Thursday, May 23, 2013
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New Program Brings "New Mindset" To SchoolsFor the first time, Anchorage middle and high school students will be systematically tested in reading and math through a new program called Response to Instruction.Besides homework, quizzes, midterms and finals, Anchorage School District students grades seven and up are preparing themselves for another kind of test this year. "I think it's just another tool, if you will,” said Superintendent Carol Comeau. “But it's across the system, so all teachers are going to benefit."
For the first time, Anchorage middle and high school students will be systematically tested in reading and math through a new program called Response to Instruction.
"We haven't had assessments in the core areas: reading, writing, or I should say, reading and mathematics, those two core areas, before,” said school board President Gretchen Guess.
Previously, Comeau said the district relied on results from state-mandated, standardized tests administered in April.
Now, district officials say the new program will change the way they educate thousands of Anchorage students.
“Before, you would teach to your student all year, they would take the test in the spring, and the following October, after you don't have that student anymore, you would find out where that student was at,” Guess said. “That's not that helpful, to be honest with you."
They said the program would allow teachers to monitor students throughout the year, and customize their lessons.
"If a student is not proficient or is struggling in a certain way, they can intervene immediately,” Guess said.
But more than just a new set of tests, Guess said it’s a new mindset for the entire district.
"It's much more of a mindset of, we want every child to reach their potential, we are expecting every child to grow during the year," Guess said. "It isn't ok anymore to have certain kids that are bored in school."
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Anonymous said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 1:41 PM
When I was in High school in 11th & 12th grade I had a history teacher who would assign 10 to 15 pages of reading a night and then the next day you were subject to a 10 question pop quize. He also had selected books to read and do reports on such as "Animal Farm". We also had progress tests every 2 to 3 weeks. I learned more about life from this teacher than any other teacher I had while in school. Oh, yes if you could not pass the tests with a 70% you FAILED and got no credit for the course. I graduated from High School in 1967. Today a student is not given a failing grade and held back but given a participated certificate. Also a failed grade in core subjects kept you from playing any sports.
72695552Dan said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 2:53 PM
The educational system is pathetic. We will never get out of school what we should be getting because of the union quagmire. The focus has strayed, and it's good to see the 2 most important subjects being thrown a bone in an hour of desperation by the fools running this mess, but until more than 1/20th of 1 percent actually reaches our kids, instead of union bank accounts, there won't be much improvement.
72697979jjj said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 3:46 PM
the United States ranks 26th in education in the world. 80% of property taxes goes to the educational system. What are they doing with the money????
72699554Steven said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 7:08 PM
$30,000.00 dollars is going to the Federal Government... out of every ones paycheck... of the 140 million people who actually work in this country. 140 million times $30,000.00 thousand dollars is $4.2 Trillion dollars. That's what the Federal Government spent this year. Being that these same people who graduated college in 1967....and well before our children, can't count....can't balance a checkbook....and failed the no College Student Left Behind Mathematics Test, (administered at Harvard)..................................... Shouldn't we as people with opinions.....be concentrating on the federal government ripping us off and lying about the theft.....rather than bashing our children incessantly? Especially since most of them can balance a frigging checkbook! What have Colleges given us....but a bunch of thieving fools....who have bankrupted the country....and made it the mission of these same children....to send all their tax money to support everyones SSI that are griping.
72705777Anonymous said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 8:45 PM
65 million people are currently on Social Security....80 million baby boomers are going to retire right behind them in the next 14 years. 145 million old people sitting around collecting old peoples benefits. We only have 140 million people working as of today in the USA. These little kids you incessantly complain about....and the tax money putting them through school....are going to be paying $3.5 Trillion a year...for all the people complaining right now......to sit at home on Social Security. Since you will need some of these children to wipe your old hiney and change your Depends ....I'd pay for the schooling...and quit whining all the time. These same children....will be paying $25,000.00 thousand dollars a year for every Social Security recipient to sit at home and watch the wheel of fortune. $25,000.00 Thousand dollars times 140 million workers equals $3.5 Trillion dollars. But the people incessantly complaining about paying taxes for schools....think they are paying to much
72708051akbandit said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 9:34 PM
With a school board president using horrible grammar such as "where that student was at", what can we really hope for in the way of improvement??? The 'No Child Left Behind' program is a pathetic joke. Let's hope this 'new and improved' test (which is just basic common sense!) will actually bear some results that truly help all students. Reading is key. If you can't read and comprehend, you're screwed for learning anything else. If you can, you can teach yourself if need be, especially in this age of open source information. Math is important, but economics is more important. If kids don't learn how money works, and how to make money work FOR them, instead of being ripped off by credit rates and payday loans and rent-to-own outfits, they will still struggle all of their lives. We live in a money driven society, yet very few people are educated about how money really works. Crazy.
72708753Steven said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 10:20 PM
AK BANDIT Economics matters????? Give us all a break. These Harvard educated idiots are spending $4.2 Trillion dollars on the Federal Budget. We now have 140 million people who actually work in the United States that owe $30,000.00 thousand dollars this year alone on the federal debt. 140 million times $30,000.00 dollars equals $4.2 Trillion . How about those college educated friends in the White House and Congress. They spent this money......which these kids in school, will ultimately be responsible to pay back. But you want to concentrate on economics for kids in schools??? Why don't you have a course in bank robbing introduced by your College educated friends? Economics 101 in your world....equals trillions of dollars of theft by college educated Senators...Congressmen...and Presidents. Lets worry about grammar instead.Different ways to explain ripped off....stolen....sneak thievery....and so on and so forth.
72709384Anonymous said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 10:23 PM
good days ahead
72709418akbandit said on Sunday, Aug 21 at 10:54 PM
Steven- Thanks for PERFECTLY illustrating my point! The average citizen has never learned the truth about how money works, and doesn't have a clue about how this country's financial system works. All they know, which even you know, is how to spout off numbers representing government waste. Obviously you didn't comprehend my comment fully, because what I was referring to is economics at a personal level. Not just how to balance a checkbook, but how to know a good deal from a bad one, how to use borrowing to your advantage, how to understand terms of contracts, how compounding works, how amortization works..... I go to any store and find clerks who literally cannot make change without the register telling them what the amount is. MAYBE, just maybe, if the average citizen had a better education in economics, this federal debt nonsense would have been reigned in a long time ago. You can choose to be bitter and recite depressing facts, or proactive and truly educate the next generation.
72709802Anonymous said on Monday, Aug 22 at 5:20 AM
To the posters wondering where the money goes and what the taxpayers get for it, I have no idea, but I suspect that part of the problem lies with Comeau's statement"....this will benefit every teacher." If benefiting the teacher is what the school district is about, there's a clue to the problems right there.
72716766akbandit said on Monday, Aug 22 at 5:56 AM
The context of that statement was that this testing will be a useful tool, and thus beneficial to all teachers. It wasn't referring to monetary compensation. Rather, that a teacher with a new group of students will have better access to more useful information on each of those students, to (hopefully) be better able to teach each of them. I don't think throwing money at education is in any way a good thing. But directing funds in specific ways that are shown to be effective is definitely worth it.
72718681akrock said on Monday, Aug 22 at 9:47 AM
"We haven't had assessments in the core areas: reading, writing, or I should say, reading and mathematics, those two core areas, before,” said school board President Gretchen Guess." I've often wondered why the intelligence of most young people these days is at or below the 6th grade level, now I know why.
72731544jjj said on Tuesday, Aug 23 at 2:59 PM
the system is broke!! broke in every way!! Money won't fix it! The United States Goverment is the biggest joke on the planet! And YOU are gonna let THEM tell you how to fix it. What a joke!
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