did," she says. "They took orders, made the smoothies and served them to the other kids, too."
Because she uses food commodities from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Leppert has to provide meals on a rotation that takes advantage of the government supplies. For example, she makes her three-cheese lasagna about once every three weeks. She also makes vegetarian and nondairy versions of all her meals for children with allergies or intolerances.
She even has a lasagna tip for parents to try at home - she substitutes cottage cheese for ricotta and purees it with tomato sauce for layering with the traditional noodles, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
Other foods in the three-week rotation include a "cook's choice" meal on Mondays, sandwiches, broccoli and fruit on Wednesdays, quesadillas with corn and fruit on Thursdays and turkey and Cheddar foccacia with pickles and fruit on Fridays.
Other weeks, the kids will have entrees such as macaroni and cheese, apple-tuna salad rolls, hummus dip with crackers, vegetables and fruit, and burritos. Once in a while, they even get the perennial kid favorite, hot dogs.
Much as Leppert loves her job, she admits that all that cooking takes a toll on her own meal preparations.
"I have to take an hour or so after I'm done at work before I can even think about cooking at home," she says. "But of course, it's completely different to cook for adults. I enjoy that, too."
The children's Chef:
A cook for a child care center knows how to please pint-sized palates
By Randi Bjornstad
The Register-Guard
Published: Wednesday, April 26, 2006
As finicky as most little kids seem to be, imagine cooking lunch for more than a hundred of them every day.
Sigrid Leppert does it - she's the "chef" at the University of Oregon's Child Care and Development Center at 17th Avenue and Moss Street - and even after 12 years at the task, she still loves it.
"In my early years, I worked in restaurants, and when I went to college, I majored in early childhood education," Leppert says. "Even when I was working as a toddler teacher, which I did for eight years, I kept on working in restaurants, too. So this is sort of a great combination."
Not surprisingly with all that experience in teaching and cooking, Leppert's got a lot of tips for child feeding that parents of little ones might want to try.
"I cook for four age groups, and each has different needs," Leppert says. "Of course, the babies have to have soft food because of the risk of choking. The preschoolers want everything separate - it's a texture and taste thing. So when I serve pasta salad, I put the pasta, the olives and the vegetables all out in different bowls and let them put it together themselves. They like that."
Older children want a bigger part in food preparation, and Leppert tries to accommodate their changing tastes.
"Sometimes I go out and sit with the kids and ask them what they'd like to have for lunch or snacks, and they have ideas," she says. "I try to honor that - after all, it's for them."
One day the older children who attend the center after their regular school day approached Leppert and asked her to provide ingredients for "smoothies," a nutritious blender drink usually made with fresh fruit, yogurt or milk, juice and ice cubes.
"They wanted to make the smoothies themselves, so I got the supplies and they did," she says. "They took orders, made the smoothies and served them to the other kids, too."
Because she uses food commodities from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Leppert has to provide meals on a rotation that takes advantage of the government supplies. For example, she makes her three-cheese lasagna about once every three weeks. She also makes vegetarian and nondairy versions of all her meals for children with allergies or intolerances.
She even has a lasagna tip for parents to try at home - she substitutes cottage cheese for ricotta and purees it with tomato sauce for layering with the traditional noodles, mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
Other foods in the three-week rotation include a "cook's choice" meal on Mondays, sandwiches, broccoli and fruit on Wednesdays, quesadillas with corn and fruit on Thursdays and turkey and Cheddar foccacia with pickles and fruit on Fridays.
Other weeks, the kids will have entrees such as macaroni and cheese, apple-tuna salad rolls, hummus dip with crackers, vegetables and fruit, and burritos. Once in a while, they even get the perennial kid favorite, hot dogs.
Much as Leppert loves her job, she admits that all that cooking takes a toll on her own meal preparations.
"I have to take an hour or so after I'm done at work before I can even think about cooking at home," she says. "But of course, it's completely different to cook for adults. I enjoy that, too."
Thursday, April 27, 2006
The Garden School Tattler
It was a glorious day. We practiced our music early after a breakfast on the patio. And then we packed up our lunch and went to the Lollipop Concert. The children lit up with the live music. I've never seen Taylor's face so animated. He fell in love with the French horn. Little Jalen was stunned by the violin. I saw Jasmin trying to conduct, and even the squirrelly children were watching intently.
The musicians played four string instruments and some brass, some woodwinds and some percussion instruments. My favorite musician was the drummer. He had a lot of personality. They came down to our groups and sat on the floor and played for each small group, then they played a lot of children's music. It is always a wonderful place for the kids.
Then we went over to Price Park and had a picnic and played on the big toy. The kids liked that a lot and seemed to like the big tornado slide. We had our usual multi sandwich lunch with chips and home made cookies, apples and carrots, and we took milk this time.
Then we came home and went outside for Popsicles, and we had lemonade a little later.
Tomorrow is Spring Sing and the big book fair. Some of the books are really quite nice. It has been suggested to parents to buy books to use as gifts throughout the year. That's a really good idea.
The kids will enjoy the fruits of their hard work tomorrow. They have really practiced hard and they have done some difficult things this year. No matter what, I know how they can sing if they want to.
It seems so strange that the regular school year is ending and summer is on the horizon. It should be a nice summer - lots of parents' involvement.
We would like to thank the phantom mower who left the property so beautifully shorn sometime between last night and this morning.
We've noticed a lot more birds this season. Lots of nest building and lots of bird visits. I put out some Kix in one of the feeders and we had a whole group of finches lite and share breakfast.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
The Garden School Tattler
It's been a crazy week. It all began with a late lunch with Rosemont, and today ended with a thousand books spreading over Miss Kelly's classroom. In between there has been a sea of aches and pains, triumphs and disasters and lots of laughs.
Miss Molly is bursting at the seams - literally. She's about ready to evict Lucky - that's Luke's nickname, and her mood swings could tie with my menopausal dementia. Mrs. St. Louis is holding a very stable court and Miss Kelly is too busy with the book fair to notice who's in charge.
The kids have been super, however, and although they have racked up a lot of blue faces, they have been more interesting this week in their approach to life. We've been testing our skills with music, and I have to admit, they are doing a great job. We have worked in some instruments with one of our songs, and we practiced this for an hour today, and the kids didn't lose interest once.
We combined classes today and worked on several things - handwriting, story writing, drawing and some math and logic pages. The kids were first rate. I took my pile of sentences and drawings over to Miss Kelly, and we were amazed by how well they had done. Miss Faith's sentence was clever. Faith farms.
I'm always glad when we get the party week over because we can focus in on something besides practices.
The book fair is a really neat thing. We are so pleased with the books. Miss Kelly was in awe of how it was supposed to look and how it was supposed to be put together and she's done a magnificent job. The profits will be a big help to us.
Miss Stacey is still attacking us. Please say a prayer for her.
We are going to the Loli Pop Concert tomorrow and then we're off to a picnic someplace. Then it's practice practice practice.
Now back to Rosemont. She is my adorable raccoon who has lunch with me occasionally. She has two darling babies and lives in my neighbor's tree. Rose comes over to eat cat food off my front porch, and we have an understanding - She eats and I chat. It's such a neat thing to sit four feet from a raccoon and listen to them chomp away on a bowl of kitty kibble. She likes tuna, hamburger and fresh salmon. Next week I intend to intro her to home made cookies - she can take some home to the cubs.
Miss Molly is having a yard sale on Saturday. She's out in Newburgh, so if you need directions, just ask her.
We have two new little girls who are just darling.
Please catch a look at my WFIE site by clicking the link on the right. There is a good series on child development. Next week it's four year olds.
The Garden School Tattler
I was watching over the children as we practiced for our spring concert, and I realized just how different the children are. In the four years that a child can spend at the Garden School, he grows so much. The little tearful person, rolling around on the floor not really participating develops into the reliable actor or actress with the short study.
I asked Ty to take all Yuta's lines because Yuta has moved back to Japan, and for the most part he's got them. We had two little new girls yesterday -- really sweet. One little one was helping the ladies her age with one of the echoes. Her sister fell asleep on the floor.
In between, there are so many ages and stages.
Yesterday in class I said, "Finish up your math paper and I'll show you how to make a paper box." There was a lot of discussion about the paper box. Three children took me seriously and finished and we made cool paper boxes. Three children doddled over their work and lost out and were mad. Three children didn't know paper boxes were being made.
We worked very hard on identifying ones and tens in a two digit number, and the children did very well. Abby is still leading the class. She understands the concept. When the rest catch on, we will up the ante to 100s.
We are learning the one - ten words to add to our story making. If you write these out for the children, there are some helpers. I'll write about those later.
The book sale is awesome. Books for a student body of 1000 have arrived. Please come to look at the books and toys. This is a good time to shop for a year of gifts. Books make wonderful gifts for birthday parties and occasional gifts when someone has done a good job, and what better place to buy them?
Tomorrow we go to the children's philharmonic and then off to a picnic someplace - not sure where. It's supposed to be a beautiful day.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Resale at the Baby Corner
One of the nicest places to go when you're having a baby are resale shops. Babies are expensive and every mother wants her child to look his best and provide her child with all the toys and equipment necessary to do the job right, but the list seems to get longer and longer, and the price of new can sometimes be disheartening.
That's why resale shops are so important to "bringing up baby." Resale shops have absolutely everything, and it all looks new. Miss Molly's favorite is The Baby Corner. The shop is located at 1217 N Fulton in EVV.
If you have a child like I did who outgrows his clothes on a weekly basis, it's the place to go. And it's the place to go frequently because there is always something new and merchandise moves quickly - especially if it's a one of a kind.
Washington State
Interesting article when you consider what children will have to face in the next generation as opposed to what young adult have to face now and what we as older adults had to face in our youth. Education is the union card. Interest in education is the gasoline. That gasoline is pumped early - at three. America's education program and policy of stirring the interest soup will not be able to keep up until we realize that education is about learning. It's not about control; it's not about getting a 96 percent on a test that could stand correcting; it's not about who can blow back the hot air delivered poorly in classrooms all over the country. It's about who knows what and how they can use that information.
Two nights ago I got a note from my grandson who at 14 and 15 is writing his first novel. It's splendid. It reads well; it's interesting; it's full of knowledge both gained and created, and he innocently gave it to a teacher who tossed it off as amateurish. Is this what public education is all about? How can I trash your dreams and make you feel as crummy as I do?
When did we stop looking for the gold and treat everyone like a bag of sawdust?
Two teachers told me that in a day care in EVV that is considered to be the top ranking childcare institution in the city the director told them that it is not appropriate to teach a child who is three, four or five. It's not age appropriate. Readers can take the story from there.
The picture is the Monastery at Norcia where St. Benedict and St. Scholastica were born. I posted this picture because these twins are in many ways a tribute to education. The monastery still is under the direction of Prior Cassian.
Monday, April 24, 2006
Chrononline.com
Comment:
Gregoire’s Warnings on China, Education Need to be Heeded
In her address last week at a meeting of the Chehalis Rotary Club, Gov. Chris Gregoire had some words of warning about education we should heed. Gregoire is big on improving education in this state, from preschool to post-graduate. In discussing early childhood education, for which she is an ardent advocate, Gregoire told a story.
When she was a child, she said, her mother used to tell her to clean up her plate because children in China were starving (for some of us, it was starving Armenians or others). The lesson was that we shouldn’t be wasting when others were starving and by us not wasting there would be more for them. But now the focus has changed, Gregoire said. “The story today is, ‘If you don’t do your homework, that child in China will get your job,’ ” Gregoire may well be right.
China, which remains the most populous country in the world, is coming on strong as an economic competitor, its economy growing by leaps and bounds. Leveling the trading playing field with China will help create new markets for our goods there, as Gregoire was striving to achieve for this state in a recent trade mission to that country. Further opening of the Chinese market will in turn create more jobs in the United States.
But with education levels and skilled work forces increasing in China and Asia, more jobs and potential jobs in this country will flow there if we don’t bolster education in this country so that we can compete. That’s why efforts to raise education standards, including this state’s Assessment of Student Learning testing that Gregoire also strongly supports, is so important.
On another subject, the governor indicated she is well aware of the magnitude of the methamphetamine drug problem in our area and the state. She noted meth is particularly insidious and dangerous because “unlike any other drug, we do not have the ability to get people off” it.
In connection with that, she mentioned a disturbing trend in meth that many may not be aware of — an increased tendency of women to use the drug as a dietary aid. That is insanity. Once they are hooked on this highly addictive drug, the number of people who can get off it permanently is abysmally low.
SATSOP PLAN: Also when she was here last week, Gregoire embraced a plan to convert the abandoned Satsop nuclear power plant project near Elma to a job training facility that could be operated by Centralia College. Gregoire toured the college’s Center of Excellence for Energy Technology. In a presentation to the governor, Barbara Hins-Turner, executive director of the center, said the energy industry will need thousands of replacement workers as baby boomers start to retire in the next five to eight years.
Hins-Turner has been working with both industry leaders and labor representatives in the region on a plan to convert the 1,800-acre Satsop site into a training facility for future employees in the power generation field. That would be fitting.Gregoire said the plan “sounds like it has a lot of promise. ... The whole region will benefit” from Satsop as a job training site.
The energy industry has been aware of the declining work force for years and “The cold, hard truth is that we’re going to suffer a tremendous brain drain,” said Steve Milistefr, a representative of the Bonneville Power Administration who was at the college with Gregoire. He also lauded the college for its efforts to provide more trained workers to fill the gap.
“Centralia College is starting to put some action behind this, and things are starting to happen.” Jim Walton, president of the college, said he hopes to have a Satsop job training facility operational in two years, including on-site dormitories. He commended Gregoire for her interest, noting that support at her level of government adds impetus to the Satsop plans.
In the end, then, it appears something positive will come out of the costly boondoggle of trying to build nuclear power plants at Satsop. Who knows, some day employees might be trained there for jobs at nuclear power plants, which this country will likely need more of at some point to become more energy independent.
Monday, April 24, 2006
Indianapolis Public Schools Board Elections Profiles
For those interested in the election, here are the profiles:
Indianapolis Star
Visions for IPS Success
A good public education system prepares children for future success and strengthens the community. That's why choosing four candidates to serve on the board of Indianapolis Public Schools may well be the most important vote you cast in the May 2 primary.
Eleven people are running to fill four spots on the seven-member Board of School Commissioners. We asked them to write about what they consider to be the most important issues facing IPS, the largest school district in the state with 38,000 students, 80 schools and a $518 million budget. We heard from nine of the candidates, who address issues that include student achievement, early-childhood education, athletic policies, safety, funding, and parental and community involvement.
Milton L. Baltimore Jr., At-large
Education: Arsenal Technical High School graduate; B.S. degree from Tennessee State University; master's degree from Butler University; attended Indiana University Law School one year.
Occupation: Retired IPS teacher of 34 years who currently works at the Finance Center.
Personal: Married, three adult children and three grandchildren.
My father was a well-known IPS teacher and administrator for more than 40 years. I am the only candidate who does IPS substitute teaching, and I see first-hand what is going on in IPS schools. I know that I have the expertise to meet the needs. IPS does not have a teacher on the School Board.
I am an avid supporter of Superintendent Dr. Eugene White, who is dedicated, creative, sincere and knows the problems of IPS students. So do I. I was raised in a large family and attended IPS schools.
The IPS board needs to work on budget problems with the public, governor, legislature, business leaders and others. More discipline authority needs to be given to the teachers and administrators.
Parents need more involvement, visits to the schools and to sit in classrooms. I will still do substitute teaching if elected to the board and will donate money to help with the deficient. I am sincere and know that IPS will become a great school system for all. I am asking for your vote to help me save IPS. It is time for a schoolteacher to be on the IPS board. Let me be that teacher.
Kelly E. Bentley, District 3, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent, past president.
Education: Attended IPS School 84, graduated from Broad Ripple High School.
Occupation: Work part-time for the Center for Family School Community Partnerships, a federally funded Parent Information Resource Center, and am a full-time student at IUPUI.
Personal: Wife and mother of two, both of whom have attended IPS schools. Board member, Horizons Urban Summer Youth Program, a summer academic enrichment program for IPS at-risk youth. I have been classroom volunteer and have lobbied the legislature on behalf of IPS children.
IPS has made great progress over the past eight years. Elementary students have made significant academic gains, the achievement gap has been narrowed and new programs have given parents expanded choices. Conversion of large high schools into small schools has fostered individualized education. Still, too many children fail the ISTEP-Plus exam and too many others drop out.
All children can learn. But some children must overcome formidable barriers to the learning process. We need to continue to partner with parents, community groups, social service agencies, faith communities, health-care professionals and business leaders to address these barriers to improving academic performance.
Quality public education is critically important to our city, but changes must occur in order to meet the needs of all students. Those changes include some type of equitable merit-pay system in order to ensure adequate recognition and compensation for the best and brightest teachers, and freedom to provide incentives to teachers of math, science, special education and other areas where we are experiencing shortages.
The state has changed how school districts are funded. IPS faces a $24 million deficit -- and unlike the federal government, we must balance our budget. The challenge will be to cut costs without damaging the quality of classroom instruction. Last year, I led our effort to close schools to save money; ultimately, the IPS Board of School Commissioners made the very painful decision to close three buildings.
IPS faces other funding challenges. The district spends more than $4 million a year for a police force to ensure that schools are safe for all children; we receive no additional funding for this purpose. We are required to provide free textbooks to all students who qualify for free or reduced-priced lunch; the state pays only a fraction of that cost, and over the past five years, this mandate has cost over $10 million.
We serve more than 3,000 non-English-speaking students at a cost of more than $5 million per year; the district receives less than $1 million in funding for this. These examples are the reason that one of my highest priorities has been advocacy for adequate state funding for IPS. I am also a strong proponent of full-day kindergarten and am committed to finding a creative way to provide this to IPS children.
When I decided to run for the board in 1998, I wanted to make a positive difference in the lives of children and I believe I have. There are no magic bullets, no tidy ideological fixes that substitute for the consistent hard work necessary to achieve real, sustainable improvements. If we are to realize the vision the board shares with Superintendent Eugene White, we must continue that hard work.
Michael D. Brown, District 5, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent, current president.
Education: Earned master's of divinity, doctorate of theology and B.S. degree in communications.
Occupation: Pastor, Positive Force Ministries; human resources supervisor, United Parcel Service; former math and science teacher; volunteer IPS basketball coach, referee and mentor.
The Indianapolis Public Schools district has some of the best and brightest students in the nation. The system includes hard-working parents and dedicated teachers and administrators, all committed to the best academic and social interests of the children we are blessed to serve.
As the president of the state's largest school district, it has been my pleasure to help lead IPS in a direction that both addresses our shortfalls, while expanding efforts and initiatives that have led to positive academic outcomes. I have watched and participated in efforts by our district to eliminate some of the barriers that have prohibited too many students from maximizing their potential.
To suggest that we are meeting the total needs of our students and community would be a fallacy. Those who do not identify the many issues we must continue to address with regard to achievement have no place serving IPS' children or families.
There is no question that IPS suffers too high a dropout rate and far too low graduation rates.
Like many school districts with similar demographics, IPS has also fallen victim to an achievement gap where many of our African-American students lag behind their counterparts in core academic subject. When any of our students exits school ill-prepared to compete in the local and global marketplaces, our entire system suffers.
Quite frankly, despite the tireless efforts I have witnessed by our staff, much work remains if we are to ensure all children succeed during their IPS careers. Despite the statistics, however, I remain supremely confident that all children can succeed.
I am keenly aware of the issues the system faces. But I have never been more optimistic that IPS will become the world-class school district we all envision.
My vision for IPS is rooted in basic values that not only strengthen educational environments, but the entire community. That vision begins first with strengthened parental and community involvement.
With a better-engaged community behind us, IPS can enjoy an increased focus on accountability and academic rigor. We can ensure the increased options such as the small-schools initiative will work in the way they are intentioned. We can gain the grass-roots presence necessary to fight for the level of funding that will assure our children gain access to the physical fitness and mentally enriching activities we should provide.
IPS is indeed moving in the right direction. And I will not rest until the promise of the best possible education for all of our children is realized. As a life long supporter of public education, I am very encouraged with the progress being made for our students. However, we should be tempered because much work remains so that all of our children's academic futures are bright.
Barry Campbell, At-large
Occupation: Business owner.
Education: Graduate of Lawrence Central High School and Valparaiso University.
Personal: Father of IPS first-grader.
I wish Superintendent Dr. Eugene White all the best in his goal of transforming Indianapolis Public Schools into the best urban school district in the nation. But more importantly and more immediately, I would like to see IPS become academically competitive with the Marion County township districts. White is the right man at the right time to do exactly that.
Alternative schools and programs are fine for the few students who are eligible or are chosen by lottery to participate, but I am more interested in raising the academic performance of the district as a whole.
The purpose of any school is to teach. Teachers teach. IPS teachers are underpaid when compared to the average teacher salaries of the surrounding townships. If we want to hire and retain the best teachers, we need to offer them a competitive salary.
Do we need more money to do that? No. IPS already spends more money per pupil than all but 10 other school districts in the state. Of the neighboring township districts, only Pike spends more. Where is IPS spending its money? A comparison of IPS employees to those of the average township districts reveals an excessive number of administrators and certified employees other than teachers.
While IPS has more than three times as many students as the average of the township districts, it has almost five times as many administrators and other certified employees. Obviously, these additional personnel have not improved academic performance. If IPS reduced the ratio of these employees per student to the average of the surrounding districts, the budget shortfall would be virtually eliminated.
Economies of scale would suggest that IPS should be able to provide the same services to students as the other districts at a lower cost per student. Any services that could be provided at lower cost by contractors than by IPS employees should be contracted out. These additional savings would allow us to pay teachers what they need and deserve.
Only when we treat our teachers right can we expect them to produce the same academic results from students as the neighboring school districts do. We can treat them right by adequately compensating them, by allowing them to teach with as little administrative interference as possible, and by encouraging and respecting their input on board policies such as curriculum and student discipline.
Children are eager to learn. We must ensure that teachers are as eager to teach. As the father of an IPS first-grader, I am driven to ensure that my daughter receives a decent education. As an IPS board member, I will work to enable the teachers to perform at their best. I look forward to assisting Dr. White to achieve his goal. But IPS needs to look to its neighbors for examples of higher academic performance at no greater cost.
Barbara Coleman-Knight, At-large, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent (appointed a year and a half ago).
Education: Graduate of Shortridge High School, Indiana Business College and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
Occupation: Have worked for more than 25 years at the Indiana Department of Education as an education consultant in the Center for School Improvement and Performance.
Personal: Married to Charles "Tony" Knight and one daughter; both are Shortridge graduates. Serve on PTA and Montessori Parent Advisory committees.
IPS faces inadequate funding. My solution is to encourage the legislature to prioritize equitable funding for public education.
We know that third-grade success and failure data are used to project the amount of prison space that will be needed in the future. We must all work together to correct and prevent this growing problem through quality education. It is far more cost-effective to the state to invest preventively during early-childhood years than to feed, clothe and house inmates later in life.
Our best investment of state dollars is to provide each child with a quality education that will allow a lifetime of self-sufficiency.
IPS serves a large number of children who need a range of additional assistance to help them have a successful educational experience. The reality is that some expenses for classroom instruction do not disappear even if some students relocate to schools outside the district, because support structure costs remain stable.
Continuing expenses of building mortgages, utilities and salaries for teachers and administrative and support personnel must still be paid even if there are fewer students in a classroom. We must have a commitment from our legislature and governor to prioritize equitable funding for public education.
My vision is to produce students who graduate from high school empowered with a range of options to pursue their choice of career and higher academic interests. Recently, Dr. Eugene White initiated a program, Parents as First Teachers. Our district will work with parents to provide educational experiences from the time of birth so that all students will be prepared with a basic foundation when they enter school.
In elementary grades, Dr. White has also started a Teach and Re-Teach Mastery Learning program to ensure that students have the knowledge and skills needed as they progress through their educational experience. Our high schools have also been restructured into small schools to improve attendance and academic experiences.
My vision for IPS is also to provide educational experiences for students to become well-rounded, productive and contributing citizens. Academics are our first priority, but we realize that student participation in sports offers valuable benefits including team work, leadership development, goal setting, relationship building and self-discipline.
Our superintendent offers an extraordinary vision of overall excellence for every area of IPS. Our challenge is to improve our athletic program without significant cost and without offering less opportunity for participation in sports at each high school. My solution would be to let each high school keep its current sports programs in place supplemented by camp training experiences, enlist the help of the parks department, enhance volunteer efforts to coordinate elementary sports programs and offer a high school sports magnet option at only one location.
Finally, my overall solution for IPS challenges was to hire our highly qualified superintendent, Dr. Eugene White.
Maureen Jayne, At-large
Education: Graduate of Broad Ripple High School; attended Indiana University Bloomington and now working on a B.S. in general studies at IUPUI.
Occupation: Licensing adviser/secondary student-teaching assistant, IUPUI School of Education.
Personal: Husband, Tim, and three children who attended IPS schools.
I have a vision that Indianapolis Public Schools will be able to offer full-day kindergarten to every child, with preschool opportunities as well; that the graduation rate will become 100 percent; and that IPS succeeds in its renewal project.
Indianapolis has a public school district to be proud of. IPS opens its doors to 38,000 students every school day, and 81 percent of those students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Poverty walks around this school district. But every child has a school to go to.
IPS needs to reach children even in the preschool years. Research states that poverty severely impacts educational growth. I would like to see all necessary resources devoted to alleviating symptoms of poverty as children prepare to attend school, including nutrition and health care. Many free or low-cost services are currently offered by the city, businesses and nonprofits. These services could be bundled in a package easy for parents to take advantage of.
Research has shown that the earlier the brain is stimulated, the more its influence on academic achievement. Full-day kindergarten will academically strengthen at-risk students. Indiana is behind the rest of the country in providing this basic building block. Any vision of IPS' future must include programs that will help the very youngest children in the district. This fall the class of 2018 will enter first grade. We must see them succeed.
Twelve years later, those first-graders should be high school seniors graduating. I support the small schools that have been implemented in IPS high schools. Every student is known to a group of teachers. Communication between school and home can improve. Smaller class sizes would help. We mustn't shortchange high school education. I see prioritizing education paying huge dividends to society.
IPS is two-thirds of the way through a building renovation and construction campaign. There are brand new and renovated schools in the neighborhoods, adding property value and community pride. The last third of the project involves mostly elementary schools. Our community must find a way to finance this project. IPS is as important an urban renewal project as anything else in our city.
The heart of my vision for the future of IPS is to expand the community's perception of who IPS students are. There are students who are achieving in IPS. There are students participating in extra-curricular activities. There are graduates in every field. We all need to be visiting IPS schools. Parental involvement is important. Every school needs an active Parent Center where parents can feel welcomed and informed.
Very importantly, all of us must act on reforming and improving our public schools without hurrying the educational process. There is a time for everything. We must be careful to protect the learning moment.
Derek Redelman, District 3
Education: Attended IPS schools and graduated from Northwest High School; B.A. from Miami University (Ohio) in public administration and political science; MBA from University of Chicago.
Occupation: President and founder of Redelman Consulting, a public policy research and advocacy firm focusing primarily on K-12 education issues; former senior fellow and director of education policy at Hudson Institute, executive director of the Christel DeHaan Family Foundation and Project E; director of education policy for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce; and policy analyst for the Indiana Department of Education.
Personal: Wife, Shellie, and three children.
May 2 is a critical date for the future of Indianapolis Public Schools. The recent hiring of Eugene White as superintendent holds great promise for some of the challenges that face IPS, but ultimate success will depend on the election of a board that will support and complement his leadership.
As a professional education researcher, I know that IPS can do better. There are plenty of examples here and throughout the country that are proving that urban schools can be successful. Three common themes to success are high expectations, increased options for parents and efficient use of resources. These also represent the areas where I have focused my own work in education.
On high expectations: I encouraged Indiana policy leaders to rewrite state standards that had ranked among the worst in the country and now rank among the best. I helped write Indiana's new accountability law and helped push the Core 40 high school graduation requirement. I also wrote a new law requiring better reporting of high school dropouts and have been a leading advocate for fixing Indiana's broken state testing system.
On choice: I helped write Indiana's charter school law and originated the idea of letting Mayor Bart Peterson oversee charter schools. I have served as a consultant to national charter school leaders and have helped more than a dozen charter schools get started in Indiana, including 21st Century Charter School, Tindley Accelerated School and KIPP school.
On finance: I have helped highlight the majority of education funds that are spent outside of the classroom, much of that on administration and construction debt. I have also helped charter schools to develop successful operating budgets with almost half the funds that are available to traditional public schools. And I have advocated for greater flexibility to allow local districts to focus funds on local priorities.
Each of these areas holds great potential for IPS. In less than a year, Dr. White has gotten a great start on raising expectations and expanding options for parents. I am proud of the work that I have done to help make those changes possible -- especially my work on charter schools -- and I look forward to helping Dr. White expand and implement those efforts.
IPS also faces some tough budget decisions, thanks to poor management by the current board and a continuing exodus of students. With an operating budget that now exceeds $13,000 per student, I can assure taxpayers that I will not seek higher taxes to overcome this challenge. I can also assure current IPS families that teaching positions and other classroom expenditures will be the absolute last place that I will support cutting.
Continued changes in IPS will not be easy, but the futures of our kids, our neighborhoods and our city all depend on it. I look forward to helping with the aggressive reform agenda that Dr. White has recently initiated and I would appreciate your vote on May 2 to help make sure those reforms continue.
Judie Williams, At-large
Education: Attended Hartford, Conn., public schools K-12. Degrees from Central Connecticut State University (B.S. in elementary education), master's degrees from Indiana University (counseling) and Butler University (administration).
Occupation: Served as an educator in Connecticut, Massachusetts, IPS and Wayne Township. Has had personal and professional experiences in private, parochial and public schools.
Personal: A son who attended IPS schools and is an IUPUI graduate and a daughter who graduated from Park Tudor and Purdue University; two grandsons.
As an educator and parent, I was perplexed at the inconsistency in delivery of educational instruction throughout Indianapolis. I learned from my son's educational experience that I had to be an advocate for his success. I learned that I could not just send him to school and expect him to come home with the attitude, knowledge and skills necessary to succeed at the next level.
I learned as I transitioned from suburban to urban schools that there was not equity in resources and expectations.
One thing I know for sure is that a public school system can provide the resources, programs, and opportunities necessary for student success.
My vision for all children in IPS is that they be inspired to work hard and empowered to take advantage of the opportunities available to live purposefully in this world.
There are multiple challenges in IPS that require action to change the direction of the system. It appears that the longer children are in IPS schools, the dumber they are getting. It will take a comprehensive effort to focus on what matters. The IPS budget should reflect that a major percentage of funds are directly channeled into classroom/certified teaching. Presently, it appears that there is almost a 50-50 split between support staff and direct teaching staff. We are reading about teacher cuts when direct time-on-task instruction is a critical area in improving student performance.
It is time for IPS to make the changes necessary to improve student performance.
Teachers need ongoing training and tools to access information available to support student instruction and learning.
Our expectations will determine the attitude and achievement of our children and families. We must go beyond our comfort zones to engage families and communities in the learning process. We must look truthfully at where we are as a district and determine where we need to be. Our time and talent must reflect our mission. We want all students to learn at high levels and reach their potentials to compete in a global world.
Where are we in ensuring opportunities, resources and programs for all children?
All students need to have the information necessary for success at each level of instruction. It is the responsibility of the educational community to know what students must do and what level of competency is necessary to show mastery. This information must not be given to some and kept from others. When information is denied to a group of citizens they become weak and are left behind.
We must do things differently and parents must be a key to this change. Our school system is in crisis. This creates an opportunity to make a positive difference for the future of our society.
Olgen Williams, At-large
Education: Attended IPS School 41 and Shortridge High School; earned B.S., master's and doctoral degrees.
Occupation: Executive director of Christamore House Family and Community Center. Substitute teacher and Sunday school teacher for more than 29 years.
Personal: Wife, Mary, and 11 children.
I have worked with many Indianapolis community and professional organizations. A great deal of that work is centered on children. I am blessed to have a career that allowed me to address these pressing issues of community and youth.
I have lived in the IPS district for more than 45 years.
My memberships and community activities include Human Relations Advisory Council of Wayne Township Schools for more than 18 years, president of the Haughville Community Council, Westside Concerned Dads, board member of Indiana Youth Institute, advisory board member of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Urban Scouting Committee, Great Indianapolis Progress Committee, Indianapolis Race Relations Council, Westside Education Task Force Committee, and George Washington Community School Committee and currently serve on IPS Wendell Phillips School 63 Re-opening Committee.
I am running for the board because I think we need board members who are more accountable to the community and visible to the voters, IPS staff and parents of the students. Some board members are invisible to their community after elections and therefore are not in touch with the staff of IPS, parents, students and community. A board member must listen to the ideas and concerns of the whole community. The School Board should be accountable to the taxpayers to give assurance that funds are being spent wisely and efficiently.
I have concerns about the safety of students and staff and will support plans to ensure that all schools have adequate security and that staff be trained to handle these issues. I would like to see more programs to allow students to receive extra help to pass the ISTEP-Plus and graduation qualifying exams and graduate from high school.
I would like to see more support for:
All children to reach their full potential and become happy, successful adults.
Fostering cooperation among homes, business, churches and schools.
Getting the views and aspirations of parents so they can be partners with the school system in developing programs that help create a culture of learning in the homes.
Helping to close the disparity between the goals of parents and those of educators.
Ending the frustrations of many teachers over lack of control of curriculum planning and decision-making.
If elected to the school board I would continue to serve the Indianapolis community tirelessly to give all children my best to ensure they are receiving an education that is second to none.
Indianapolis Star
Visions for IPS Success
A good public education system prepares children for future success and strengthens the community. That's why choosing four candidates to serve on the board of Indianapolis Public Schools may well be the most important vote you cast in the May 2 primary.
Eleven people are running to fill four spots on the seven-member Board of School Commissioners. We asked them to write about what they consider to be the most important issues facing IPS, the largest school district in the state with 38,000 students, 80 schools and a $518 million budget. We heard from nine of the candidates, who address issues that include student achievement, early-childhood education, athletic policies, safety, funding, and parental and community involvement.
Milton L. Baltimore Jr., At-large
Education: Arsenal Technical High School graduate; B.S. degree from Tennessee State University; master's degree from Butler University; attended Indiana University Law School one year.
Occupation: Retired IPS teacher of 34 years who currently works at the Finance Center.
Personal: Married, three adult children and three grandchildren.
My father was a well-known IPS teacher and administrator for more than 40 years. I am the only candidate who does IPS substitute teaching, and I see first-hand what is going on in IPS schools. I know that I have the expertise to meet the needs. IPS does not have a teacher on the School Board.
I am an avid supporter of Superintendent Dr. Eugene White, who is dedicated, creative, sincere and knows the problems of IPS students. So do I. I was raised in a large family and attended IPS schools.
The IPS board needs to work on budget problems with the public, governor, legislature, business leaders and others. More discipline authority needs to be given to the teachers and administrators.
Parents need more involvement, visits to the schools and to sit in classrooms. I will still do substitute teaching if elected to the board and will donate money to help with the deficient. I am sincere and know that IPS will become a great school system for all. I am asking for your vote to help me save IPS. It is time for a schoolteacher to be on the IPS board. Let me be that teacher.
Kelly E. Bentley, District 3, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent, past president.
Education: Attended IPS School 84, graduated from Broad Ripple High School.
Occupation: Work part-time for the Center for Family School Community Partnerships, a federally funded Parent Information Resource Center, and am a full-time student at IUPUI.
Personal: Wife and mother of two, both of whom have attended IPS schools. Board member, Horizons Urban Summer Youth Program, a summer academic enrichment program for IPS at-risk youth. I have been classroom volunteer and have lobbied the legislature on behalf of IPS children.
IPS has made great progress over the past eight years. Elementary students have made significant academic gains, the achievement gap has been narrowed and new programs have given parents expanded choices. Conversion of large high schools into small schools has fostered individualized education. Still, too many children fail the ISTEP-Plus exam and too many others drop out.
All children can learn. But some children must overcome formidable barriers to the learning process. We need to continue to partner with parents, community groups, social service agencies, faith communities, health-care professionals and business leaders to address these barriers to improving academic performance.
Quality public education is critically important to our city, but changes must occur in order to meet the needs of all students. Those changes include some type of equitable merit-pay system in order to ensure adequate recognition and compensation for the best and brightest teachers, and freedom to provide incentives to teachers of math, science, special education and other areas where we are experiencing shortages.
The state has changed how school districts are funded. IPS faces a $24 million deficit -- and unlike the federal government, we must balance our budget. The challenge will be to cut costs without damaging the quality of classroom instruction. Last year, I led our effort to close schools to save money; ultimately, the IPS Board of School Commissioners made the very painful decision to close three buildings.
IPS faces other funding challenges. The district spends more than $4 million a year for a police force to ensure that schools are safe for all children; we receive no additional funding for this purpose. We are required to provide free textbooks to all students who qualify for free or reduced-priced lunch; the state pays only a fraction of that cost, and over the past five years, this mandate has cost over $10 million.
We serve more than 3,000 non-English-speaking students at a cost of more than $5 million per year; the district receives less than $1 million in funding for this. These examples are the reason that one of my highest priorities has been advocacy for adequate state funding for IPS. I am also a strong proponent of full-day kindergarten and am committed to finding a creative way to provide this to IPS children.
When I decided to run for the board in 1998, I wanted to make a positive difference in the lives of children and I believe I have. There are no magic bullets, no tidy ideological fixes that substitute for the consistent hard work necessary to achieve real, sustainable improvements. If we are to realize the vision the board shares with Superintendent Eugene White, we must continue that hard work.
Michael D. Brown, District 5, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent, current president.
Education: Earned master's of divinity, doctorate of theology and B.S. degree in communications.
Occupation: Pastor, Positive Force Ministries; human resources supervisor, United Parcel Service; former math and science teacher; volunteer IPS basketball coach, referee and mentor.
The Indianapolis Public Schools district has some of the best and brightest students in the nation. The system includes hard-working parents and dedicated teachers and administrators, all committed to the best academic and social interests of the children we are blessed to serve.
As the president of the state's largest school district, it has been my pleasure to help lead IPS in a direction that both addresses our shortfalls, while expanding efforts and initiatives that have led to positive academic outcomes. I have watched and participated in efforts by our district to eliminate some of the barriers that have prohibited too many students from maximizing their potential.
To suggest that we are meeting the total needs of our students and community would be a fallacy. Those who do not identify the many issues we must continue to address with regard to achievement have no place serving IPS' children or families.
There is no question that IPS suffers too high a dropout rate and far too low graduation rates.
Like many school districts with similar demographics, IPS has also fallen victim to an achievement gap where many of our African-American students lag behind their counterparts in core academic subject. When any of our students exits school ill-prepared to compete in the local and global marketplaces, our entire system suffers.
Quite frankly, despite the tireless efforts I have witnessed by our staff, much work remains if we are to ensure all children succeed during their IPS careers. Despite the statistics, however, I remain supremely confident that all children can succeed.
I am keenly aware of the issues the system faces. But I have never been more optimistic that IPS will become the world-class school district we all envision.
My vision for IPS is rooted in basic values that not only strengthen educational environments, but the entire community. That vision begins first with strengthened parental and community involvement.
With a better-engaged community behind us, IPS can enjoy an increased focus on accountability and academic rigor. We can ensure the increased options such as the small-schools initiative will work in the way they are intentioned. We can gain the grass-roots presence necessary to fight for the level of funding that will assure our children gain access to the physical fitness and mentally enriching activities we should provide.
IPS is indeed moving in the right direction. And I will not rest until the promise of the best possible education for all of our children is realized. As a life long supporter of public education, I am very encouraged with the progress being made for our students. However, we should be tempered because much work remains so that all of our children's academic futures are bright.
Barry Campbell, At-large
Occupation: Business owner.
Education: Graduate of Lawrence Central High School and Valparaiso University.
Personal: Father of IPS first-grader.
I wish Superintendent Dr. Eugene White all the best in his goal of transforming Indianapolis Public Schools into the best urban school district in the nation. But more importantly and more immediately, I would like to see IPS become academically competitive with the Marion County township districts. White is the right man at the right time to do exactly that.
Alternative schools and programs are fine for the few students who are eligible or are chosen by lottery to participate, but I am more interested in raising the academic performance of the district as a whole.
The purpose of any school is to teach. Teachers teach. IPS teachers are underpaid when compared to the average teacher salaries of the surrounding townships. If we want to hire and retain the best teachers, we need to offer them a competitive salary.
Do we need more money to do that? No. IPS already spends more money per pupil than all but 10 other school districts in the state. Of the neighboring township districts, only Pike spends more. Where is IPS spending its money? A comparison of IPS employees to those of the average township districts reveals an excessive number of administrators and certified employees other than teachers.
While IPS has more than three times as many students as the average of the township districts, it has almost five times as many administrators and other certified employees. Obviously, these additional personnel have not improved academic performance. If IPS reduced the ratio of these employees per student to the average of the surrounding districts, the budget shortfall would be virtually eliminated.
Economies of scale would suggest that IPS should be able to provide the same services to students as the other districts at a lower cost per student. Any services that could be provided at lower cost by contractors than by IPS employees should be contracted out. These additional savings would allow us to pay teachers what they need and deserve.
Only when we treat our teachers right can we expect them to produce the same academic results from students as the neighboring school districts do. We can treat them right by adequately compensating them, by allowing them to teach with as little administrative interference as possible, and by encouraging and respecting their input on board policies such as curriculum and student discipline.
Children are eager to learn. We must ensure that teachers are as eager to teach. As the father of an IPS first-grader, I am driven to ensure that my daughter receives a decent education. As an IPS board member, I will work to enable the teachers to perform at their best. I look forward to assisting Dr. White to achieve his goal. But IPS needs to look to its neighbors for examples of higher academic performance at no greater cost.
Barbara Coleman-Knight, At-large, incumbent IPS board: Incumbent (appointed a year and a half ago).
Education: Graduate of Shortridge High School, Indiana Business College and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
Occupation: Have worked for more than 25 years at the Indiana Department of Education as an education consultant in the Center for School Improvement and Performance.
Personal: Married to Charles "Tony" Knight and one daughter; both are Shortridge graduates. Serve on PTA and Montessori Parent Advisory committees.
IPS faces inadequate funding. My solution is to encourage the legislature to prioritize equitable funding for public education.
We know that third-grade success and failure data are used to project the amount of prison space that will be needed in the future. We must all work together to correct and prevent this growing problem through quality education. It is far more cost-effective to the state to invest preventively during early-childhood years than to feed, clothe and house inmates later in life.
Our best investment of state dollars is to provide each child with a quality education that will allow a lifetime of self-sufficiency.
IPS serves a large number of children who need a range of additional assistance to help them have a successful educational experience. The reality is that some expenses for classroom instruction do not disappear even if some students relocate to schools outside the district, because support structure costs remain stable.
Continuing expenses of building mortgages, utilities and salaries for teachers and administrative and support personnel must still be paid even if there are fewer students in a classroom. We must have a commitment from our legislature and governor to prioritize equitable funding for public education.
My vision is to produce students who graduate from high school empowered with a range of options to pursue their choice of career and higher academic interests. Recently, Dr. Eugene White initiated a program, Parents as First Teachers. Our district will work with parents to provide educational experiences from the time of birth so that all students will be prepared with a basic foundation when they enter school.
In elementary grades, Dr. White has also started a Teach and Re-Teach Mastery Learning program to ensure that students have the knowledge and skills needed as they progress through their educational experience. Our high schools have also been restructured into small schools to improve attendance and academic experiences.
My vision for IPS is also to provide educational experiences for students to become well-rounded, productive and contributing citizens. Academics are our first priority, but we realize that student participation in sports offers valuable benefits including team work, leadership development, goal setting, relationship building and self-discipline.
Our superintendent offers an extraordinary vision of overall excellence for every area of IPS. Our challenge is to improve our athletic program without significant cost and without offering less opportunity for participation in sports at each high school. My solution would be to let each high school keep its current sports programs in place supplemented by camp training experiences, enlist the help of the parks department, enhance volunteer efforts to coordinate elementary sports programs and offer a high school sports magnet option at only one location.
Finally, my overall solution for IPS challenges was to hire our highly qualified superintendent, Dr. Eugene White.
Maureen Jayne, At-large
Education: Graduate of Broad Ripple High School; attended Indiana University Bloomington and now working on a B.S. in general studies at IUPUI.
Occupation: Licensing adviser/secondary student-teaching assistant, IUPUI School of Education.
Personal: Husband, Tim, and three children who attended IPS schools.
I have a vision that Indianapolis Public Schools will be able to offer full-day kindergarten to every child, with preschool opportunities as well; that the graduation rate will become 100 percent; and that IPS succeeds in its renewal project.
Indianapolis has a public school district to be proud of. IPS opens its doors to 38,000 students every school day, and 81 percent of those students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Poverty walks around this school district. But every child has a school to go to.
IPS needs to reach children even in the preschool years. Research states that poverty severely impacts educational growth. I would like to see all necessary resources devoted to alleviating symptoms of poverty as children prepare to attend school, including nutrition and health care. Many free or low-cost services are currently offered by the city, businesses and nonprofits. These services could be bundled in a package easy for parents to take advantage of.
Research has shown that the earlier the brain is stimulated, the more its influence on academic achievement. Full-day kindergarten will academically strengthen at-risk students. Indiana is behind the rest of the country in providing this basic building block. Any vision of IPS' future must include programs that will help the very youngest children in the district. This fall the class of 2018 will enter first grade. We must see them succeed.
Twelve years later, those first-graders should be high school seniors graduating. I support the small schools that have been implemented in IPS high schools. Every student is known to a group of teachers. Communication between school and home can improve. Smaller class sizes would help. We mustn't shortchange high school education. I see prioritizing education paying huge dividends to society.
IPS is two-thirds of the way through a building renovation and construction campaign. There are brand new and renovated schools in the neighborhoods, adding property value and community pride. The last third of the project involves mostly elementary schools. Our community must find a way to finance this project. IPS is as important an urban renewal project as anything else in our city.
The heart of my vision for the future of IPS is to expand the community's perception of who IPS students are. There are students who are achieving in IPS. There are students participating in extra-curricular activities. There are graduates in every field. We all need to be visiting IPS schools. Parental involvement is important. Every school needs an active Parent Center where parents can feel welcomed and informed.
Very importantly, all of us must act on reforming and improving our public schools without hurrying the educational process. There is a time for everything. We must be careful to protect the learning moment.
Derek Redelman, District 3
Education: Attended IPS schools and graduated from Northwest High School; B.A. from Miami University (Ohio) in public administration and political science; MBA from University of Chicago.
Occupation: President and founder of Redelman Consulting, a public policy research and advocacy firm focusing primarily on K-12 education issues; former senior fellow and director of education policy at Hudson Institute, executive director of the Christel DeHaan Family Foundation and Project E; director of education policy for the Indiana Chamber of Commerce; and policy analyst for the Indiana Department of Education.
Personal: Wife, Shellie, and three children.
May 2 is a critical date for the future of Indianapolis Public Schools. The recent hiring of Eugene White as superintendent holds great promise for some of the challenges that face IPS, but ultimate success will depend on the election of a board that will support and complement his leadership.
As a professional education researcher, I know that IPS can do better. There are plenty of examples here and throughout the country that are proving that urban schools can be successful. Three common themes to success are high expectations, increased options for parents and efficient use of resources. These also represent the areas where I have focused my own work in education.
On high expectations: I encouraged Indiana policy leaders to rewrite state standards that had ranked among the worst in the country and now rank among the best. I helped write Indiana's new accountability law and helped push the Core 40 high school graduation requirement. I also wrote a new law requiring better reporting of high school dropouts and have been a leading advocate for fixing Indiana's broken state testing system.
On choice: I helped write Indiana's charter school law and originated the idea of letting Mayor Bart Peterson oversee charter schools. I have served as a consultant to national charter school leaders and have helped more than a dozen charter schools get started in Indiana, including 21st Century Charter School, Tindley Accelerated School and KIPP school.
On finance: I have helped highlight the majority of education funds that are spent outside of the classroom, much of that on administration and construction debt. I have also helped charter schools to develop successful operating budgets with almost half the funds that are available to traditional public schools. And I have advocated for greater flexibility to allow local districts to focus funds on local priorities.
Each of these areas holds great potential for IPS. In less than a year, Dr. White has gotten a great start on raising expectations and expanding options for parents. I am proud of the work that I have done to help make those changes possible -- especially my work on charter schools -- and I look forward to helping Dr. White expand and implement those efforts.
IPS also faces some tough budget decisions, thanks to poor management by the current board and a continuing exodus of students. With an operating budget that now exceeds $13,000 per student, I can assure taxpayers that I will not seek higher taxes to overcome this challenge. I can also assure current IPS families that teaching positions and other classroom expenditures will be the absolute last place that I will support cutting.
Continued changes in IPS will not be easy, but the futures of our kids, our neighborhoods and our city all depend on it. I look forward to helping with the aggressive reform agenda that Dr. White has recently initiated and I would appreciate your vote on May 2 to help make sure those reforms continue.
Judie Williams, At-large
Education: Attended Hartford, Conn., public schools K-12. Degrees from Central Connecticut State University (B.S. in elementary education), master's degrees from Indiana University (counseling) and Butler University (administration).
Occupation: Served as an educator in Connecticut, Massachusetts, IPS and Wayne Township. Has had personal and professional experiences in private, parochial and public schools.
Personal: A son who attended IPS schools and is an IUPUI graduate and a daughter who graduated from Park Tudor and Purdue University; two grandsons.
As an educator and parent, I was perplexed at the inconsistency in delivery of educational instruction throughout Indianapolis. I learned from my son's educational experience that I had to be an advocate for his success. I learned that I could not just send him to school and expect him to come home with the attitude, knowledge and skills necessary to succeed at the next level.
I learned as I transitioned from suburban to urban schools that there was not equity in resources and expectations.
One thing I know for sure is that a public school system can provide the resources, programs, and opportunities necessary for student success.
My vision for all children in IPS is that they be inspired to work hard and empowered to take advantage of the opportunities available to live purposefully in this world.
There are multiple challenges in IPS that require action to change the direction of the system. It appears that the longer children are in IPS schools, the dumber they are getting. It will take a comprehensive effort to focus on what matters. The IPS budget should reflect that a major percentage of funds are directly channeled into classroom/certified teaching. Presently, it appears that there is almost a 50-50 split between support staff and direct teaching staff. We are reading about teacher cuts when direct time-on-task instruction is a critical area in improving student performance.
It is time for IPS to make the changes necessary to improve student performance.
Teachers need ongoing training and tools to access information available to support student instruction and learning.
Our expectations will determine the attitude and achievement of our children and families. We must go beyond our comfort zones to engage families and communities in the learning process. We must look truthfully at where we are as a district and determine where we need to be. Our time and talent must reflect our mission. We want all students to learn at high levels and reach their potentials to compete in a global world.
Where are we in ensuring opportunities, resources and programs for all children?
All students need to have the information necessary for success at each level of instruction. It is the responsibility of the educational community to know what students must do and what level of competency is necessary to show mastery. This information must not be given to some and kept from others. When information is denied to a group of citizens they become weak and are left behind.
We must do things differently and parents must be a key to this change. Our school system is in crisis. This creates an opportunity to make a positive difference for the future of our society.
Olgen Williams, At-large
Education: Attended IPS School 41 and Shortridge High School; earned B.S., master's and doctoral degrees.
Occupation: Executive director of Christamore House Family and Community Center. Substitute teacher and Sunday school teacher for more than 29 years.
Personal: Wife, Mary, and 11 children.
I have worked with many Indianapolis community and professional organizations. A great deal of that work is centered on children. I am blessed to have a career that allowed me to address these pressing issues of community and youth.
I have lived in the IPS district for more than 45 years.
My memberships and community activities include Human Relations Advisory Council of Wayne Township Schools for more than 18 years, president of the Haughville Community Council, Westside Concerned Dads, board member of Indiana Youth Institute, advisory board member of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Urban Scouting Committee, Great Indianapolis Progress Committee, Indianapolis Race Relations Council, Westside Education Task Force Committee, and George Washington Community School Committee and currently serve on IPS Wendell Phillips School 63 Re-opening Committee.
I am running for the board because I think we need board members who are more accountable to the community and visible to the voters, IPS staff and parents of the students. Some board members are invisible to their community after elections and therefore are not in touch with the staff of IPS, parents, students and community. A board member must listen to the ideas and concerns of the whole community. The School Board should be accountable to the taxpayers to give assurance that funds are being spent wisely and efficiently.
I have concerns about the safety of students and staff and will support plans to ensure that all schools have adequate security and that staff be trained to handle these issues. I would like to see more programs to allow students to receive extra help to pass the ISTEP-Plus and graduation qualifying exams and graduate from high school.
I would like to see more support for:
All children to reach their full potential and become happy, successful adults.
Fostering cooperation among homes, business, churches and schools.
Getting the views and aspirations of parents so they can be partners with the school system in developing programs that help create a culture of learning in the homes.
Helping to close the disparity between the goals of parents and those of educators.
Ending the frustrations of many teachers over lack of control of curriculum planning and decision-making.
If elected to the school board I would continue to serve the Indianapolis community tirelessly to give all children my best to ensure they are receiving an education that is second to none.
Pakistan
This is a letter from a doctor in Pakistan who is concerned about the "race to the finish line" rather than the needs of the people as he sees it. This could be said all over America as well. We want programs NOW but we don't always understand the problems. In fact in America, we don't even know what early childhood is. When the experts figure that one out, the money drain, will stop. Right now I'd advocate a stop, look and listen before we put another dime into early childhood. Our governor here in Indiana is privatizing a lot of state run projects. That's an initiative that would really help early childhood.
Childhood and Globalisation
Sunday April 23, 2006
Pakistan Tribune, Pakistan
I refer to the recently organised conference and symposium on "Early Childhood Development" by the Sindh Education Foundation. I would like to share my observations and point out a few missing things, which I think would have added value and relevance to the conference. Early childhood is the formative period for the development of the personality as a whole. I think that generally we fail to distinguish between its various stages, i.e. early, middle and late childhood, which spans from 0 to twelve years.
It would be helpful to address each period specifically as the needs, issues or problems related to each stage are different. There are three major stakeholders of child development; parents, teachers and experts on human behaviour (psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists, etc). But I noticed from the conference programme that local experts on human behaviour were missing.
The issues and problems discussed and interpreted by parents and teachers would produce more fruitful results and help in finding solutions if human behaviour experts were brought in.
Human diversity is under threat from globalisation and very few sections of the society are conscious of this issue. Unfortunately, it has been observed that institutions and individuals who claim to be creating awareness against the negative impacts of globalisation on culture, language, education and society are themselves engaged in promoting and advancing globalisation.
The Sindh Education Foundation has opened a large number of schools for girls and women in disadvantaged and backward areas. But it tends to produce documents and educational material in English, while there is a dire need for them to be done in Sindhi or Urdu. I was wondering which child was being referred to during the discussions; the rural, the semi urban or the urban.
However, it was obvious that the discussions revolved mainly around the elite child who watches TV, goes to an English medium school and suffers from lack of attention from its busy parents. I think we should be mindful of the fact that alienation from the local people and discouraging diversity are morbid signs of globalisation.
Dr Qadir Abro
President Organization for Mental Health
Karachi
Childhood and Globalisation
Sunday April 23, 2006
Pakistan Tribune, Pakistan
I refer to the recently organised conference and symposium on "Early Childhood Development" by the Sindh Education Foundation. I would like to share my observations and point out a few missing things, which I think would have added value and relevance to the conference. Early childhood is the formative period for the development of the personality as a whole. I think that generally we fail to distinguish between its various stages, i.e. early, middle and late childhood, which spans from 0 to twelve years.
It would be helpful to address each period specifically as the needs, issues or problems related to each stage are different. There are three major stakeholders of child development; parents, teachers and experts on human behaviour (psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists, etc). But I noticed from the conference programme that local experts on human behaviour were missing.
The issues and problems discussed and interpreted by parents and teachers would produce more fruitful results and help in finding solutions if human behaviour experts were brought in.
Human diversity is under threat from globalisation and very few sections of the society are conscious of this issue. Unfortunately, it has been observed that institutions and individuals who claim to be creating awareness against the negative impacts of globalisation on culture, language, education and society are themselves engaged in promoting and advancing globalisation.
The Sindh Education Foundation has opened a large number of schools for girls and women in disadvantaged and backward areas. But it tends to produce documents and educational material in English, while there is a dire need for them to be done in Sindhi or Urdu. I was wondering which child was being referred to during the discussions; the rural, the semi urban or the urban.
However, it was obvious that the discussions revolved mainly around the elite child who watches TV, goes to an English medium school and suffers from lack of attention from its busy parents. I think we should be mindful of the fact that alienation from the local people and discouraging diversity are morbid signs of globalisation.
Dr Qadir Abro
President Organization for Mental Health
Karachi
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Helpful Hints
Robynn sent this. I love helpful hints. Just finished reading a novel by a woman named Anne Douglas Sedgwick 1873-1935. The book was published in 1924 as was really about the difference between the French way of life and the English after WWI. The descriptions were absolutely beautiful, and the soft sweet activities were enviable. The dialogue was to die for and the descriptions of meals, homes, clothes were really quite interesting. You often wonder how people do the things they do to be perfect hosts and hostesses and have perfectly wonderful homes and still be genuine - sans servants. Well here are some easy tips.
Helpful Things-Who Knew??
Sealed envelope - Put in the freezer for a few hours, then slide a knife under the flap. The envelope can then be resealed. (hmmmmmm.).
Use Empty toilet paper roll to store appliance cords. It keeps them neat and you can write on the roll what appliance it belongs to.
For icy door steps in freezing temperatures: get warm water and put Dawn dish washing liquid in it. Pour it all over the steps.
They won't refreeze. (wish I had known this for the last 40 years)
Crayon marks on walls? This worked wonderfully! A damp rag, dipped in baking soda. Comes off with little effort, (elbow grease that is!). Permanent marker on appliances/counter tops (like store receipt BLUE)... Rubbing alcohol on paper towel.
Whenever I purchase a box of SOS Pads, I immediately take a pair of scissors and cut each pad into halves. After years of having to throw away rusted and unused and smelly pads, I finally decided that this could be much more economical. And now a box of SOS pads last me indefinitely! In fact, I have noticed that the scissors get sharpened this way!
Blood stains on clothes? Not to worry! Just pour a little hydrogen peroxide on a cloth and proceed to wipe off every drop of blood. Works every time! Now, where to put the body?
Use vertical strokes when washing windows outside and horizontal for inside windows. This way you can tell which side has the streaks. Straight vinegar will get outside windows really clean. Don't wash windows on a sunny day. They will dry too quickly and will probably streak.
Spray a bit of perfume on the light bulb in any room to create a lovely light scent in each room when the light is turned on.
Place fabric softener sheets in dresser drawers and your clothes will smell freshly washed for weeks to come. You can also do this with towels and linen.
Candles will last a lot longer if placed in the freezer for at least 3 hours prior to burning.
To clean artificial flowers, pour some salt into a paper bag and add the flowers. Shake vigorously as the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt and leave your artificial flowers looking like new! and works like a charm!
To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stove top.
Spray your TUPPERWARE with non stick cooking spray before pouring in tomato based sauces
and there won't be any stains.
Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn's natural sweetness.
Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
Don't throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces. Left over wine? What's that? (lol)
To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area And you will experience instant relief.
Ants, ants, ants everywhere .... Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march. See for yourself.
Use air-freshener to clean mirrors. It does a good job and better still, leaves a lovely smell to the shine.
When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.
Now look what you can do with Alka Seltzer. Clean a toilet. Drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes, brush and flush. The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous China.
(But, but, the stains are above the water line.)
Clean a vase. To remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets.
Polish jewelry. Drop two Alka Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the jewelry for two minutes.
Clean a thermos bottle. Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).
Unclog a drain. Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka Seltzer Tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, then run the hot water.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
The Garden School Tattler
Well, I'm grounded. I've had to go to my room. How long I will stay there depends on how much I behave myself. Not likely.
I never liked to ground my teenagers either - meant they had to stay home with me. Work detail is a lot better trade off than sitting in one's room.
Today I have to sit in my room. The doctor says I overworked my fillet mignon, and only half believing him, I continued to go, go, go and today it's a "go to your room and stop." What I really need is a little meat tenderizer and some time in the field.
Today I had planned to go to early Mass, breakfast with Edith and then go over to school to paint a brick floor in my new learning niche at school would be a great way to spend Saturday. I also wanted to work on the new Chinchilla "environment" but there is always next week.
One of the things my class loves to do is to gather for games. We use a lot of our school work as "do you know" games. It's a really good way of teaching because every single child has the chance of winning, and they all do. It's a matter of listening and doing, and that's what school will demand all their lives. Every child shines every day.
But because I like to have areas to do things, I thought a nice corner with windows, and plants would inspire the children to relax and enjoy the game playing. Game playing is after all supposed to be fun. If I can find those outdoor folding chairs, I'll get those as well. I want to make this learning corner a place the kids love to be.
A classroom is an important thing in a child's life because they spend so much time there, and a classroom should be a place where children ask to play. Using a classroom is an essential part of teaching. By a 40,000 year tradition, people like change of environment during the day. That's why the common day care is simply wrong in its setup. Keeping children confined to a single no change room is cruel.
Changing a small space to seem like it has different environments is the challenge. In my very small room there will be four different places to learn. We will continue to have the long table and blackboard for math and for art. We will have the patio learning center by the south and east windows, we will have the Chinchilla cage with book shelves and chairs for reading and the "Niche" which will eventually be set up as a hands on center for making. There is a loom given to us by Ty's grandfather which is always available for weaving, and the girls have been doing some needlework, and the table there is just perfect for some crafts. I have a spinning wheel as well and would like to teach the children how to card and spin and then work the threads in different ways.
"Junk! Not a part of an academic environment and therefore frivolous!" So spaketh the classroom Nazi. The clean freak with the sparkling floors and the work sheets. Miss Judy does not get along with the CN because all things should be considered.
So consider each section, there is purpose and elegance to a set up that graciously invites children to learn while it actually does the work of real teaching. The patio learning center is a place that offers time for the children to expand reading skills with games. It's a happy place to learn to read because each child is gaining game skill and is answering boldly. When the group activity is done, the child can gravitate toward the reading center and try it on his own. How many times have you read something and been distracted by the antics of a bird or a squirrel and the thinking wheels began to really turn? I'd like to have get two chinchillas and let the children watch them in a close to natural environment.
Craft with the hands stimulate rhythm. It connects thought with do. It helps problem solving, and it ends up a product in the child's hands that says, "I made this all by myself."
So, when the fillet mignon heals, Miss Judy will attack that room with a vengeance.
Next week is show time again. We have been practicing and the kids sound pretty good. This week we will add a few new things just for fun.
We hope the program is as fun for parents as it has been for the kids.
We've been spending a lot of time outside getting the sun so the summer field trips don't surprise the kids.
I never liked to ground my teenagers either - meant they had to stay home with me. Work detail is a lot better trade off than sitting in one's room.
Today I have to sit in my room. The doctor says I overworked my fillet mignon, and only half believing him, I continued to go, go, go and today it's a "go to your room and stop." What I really need is a little meat tenderizer and some time in the field.
Today I had planned to go to early Mass, breakfast with Edith and then go over to school to paint a brick floor in my new learning niche at school would be a great way to spend Saturday. I also wanted to work on the new Chinchilla "environment" but there is always next week.
One of the things my class loves to do is to gather for games. We use a lot of our school work as "do you know" games. It's a really good way of teaching because every single child has the chance of winning, and they all do. It's a matter of listening and doing, and that's what school will demand all their lives. Every child shines every day.
But because I like to have areas to do things, I thought a nice corner with windows, and plants would inspire the children to relax and enjoy the game playing. Game playing is after all supposed to be fun. If I can find those outdoor folding chairs, I'll get those as well. I want to make this learning corner a place the kids love to be.
A classroom is an important thing in a child's life because they spend so much time there, and a classroom should be a place where children ask to play. Using a classroom is an essential part of teaching. By a 40,000 year tradition, people like change of environment during the day. That's why the common day care is simply wrong in its setup. Keeping children confined to a single no change room is cruel.
Changing a small space to seem like it has different environments is the challenge. In my very small room there will be four different places to learn. We will continue to have the long table and blackboard for math and for art. We will have the patio learning center by the south and east windows, we will have the Chinchilla cage with book shelves and chairs for reading and the "Niche" which will eventually be set up as a hands on center for making. There is a loom given to us by Ty's grandfather which is always available for weaving, and the girls have been doing some needlework, and the table there is just perfect for some crafts. I have a spinning wheel as well and would like to teach the children how to card and spin and then work the threads in different ways.
"Junk! Not a part of an academic environment and therefore frivolous!" So spaketh the classroom Nazi. The clean freak with the sparkling floors and the work sheets. Miss Judy does not get along with the CN because all things should be considered.
So consider each section, there is purpose and elegance to a set up that graciously invites children to learn while it actually does the work of real teaching. The patio learning center is a place that offers time for the children to expand reading skills with games. It's a happy place to learn to read because each child is gaining game skill and is answering boldly. When the group activity is done, the child can gravitate toward the reading center and try it on his own. How many times have you read something and been distracted by the antics of a bird or a squirrel and the thinking wheels began to really turn? I'd like to have get two chinchillas and let the children watch them in a close to natural environment.
Craft with the hands stimulate rhythm. It connects thought with do. It helps problem solving, and it ends up a product in the child's hands that says, "I made this all by myself."
So, when the fillet mignon heals, Miss Judy will attack that room with a vengeance.
Next week is show time again. We have been practicing and the kids sound pretty good. This week we will add a few new things just for fun.
We hope the program is as fun for parents as it has been for the kids.
We've been spending a lot of time outside getting the sun so the summer field trips don't surprise the kids.
Friday, April 21, 2006
Fog
There has been a school delay this morning, Friday, April 21 because if Fog. Between my house and school there are some valleys that are treacherous, so we will be there as soon as possible which means about 8:00. E is going to Mass and will head over to school from there and should be arriving about 7:45 if she can.
You can call me at home if you need to know more. (It's in the handboook)
Judy
You can call me at home if you need to know more. (It's in the handboook)
Judy
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Preschool Diets
This came from South Africa as well. It's an excellent article and could be a "ditto" all over the world.
Diets for preschool children
Preschool children and toddlers have similar dietary needs to ensure adequate growth and to prevent nutritional problems such as deficiencies and obesity. However, the quantities of food that preschool children require are larger and the variety of foods they are prepared to accept is greater than in the case of toddlers.
Other factors that play a role
By the time a child reaches the age of four, he or she has become a social being. This impacts considerably on food intake. Some of the factors that can influence children in this age group are obvious, others are subtle and may not be evident to anxious caregivers who despair about the child’s dietary habits.
The following factors can exert an influence on your child’s food intake and food preferences:
a) The family environment
For preschool children the family is the primary influence, which determines what food habits the child develops. If significant role models such as a father or older brother or sister express dislikes for certain foods, then the younger children in such a family may well follow suit.
Caution the older members of the family NOT to show active dislikes of certain foods such as vegetables or fish, if you want your preschool child to learn to eat these nutritious foods.
Once again, it is important to make mealtimes pleasant and relaxed occasions so that the child can eat in peace without stress or anxiety. Don’t turn your shared meals into battle grounds and don’t humiliate your child by making her sit at the table for hours after everyone else has left, ‘to eat all the food on the plate!’. This is a recipe for disaster and will teach the child to fear mealtimes and eating.
Try to remember that children between the ages of four and six still have small stomach capacities and are physically unable to eat large quantities of food. Rather give them small portions and more frequent small meals so that they can eat the food you offer them without creating stress.
Also try to allow sufficient time for the young child to eat his food. It is not his fault that you may be in a tearing hurry to get to work. Putting pressure on children to eat fast can also cause stress and lead to frustrating eating habits. The child may start eating too fast, or even slower than his skills permit, in order to send you a message that he is not feeling happy about rushed meals. This creates a vicious cycle that will make all concerned even more uptight.
b) The influence of society
As mentioned above, preschool children are usually social beings and society can influence their food intake and likes and dislikes considerably.
Dangers of TV watching
Probably the most important external influence on a young child’s life is television. Preschool children watch an alarming amount of TV and are exposed to many advertisements linked to food and beverages. The problem is that young children are highly receptive to glamorous TV messages that are specifically designed to target children. Most of these ads are for foods low in dietary fibre and high in fat or sugar, and energy-rich cold drinks.
In addition to the ‘brain washing’ that young children are subjected to when they watch TV, there is the added danger of them turning into couch potatoes. The couch potato syndrome is one of the main causes of childhood obesity. So if you love your child and want to prevent her from developing all kinds of poor eating habits and turning into a couch potato, then limit the amount of time she spends watching TV.
It is such an easy option to have your child ‘baby-sat’ by the TV when you are busy or too tired to play games with him, but remember that by allowing him to watch unlimited TV, you are creating endless dietary problems for him and for yourself.
In a recent study conducted in the USA, physical inactivity due to excessive TV watching was one of the prime reasons for childhood obesity. So let your children play games and learn to swim and ride a bike. This way, they'll learn to be active for the rest of their lives.
c) Peer group pressure
When young children come into contact with other children of their own age, and these children have poor eating habits, it can complicate things considerably. The only way to stop your children from learning poor eating habits from their friends and at nursery school, is to teach them good habits and warn them that they are going to meet other children who will tell them that it’s ‘cool’ to have chips, sweets and cold drinks.
Help your children by explaining how to counter peer pressure by saying, “Thank you, but I don’t need chips/sweets/drink cold drinks, because they are not healthy and can make you fat! I think it’s cool to eat healthy food/drink healthy drinks”
d) Food at nursery school
Also check what your children are given at nursery school to ensure that they are getting healthy, nutritious food. If the nursery school serves too many cold drinks and sweets and not enough fresh fruit and wholewheat sandwiches with healthy fillings, then talk to the supervisor. After all, you're paying for your child’s care and such care should include healthy food and beverages. – (Dr I.V. van Heerden, registered dietician)
South Africa
It's always interesting to read about other countries and their problems.
Namibia: Girl Child Movement joins AIDS War
April 19, 2006
By Andnetwork .com
The Namibia Girl Child Organisation has in principle decided to throw its weight behind and closely cooperate with various local organisations working among orphans and vulnerable children in the country.
This decision was taken at the organisation’s three-monthly national meeting that was held last weekend at Jacob Morenga Secondary School in Katutura. Branches from around the country were represented at the lively meeting of young girls. Topics discussed during the conference included: the children’s movement and early child to child approach; insight into an early childhood centre; connecting the neurons; HIV/AIDS and the girl child; cooperatives for health; and global warming and the girl child.
Sibongile Majambe, national organiser of the Girl Child Organisation in the Western Cape, was a special guest at the two-day conference under the auspices of the Namibian Women’s Association (NAWA).
“The ‘Child to Child’ approach in assisting communities is as old as the hills because other children in a family have always looked after their younger siblings.
However, this system requires the implementers to be well prepared and coached for the task at hand, whether it is helping children with their homework, early childhood education or running health clubs,” said NAWA’s chairperson, Otilie Abrahams, in welcoming the delegates to the conference on the first day. Her husband, dr Kenneth Abrahams, in his contribution to the conference spoke on “Connecting the Neurons: the Importance of Early Childhood Education”.
“Children learn a second language best before the age of five because that is when the neuronal connections of language are ‘hard-wired’. Thus, we often miss the optimum time for learning, since children only start at the age of seven. What we now know about the early growth of the brain should impel us to re-examine our current education system, in particular with regard to early childhood education.
Through inadequate implementation of early childhood education we are wasting human potential and depriving society of its benefits,” dr Abrahams said.
Janice Henckert, head of the Pre-Primary section at St. Georges Primary School, discussed the cognitive and motor skills necessary for children to acquire, as well as the way to inculcate these.
The coordinator of the HIV/AIDS programme of the Namibia Red Cross Society, Fredrika Herero, encouraged abstinence from sex among the youth in efforts to fight the pandemic. “Girls should not think that they are ready for sexual activity simply because their bodies are changing. Sex is an adult activity, requiring a sense of adult responsibility.
Premature sex and child bearing often cause long-term changes to the body, which could seriously endanger a woman’s health later in life as well as her chances of bearing healthy children,” Herero, who claimed that women are 20 times more likely to contract the HIV/AIDS virus than men, said. Yesterday the Girl Child movement at David Bezui-denhout Secondary School started a four-day winter school in mathematics and science for its members.
TV and Lunch
They actually paid to have this done:
TV Viewing During Lunch Affects Preschool Children's Intake
April 4
In a recent Penn State laboratory study, preschool children who usually eat meals at home while watching TV ate one-third more lunch when they were shown a cartoon video during lunchtime versus when they ate lunch without TV.
The children who did not eat in front of the TV at home and for whom TV viewing during meals and snack was novel, actually ate significantly less on the days the lunchtime cartoon was shown compared to the days on which there was no video.
Dr. Lori Francis, assistant professor of biobehavioral health and first author of the recently published paper on the study, "The study shows that TV viewing can either increase or decrease preschool children's food intakes and suggests that when children consistently view TV during meals, TV viewing may distract children from normal fullness cues which can lead to overeating in children as it may in adults."
In their paper, the researchers write, "To promote self-regulation of energy intake in young children, parents and caregivers should be advised against providing opportunities for children to eat during TV viewing."
The results of the study are detailed in, "Does Eating During Television Viewing Affect Preschool Children's Intake?," published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The authors are Francis and Dr. Leann L. Birch, distinguished professor of human development and family studies, at Penn State.
Twenty-four children, ages three through five, and their mothers participated in the study. The children were all normal weight, predominately European American and middle class.
On two separate days, the children were served lunch in small groups and also shown a 22-minute video of a cartoon version of Dr. Seuss's Daisy-Head Mayzie, which contains the message that love is more important than fame. On two other days, the children ate lunch together but were not shown the cartoon.
The same lunch was served on both the TV days and the non-TV days: pizza, unsweetened applesauce, baby carrots and two percent milk. In addition, the children were offered an afternoon snack of 2 percent milk, fish-shaped baked snack crackers and dried sweetened banana chips.
To measure the children's eating habits at home, their mothers were asked how frequently the child eats snacks while watching TV, how frequently the child eats other meals while watching TV and how frequently the TV is on when meals are eaten together as a family. The mothers also reported on their child's daily TV watching. According to these reports, on average, the children watched 1.5 hours of TV daily and eight of the 24 children (33 percent) usually ate meals or snacks while watching TV.
The results showed that, overall, the children ate significantly less snack and lunch on the TV days compared with the non-TV days. However, children who watched more daily hours of TV or who usually ate in front of the TV at home ate more lunch on the TV days.
The researchers write, "This finding suggests the possibility that children who are given opportunities to eat while watching TV may become less sensitive to internal cues to satiety."
TV Viewing During Lunch Affects Preschool Children's Intake
April 4
In a recent Penn State laboratory study, preschool children who usually eat meals at home while watching TV ate one-third more lunch when they were shown a cartoon video during lunchtime versus when they ate lunch without TV.
The children who did not eat in front of the TV at home and for whom TV viewing during meals and snack was novel, actually ate significantly less on the days the lunchtime cartoon was shown compared to the days on which there was no video.
Dr. Lori Francis, assistant professor of biobehavioral health and first author of the recently published paper on the study, "The study shows that TV viewing can either increase or decrease preschool children's food intakes and suggests that when children consistently view TV during meals, TV viewing may distract children from normal fullness cues which can lead to overeating in children as it may in adults."
In their paper, the researchers write, "To promote self-regulation of energy intake in young children, parents and caregivers should be advised against providing opportunities for children to eat during TV viewing."
The results of the study are detailed in, "Does Eating During Television Viewing Affect Preschool Children's Intake?," published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The authors are Francis and Dr. Leann L. Birch, distinguished professor of human development and family studies, at Penn State.
Twenty-four children, ages three through five, and their mothers participated in the study. The children were all normal weight, predominately European American and middle class.
On two separate days, the children were served lunch in small groups and also shown a 22-minute video of a cartoon version of Dr. Seuss's Daisy-Head Mayzie, which contains the message that love is more important than fame. On two other days, the children ate lunch together but were not shown the cartoon.
The same lunch was served on both the TV days and the non-TV days: pizza, unsweetened applesauce, baby carrots and two percent milk. In addition, the children were offered an afternoon snack of 2 percent milk, fish-shaped baked snack crackers and dried sweetened banana chips.
To measure the children's eating habits at home, their mothers were asked how frequently the child eats snacks while watching TV, how frequently the child eats other meals while watching TV and how frequently the TV is on when meals are eaten together as a family. The mothers also reported on their child's daily TV watching. According to these reports, on average, the children watched 1.5 hours of TV daily and eight of the 24 children (33 percent) usually ate meals or snacks while watching TV.
The results showed that, overall, the children ate significantly less snack and lunch on the TV days compared with the non-TV days. However, children who watched more daily hours of TV or who usually ate in front of the TV at home ate more lunch on the TV days.
The researchers write, "This finding suggests the possibility that children who are given opportunities to eat while watching TV may become less sensitive to internal cues to satiety."
Uganda
In another part of the world:
Uganda: Italian NGO Builds Day-Care Centre in Luzira Prison
April 3, 2006
Jean-Marie
NsambuKampala
AN Italian NGO operating the Family of Africa Orphanage in Uganda, has built a day-care centre for children whose mothers are jailed at Murchison Bay in Luzira Prison.
It is a state-of-the-art day-care centre located within the premises of the women's prisons unit. The Rotary Club of Port Bell will furnish the centre. They will equip it with play items, utensils, bedding, seats and entertainment facilities.
Fr. Felix Sciannameo, the president of the Family of Africa NGO says the centre will be officially opened on April 21 by Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala.
Sciannameo said the above while receiving 40 mattresses worth sh1m from the Rotary Club at the orphanage in Luzira on Friday.
Chief guest Nakawa chairman Protazio Kintu hailed the orphanage and day-care centre and promised to invite Kabaka Ronald Mutebi to "see the great work done to lessen the suffering of children in his kingdom."
Sarah Odongo, the Rotary Club president, said children jailed with their mothers were not less than their counterparts outside. "It is so unfortunate for them to grow up in jail."
"We do not want children to miss out on life because their mothers are in prison," Odongo said.
"We will train and equip the staff to handle the children well. Women prisoners should stop going for work with their babies strapped on their backs."
Odongo said the project would reduce mothers' anxiety knowing their children would be looked after.
Based in Italy, which has a big percentage of its benefactors, Family of Africa looks after about 100 orphans at the Comboni House in Luzira. They all go to primary school.
Those who finish primary school are sent on to St. John's Boarding Secondary School in Mukono.
Sciannameo said Family of Africa also has a branch in Fort Portal where they own an agricultural project. He said the orphans are brought to him by Government authorities, court, probation or education officers.
Family of Africa plans to build another home for prisoners' children outside the prison soon after the opening of the day care centre. Fr. Sciannameo says the home will target older children who are abandoned by society, after their parents are jailed. "The house will be exclusively for unwanted children of prisoners."
He urged Ugandans to reflect on the principle that only Ugandans can best solve Uganda's problems.
Uganda: Italian NGO Builds Day-Care Centre in Luzira Prison
April 3, 2006
Jean-Marie
NsambuKampala
AN Italian NGO operating the Family of Africa Orphanage in Uganda, has built a day-care centre for children whose mothers are jailed at Murchison Bay in Luzira Prison.
It is a state-of-the-art day-care centre located within the premises of the women's prisons unit. The Rotary Club of Port Bell will furnish the centre. They will equip it with play items, utensils, bedding, seats and entertainment facilities.
Fr. Felix Sciannameo, the president of the Family of Africa NGO says the centre will be officially opened on April 21 by Emmanuel Cardinal Wamala.
Sciannameo said the above while receiving 40 mattresses worth sh1m from the Rotary Club at the orphanage in Luzira on Friday.
Chief guest Nakawa chairman Protazio Kintu hailed the orphanage and day-care centre and promised to invite Kabaka Ronald Mutebi to "see the great work done to lessen the suffering of children in his kingdom."
Sarah Odongo, the Rotary Club president, said children jailed with their mothers were not less than their counterparts outside. "It is so unfortunate for them to grow up in jail."
"We do not want children to miss out on life because their mothers are in prison," Odongo said.
"We will train and equip the staff to handle the children well. Women prisoners should stop going for work with their babies strapped on their backs."
Odongo said the project would reduce mothers' anxiety knowing their children would be looked after.
Based in Italy, which has a big percentage of its benefactors, Family of Africa looks after about 100 orphans at the Comboni House in Luzira. They all go to primary school.
Those who finish primary school are sent on to St. John's Boarding Secondary School in Mukono.
Sciannameo said Family of Africa also has a branch in Fort Portal where they own an agricultural project. He said the orphans are brought to him by Government authorities, court, probation or education officers.
Family of Africa plans to build another home for prisoners' children outside the prison soon after the opening of the day care centre. Fr. Sciannameo says the home will target older children who are abandoned by society, after their parents are jailed. "The house will be exclusively for unwanted children of prisoners."
He urged Ugandans to reflect on the principle that only Ugandans can best solve Uganda's problems.
The Garden School Tattler
It was one of those all brakes on days yesterday. We have a spring show to put on in about ten days and the kids decided that they wanted to play outside instead. Ordinarily, I would have taken their lead. It was a truly beautiful day. But we dutifully came inside and sang for about 45 minutes - a long time in the life of a child.
Twelve kids wouldn't sing. Then the twelve began to pull other kids out of the singing until we had a quasi chaos. Probably should have quit, but we pressed on till the end and twelve kids lost their happy faces. That's the most you can do with discipline. Warn, and follow through. Now they know we have to do this, and today will be better. We will reward today as well.
If we were singing five little this or that or some easy songs, it would be one thing, but our music program, although designed for fun is actually very hard. We will be performing the Praise the Lord psalm from Daniel and every child has a part. Then we will move to a song written for the psalm that has lots of parts. There is a chorus and some of the older children have solo parts.
The second song is a blending of the original Shaker song, Tis a Gift to be Simple, Arron Copeland's Appalachian suite, and the newer Lord of the Dance. There's an echo we're trying to do and it's really quite sweet.
We will be singing some for fun songs like "Would You Like To Swing on a Star, Mr. Maestro, and an African song. We will be singing a variation on the Battle Hymn of the Republic and Taps.
These are songs the children picked out. But they have to do it for it to sound like anything.
Yesterday in class, reading was tough and so was math. I suppose we are moving toward summer just like any school and the kids are restless. Otherwise, the behavior was OUTSTANDING. I have never been closer to a group of children nor feel more attached. I think Edith feels the same way. In fact yesterday we couldn't keep the hugs away. There was an actual line and that means more to us than anything.
Anybody have a tiller?
Monday, April 17, 2006
India
This article is important to show the world wide problem of teaching little kids. It almost makes one believe it can't be done.
Once I was in New York City with my family - touring. I've lived in lots of big cities across the nation, so big cities are not new to me - just not my thing, but I thought my own children should see NYC up close. Anyway, we were right behind the Daily News building when we came across a lot of "suits" looking down on a small two inch finch that had for some reason downed in the middle of town. Nobody wanted to touch it. It's a bird - it won't bite. It has a soft bill and no teeth - I promise. So I asked if they would let me take the bird. The suits (business men) were so grateful. I put the tiny bird into a popcorn bag and released it later.
The simplest things like birds and working with children seem to be such huge ordeals all over the world. I think our problem is nature. We are trying so hard to harness nature that we don't have time to see that we only need to relax and watch nature to be able to step in and work with it. Teaching a three year old is not hard if you watch how they learn. It's like the suits. There's this huge block of suits behind desks trying desperately to dictate how to create this mega nationwide preschool program for children.
Here's the answer: grab a popcorn bag blow it up, pop it and talk to children about the things they see. Grab a book and read it and bring them into the reading. It could be the dictionary, they don't care, they just want the human contact, the love, the interest, neat stuff to know, and try. A good preschool program isn't written in dark suited closets, it's lived every day just a little differently because every day in the life of a child is different.
How do you know how to do this? It's easy if you know how to live yourself.
CHENNAI :
The new syllabus for kindergarten in matriculation schools promises to change the face of early childhood education in the State, according to members of the Tamil Nadu Forum for Crèche and Childcare Services (TN-FORCES).
However, lack of governmental will and absence of adequate number of trainers for pre-primary teachers could slow down its implementation, they said.
There are some schools which have not yet received the new syllabus and several more where teachers were not informed of the new syllabus that came into force in the 2005-2006 academic year. The syllabus takes into account that children are beginning to attend school from as early as three years. Outdoor activities, games, oral recitation of numbers and alphabets are some of its units, with an emphasis on activity rather than the 3Rs.
Teaching the new syllabus will require most of the pre-primary teachers to radically change their teaching regimes.
Educationists pointed out that pre-primary teachers are on the lowest rung of the teaching hierarchy.
They are also worried about the mushrooming of teacher training institutes in the State with no recognition or proper guidelines, often run by trainers with little or no back ground in early childhood education (ECE).
Trainers have said that a teacher trainer needs a background in ECE with practical experience to conduct programmes. There were no government-recognised qualifications for pre-primary teachers, until the Tamil Nadu Open University introduced the Diploma in Pre-Primary Education recently.
"Though the diploma can be administered in 198 centres, none of these centres have had training in the teaching of the course itself," said Prema Daniel, consultant on early childhood education.
Curriculum formulation
Ms. Daniel has been part of an initiative to formulate a curriculum for ECE teacher training. Their proposed curriculum now awaits the recognition of the National Council for Teacher Education. TN-FORCES is trying to partially remedy the lack of experienced teacher trainers with a workshop to emphasise the methodology of training in early May. Linked to the new syllabus, it will be conducted by experts such as Meena Swaminathan and representatives from the Indian Council for Child Welfare, Vidya Vikasini and Kothari Academy.
The workshop will aim to introduce the participants to the modern trends in ECE and provide knowledge of how children develop and learn.
Organisers also hope that it will enable teaching through the experiential method and help implement and monitor courses in ECE.
The workshop is scheduled to be held from May 2 to 5 at the ICSA on Pantheon Road, Egmore. For details, contact TN FORCES on 28175659.
Once I was in New York City with my family - touring. I've lived in lots of big cities across the nation, so big cities are not new to me - just not my thing, but I thought my own children should see NYC up close. Anyway, we were right behind the Daily News building when we came across a lot of "suits" looking down on a small two inch finch that had for some reason downed in the middle of town. Nobody wanted to touch it. It's a bird - it won't bite. It has a soft bill and no teeth - I promise. So I asked if they would let me take the bird. The suits (business men) were so grateful. I put the tiny bird into a popcorn bag and released it later.
The simplest things like birds and working with children seem to be such huge ordeals all over the world. I think our problem is nature. We are trying so hard to harness nature that we don't have time to see that we only need to relax and watch nature to be able to step in and work with it. Teaching a three year old is not hard if you watch how they learn. It's like the suits. There's this huge block of suits behind desks trying desperately to dictate how to create this mega nationwide preschool program for children.
Here's the answer: grab a popcorn bag blow it up, pop it and talk to children about the things they see. Grab a book and read it and bring them into the reading. It could be the dictionary, they don't care, they just want the human contact, the love, the interest, neat stuff to know, and try. A good preschool program isn't written in dark suited closets, it's lived every day just a little differently because every day in the life of a child is different.
How do you know how to do this? It's easy if you know how to live yourself.
CHENNAI :
The new syllabus for kindergarten in matriculation schools promises to change the face of early childhood education in the State, according to members of the Tamil Nadu Forum for Crèche and Childcare Services (TN-FORCES).
However, lack of governmental will and absence of adequate number of trainers for pre-primary teachers could slow down its implementation, they said.
There are some schools which have not yet received the new syllabus and several more where teachers were not informed of the new syllabus that came into force in the 2005-2006 academic year. The syllabus takes into account that children are beginning to attend school from as early as three years. Outdoor activities, games, oral recitation of numbers and alphabets are some of its units, with an emphasis on activity rather than the 3Rs.
Teaching the new syllabus will require most of the pre-primary teachers to radically change their teaching regimes.
Educationists pointed out that pre-primary teachers are on the lowest rung of the teaching hierarchy.
They are also worried about the mushrooming of teacher training institutes in the State with no recognition or proper guidelines, often run by trainers with little or no back ground in early childhood education (ECE).
Trainers have said that a teacher trainer needs a background in ECE with practical experience to conduct programmes. There were no government-recognised qualifications for pre-primary teachers, until the Tamil Nadu Open University introduced the Diploma in Pre-Primary Education recently.
"Though the diploma can be administered in 198 centres, none of these centres have had training in the teaching of the course itself," said Prema Daniel, consultant on early childhood education.
Curriculum formulation
Ms. Daniel has been part of an initiative to formulate a curriculum for ECE teacher training. Their proposed curriculum now awaits the recognition of the National Council for Teacher Education. TN-FORCES is trying to partially remedy the lack of experienced teacher trainers with a workshop to emphasise the methodology of training in early May. Linked to the new syllabus, it will be conducted by experts such as Meena Swaminathan and representatives from the Indian Council for Child Welfare, Vidya Vikasini and Kothari Academy.
The workshop will aim to introduce the participants to the modern trends in ECE and provide knowledge of how children develop and learn.
Organisers also hope that it will enable teaching through the experiential method and help implement and monitor courses in ECE.
The workshop is scheduled to be held from May 2 to 5 at the ICSA on Pantheon Road, Egmore. For details, contact TN FORCES on 28175659.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Cheese Sauce from the Garden School Tattler
This is Floyd and Ethel just hanging out over at the big public pond in Washington. They're expecting, and I thought a nice picture to send to the family....
Some of you have asked about the cheese sauce we use at the GS. Since it's Easter and most of us have some cooking to do, I'm publishing this today - better late than never. This cheese sauce can be used in chicken pot pie, quiche, mac and cheese, scalloped potatoes, and over anything else that needs a cheese sauce. For a total protein effect, use only dairy products. Remember low fat means high sugar and fake anything tastes fake.
For a big family or a half gallon:
1/4 cup butter or margarine or olive oil - melt or heat
1/4 cup flour - any kind - make a paste
6 cups of milk - any kind - stir with a whisk until smooth.
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese. You can use American, Parmesan, Swiss, but not oil based - makes it taste like soap.
At this point add two tablespoons ground chicken bouillon and a little salt.
When it comes to a boil, remove and add 1 cup of sour cream.
Pour over sliced potatoes, cooked mac, or anything else. You can bake this stuff again.
It's either the cholesterol for the week or a child's protein for a day.
I made candy last night for Annie and Molly. It's rocky road:
In a Cuisinart, put 2 sticks of margarine or butter, a box of powdered sugar and grind into a paste. Add 1/4 cup cocoa, a handful of walnuts, a handful of coconut, a handful of chocolate chips, a handful of little marshmallows. Stir - don't grind.
Roll dough into balls and put into the freezer for 20 minutes.
Stab each one with a tooth pick or the prongs from last year's turkey harness.
Dip the balls in a combo of melted chocolate and a little paraffin if you have it.
Happy Easter
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Happy Easter
A Bunny Story from Beliefnet
Once upon a time there was a man who was peacefully driving down a windy road. Suddenly, a bunny skipped across the road and the man couldn't stop. He hit the bunny head on. The man quickly jumped out of his car to check the scene. There, lying lifeless in the middle of the road, was the Easter Bunny. The man cried out, "Oh no! I have committed a terrible crime! I have run over the Easter Bunny!"
The man started sobbing quite hard and then he heard another car approaching. It was a woman in a red convertible. The woman stopped and asked what the problem was.The man explained, "I have done something horribly sad. I have run over the Easter Bunny. Now there will be no one to deliver eggs on Easter, and it's all my fault."
The woman ran back to her car. A moment later, she came back carrying a spray bottle. She ran over to the motionless bunny and sprayed it. The bunny immediately sprang up, ran into the woods, stopped, and waved back at the man and woman. Then it ran another 10 feet, stopped, and waved. It then ran another 10 feet, stopped, and waved again. It did this over and over and over again until the man and the woman could no longer see the bunny.
Once out of sight, the man exclaimed, "What is that stuff in that bottle?"
The woman replied, "It's harespray. It revitalizes hare and adds permanent wave."
Teaching Numbers from The Garden School Tattler
Yes! Miss Abby is helping the other children with their math by going to the board and explaining how we get the answer right! Indifference and knowledge are two very different things. Perhaps numbers are not important to her.
Numbers became very important to my son when he flunked algebra as a freshman. It was at that point that he realized it was a matter of being in the race or out of it. I bought him a $2.00 desk at an auction - a big thing that would seat eight so he would have a real place to do what he wanted to do - that's a mother's job - to provide a place, and a time and the enthusiasm surrounding the deed - and he went to work learning all about math on his own. His problems are still on the desk. I flipped the top and keep the precious work as a memory. He now has a degree in math and does quantum mechanics for fun on the way home from work for fun. "I don't deal in real numbers, Mom," he has been known to say. That's for sure.
Personally, I couldn't care less about numbers. I took algebra, geometry, integrated algebra and trig, did a little calculus and touched on statistics in college, but I was more of a guest in the classroom than a participant. I was polite, I held the door, and my tests were neat. I even put my name on them.
In my adult life, give me a budget parameter and I will stay within my limits because I believe in fair play. If someone else is going to do the numbers, I'll play fair. But everyone uses simple arithmetic every day, and we need to have some concept of what numbers are and how they can be used.
If you are a baker like I am, you need to know the difference between a teaspoon of baking powder and a tablespoon. If you need to know how many feet there are in the room by eye, you better be able to come close. If a recipe for pancakes is one thing, you better be able to quadruple it without the baking powder exploding. You need to understand why double bed sheets only go on one way and king both ways. You need to understand temperature degrees and whether you're going to kill something if you put it out too soon. You need to know how many cans of cat food you need a day and be able to multiply that by seven and then cross reference the weight to know whether your car load will manage to carry it, and how many miles your car gets to the gallon - or in my case gallons to the mile.
If you're at the store and the cash register is broken, it's one thing to be able to console the young girl behind the counter, but it's another to be able to do the change making. "Just count up." "Up from what?" "From the price plus the tax to the ten dollar bill." "Huh?" And I thought my math skills were poor.
Teaching math to 4-5s is fun because they discover. Now here's the picture: There's this pernicious little chart in a soft blue and yellow that is taped onto the blackboard. The children brilliantly ignore it. "What's that?" Avoidance is a passion they are adept at. No one answers. "Here's a copy of it," and I put a paper in front of each child. "These are the numbers from 1 to 100. There are rows and columns. Let's understand the terminology: a row goes across like this, and the columns go up and down like this. Now put your finger on the ten," and so goes the lesson.
We will continue to explain that each row contains ten numbers that relate to one another by a similar tens count. Each ROW has the same number of tens - 21,22,23,24 - each have two tens and a certain number of ones.
In a column the last number is the same: 6, 16, 26, 36, 46. So finding a number is easy if you know that you need to find the tens and the ones. 36 - find it. Either go to the six column and count down, ones, tens, twenties, thirties bingo. Or go to the left side and count ones, tens, twenties thirties and then find the six. This is a matter of following a scheme or a formula. Kids will be using simple and complex formulas all their lives.
My goal is to allow this age child to discover fewer and more, what "how many" really is, ones and tens and why, and a sense of what a ten based number system is all about. Writing numbers is a matter of development just like handwriting. Bingo was never more complicated.
And who gets all these concepts? Abby. Now if I could get her to understand the baking powder, she could make the pancake batter...
The picture is a house on the battlefield of Gettysburg. I love the stone work. Can you imagine the math!
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