Education reform in SD Unified

[paulmbowers 236]

My other passion (well, there is food) is education reform. As you may know, I started my blog www.sandiegounifiedparent.com several years ago to discuss our family's experience with the public school system.

That has become a "thing". I recently declined an approach by parent group to run for school board- but I continue to make education reform my "thing"

This week Voice of San Diego in conjunction with NBC 7 TV is showing a 5 part series on the news at 6 and a live panel discussion about educational issues.

Details are here:

http://www.voiceofsa...ducation/brink/

You should be able to catch my TV appearance on Thursday's news at 6 on NBC 7. They taped it last week, I hope for mercy in the editing bay. The panel has several education cogniscenti. And me, too. If you have interest in the school district as a parent or as a taxpayer, it might interest you to attend.

You might be able to ask embarassing questions, like, say: "Why won't your bike run reliably?"

[Strega 0]

I'll be tuning into this. Thanks for the heads up.

[Bagstr 288]

Thanks for your efforts Paul!

Remind me why we should care about quality education in San Diego County. Can't I just give up on Public Ed and enroll in Private Ed?

[paulmbowers 236]

Thanks for your efforts Paul!

Remind me why we should care about quality education in San Diego County. Can't I just give up on Public Ed and enroll in Private Ed?

You certainly can.

But a sweeping majority of families cannot, and many of those families have children that, without education, fit a socio-economic profile that makes it a near-certainty they will be incarcerated.

So- you can pay now or pay later. The price now is a bargain compared to the price later.

[Riggerdan 147]

Very impressive effort Paul

- Need more people like you around

[TrophyHunter 15]

But a sweeping majority of families cannot, and many of those families have children that, without education, fit a socio-economic profile that makes it a near-certainty they will be incarcerated.

So- you can pay now or pay later. The price now is a bargain compared to the price later.

I approve this message. Not that my opinion matters, but I still approve it.

[Jim 0]

So- you can pay now or pay later. The price now is a bargain compared to the price later.

This is the fundamental economic issue that so many people ignore!!

Education, and especially early childhood education (i.e. pre-school and kindergarden) have huge lifetime/economic impacts not only for the person, but for society. If you look at social costs and education from an economic perspective (not like you and I do, but rather how true economists do), education has one of the biggest returns on investment a society can make.

Yet, it is one of the easiest to cut when money gets tight and one that is the hardest to fix.

[racerbill 0]

I read the article on teacher compensation and retirement benefits. What a load, my wife, an elementary school teacher in Alpine, makes that average salary. After watching and helping her for 20+years I can say without reservation she is underpaid. Jan works 45+ hours a week at a minimum. Jan holds a Masters Degree with an additional 45 advanced units. Thats a lot of education and even more dedication. An auto mechanic after a few years makes about the same money.

Where did those great(fictional) figures about the CALSTRS program come from because I wish it was true. 80 - 90% of salary would be great, unfortunitly the truth is more like 40-45%. Just more propaganda from the right.

[blind_in_1_ear 0]

schools or prisons???...a classic trade off

it is a sad reality of society.

[TrophyHunter 15]

Bill - you are correct. Laura's uncle got his degree and certificate...taught for a year....found out he could make more as an electrician. He's now a retired electrician.

[ADV Bum 205]

The school system is like most gov agencies. They are designed to waste money. The more you spend, the more you need, the more you get. My kids elementary school complains about over crowding and they have no money yet they have a YOGA class. I told the principle that to solve the overcrowding why not get rid of the kids that dont live in the district. Out of 30 kids in my sons class 8 dont live in the district. They lie about where they live. Her reply was that they would lose teachers and money for the school. Reality is that if the kids went to the school they should go to schools would get egual money and teachers. Never ending battle of not enough.

[racerbill 0]

The school system is like most gov agencies. They are designed to waste money. The more you spend, the more you need, the more you get. My kids elementary school complains about over crowding and they have no money yet they have a YOGA class. I told the principle that to solve the overcrowding why not get rid of the kids that dont live in the district. Out of 30 kids in my sons class 8 dont live in the district. They lie about where they live. Her reply was that they would lose teachers and money for the school. Reality is that if the kids went to the school they should go to schools would get egual money and teachers. Never ending battle of not enough.

Yea money isn't always the answer in educating our children, but Ca is 48th out of the 50 states so maybe money is the problem.

[ADV Bum 205]

Yea money isn't always the answer in educating our children, but Ca is 48th out of the 50 states so maybe money is the problem.

Yes money is the problem. Schools today dont want to teach they want to turn our kids into beggars. There is a fund raiser every two weeks. Halloween they want our kids to go beg for UNICEF of which they get a portion. They should have to show us what they do with all the money they raise. Problem with that is if they showed us people might not want to give. My kids need to go to school and learn not be instructed on how to raise money for the school.

[TrophyHunter 15]

Wasn't the lotto supposed to fix that problem. (picture rose colored glasses emoticon here)

[tsr 0]

The Lottery is nothing but a tax on those who are bad at math...

[hobiee 28]

Having a son on the verge of entering the school system in one way or another, the misses and i have been doing quite a bit of research. It's scary to say the least. We have really been thinking of moving out of the state just to provide our son better opportunities. It's sad but it is also reality. I simply don't have faith in any public system anymore and most of the private systems seem to be strictly money driven. Where have the real educators gone ? I feel sorry for those like Bill's wife, although i am willing to bet she would say she didn't do it for the money. Mr Bowers i applaud your efforts and i hope you can make a positive impact on the future for all kids.

[paulmbowers 236]

California already spends about 45% of all state tax revenue on our schools. The second largest share (and it's not far behind) is for incarceration.

Let's look at some of the facts about California education as a whole. Here is a link to the US Census Bureau Public Education Finances Report, issued Jun 2010. THis is NOT the document most often cited by those with a student-second agenda. Have a look, it's great reading at 144 pages.

I'll break out the fact I believe is most important, and everyone can join the mutually-respectful discussion with their own observations.

At $9,863 in current per-pupil spending, California ranks 23^rd according the Census Bureau (see pp. xiii and 11). Current spending consists mainly of staff salaries and benefits, plus administration costs but excludes spending on capital, construction, and debt. When these politically sensitive figures are included California's per-pupil spending jumps to $11,649, or 21^st nationally (see p. 11).

But meanwhile, according to the National Assesment of Educational Progress (the "Nations Report Card") California student achievement is:

47^th for fourth-grade reading49^th for eighth-grade reading

48^th for eighth -grade math 45^th for fourth-grade math

That stated, teachers are the second-most important factor in the education equation, yet school districts treat their employees like cattle.

Employees are rarely reviewed (some get reviewed every FIVE years) and are paid without any regard to merit. Seniority is the ultimate factor in determining most school employee pay, and when layoffs come (just lke the "real" world") the determining factor is not the value of that employee to students, but how long the employee has worked at their job. Not many parent enjoy that type of job security. Personally, teachers are my favorite kind of people, and they do a job that I wouldn't want for more than an hour a week (my volunteer time) and I'd like to see them compensated for their value.

I believe employees deserve the right to be evaluated as individuals, and be compensated based on their value to the organization that pays their salary. I don't believe that's revolutionary.

Certainly, experienced teachers who've moved thousands of students successfully, thoughfully engaged students and supported and encouraged their success deserve MORE MONEY than those phoning it in. (If you ever want to know which teacher are "phoning it in" just ask the teachers with whom they work, especially the teachers one grade level above who have to make up for the deficit.)

We can no longer support an education system that keep asking for more and more money. Revenues have slipped at the state level- that money will never return- and we must begin a "less but better" policy in our schools. Our economy is the worst we've seen since 1929, yet the teachers at San Diego Unified have negotiated a progressive RAISE (how many parents got a raise lately? How many don't even have a job?) and as the district could not provide that raise quickly enough, labor demanded the school year be shortened by five days.

Now, if someone could just teach me how to determine why my bike has no spark....

[tsr 0]

With the ever-shortening time I have to teach my students, I feel as if the sentiment is this:

who will miss Algebra.pdf

School started early this year - August 10 - and I have not missed a day yet. I can't afford to miss any days because the time I have in front of my students is a dwindling resource. Even if I could afford to miss a day, I usually don't. In the 20+ years I've been teaching I have used, perhaps, 15 or so sick days (four of them for Bar 10 ). My students don't know what a substitute is, and yet too many of my colleagues arrive late for work, leave early and miss far too many days of work. Yes, these are mostly the veteran teachers ...

Professional Development opportunities offered in our district occur during the school year, when we're supposed to be with our students . If they would hold these things during my time away from students (summer, for one) I would attend.

Does our system need a re-boot? Yes.

Thanks for reading my rant ... As Crawdaddy would say, "Let's ride!"

[paulmbowers 236]

My students don't know what a substitute is, and yet too many of my colleagues arrive late for work, leave early and miss far too many days of work. Yes, these are mostly the veteran teachers ...

Your dedication and candor are appreciated.

[blind_in_1_ear 0]

Now, if someone could just teach me how to determine why my bike has no spark....

maybe some wine and soft music would help?

[tntmo 910]

My wife has been a teacher for about ten years. Every year it seems they remove more resources, up class size, reduce the teaching staff (but not the administrative staff), shorten the school year, threaten lay-offs (she has been laid off four of the last five years).

In the end, the teachers are all judged by the end of the year test scores, so most teachers only teach to the test. The CALSTRS retirement program is okay, if you can stand to put up with all of the above for 30 years or more. If not, no retirement for you....and also no social security because you forego that when you are enrolled in CALSTRS.

It almost makes the military seem like a cake walk.

[ADV Bum 205]

My students don't know what a substitute is, and yet too many of my colleagues arrive late for work, leave early and miss far too many days of work. Yes, these are mostly the veteran teachers ...

Your dedication and candor are appreciated.

+1

Since I have been at the school I see subs on a regular basis. Teachers always seem to have some activity that they must attend. Rarely are they out for sick days. I have had teachers tell me that they dont like to use sick days as they accrue with no expiration. They save them up so they can take months off and get paid. How many employers are out there that would keep an employee who screwed them like that. They get a lot of sick days for the short amount of time the kids are in school. The kids are always on some vacation/ break/ holiday.

[paulmbowers 236]

My wife has been a teacher for about ten years. Every year it seems they remove more resources, up class size, reduce the teaching staff (but not the administrative staff), shorten the school year, threaten lay-offs (she has been laid off four of the last five years).

In the end, the teachers are all judged by the end of the year test scores, so most teachers only teach to the test. The CALSTRS retirement program is okay, if you can stand to put up with all of the above for 30 years or more. If not, no retirement for you....and also no social security because you forego that when you are enrolled in CALSTRS.

It almost makes the military seem like a cake walk.

Ok. Don't want to turn this into an argument, but please allow me to answer some of these points?

San Diego Unified has hacked away at administration staff for a long time. It's a popular misperception that an organization can be run without admin staff, and while it would be nice, it just ain't so. The admin staff left is HUGELY overworked. In my 4 years as School SIte Council chair, I watched the incredible work dump onto principals- they're getting killed with work, their VPs have been reduced or just cut, and all of the accounting budgeting duties have been pushed downhill from central office onto their shoulders.

The school year was shortened because of pressures from labor to either pony up with an immediate raise, or offer 5 furlough days as compensation. In an economy with 10% unemployment and income sliding WAY downhill. Net result- my (and everyone else's) kid lost 5 instructional days because the teachers demand a 10% raise over 3 years. In an economy were most parents and families consider themselves lucky to be employed.

Teachers can turn in test scores that are consistently bad, year after year- have a look at the numbers I posted in a previous post. Their test scores can be off the charts in the wrong direction and their job will be as secure as it was in their third year.

Suprisingly, I have no problem with that- test scores are ONE portion of the measure of ANY job's performance, regardless of the position or industry. I don't believe people are a commodity, and should not be treated as such. Let me interject- as much as teachers HATE testing and test scores, I've yet to meet ONE that was not proud of the scores *when the scores are high* and berate them *when the scores are low*.

But I digress. One of my problems with City schools is the lack of a reasonable, thorough and fair system of employee evaluations that have both support structure for low performers, reward structure for high performers and a strategy to quickly remove those that should not be teaching. Ask any teacher- there are plenty of those.

Labor has demanded and the district has conceded (it's a hobby of theirs) to provide significant warning (pink slips) in anticipation of layoffs- that's fair. But here's the problem. The district knows it might not get the money they need to continue hiring the same number of employees. They're not sure exactly- it takes a while for Sacramento to give the district the numbers. So- let's say the district suspects that on January 1, the state will tell them they won't have enough money to hire 1000 current employees. They're not sure, but that's the best estimate, OK so far?

Layoff notices MUST go out with significant warning- let's say it's 90 days. (unsure of the exact number). If notice is not given, the layoff will cannot happen.

So. The district must issue 1000 layoff notices by October (remember the months are not real) if they believe they MIGHT NOT have the money. And if they DO get the money, they rescind the notices.

The alternative would be to wait until the state provides the numbers, then just call around and tell everyone they have no job, and they have no notice. Not nice.

Students need good teachers. I'd like to see more good teachers, and fewer less-than-good.

[blind_in_1_ear 0]

they need to change things @ SDUSD, it's LONG over due.

...THANK YOU, Paul, for your efforts...@ both schools!

[tntmo 910]

Ok. Don't want to turn this into an argument, but please allow me to answer some of these points?

No argument here, I agree with you for the most part. Some of the stuff in the link you posted I don't agree with (teachers working a 6.5 hour day for example), but it seems that you're trying to fight the good fight.