Get Schooled

By Lisa B.

December 19, 2008 11:49 AM | Link to this

Serious reform is needed, and I hope Mr. Duncan does a great job. He has never taught school, which may or may not be a good thing, depending on one’s point of view. Background information shows Mr. Duncan has a B.A. in Sociology from Harvard and was awarded an honorary law degree from Lake Forest. Articles I’ve read about him so far say that Duncan has decreased the high school drop out rate in Chicago and closed some of the worst schools. Obviously, Georgia’s high school drop out rate is a major concern here. At this time, knowing as little as I know about Mr. Duncan, I am cautiously optimistic. At least he realizes that NCLB needs improvement.

By Sarah

December 19, 2008 12:03 PM | Link to this

I would like to see him change the world, but I am guessing that nothing much will happen.

By jim d

December 19, 2008 2:53 PM | Link to this

Laura, thanks for mentioning Arne’s weakness. i think if i were a parents of a sped child I’d have some real concerns regarding sped under his leadership.

“special education, long a trouble spot for CPS. Performance continues to be dismal. Fewer than 25 percent of elementary students receiving special education services met state standards last year; less than 10 percent of those in high school did.”

“Half of high school students with learning disabilities drop out; only a third of those who graduate enroll in college, most in two-year programs, according to 2007 data.”

“The average performance gap on state tests between students in special education and those who aren’t is 45 points—a gap that has widened during Duncan’s tenure and that is higher than the statewide average.”

Source

By Tony

December 19, 2008 4:08 PM | Link to this

Special education is a challenge for every district in the nation. Programs that are mandated are severely underfunded. The federal IDEA has never reached the 40% level that was expected when it was first established. Costs in the programs spiral because of the requirements to provide so many services. There will be no easy answers for helping improve special education passage rates.

Mr. Duncan appears that he approaches school system leadership with a sense of balance. One of the faults of the current leadership is its wreckless implementation of policies that made no sense and had no backing in research. Reading First is the easiest to point out and its evaluations have shown the methods to be lackluster and sometimes detrimental to student achievement.

Another fault of the current leadership is the way they have imposed the school AYP rules as if schools can undo and overcome the social ills that are hindering student learning in the first place. Perhaps Mr. Duncan will have a better understanding of how early childhood healthcare has an impact on learning.

My biggest hope is that the federal programs will return to ones that support schools. Local and state boards need to establish and maintain evaluation criteria for schools. It seems that when the federal government increases its involvement in anything, the outcomes are worse.

By SallyB

December 19, 2008 8:29 PM | Link to this

Ok…this is not going to be a popular position….but Special education students are exactly that…..special. [ I realize that “Gifted ” students are also designated Special Education students in many systems, but I am not addressing those students here . ] Why would anyone think that Special Education students could or should perform at the level of those students who are not tested and endlessly evauated and then designated “special needs” students? These students have disabilities that require special attention and more time and effort so that they can achieve. Many will never achieve at the level of average students, but they will achieve. Their evaluation should be based on PROGRESS,…..not a fixed level of performance. This is an issue of NCLB and in general that absolutely makes no sense to me.

By jim d

December 20, 2008 3:05 AM | Link to this

Sally,

I don’t disagree, however, I found the fact that Half of high school students with learning disabilities drop out of the chicago system a bit concerning. Clearly they have not been providing the help these kids need.

By Rob Smith

December 20, 2008 10:04 PM | Link to this

J. Alvin Wilbanks (JAWS) for short makes more then Arnie Duncan did in Chicago !

Mr. Wilbanks is paid more then the Superintendent heading The New York City Department of Education. The Republicans are always bringing up tax and spend Democrats, however nobody is talking about this ? This is his fiscal 2007 Salary. The Governor of Georgia only makes $122,000 ? I think someone needs to do something about this, even if it is just to educate the taxpayers and media ! His next contract will probably take him close to $400,000, the same salary as the President of the United States !

Please find Superintendent Salaries in Metro Atlanta below :

From the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts Website:

Cobb County $190,550.00 Gwinnett County $306,904.73 Dekalb County $243,182.71 City of Atlanta $378,259.91 City of Buford $162,999.96 Hall County $172,588.92 Union County $143,129.78 Walton County $158,600.16 Douglas County $201,185.04 Fulton County $201,524.74

I do not think the current School Board members have been good stewards of the taxpayer dollars…… Mr. Wilbanks has a School Bus Driver fill his car with GCPS gasoline. I hope this is making it’s way on his expense reports with GCPS. What do you think ??? Can a cap be put on School Superintendent’s Salaries ? What is the School Board getting in return for awarding a salary so high ? Take a look at the link below ! Compare Superintendent Wilbank’s salary to his equivalent in New York City and Chicago and even LA., which have more students and the areas have higher cost of living.

Administrator Compensation:

[http://www.scholastic.com/administrator/pay.htm]

The link below will give you Access to look up any State or Local Salary:

[target=”_blank”>https://www.audits.state.ga.us/esa/index.html]

Thank you,