As you read in the syllabus, I would like you to post about a public administration issue that is important to you. I have sent an invitation to this blog to the contact email you provided me. IF YOU DID NOT GET AN EMAIL, post your opinion piece as a comment to this post. I will cut and paste it to its own post. Do not forget to include your name so I can give you credit.
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Emily Prince To whom it may concern and school board officials:
ReplyDeleteMany students do not make it through high school to graduate. Americans need to do more to stop students from dropping out of high school. I do not understand why it is not the law to pass at least high school. It is the law to send your child to kindergarten and so on, so why is high school any different? In past decades to be on the cheer squad or football team was what every student wanted, most envied the ones who were on those teams. Back then you had to tryout for the team, today no one has to tryout and practices are not mandatory. Faculty of schools need to find ways to promote these activities to keep students in class.
According to www.all4ed.org over a million of highschoolers fail to graduate with their peers. According to Census data the percentage of 16-24 year olds who drop out of high school has decreased from 17.3% in 1970 to less then 14% in 1998 as stated by the Social Science Data Analysis Network. Although this has been declining, It still happens everyday. They also believe that females are less likely to dropout than males and these rates have been decreasing as well. More than half of those million are minorities. Hispanics are the biggest minority to group to dropout and not graduate with their peers next to African Americans. Asian/Pacific Islanders had the lowest dropout rates than any other ethnic group. From Right Mind political blog site these statistics are likely to increase unless something is changed. Students dropout for reasons such as teen pregnancy, family issues, poverty, or they need jobs to help support their families and do not make the time for school.
Students who dropout face more problems than graduates later in life. Many say they will go back or at least end up finishing school. Most do not go back and finish school or get their GED. People who do get their GED may not make as much as far as an income in the future as graduates, but they do make more than a dropout would working a regular job without a degree. Dropouts lose their chance for a better future and a career in this period in time. Dropouts are more likely than high school graduates to be unemployed, in poor health, living in poverty, on public assistance, and single parents with children who drop out of high school according to Right Mind political blog. Students who dropout earn a significantly lower incomes. They are more likely to be unemployed and slip into poverty. That same site states that dropouts are more than eight times as likely to be in jail or prison as high school graduates, and are four times less likely to volunteer than college graduates, twice less likely to vote or participate in community projects, and represent only 3 percent of actively engaged citizens in the U.S. today. In this century you almost need to have a degree to even get a decent job. Students whose families had low incomes are more likely to dropout.
Emily Prince 2nd part of blog- For me dropping out of high school was never a thought that crossed my mind let alone were my parents going to let that happen. Students who have two parents are less likely to dropout as well. Children need to have the family there to support them or to push them into wanting to go to school and have a better future. Americans in this century are focused on their careers. I believe that if parents paid more attention to their children and not their jobs the dropout rate would decrease significantly.
ReplyDeleteSchool Board officials, faculty, and parents all need to do more to keep children in schools. Parents need to pay more attention to their children. Parents who stay together and who are more involved in their children also decrease these statistics. Faculty need to do more to keep students in school activities. Students who are involved are more likely to make better grades and stay in school. I believe that school board officials need to find ways such as scholarships to keep students in school. In this century and needing a degree to get anywhere respectful and have an income, it should be the law to stay in school at least through high school.
Tennessee lawmakers approve teacher evaluation plan
ReplyDeleteOn last Friday Tennessee State Legislature took another big step backwards on the fight to improve Education in the state. Governor Phil Bredesen approved a plan to base half of public school teachers’ job evaluations on their students’ academic performance. Once again individuals (lawmakers) that are far removed from their classroom days have made a big mistake in regards to the public schools systems of Tennessee. This major change will affect how Tennessee approaches evaluation of teachers for awarding tenure, job retention, termination, and compensation. You would have to live in a fairy tale land, far far away from society to believe that you can determine the success of teachers by the empirical success of students. And for the first time student academic gains will be considered in the evaluation process.
Lawmakers convened in a special session called by the governor this week to pass the bill in order to be eligible for $485 million in federal grants. The bill won a 29-3 Senate vote and the House followed suit 83-9.
It includes various measures of student achievement including their scores on standardized tests as an element in the formal evaluation process. Thirty-five percent of each teacher's annual evaluation will be based on student gains on the testing done under the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System, for those teachers whose students take those tests. Other measures will be developed for teachers, such as special-education teachers and teachers in grades where the TVAAS tests are not given. Another 15 percent will be based on other empirical student performance measures yet to be developed such as reading assessments for elementary teachers and college entrance tests, end of year subject tests and advance placement tests for high school teachers.
This issue has grabbed the attention of many, most being present or past educators. Almost all of them enraged with the results of Friday’s decision. One upset reader who is a 26 year educator within the Memphis City Schools System stated that this will cause one of two things: One being the mass exodus of teachers which would add to the already current teacher shortage and/or create an atmosphere where teachers are so fearful of not making tenure that they only teach to test. Both of these outcomes should be feared, but I honestly believe the latter would hurt Tennessee considerably harder. I say this because I was a victim of the “Teach to Test” epidemic that swept Tennessee during the installation of the Gateway Exams beginning in 2002. I’m a 2005 graduate of the great Germantown High School, a well known institution in the city of Memphis that prides itself on high performing students and well-trained successful teachers. Almost all the teachers at Germantown were eccentric yet highly knowledgeable within their subjects, but I remember two whole months of no outside readings or assignments, a thousand practice exams, timed test over material that honestly seemed useless, bored and boring teachers, a billion fucking bubbles to fill in, pencil sharpeners constantly in use, and so on so forth. I hate thinking about it, but do you know who really hated it? If you answered the teachers, you are absolutely correct.
Remember the School Uniform argument of 2001 where all of Memphis City School students had to turn in their jeans for khakis? Shelby County students (myself included) laughed at the thought of uniforms because our parents fought for us. The infamous rebuttal to uniforms was “it hinders the creativity of my child.” Well, Tennessee we just hinder the creativity of our already dwindling teacher population. In order to truly evaluate our teachers we create a sense of fairness across the state. In this situation fair does not equal consistent. We must first properly evaluate resources, economic situations, teacher backgrounds, disciplinary issues, and student needs.
Kenneth Fleming
The Mississippi legislature has begun debating a bill that would require all Sudafed medicine to be sold from behind the pharmacy counter and off the store shelfs. Why? Sudafed is a common ingredient in the manufacturing of the illegal drug most commonly known as meth. With the alarming rates of usage, the ease of being able to make the drug, and readily available ingredients needed to make the drug, it has swept through rural Mississippi by storm. This is important to me because of the strong stance Mississippi government would be making to combat an increasing drug problem. I am a staunch opponent to illegal drug use and the damage it causes to neighborhoods, families, and personal lives. Also, we know that drug usage is a leading contributor to many crimes in our cities, towns, and counties. This legislation will not eliminate the manufacturing of the drug meth, but it sure will drastically slow it down and help identify those involved in this illegal activity. The Mississippi legislature must not pass the ball on this issue, we all have a role to play, and it is about time the Mississippi legislature plays theirs. YEAH RIGHT>>>> I know it all sounded good but the truth is in the bases of the argument. Making Sudafed Rx only will NOT eliminate meth manufacturing and neither do they know what the effectiveness of trying to slow it down. Also, meth can be made without Sudafed and with the necessity for at least one person in most families to take sinus medication with Sudafed, it still with be somewhat readily available for people to use illegally. Why meth, why this illegal drug, why the move to be more proactive and not reactive with stiffer court penalty like crack and marijuana has been given. Not only that, but without some form of healthcare insurance, how are the poor the uninsured suppose to gain access to a much needed drug to help with their common sinus and allergy problems. By the Governors own admission, he takes Sudafed sinus medication daily. With such common usage and the overall national FDA move to make drugs more commonly used for sinus and allergy such as Claritin D and Zyrtec over-the-counter, why would Mississippi take a step back. Why make those who cannot afford to go to the doctor for more serious issues go to the doctor just to obtain over-the-counter sinus medication. I was serious with I said I am a staunch opponent of illegal drug usage for all the reason I described above. However, I do not single one single illegal drug over the other and I will not speculate why meth was chosen over any other drug. Crack, Cocaine, Marijuana, and extacy to name a few are severe problems to Mississippi society as well. Why not ban the sell of cigarillo cigars or Black-n-Mild cigars which are very commonly used to aide in the smoking of marijuana. Also, cigar wrappers are sold for the most underlined urban purpose of rolling marijuana. THERE, take a stance on that also. Among other measure that could be taken to help combat the use of illegal drug usage. It is hard to believe that a legislature that was hesitant to increase the tax on tobacco products which is causes more harm to lives and greater cost to our health system than meth has championed this issue with very little reservation. Get real Mississippi legislature, weigh the options and seriously take note of what is being done that works and not just doing something for the sake of doing something. You were elected you govern not to continual run for re-election.
ReplyDeleteTrey Chinn