Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Eliminating afternoon recess
The latest poll on Lebo Citizens is based on the last night's presentation made by the elementary school principals and assistant superintendent. Master Schedule It is proposed as "Modify the approach to a formal afternoon classroom recess." Parents were not part of the decision process. Dale Ostergaard asked about the process for community input. Dr. Allen said that after the presentation, changes were going to be communicated through PTA newsletters to prepare parents for the fall.
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9 comments:
Were any independent education experts opinions sought or considered as to the pro's v. con's of eliminating an afternoon recess break ? Did anyone ask what measurable educational benefits would be derived from an extra 10 minutes of alleged educational instruction ? How can the entire 5 pages of of powerpoint presentation, laundry-listed, alleged justifications be realized in an extra 10 minutes/day of "instruction" ? Will the teachers now demand additional com pensation for the 10 minutes/day, and will this SB rubberstamp approval of it ? What was the roll call vote on this ?
Seems like old edubabble wins the day once again. The same ol' con !
Veblen Good
Mr. Peterson, Mr. Lebowitz and the entire board need to loose recess privileges as they are currently in violation of the Sponsorship/Partnership Policy they approved last night. Furthermore Dr. Steinhauer is not fulfilling his duty to enforce school policies.
Read the definition of a partnership in the policy, then read what activities partnerships may not engage in.
Then go to the PSBA web site and there you will find an ad announcing a lobbyist position opening for Harrisburg in the PSBA.
Therefore the board cannot be partnered with the PSBA, or the PTSA and most likely the teachers union as all are actively engaged in political agendas.
Giffen Good
Just a couple of things that I can comment on since we have an elementary child at home:
1.) "Sought input from teachers, administrator, parents regarding strengths and opportunities for improvement"-Notice the parents are listed last. My input was never sought, because I would have told them how I feel. Come to think about it, maybe that's why I was never asked.
2.) From the perspective of living with someone under the age of 10, I can tell you that the attention span of a normal child in that age group is not as long as one might like. Having that afternoon recess is critical for "getting away from it all" for a few minutes and clearing out the cobwebs. How many of us do that at our jobs or at home? I can bet that most of us have to. Maybe for the 5th graders to prepare for middle schol it would be a good idea.
3.) The rotating schedule is going to confuse more people than I can to think about. A first grader is not going to know what day they have gym class. If there is an In-Service day or a Thanksgiving holiday, kids all over the district are going to be showing up without gym shoes and library books. We all have enough to keep track of. This is going to cause a great deal of anxiety and stress.
I understand that they are trying to maximize educational time. Adding 5 minutes to the morning and to the afternoon is a good idea though. I'll give them that.
When they were asked about community input, notice that the answer was that the changes will be communicated. That's not community input. That's telling us of the changes and too bad if you don't like it.
Liz Huston
So in place of recess we will implement mandatory re-education time on the playground complete with music, fanfare and party hats:
http://ferenc.biz/gallery/children-soldiers-singing-cardboard-weapons.html
Monday night the Board approved -
*(6) Revisions to Policy KGD, Partnerships and Sponsorships: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the revisions to Policy KGD, Partnerships and Sponsorships, in the form presented.
Here is the Objective of that Policy and the Definition of a Partnership from the Policy.
PARTNERSHIPS AND SPONSORSHIPS
Objective
The Mt. Lebanon School District recognizes its responsibility as a provider of public education
to protect the welfare of students and maintain the integrity of the learning environment. Since
parents entrust their children to the District for education and instruction, it is imperative that
students are shielded from undesirable forms of marketing. Yet partnerships and sponsorships
based on sound principles can contribute to high quality education. The District’s objective is to ensure that educational values are not compromised when schools and
individuals/businesses/organizations work together and participation in such a manner has a clear
educational advantage for students.
Definitions
Partnership: An agreement between the District and an organization, wherein the basis and the
terms of the relationship are set by the District, and agreed upon by the private entity, or reached
mutually. In many instances a partnership is less formal than a contractual relationship and
continues for an unspecified length of time. Partners can be individuals, businesses, corporations(profit and nonprofit), trusts, foundations or educational/financial institutions or other
organizations/entities interested in aiding the District in meeting its educational mission and
goals. Examples of partners include but are not limited to organizations such as the PTA, the
Municipality, Mt. Lebanon Foundation for Education, etc.
According to the Policy as presented--
"In general, partnerships/sponsorships cannot:
• Promote, favor or oppose the candidacy of any candidate for election, adoption of
any bond issue, referendum or public question submitted at any general, county,
municipal or school election;
• Promote any religious or political organization; and
BOARD POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES Policy BBA EPS/NSBA
The role of the Mt. Lebanon Board of School Directors is to:
7. Comply with all laws, rules and regulations relative to the District.
The Board considers that its most important functions fall into the following categories:
1. Legislative or Policymaking. The Board is responsible for the development of policy
and for the employment of a Superintendent who will carry out its policies and, where
necessary, develop and implement procedures in furtherance of those policies..
So here is an ad for a position with the PSBA:
"Job Opening: Government Relations Director – PSBA – Harrisburg, PA
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS DIRECTOR PSBA is seeking an experienced lobbyist to advance its agenda, prepare legislation and other communications."
And what is the definition of a lobbyist. "someone who is employed to persuade legislators to vote for legislation."
Giffen Good
So Giffen, what do you do with a school board president who goes to more than one PTA meeting and tells members not to vote for a particular candidate? What do you do when a Hoover and a high school PTA President spread emails saying the same? What do you do when a school board director who is on the MLFE sends out an email saying who to vote for? What do you do when a school board president starts an eblast and signs it Bill Zellers? What do you do when four responsible and dedicated PTA Council members resign over election antics? What do you do when a school board president is caught plagiarizing in over a dozen examples, which is an ethics violation and has the audacity to blog about me because someone came to me and wanted to remain anonymous? Please share your wisdom, Giffen. Please tell us how to stop this behavior and policy violations.
Elaine
Elaine, all you say is true and it now seems the board has created in it's infinite wisdom - a policy that declares the district CANNOT partner with these people or groups that engage in partisan politics or push agendas that may or may not be "in the best interest of the kids."
Example, the PSBA appears to be interested in lobbying for the status qou rather than accepting vouchers and charter schools.
What is frustrating is that nowhere in the MTLSD policies will you find any instruction on procedures for dealing with staff or board members that don't follow policy.
You will find them for dealing with parents or students that break the rules though.
Sorry, I have no answer except to vote them all out as soon as possible.
Giffen Good
Veblen,
The independent education experts who convinced the Board to keep the Community Service Coordinator were the students and the independent education experts who agreed to eliminate afternoon recess were the PTA Presidents. Did you realize we elected students and PTA Presidents to make Board decisions?
John Ewing
“The truest characters of ignorance are vanity, and pride and arrogance.”
Samual Butler
As evidence by the crossing guard photo on the district website.
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