It’s not too late to participate
This week is Take Your Family to School Week (Feb. 12-18), and PTAs across the country are celebrating family engagement as they welcome families into their schools.
Take Your Family to School Week and Founders Day (Feb.17) provide an opportunity for the entire family to have some fun while learning more about the education taking place in their local school according to Betsy Landers, national PTA president.
Students, teachers and school principals and staff welcome families with special breakfasts and lunches, school assemblies, games and many other creative activities. Parents have commented that PTA Take Your Family to School Week not only made them feel welcome at school, but also gave them the first real insight into how their children spend their days. For some family members, the event represents the very first time they ever walked through the school doors, she said.
Twitter Town Hall Feb. 15
The Kentucky Department of Education invites teachers, administrators, district staff, parents and other education stakeholders to submit questions for Commissioner Terry Holliday's second Twitter Town Hall Wednesday, Feb. 15 from 4-5 p.m. ET. The Twitter Town Hall topics will be the 2012 General Assembly and KDE’s legislative agenda. Questions can be tweeted both before Feb. 15 and during the live event from 4-5 p.m. ET. Use the hash tag #AskDocH to send questions.
Those who don’t have a Twitter account and would like to sign up for one should go to www.twitter.com. It’s a free service and also offers apps for smartphones.
The Twitter Town Hall also will be webcast live. Those who want to follow the Twitter Town Hall via live webcast, click here.
Commissioner Holliday looks forward to answering questions on Feb. 15.
Allergies and best practices with board policies
Safe at School and Ready to Learn: a Comprehensive Policy Guide for Protecting Students with Life-Threatening Food Allergies, a practical guide from the National School Boards Association (NSBA), is designed to help school leaders and schools establish comprehensive policies and practices that support the safety, well-being and academic success of students with life-threatening food allergies.
In addition to providing relevant data related to food allergies in schools, the publication focuses on the need for schools to partner with families and health care providers in identifying and preparing management plans for students with food allergies.
Further, it provides information on following medication protocols; developing a coordinated system to prevent and respond to food allergy-related emergencies across the school environment; communicating with and educating parents, students and school personnel; and monitoring and evaluating policies and practices.
To access the guide, go to www.nsba.org/foodallergyguide.
Kentucky ranks 14th in ‘Quality Counts’ report
Kentucky schools should be very proud. Kentucky was ranked 14th in the most recent “Quality Counts” survey. Education Week uses the “Quality Counts” survey to track key education indicators and then grades states on their policy efforts and outcomes. This year, Kentucky scored a C+. The highest grade nationwide went to Maryland with a B+.
Kentucky scored 90 or above in three areas: School Accountability (Standards, Assessment and Accountability), Building and Supporting Capacity (Teaching Profession) and Equity (School Finance).
The full report is available at www.edweek.org.
KDE site visits
In an effort to better understand successful strategies for meeting the Commonwealth Commitment, the Kentucky Department of Education is visiting schools that have made significant strides toward student success in college and/or career readiness.
While outcome assessments are critical to tracking the effectiveness of strategies, examining the implementation process and context provides a deeper understanding of barriers and facilitators - what works, what does not and why - of effective implementation that can then be shared across the state.
These visits consist of interviews with teachers and school leadership and focus on a single topic: implementation of a college- and career-readiness agenda. Interviews are focusing on specific strategies, along with facilitators and barriers to implementation, related to:
- high quality, rigorous instruction
- college and career readiness advising
- interventions
- graduation and dropout prevention
Once complete, these interviews will provide a snapshot of what some successful schools are doing to ensure college and/or career readiness for all students.
Participating schools include:
- Berea Independent High
- Bowling Green High
- Deming School (Robertson Co.)
- Estill County High
- North Oldham High
- South Oldham High
- Paris Independent High
Thanks to the participating districts and school leadership. KDE is committed to sharing lessons learned in order to support district leadership teams.
Operation Preparation
This important week is quickly approaching on March 12-16. The Kentucky Department of Education’s (KDE) Unbridled Learning: College/Career Readiness for All initiative is designed to ensure that all students are prepared for college and/or career by the time they graduate from high school. More about Operation Preparation can be found here or on the Kentucky Teacher website here.
Advising is a key strategy for reaching this goal, and as part of Operation Preparation, trained volunteer community advisors will meet with every 8th- and 10th-grade student.
Operation Preparation is a joint effort of KDE and the Department of Workforce Development and provides an opportunity for schools, students, parents and communities to collaborate on effective advising and focus attention on the importance of planning for college/career.
For more information about Operation Preparation on the district level or to volunteer as a community advisor, contact your district superintendent or school principal.
AdvanceKentucky update
For the third consecutive year, AdvanceKentucky is again confirming that many more students in Kentucky are capable of learning at rigorous levels, demonstrating their readiness for college. AdvanceKentucky is implementing a proven model for dramatically accelerating rigorous academic achievement through expanding access to, participation in and success of underrepresented student populations in Advanced Placement (AP) programs in mathematics, science and English (MSE).
There are 64 Kentucky schools currently participating in this AdvanceKentucky program, and opportunities are available for more schools to be involved this spring. These 64 schools represent 15,000 AP MSE enrollments and 450 trained AP MSE teachers.
In addition, 1,000 pre-AP teachers have been trained in Laying the Foundation (LTF), a program that provides high-quality teacher training, rigorous classroom materials and Web-based resources to improve the quality of English, mathematics and science instruction. AdvanceKentucky has trained 35 Kentucky teachers to be nationally-endorsed LTF trainers to build capacity within the state.
One example of the impact AdvanceKentucky is making on learning in Kentucky is in Clay County. In 2011, its first year in the program, Clay County High School administered more than five times the number of MSE AP exams than in 2010, with about half of these exams taken by low-income students. Likewise, Clay County increased the number of passing scores (a score of a 3, 4 or 5) by almost seven times from the previous year. This is just one of many examples showing that when rigor is increased for all students, students will rise to the challenge.
Kentucky granted NCLB flexibility request
With the granting of flexibility under the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act/No Child Left Behind (ESEA/NCLB), Kentucky’s public school system will have one comprehensive system of accountability for both state and federal purposes to ensure college/career readiness for all students. See news release for more information.
State Voter Slogan and Essay Contest – vote now
The Secretary of State’s office has narrowed the field of slogan entries to 20 finalists in the Office of the Secretary of State Voter Slogan and Essay Contest.
The general public can now vote for a favorite.
Slogans are judged on how well they attract attention and express the importance of participating in elections. Go to www.sos.ky.gov/sloganpoll to vote. The poll will remain open through 2 p.m. on Feb. 28.
Kentucky 6th-8th graders were eligible to enter the slogan contest, and the essay contest was open to student in grades 9-12. Prizes of up to a $1,000 U.S. savings bond in the slogan contest and four $3,000 U.S. savings bonds in the essay contest will be awarded. The monetary awards are made possible by contest sponsors Houchens Industries, KEA Retired, Turner Construction, the University of Kentucky Scripps Howard First Amendment Center and U.S. Bank.
For more information about the contest, or to find out how your school, organization or family can get involved in any civic activities taking place across Kentucky, go to www.civics.ky.gov.
Engineering Exposition 2012 at U of L
Engineering Exposition 2012: Engineering the World of Tomorrow is a day that is designed for middle and high school students to learn about and participate in the various engineering fields. The Speed School of Engineering opens its doors to spark interest for students looking at engineering as a future career.
There are many exciting things for students who are interested in mathematics and science to do at E-Expo including:
- the keynote address made by Jackie Swisher, Manager of Industrial Engineering at Walt Disney World
- hands-on activities with various engineering societies
- student competitions such as the bridge building contest, robot competitions and contests pertaining to each of the engineering disciplines
- lab tours to explore the Speed School’s cutting edge campus
E-Expo 2012 will be held on March 3 on the University of Louisville Speed School Campus.
For more information, go to www.engineering-expo.com. Students who attend will receive an E-Expo t-shirt, a boxed lunch and a deeper understanding of engineering.
Moms who make a difference
PTA's partner, Parenting magazine, is recruiting for its next class of Mom Congress delegates, and the deadline to apply is approaching. One mom will be chosen from each state, and the delegates will be celebrated, instructed and supported at a conference April 29-May 1.
Over the three days, the Mom Congress delegates will hear from and connect with the nation’s leading education experts and moms from across the country who are putting in the same long hours to improve our schools and ensure a great future for our kids. Last year’s speakers included Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, StudentsFirst Founder and CEO Michelle Rhee, chef Jamie Oliver, National PTA President Betsy Landers and other organization heads and influential members of the education community.
The Mom Congress on Education and Learning conference is a chance to brainstorm, unite and make real connections with other women who are making a difference in supporting education across the country. To apply, submit a 300-word essay and a photo online at www.parenting.com/webform/send-mom-congress.
Kentucky Literacy Celebration Week
Gov. Steve Beshear has issued an official proclamation that the second annual Kentucky Literacy Celebration week will be March 5-9.
Along with the Governor and First Lady Jane Beshear, a partnership of literacy agencies again will sponsor this exciting event in our state.
The Beshears have committed to making this an annual event held around the same week each year to highlight literacy and the impact it has on our education, economy and culture. Literacy is vital to learning in all content areas. Students must be able to read and comprehend in order to understand and excel in all areas of learning. Mrs. Beshear will be making numerous visits across the state; visiting schools and education centers, participating in activities, and inviting communities and businesses to engage in the overall literacy achievement of our citizens, from birth to adulthood. As the month continues, additional information will be shared.
All Kentucky educational organizations, school districts, postsecondary institutions, business entities, communities and families are invited to join in this second annual event. The intent of the event is to celebrate achievements and focus on awareness relevant to literacy in Kentucky.
Those wishing to promote an activity may submit them to www.kentuckyliteracy.org/celebrate2012.
Specifics about events may be entered on the “Event Submission Form” under the “Share” tab. Submissions will be compiled to a list of all activities and posted to the website to announce any events others may attend. Events and support also can be shared on the “Kentucky Literacy Celebration” Facebook page. The page will feature a photo campaign centered on this year’s theme “Literacy is Welcome Here.”
All activities are encouraged – from large organized events to personal reading time alone or with families and friends.
The week chosen for this event coincides with other literacy related activities that may help inspire participation. February is African-American Read-In month (sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of English), and March includes Read Across America activities (National Education Association).
Please continue to view the link above for additional information about this statewide event.