Teacher Quality

Over the next decade, an estimated 2 million new teachers will need to be hired to accommodate record-high student enrollments, a high rate of projected teacher retirements, and local efforts to reduce class size. Meanwhile, schools are implementing comprehensive reform initiatives requiring teachers to focus on increasing student achievement.

Research has shown that all students benefit from having high-quality teachers. Yet, the more challenging student populations are disproportionately taught by less experienced educators. To meet the needs of today's students, teachers need to be qualified, diverse, and well prepared.

Teacher development programs must be designed to strengthen professional excellence in teaching techniques, academic knowledge, human understanding, critical thinking technology use, and parent, family, and community involvement.

Have lunch with First Lady Michelle Obama and you’ll never look at broccoli the same way again.

The following appeared as a Guest Commentary in the March 25, 2010 edition of the Lexington Minuteman.  (Photo of First Lady Michelle Obama by Mary Ann Stewart).

I was one of three members of the Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association who attended the National PTA Annual Legislative Conference in Washington, DC, March 9-11. We lobbied the Massachusetts congressional delegation to promote family engagement standards in the reauthorization of Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act, and Child Nutrition Act.

Mrs. Obama was keynote speaker at lunch on Wednesday. Her topic was the national childhood obesity crisis and her new initiative, Let's Move, which promotes child nutrition and physical activity.

Listening to her brought back memories from my childhood.

I walked to and from school every day, ran around at recess and gym, and played in the neighborhood for hours after school until dinner. Most days, my family had dinner together. Children ate what parents served. We had dessert only on special occasions.

But times have changed. And now I'm a parent of three children. My husband and I both work. We try to find balance, but the economy and pace of the world has us stressed and challenged. I'm the first to acknowledge that convenience and necessity have won out over healthy habits at times.

In response to testing demands, schools have narrowed curriculum and reduced or eliminated recess and gym. The typical lunch is heavy with calories and fat. Children spend more time sitting in front of TV, playing video games, or surfing the 'net - sedentary habits exposing them to 40,000 advertisements each year, many for unhealthy foods and drinks. Here in Lexington, our record is probably better than most, but could stand improving. Our school cafeterias serve healthier meals, but over the years we have reduced students' gym and recess time.

Fittingly, if the governor signs the bill that the state legislature passed in January, we will not see unhealthy foods and sugary drinks in our public schools. Foods and beverages that do not meet nutrition standards and are not part of federal meal programs would be banned. The law would eliminate fried foods. It would encourage local farm-to-school programs that could double the amount of fresh vegetables children get in school. It would provide continuing education for school nurses and require instruction in nutrition and exercise in schools.

Studies show that proper nutrition and exercise improves school attendance, learning, behavior, and productivity. Thousands of children in Massachusetts depend on federal child nutrition programs to provide up to one-half of their nutrient intake per day. The funding for school meals go directly to the schools - not to students - and provide the support for these programs. School meal reimbursements have fallen far behind costs and are inadequate to maintain the high-quality nutrition standards established in law. Regulations governing school meals programs should reflect current science and health trends to better address the health and wellness needs of all children.

The 2007 Nutrition Act required schools to develop a wellness policy. That was a good start. Along with nutrition education, we need more opportunities for physical activity at every grade level and opportunities to engage families in the policy-making process.

My trip to Washington impressed upon me the need for more funding for school nutrition and meal programs. Mrs. Obama's goal of reducing childhood obesity within a generation is ambitious, requiring school support and broad family and community support. There is wisdom in these initiatives; please express your support.

Mary Ann Stewart is a member of Lexington's School Committee. In April she becomes the 34th State President of the Massachusetts PTA. The opinions expressed here are her own and do not reflect those of the Lexington Public School Department or of the School Committee.

Chapter 70 - Time for Reform

Chapter 70 is a complicated formula created before the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993 (MERA). The formula was intended to achieve both adequate and equitable funding for all of the states' school districts through a combination of increased local funding and state aid; all districts had reached their foundation budgets by fiscal year 2000 (FY00) and a few tweaks were made in 2007. The foundation budget measures the minimum spending level necessary to provide an adequate education in each district based on enrollment, pupil characteristics, and the regional labor market.

But, what is adequate for students?  Today there are greater numbers of students who are not English language proficient and who require special education services.

While there is still legitimate (and considerable) debate about the adequacy of the foundation budget, bringing all districts to foundation spending was a significant achievement. No state, however, has seen public education funded appropriately since FY02, when that budget was built following 9/11 in 2001 and so much federal funding came out of education and other areas and went into defense and homeland security.

In Massachusetts, we had seen modest increases in public education funding in FY07, FY08, and FY09 despite cuts in other areas. This year's budget (FY10) was built with a $5 billion structural deficit. No money means cuts to programs. Terrible cuts. Many human services that people look to government to provide, like roads & bridges, parks & recreation, schools & libraries, and public safety have been cut.

According to Mass Budget and Policy Center, The budget being worked on now, FY11, continues budget cuts from the prior two years and recommends further cuts in several areas. Education/Chapter 70 was spared last year and it is level funded this year. In addition, it relies on continued significant federal assistance and on other temporary revenues, including a modest withdrawal from the state stabilization fund.

Many school districts will not meet their Foundation Budget previously determined to be the minimum amount needed to meet the constitutional obligation to provide an adequate education to students in those districts. This would likely constitute a violation of the state's constitutional obligation to ensure that every school district has the resources needed to provide access to an adequate education. While the state could adjust local and state contributions in several different ways to ensure that every district will spend the Foundation Budget amount, it can not, constitutionally, fail to ensure that every district can spend at the Foundation Budget level that is the minimum needed to provide an adequate education to the students in that district.

Last year, the cut was made not to Chapter 70, but to the Circuit Breaker Reimbursement, thereby side-stepping the constitutional violation. However, no one really knows the true cost of providing each student an "adequate education"; the new achievement gap legislation passed last month includes an adequacy study to determine the amount, so stay tuned.

ELL

I spent the first ten years of my life growing up in the soft coal-mining region of the rural Allegheny Mountains of southeastern Pennsylvania.  Even as a young child I was aware that my town was small and secluded.  The one exception was the annual Cambria County Fair for about ten days before each Labor Day, when we would experience thousands of visitors to our town.

Many of my classmates worked on rural family farms.  I knew kids who participated in 4-H, who spent the whole year preparing for their Fair events and were so proud to share their projects with us at the start of school year each August.  

One of my uncles raced trotters each year.  Trotters are horses harnessed for racing - and I had dreams of caring for Uncle Tony's horses at a nearby barn where he kept them.  I enjoyed walking through the animal exhibits, wondering in amazement at the handmade textiles - quilts, blankets, and shawls - and sampling the blue-ribbon jams, and pies!  

I looked forward to riding the most popular rides on the fairway each year.  My neighbor and best friend at the time, Twyla Williams, got me interested in the stock car races.  Our houses were adjacent to the fairgrounds so at night we could hear the racing engines and enthusiastic crowds; we lay quilts on the grass in the yard to watch firework displays.

In the exhibition barns, I noted many speaking with wonderful accents.  Friends of my family had grandparents who were first generation immigrants from Italy and Poland and Germany.  All of the children I knew spoke English, though I realize it may not have been their first language.

More than 35% of people whose first language is not English live in my Town today -- and this is the case in many cities and towns. Many are limited English proficient.

It is extremely difficult for children to do well in school who do not understand what their teachers are explaining.  Language instructional programs, especially in public schools, should involve parents in planning, implementation, and evaluation.

While bilingual education programs are not part of the English Language Learner construct in Massachusetts, such programs guarantee limited English proficient (LEP) students access to educational opportunities. These programs allow LEP students to acquire a full command of the English language, and employ students' native languages to help them master challenging academic standards in all subject areas.

Strengthening this area is one key to closing gaps in proficiency for English language learners.

Readiness Schools & Family Involvement

Family involvement in schools is a shared responsibility. Children depend on all of us to support their development everywhere our children learn - - at home, in pre-k programs, in school, in after-school programs, in faith-based institutions, and in community programs and activities. We know that families play many essential roles in student success.

The development of Readiness Schools in Massachusetts provides an opportunity to reinforce a culture of collaboration in the Commonwealth. To be successful, Readiness Schools need to build on the nine characteristics of effective schools, which include effective family and community engagement and collaboration and communication among teachers, administrators, parents, and students.

Effective parent engagement and involvement is not just a good idea, it is the law. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) details ambitious guidelines; now we must commit to more faithful implementation and enforcement.

Here in Massachusetts the Parent and Community Education and Involvement Advisory Council (PCEI) to the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has worked to propose a set of six fundamentals for Family and Community engagement, which are based on National PTA's Family-School Partnership Standards. The National Standards describe six standards schools can use to plan, benchmark, and evaluate effective school, family, and community involvement policies and practices. Readiness Schools need to model these best practices for meaningful parent engagement and involvement, especially to be responsive to the family, cultural, and economic diversity of their communities.

Effective family engagement is essential regardless of parents' education level, ethnicity, or socioeconomic background. Families play a critical role in children's school readiness as well as of students' decision to pursue higher education. Their role is a shared responsibility through collaboration with schools, educators, and community organizations to achieve more effective educational opportunities.

Coffee Hour

I call them "coffee hours" - opportunities for residents to meet in a relaxed setting to share their thoughts, concerns, and ideas about our schools with one of their elected school officials. These meetings were instituted during my campaign for School Committee. Following my election to the School Committee last March, I have been meeting on the second Thursday of each month, with the exception of July and August, ever since.

While it is true that I have my own perspectives and concerns on issues, it is an incomplete picture without the two-way communication with others of our shared community. I am truly grateful to those who take the time to meet. I have heard many important pieces of information that add to my understanding of budget and finances, special education, arts education, technology, professional development, school calendar, and more. Often, I will raise a constituent's perspective in the School Committee's "Member Concerns" portion of our meeting agenda. Other times, I am able to bring concerns forward following a presentation by the administration.

Commercialism in Schools - a Public Health Issue

As a parent, I am very concerned about the state of education in Massachusetts, especially with respect to shrinking school budgets and the narrow focus of testing in our schools.

In Massachusetts, many children attend inadequately funded and over-crowded public schools. The current emphasis on mandated standardized tests without adequate funding cuts into time for realizing any of the frameworks - and the unfortunate result is many schools have cut quality educational programming.

Meanwhile, the federal government has mandated that public schools create school wellness policies, but, at the same time, many schools are failing to actively address and promote healthy and active choices during school hours.

So, if public schools are so financially strapped, what could be the harm of a little corporate sponsorship in the schools?

Well, for one thing, there is no such thing as "a little corporate sponsorship".

Huge amounts of money and effort are invested in making kids literate in the language of consumerism, which essentially apprentices them for a lifetime of consumption.  But, just how do such promotions increase the school's educational integrity or welfare of students?

Well, they don't.

I think it more accurate to say that such practices perpetuate a subtle and pernicious endorsement from schools without competition to the sponsoring corporation. Schools that accept corporate funding or promotions are at the mercy of corporate agendas, which have yet to prove they care one iota for the health, education, or welfare of the students they purport to serve.

With respect to commercialism and its relation to school wellness policies: what message do we send children if parents and schools address healthy choices at home and in the classroom, only to have kids walk down the hall where they are offered choices for snacks and drinks that are high in calories, fat, and sugar? 

Marketing and advertising of a commercial nature should be off limits from every public school, athletic field, sport or school uniform, vending machine or cafeteria. Corporations must act more responsibly to support the integrity of school environments and the health and welfare of children.

One final point: if we are going to speak against commercialism in schools, then we must also speak for media literacy in the schools, as the two go hand-in-hand.

We are assailed by media messaging 24/7/365. Media literacy is the ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform, entertain, and sell to us every day; it's the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all media. In our world of commercialism, globalization, multi-tasking, and interactivity, media education isn't about having the right answers - it's about asking the right questions. And it is essential, now more than ever. The result is life-long empowerment of the learner and citizen.