By gwinnett educator

November 28, 2008 9:28 AM | Link to this

sigh…I don’t feel good about this.

By jim d

November 28, 2008 9:49 AM | Link to this

Surprisingly I feel pretty good about this. Something needs to be done. It can’t be business as usual.

By Erin

November 28, 2008 11:23 AM | Link to this

Wait, so this proposal allows the system to INCREASE class sizes?

That’s not exactly reassuring from the very start!

Erin

By Yet another scam

November 28, 2008 11:59 AM | Link to this

Notice the proposal doesn’t say anything about addressing discipline? If it doesn’t address discipline, it’s not a proposal, it’s smoke and mirrors, designed for something other than the benefit of students. If they aren’t willing to share the details with the “stakeholders,” why should the stakeholders trust their integrity in the least?

By cricket

November 28, 2008 12:14 PM | Link to this

Is there an upside to this? Holy Cow! Besides the county level administration, could this possible benefit anyone? * less qualified teachers * larger class sizes * unregulated salaries- pay as much or as little as they want to teachers. (I guess that would be a plus if you are well connected)

Can someone point out anything good about this for those of us in the trenches? I would love to be be proven wrong but this looks like really scary stuff y’all…

By cricket

November 28, 2008 12:30 PM | Link to this

I left out …*expenditure controls

Let me guess. This gives exception to 65% rule???? Lovely.

By punisher

November 28, 2008 12:39 PM | Link to this

If the district fails, it is punished.

I think the punishments should be clearly stated in the proposal - and perhaps more importantly, they should start with the district level administrators, then building administrators, then teachers. The punishments should NOT affect students negatively in any manner. Anyone who signs off this proposal should acknowledge the punishments they must face. The district level administrators should not be allowed to leave their positions before the results of their efforts can be clearly evaluated - without significant financial consequences personally.

By Lee

November 28, 2008 12:57 PM | Link to this

It may work, it may not. But I would suggest a reputable external auditor to verify the results….

By Tony

November 28, 2008 1:18 PM | Link to this

Let me get this straight. A proposal to revise how Gwinnett schools operate is being constructed without dialogue with the stakeholders? The article quoted someone as saying it was too early for dialogue. IT IS NEVER TOO EARLY FOR DIALOGUE. All this means is the upper leadership wants full control of the deal.

Did anyone catch the line about transferring personnel in order to reach targets in student achievement? I think this came up in our discussion about “highly qualified” teachers. The article also referenced ways to side-step the teacher salary scale.

Class size could increase, too. Let me insert some details about class size. All the research that has been done with class size clearly indicates that the only significant improvement in student learning occurs when class sizes are reduced below 14. Another important point about class size is that “effective teachers” (those who are able to consistently raise student achievement) continue to get similar results even with class sizes up to 40 students.

Someone referenced the 65% rule. This is an arbitrary ratio that someone came up with a few years ago. It looks good on paper but has no backing in research. Also, the formula excludes Media Specialists and counselors who are vital to student learning. Yet it went on to include graduation coaches. It was all purely political, too.

On the idea of less qualified teachers you’ll find that private schools use this approach. Most people assume (incorrectly) that private schools provide a much better product. So why shouldn’t public schools have some flexibility in teachers’ qualifications?

It could easily turn out that arrangements like this have a tremendously positive impact on students. Local control of education is the most powerful way to provide for the learning expectations of a community. When the rules and regulations impede a local district’s ability to provide a quality education, then it is up to us to find a better way.

The only things about this proposal that sticks in my craw is leaving out the stakeholders and the transfer of personnel to meet achievement targets.

By Rob Smith

November 28, 2008 1:36 PM | Link to this

In Thursday’s 11/27/2008 Atlanta Journal and Constitution page 1, there is an article talking about how the Board of Education wants to pull out of State Mandates for increases in performance in five years. The information had to be obtained through an Open Records Request the School Board is intending on acting on the proposal in December. Again the School System acts in secret ! The School Systems lawyer does land purchases in secret * The GCPS Board is like the KGB.This is due to one party control !Mr. Wilbanks fills his car with free county gasoline,this is per a School Bus Driver, did you know about this?* Mr.Wilbanks makes approximately $307,000 per year !The plan calls for video teaching with a teachers aide in the classroom, as well as larger class sizes. The School System also is considering allowing several classes to share one certified expert teacher who provides lessons broadcast through a video monitor while a teachers aide would supervise classrooms and help students with work. It takes a professional teacher to improve student performance not a video screen. Another proposal would scale back mandatory work free lunch breaks for elementary school teachers in favor of more instruction time. **Teachers say they have been left in the dark about what to expect.According to the proposal the school district could grow class sizes and give principals the flexibility to hire more support staff such as social workers instead of more certified teachers when enrollment swells. Under its flexiblity proposal Gwinnett vows to use targeted instruction to improve performance in reading, language and math for all students. Gwinnett School officials say it is too early for an open dialogue on the flexibility plan and that parents and teachers will be given an opportunity to voice their opinions soon. We expect that Gwinnett’s proposed contract would be presented and reviewed by the Gwinnett board in December. At that time, the district will hold a public hearing on the proposal. These are backdoor budget cuts. Large amounts of teachers and parents must turn out for the public hearing on this….. Speak up !

By Rob Smith

November 28, 2008 2:01 PM | Link to this

If parents and teachers, don’t talk with their Elected School Board members. When bad things happen to teachers and with student performance. They only have themselves to blame !!!

See below….

Carole Boyce, District I, 2008 Chairman 3287 Bailey Road NE Dacula, GA 30019

Home (770) 995-6796 Fax (678) 376-8633

Daniel D. Seckinger, District II, 2008 Vice Chairman 2095 Wynfield Point Drive Buford, GA 30519

Home (770) 277-4490 Fax (770) 277-4490

Dr. Mary Kay Murphy, District III 4516 Ridgegate Drive NW Duluth, GA 30097

Home (770) 840-9752 Fax (770) 582-7507

Dr. Robert McClure, District IV 1446 Oleander Drive Lilburn, GA 30047

Board Business (770) 736-0001 Fax (770) 736-4591

Louise Radloff, District V 4439 Plantation Lane Norcross, GA 30093

Home (770) 923-4784 Fax (770) 931-5700

Make your voice heard, Thank you !

By Rob Smith

November 28, 2008 2:21 PM | Link to this

This Flexibility Plan are just hidden Budget Cuts for the School System !

By Jeff

November 28, 2008 3:56 PM | Link to this

By jim d

“Surprisingly I feel pretty good about this. Something needs to be done. It can’t be business as usual.”

Et tu jim d?

By catlady

November 28, 2008 8:07 PM | Link to this

So, let me get this straight. Gwinnett Co has trouble with student behavior. So they will put a teacher “on the tube” and a parapro in the room—has anyone thought of how this will impact behavior?

I agree with an earlier poster about leaving out stakeholders in developing the proposal. They want it to be a done deal before anyone gets a look at it. Why not talk with those who KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE TYPICAL CLASSROOM?

This will result in more political rewards for those favored and more dumped on the teachers’ backs. And when it does not work it will be the teachers’ fault.

Glad the AJC made the open records request, otherwise we would not know about this.

Until 1) discipline is strengthened, no matter the color of the student 2) teachers are freed from the cure du jour, 3) administrators have significant, recent experience teaching what they are administrating, 4) we direct additional resources to the above average, and guarantee a FAPE for EVERY student, and 5) we strengthen parental investment by building smaller, neighborhood schools, things will rock on as they are now. Immediate, fair, no-excuses discipline is key. Until you have that, there is no education for anyone.

By cj

November 28, 2008 9:53 PM | Link to this

I’m with gwinnett educator. I don’t have a good feeling about this, probably because the BOE doesn’t seem to want any parental or, more importantly, teacher input. If you are going to change the schools so dramatically, perhaps those “on the ground”, as it were, should have some input. Call me when that actually happens.

By jim d

November 29, 2008 5:43 AM | Link to this

No jeff,

that was our resident troll.

I think everyone here knows how i feel about the GCPS systems operations. I’ve been sounding the alarm for several years and people just don’t seem to get it. I’m nearly at the point where I am beginning to find some real humor in the ignorance of a voting public that keeps sending these same inept, corrupt a*******holes back to be our BOE.

By jim d

November 29, 2008 5:56 AM | Link to this

cj,

the BOE doesn’t seem to want any parental or, more importantly, teacher input.

SOP in Gwinnett

See what I’ve been dealing with for the past 10 years?

Now we have more garbage — Gwinnett Clean & Beautiful Services, Inc. which ironically some of our BOE members and other system employees are involved in. I must salute them for staying in the field of peddling garbage.

This whole thing up here in Gwinnett has really become a circus.

By jim d

November 29, 2008 6:30 AM | Link to this

Actually Laura,

Gwinnett is not wanting more freedom—they are wanting for more control to do as they damn well please with Napoalvin at the helm.

By gwinnett educator

November 29, 2008 7:12 AM | Link to this

I know I am planning to make as many colleagues aware of this as I possibly can. This is my 2nd yr in Gwinnett and this yr I have really been getting a taste of what jim d speaks about so often. It is such a UGH situation, I still can not wrap my brain around it. There is so much I would like to type but instead, I’m going to sip on some tea.

Happy Saturday ALL!

By Elizabeth

November 29, 2008 7:22 PM | Link to this

So teachers will teach by means of a video while parapros supervise students and their work? Who grades all this work? If I am teaching 3 classess times 5 periods a day, it would be imposible to grade all that. Can parapros assess student learning? What happens to students who don’t learn from a video or who can’t keep up? Who is responsible for the test scores? Not I, if I am not in my classroom with my students. I cannot asess students unless I am with them, nor will I. Nor will I accept responsibility for student learning done by a parapro with no training on how to teach and assess kids.

Transfers? I chose to work in a neighborhood in a certain area and a certain school . Transfer me and see how quickly I leave. See how quickly I decide to work in a school of not my choice by working 8 to 4— period.

No lunch time? That is a state labor mandate— everyone must have lunch. Take my lunch time and watch me promptly get sick from lack of food and assorted ailments which the school system will then be required to pay for when I get sick and take them to court.

Just keep trying to find ways to abuse and dehunmanize teachers and see how many more leave. There is going to be a massive teacher shortage in this country— and no one believes it. Garbage like this will only make it come faster.

I have 3 years until retirement. I would like to teach longer, for I love teaching, but I will not teach under those conditions.

By Sharona

November 30, 2008 10:13 AM | Link to this

ALL I CAN SAY IS WOW!!!!!!

By things that make you go hmm

November 30, 2008 10:35 AM | Link to this

If a teacher is teaching several classes by video, how will kids get to ask questions? Class sizes are already pretty big. How in the world can a class of 35 or 40 do a science lab? I wouldn’t want to be the little “teacher’s aide” for those! What about the sped kids who have certain needs or requirements in their IEP’s?

For clarification, they aren’t saying they will take away teacher’s lunch time (all 15-20 minutes of it), they are saying they’ll get rid of “duty free lunches”. I think that is aimed at the elem. teachers who are required to have duty free lunches, not the middle/high school teachers who get lunch duty every other damn week and usually miss lunch anyway.

Seems like Gwinnett wants to be on the “cutting edge” of education(al failure)!

By Gwinnett Parent

December 1, 2008 3:46 PM | Link to this

Gwinnett Public Schools is unable and unwilling to supervise and monitor itself. This is like the fox guarding the hen house. If they are creating the rules, you can be sure they are creating the loopholes. The moment a school or a favored administrator do not meet the standards established — the rules will change or the loophole exercised. How many times have we seen this before ? The GCPS system leadership has proven time and time again that they are not interested in serious grassroots involvement UNTIL they have already set up the rules and are then able to throw a few dogbones the parents/teachers way. Even with that, the spin will be tightly controlled and new elements will be inserted under the radar after the grassroots involvement. And yes, the teachers and parents groups will be used and touted as having bought off on it. Get a grip Gwinnett parents and teachers, if you haven’t figured it out already - your opinion just does not matter — at all, but your votes do. You were manipulated - again.

By 19 years in GCPS

December 6, 2008 4:41 PM | Link to this

Interesting how the article appeared for the first time on Thanksgiving…a Federal holiday a day when nobody reads the paper. It’s a sham and the BOE doesn’t care for our opinion!

By Where-there-is-Air

December 6, 2008 6:53 PM | Link to this

I’m not sure if GCPS is trying to save or blow money. Why not just put your lessons on YouTube.

Don’ t get me wrong , I think more help in the class for teachers would be ideal. Maybe with an in-class assistant, a teacher would be more effective. Regardless of the degree, a person with the same passion and drive could still make a big difference in a struggling child’s education.

I am all for the community reaching out to the teachers and adopting some of the burden. We must work as a team. Maybe if the parents were asked to be more involved or
felt welcome we would have a better result, thus ridiculous measures would be unnecessary.

As parents we can not expect the teachers to do it all, we have got to get it together. The goal is the same, so should be the effort. Stop buying the AF1’s (Nike) if all your kids are bring home are F’s

Where there is Air there’s opportunity, and where there’s opportunity, there are NO EXCUSES

By Rob Smith

December 9, 2008 11:54 PM | Link to this

The Gwinnett County School Board, is holding a hearing to allow themselves to not follow State Educational Mandates or laws for 5 years, such as (ex:Teacher Pay and Class Sizes). Please go to the GCPS website to review the plan . Please review and forward this article on to every Parent and Teacher you know who will be affected by this plan. The hearing is this Thursday at 6:30 PM, please plan on attending, and testifying ! Let your opinion be heard.

The Gwinnett County Board of Education will hold a public hearing on its proposed “IE2 Partnership Contract for Improving Student Achievement” with the Georgia Board of Education. The IE2 (Investing in Educational Excellence) contract would allow the school system to receive flexibility for its schools from specified state statutes and/or rules in exchange for greater accountability for student achievement. The hearing will be held on Thursday, December 11, 2008, at 6:30 p.m. in the Board Room at Gwinnett County Public Schools’ Instructional Support Center, 437 Old Peachtree Road, NW, Suwanee, GA.

This is a hearing on the possible use of video so a HIGHLY QUALIFIED teacher can teach multiple rooms full of students, elementary teachers will lose lunch breaks and many other things. The link on the GCPS website makes it all sound GREAT. I seem to remember that the GC Waste Management Plan sounded pretty good at first glance too.

“A prominent member of the School Board said they wanted to use this proposal to pay a Harvard Educated Teacher more then a GSU or a Georgia Educated Teacher. Establishing a two tier Teacher Pay System for doing the same job…… “

Attend the one and only hearing this Thursday at 6:30 PM at Gwinnett County BOE Headquarters on Old Peachtree Road in Suwanee and try to make your voice heard by voice or signs. Several media outlets have been contacted.

This weeks US and News and World Report judged the 100 best High Schools in America. No Gwinnett Schools made the List. How about the BOE telling the Superintendent Wilbanks that one School makes the list or his $307,000 Contract will not be renewed ! What do you think ?