Study Finds a Drop in Percentage of Latinos in Preschools

The percentage of Latinos in a 4 year period from 2005 to 2009 has dropped in enrollment because of the steady decline in the economy. Many Latino parents have lost jobs and are unable to pay for preschool fees. When they are compared to their White and African American peers, those two groups have managed to stay in the preschool system even though the life situations are similar. One of the problems that many Latino families face is the accessibility to these services. They may have to rely on public transportation or other less convenient sources of transportation. The article summarizes this point with this, "Until Latino children gain equal access to preschools that display robust quality , it's difficult to see how early achievement gaps can be narrowed."

The argument here is find ways to close the achievement gap within this population and to observe the effectiveness of early childhood education in those precious preschool years. I believe that early childhood education is important for the development of a child to get on the school track at an early age, however, I don't think it's completely necessary. Firstly, the cost of sending a child or multiple children can be very costly especially for low income families and limit them for further growth. One thing that these lower income families could do in stead to save them the cost; they could go to the local public library and check out books and read at home to get a head start in the literacy race, and the best part is, it won't cost them nearly as much as preschooling would be.

Most Students Don't Meet 'Proficient' Bar on NAEP in Civics

A recent report in Education Week showed that many of our young people in this country fall below proficient or advanced in the area of civics. For example, within this past year, the nation's 4th graders were scoring proficient at about 27%, while the rest of them were at a basic understanding for the subject. There were two other grades that were tested as well (8th and 12th), and these percentages were also just as not impressive. However, some good news, the article mentioned some gains within the Hispanic population of students. At all three grade levels, Hispanic students made some great leaps in the test scores in the past years and have made some steady improvement to date.

This isn't the first time that I've heard about students falling below average in this area of school subjects. I recently heard a news report of a percentage of high school seniors not able to locate certain middle eastern countries on a map, even though there is plenty of U.S. involvement in many of those countries. On one hand, this fact may be a result of ignorance, or on the other, having a lack of interest in learning about these foreign nations and their history. If one of the objectives of schooling is to help foster young minds gain a greater awareness of the things around them and an appreciation of other cultures, doesn't it make sense to have this type learning occur in our classrooms. And yes, this means to be able to locate countries on a map as well.

2011 Teacher of the Year Sees 'Abilities, Not Disabilities'

Michelle Shearer was named the teacher of the year and was honored in a ceremony at the White House recently. Within this next year, she will be touring around the country to encourage other fellow teachers to focus on science, technology, engineering, and math; and make those accessible for all students, including those with special needs.

I think it's great to see a great teacher of her caliber to be recognized nationally at the White House. This just shows how the leaders of this country respect teachers and it's awesome to see some good in the news in spite of changing system and economic turmoil. I'd like to see more stories like this in Education Week so that the image of the teaching profession can gain more appreciation and the light be shone on towards kids and the citizens of this great country. This should be a reminder of how lucky we are to live in such a freer nation than many others around the world.

Quality of Summer Teachers Examined

As another school year is coming to a close, the summer is nearing and so is summer school! This can be crucial time for both students and teachers. For students, it's a time to get ahead in their coursework or to catch up with credit retrieval. For teachers, it's time to be evaluated and careful chosen because of the budget constraints many districts are facing in these harsh economic times. With many districts, teachers are hand picked using the value added system. These days, there seem to be added pressure for students to perform well especially during the summer days where many students experience summer learning loss. A major factor to keep from having students lose what they've learned over the past year is the effectiveness of the teacher.

When it comes to hiring great teachers to facilitate summer school sessions, I feel that there is no easy method of evaluating their performance because no matter which form one uses, the basis of interpretation can be subjective. In order to have a system that is non bias and much more fair, systems based on bringing in outside opinions that hold no stake in the betterment of one candidate over another might be a much more fair way of going about hiring. For example, in sports such as basketball, referees are hired from outside of a district and even sometimes the state to do the officiating because they are less likely to favor one team over the other and make calls more fairly.

Budget Cuts Hit Close to the Bone in Districts Nationwide

There have been many cuts to well protected programs of many years within this past year that have a huge impact on the communities that the schools serve. Many summer school programs have been eliminated, along with music programs and even our beloved sports programs that many schools hold dear to. Another area that has been greatly reduced is with transportation and buses. For example, in the Bayless District of St. Louis, the school board voted to eliminate bus transportation to save $250,000. When it comes to sports programs, many districts would save up to a few million dollars if they cut those programs to help use the budget sparingly.


My initial reaction to this article was, "What is the world coming to?" and "Where in the world are our priorities?". It's sad to see so many programs that have to be eliminated because of budget shortfalls and poor economic planning for those rainy days. Well, here is the rainy days! I think that so many times we take things for granted and when our nation is faced with difficult times like these budget cuts, we lose out on all of the great programs that we used to have and now have to get rid of. Maybe this is a lesson that the whole country can learn from for the future.

Changing Policy to End Anti-Gay Bullying

In a recent report in the Social Policy Report, it states that schools that take explicit action to prevent bullying based on gender, race, or sexuality go a long way toward creating a positive climate for all students. Today's youth are expressing sexual identities at much younger ages than ever before. This means that LGBT kids are being harassed and bullied much earlier because they don't quite fit in with the status quo or the mainstream. To ensure more attention and safety for these students, many educators are pushing for policies to be put in place to keep them safe.

This is a sensitive area within schools and students that I don't have a lot of experience with. However, just like any other students, LGBT students must be protected of their rights as well to be educated and not discriminated against. Schools need to have their best interests in mind as well, especially with safety because these students are going to be opposed by many of their peers and they should have every right to be at school and feel safe.

An educator's Role in A Pop Culture World

This was a reflection by Michael C. Obel-Omia, head of school at the Paul Cuffee School in Providence, R.I. that talks about the pop culture in general and the kinds of idols that are represented in the U.S. today. He describes a couple pop stars in today's scene such as Rihanna and Kanye West. Young girls want to be like Rihanna and imitate her beauty and sense of fashion while young boys copycat the whole "gangster" and hip hop lifestyle with their saggy pants and big t shirts. At the same time, teachers are trying to find ways to crack into the minds of the youth while battling these opposing forces; pop culture and intellectual culture.

I think that the pop scene can be both detrimental and positive at the same time. It just all depends on how you let it influence you and choose to make it a part of your life. Kids are always looking up to the older adults and older peers all the time. If educators can create the most positive and fun environment for students at the schools while abiding by school rules, then they will really look forward to want to learn something and find more fulfilling meaning in their lives other than looking to pop culture idols.