ED in ‘08 best education blog - and the winner is…

Holly Zardus wrapped up the ED in ‘08 blogger summit by presenting the 2008 Bloggers’ Choice Award. The first-place recipient is an unconventional blog from a teacher who blogs with his classroom: the South Titan Government Blog, taught by Ray Keller, a high school history teacher.

In the submission for nomination, Keller wrote,

“As a secondary government teacher in a public school, I am trying to find ways to get my students to begin to voice their opinions. Most of my students would rather type or text about an issue, than to speak about it in class. I have had almost 2000 comments posted by high school students in my first year of having the blog. These comments were not required as assignments for the class and many students truly expressed their opinions on many issues ranging from illegal immigration to the campaign ads.”

Congratulations to Mr. Keller and his students.

I’d also like to recognize Tracy Bryant Stuckey, writer of Early Education is the Key who was the runner up for this year’s award.

The statement from the nomination form:

“Tracey offers her readers insightful information that causes them to reflect on the role they can begin taking toward educational change. She offers parents solutions to educational problems and she gives examples of how we got to where we are in the first place. She is definitely a teacher and an advocate for developing 21st century skills in young children.”

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR YOUR VOTES!!! This is a great way to spread the word about early education reform! You are the best!

Tracey

Education yields results in the economy

 

Nobody can deny the research - for every one dollar we spend in early education we see a seventeen dollar return in the future:  Lower crime rates, less dollars needed for courts and prisons and a reduced burden on taxpayers to afford people on welfare.  Yet during this campaign of 2008 we are consistently hearing that the economy is our number one issue right now. 

Well yes, I agree it is a very important issue, but I also say… it will get no better without a change in its catalyst - education!  Did educated minds decide to take on mortgages they couldn’t afford?  If so, those minds weren’t educated enough.  Did educated minds grow so dependent on foreign oil that it is now sending even middle class into situational poverty due to the cost of living?  If so, those minds weren’t educated enough.  We must look at our education system and how we teach our children to think about the world and their place in it.  Why are so many Americans financially illiterate – could it be that we don’t teach financial literacy?  Why do so many Americans believe they have no control over the destiny of our environment and resources – could it be that we don’t value teaching math and sciences to a high enough standard in our country?  We must revamp high schools to reduce the drop-outs and increase the highly-skilled workforce in America.  Make history come alive to our students.  Help them see history as things that happened in the past but also that it provides ideas for how to improve the future.  

We must know that our economy is a direct result of our education system.  Educational returns are seen over time.  No candidate will be able to offer a miracle “overnight cure” for the economy, nor will they do this with education.  However, if we all work together and pull our own weight for educational reform, we will see amazing returns in our economy.  Get on the bus with ED in ‘08 - join the fight to put education at the top of all political and household discussions.  As I always say, early education is the key to a prosperous tomorrow!

My blog is one of the finalists for the 2008 ED in ‘08 Blog Award. Please take a moment to follow this link http://www.edin08.com/bloggersummit/bloggerpoll.aspx and vote for EARLY EDUCATION IS THE KEY!  Thanks for your vote and your support of education!

 

What is your child’s education worth?

Many stories in state newspapers are highlighting improvements and budgetary allocations for early childhood state programs.  For someone who believes early childhood education is the key, I am quite honestly thrilled!  Many of these states are strapped for funds but are finding ways to make education a priority.  In the comment sections following the articles many parents are critical of these programs because they are just for the “poor” or they say something like “thank goodness for this new bill because I am not going to pay for something I already pay for through taxes.” 

OK - so how important is education on your family’s priority list?  Is it really so trivial that parents can wait to begin education when the state starts paying for the programs, which in most states is 5 year old kindergarten unless you fall into the low-income category or if your child has special needs?

I can’t help but cringe when I hear people speak of not wanting to or not being willing to sacrifice for their child’s education.  Let’s think about everybody who has become anybody in this world - what catapulted them to their place in society?  EDUCATION did!  Education is the single biggest investment a family can make for prolonged success, happiness and freedom from poverty.  Let’s also think about how we treat things that we don’t pay up front for - the way I treat a house I am renting may not be the way I would treat something I pay for as an asset each month?  If I get a product or service for free I am likely to take advantage of it or treat it with less care as one I paid hard earned money for? 

So often we think of education as something that is “free.”  We do pay for education and if we only depend on what the government (our taxes) pays for, then we certainly will get what we paid for.”  I just pulled out my property tax bill from 2007 to see exactly how much I invested in my child’s local education, assuming I only invest what I pay in property taxes.  Mind you, I am a parent who looks forward to an Ivy League college graduate when my son exits college, therefore mediocre is beyond unacceptable for me.  I paid a total of $323.00 in school taxes last year.  As far as state income tax, I received a hefty return on what I paid the state government so not much was paid there either. So… if I depend solely on the government to educate my child, I will get just what I paid for - a $323.00 education.  Maybe it is just me, but that is simply unacceptable. 

What is my child’s education worth?  It is worth whatever I have to pay to provide him with individualized attention, rigor, opportunities and global experiences.  I must prioritize where I spend my money and think about the sacrifices I can make to offer him rich experiences that are over and beyond the mediocre education I invest in through taxes each year.  Go ahead… figure out how much your child’s education is worth.

Preschool is a wonderful opportunity for your child to learn to get along with others, figure out how the world works, learn basic skills and develop attitudes about school.  Every child should have the opportunity to attend the absolute best preschool because it is a family’s priority. Early education is the key – begin from birth creating your family’s plan and acting on it!

 

Here we go again – more wasted money attributed to No Child Left Behind

The $1 billion-a-year Reading First program, authorized under the No Child Left Behind Act, has had no measurable effect on students’ reading comprehension. The long-awaited interim report from the Reading First Impact Study , released last week by the Institute of Education Sciences, says that students in schools receiving grants from the federal program have not fared any better than their counterparts in comparison schools in gaining meaning from print.

Its purpose was to help improve reading instruction in the nation’s struggling schools by focusing students on explicit and systematic instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension.

 

So what were the results?  Well… students’ understanding of reading material did not change significantly whether or not they were in Reading First schools. In fact, researchers determined that without the Reading First funding in 2004-2005 and 2005-2006, children in grades 1 – 3 would not have lost (in 3^rd grade) or gained (1^st and 2^nd) more than 3 percentage points.  (Source: Institute of Education Sciences)

 

Thankfully, congress cut the budget for the program by 60% in October (for the 2008 fiscal year).  These cuts were driven mostly by federal reports that suggested conflicts of interest had occurred among officials and contractors who helped implement the program. Some contractors were tied to commercial reading programs used in participating schools.

 

However, a bigger problem has plagued the program, the problem of a drastically narrowed focus on basic (low level) skills, at the expense of critical thinking and understanding literature and nonfiction.  Reading instruction is a comprehensive task.  You can’t focus all of the child’s time on basic phonemic awareness and decoding skills and expect to have a fluent reader and writer.  If you teach and expect mastery of only basic skills, you will get only basic results.

 

Background knowledge is crucial in building students’ reading skills and their ability to understand subject-area texts. The teaching of content and interesting content has obviously been neglected through this program.  How is the learning relative to the child’s life and interest?  Why would a child want to read if they are subjected to educational boredom through drill and practice style reading activities?

 

Specific skills are important, but you can’t just teach the low level skills and assume the other skills will emerge by themselves.  Too much time has already been wasted with this program’s basic fanfare, that’s time that’s being stolen from recess, math and science class, and the children are getting nothing in return.  We are in a global society.  We need to connect students learning to 21^st century skills.  We need to empower students to reach higher than a basic level of understanding and knowledge.

 

My opinion – shameful!  Early education is the key to future success.  We must teach our children from birth and we must motivate others around us to do the same.  Give your child the world – set expectations high for educational development before he even begins school!

 

ED in ‘08 education blog - please vote for me

My blog is one of the finalists for the 2008 ED in ‘08 Blog Award. Please take a moment to follow this link http://www.edin08.com/bloggersummit/bloggerpoll.aspx and vote for EARLY EDUCATION IS THE KEY! 

 I appreciate your support of my blog and education!

Below you will find a description of why Ed in ‘08 exists:

Did you know that 70 percent of eighth graders in American schools are below proficient in reading, and that most will never catch up?

Strong American Schools is a nonpartisan public awareness and advocacy effort aimed at elevating discussion amongst America’s leaders about the need for education reform. The ED in ‘08 campaign is calling for a vigorous and thorough discussion of the issue by the candidates for president in 2008.

We have to act now to improve education before more American students lose out on the best jobs, hurting our economy and impacting each and every one of us.

Visit http://www.edin08.com/ and join me in supporting this important campaign by signing up for email alerts and learning about the education crisis facing our country.