Mike Falick's Blog

The Spring Branch Website has Great Back-to-School Information

The Spring Branch website has recently been updated with a page dedicated to back-to-school information.  This informative site, which will prove valuable well beond just back-to-school planning, contains the following links:

• Back to School 2008: What families need to know
• Información del regreso a clases: Lo que los padres necesitan saber
• Back to School Forms
• Registration starts Aug. 14
• Instructional hours
• Back to School & College Nights
• Health Fairs offer free immunizations
• Meal prices
• SBISD Board of Trustees plans 2008-2009 meetings
• Math and science requirements for ninth-graders
• Four-year-olds served by Schools for Early Learning
• Donations needed for School Supply Project
• Memorial Assistance Ministries:
  Our students need your help
• School Supplies Project: donations
• Administration Department
• Health Services information
• Parent Center helps Spring Branch families achieve
• Parent Portal internet access
• School search by address
• School supplies - Elementary
• School Visitor Screening System
• Student directory information
• Transportation information
• Options and requirements for providing assistance to students who have learning difficulties or who need or may need Special Education
• Pest Management Policy

Strong American Schools: A Nonpartisan Group Highlights the Crucial Need for Education Reform

Regular readers of this blog know that I have been talking about the issues of the flattening earth since the inception of this blog.  Over the weekend, I came across the Strong American Schools website and the new public awareness campaign it is sponsoring to highlight the critical condition of American schools when compared to the rest of the industrialized world.  You can view the television ad that is running in a number of states (but not in Texas) by clicking here.  (The screen capture above is from the ad).

The Strong American Schools' fact sheet for the ad contains the following statistics that vividly demonstrate the need for reform:

• Out of 30 industrialized countries, America’s 15-year-olds rank 25th in math and 21st in science. SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2007). PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Executive Summary. Table 2 and 5. Paris, France: OECD Publications. Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/15/13/39725224.pdf 
• Rank of countries on the science scale: Finland, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Netherlands, Korea, Germany, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Hungary, Sweden, Poland, Denmark, France, Iceland, United States. SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2007). PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Executive Summary. Table 2. Paris, France: OECD Publications.  Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/15/13/39725224.pdf 
• 93% of American science teachers have little or no training in science. SOURCE: National Academy of Sciences. (2007). Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. (p. 114). 
• By eighth grade, nearly 70% of students are below proficient in reading. SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2007. Accessed at http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/ 
• America’s graduation rate is ranked 21st out of 27 industrialized countries. SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2007, December). PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow’s World, Briefing Note for the United States. Paris, France: Author. 
• Between 2000 and 2005, out of 23 countries, the U.S. was the only country that showed no increase in its postsecondary graduation rate.  SOURCE: Postsecondary Education Opportunity. (2007, November). Upper Secondary and Tertiary Graduation and Attainment in OECD and Partner Countries: 1996 to 2005. Oskaloosa, IA: Author.

Strong American Schools has recommended three policy changes that I believe would improve the quality of our schools and return the United States to a position among the top countries in the world rather than among the bottom.  The three recommendations, which are fully discussed in the Strong American Schools' Policy Primer are as follows:

• American education standards. Regardless of where they live, all students need to acquire knowledge and skills that prepare them for college, for the workplace, and for life. From New Hampshire to Nevada, every student deserves a strong curriculum in subjects like math and English.
• Effective teachers in every classroom. We need to enable teachers to improve their skills, measure teachers’ performance in the classroom, and pay them more if they produce superior results or take on challenging assignments. 
• More time and support for learning. We need to provide successful and struggling students alike more time for in-depth learning and greater personal attention.

Each of these reforms is discussed in the and in even greater detail in the Strong American Schools' Policy Toolkit.

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About Strong American Schools (from its website): Strong American Schools is a nonpartisan public awareness and advocacy effort aimed at elevating discussion amongst America's leaders about the need for education reform. The organization seeks to unite all Americans around the crucial mission of improving our public schools by elevating the discussion to a national stage. For more information and to view the new campaign, please visit www.strongamericanschools.org.

Strong American Schools, a project of Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, is a nonpartisan campaign supported by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Gates Foundation promoting sound education policies for all Americans. SAS does not support or oppose any candidate for public office and does not take positions on legislation.

The "Google Generation" Thinks Differently: Multi-Tasking as a Way of Life

A recent article that appeared in the London Times accurately describes the "Google Generation," identified as today's students.  The Times discusses what many people have noticed (and particularly those of us whose children seem to be connected to a laptop/cell phone continuously):

According to researchers we are in the midst of a sea change in the way that we read and think. Our digitally native children have wonderfully flexible minds. They absorb information quickly, adapt to changes and are adept at culling from multiple sources. But they are also suffering from internet-induced attention deficit disorder.

Children do have the capacity to assimilate learning faster and simultaneously from multiple sources, says Clark. “The downside is that they expect more variety, so their boredom threshold is falling. Some teaching is adapting to that and becoming more dynamic, some is not.”

The article shows why engaging students with "old world" media will be increasingly difficult for these digital natives.
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How the Google generation thinks differently

Digital-age kids process information differently from parents. Our writer admits misjudging how her son was learning

My elder son Oli is almost 15 and way beyond the stage where I might usefully help with his homework. But in the run-up to his recent end-of-year exams, I felt compelled to take a hovering interest in his revision. This chiefly involved loitering on the landing and popping into his room at frequent intervals laden with the laundered contents of his sock drawer.

Every time I crossed the threshold, the scene was the same: textbooks remained firmly closed in his bag while the laptop was open on his desk.

On the screen was some history/ physics/English document, but also his Facebook and iTunes pages. In his ears were the iPod plugs, playing back a podcast. And sometimes, just to fracture his concentration even further, he might have had a half-played video running on YouTube as well.

Can You Pass the New U.S. Citizenship Test?

The MSNBC website has posted twenty questions from the recently updated United States Citizenship Test.  From the MSNBC website:

In October 2008 a new version of the U.S. citizenship test will be taken by all applicants. Could you pass it? The questions are usually selected from a list of 100 samples that prospective citizens can look at ahead of the interview. Some are easy, some are not. We have picked some of the more difficult ones.

While candidates for U.S. Citizenship only get the question, MSNBC provides four possible responses for each question. 

My results are below.

Spring Branch Students Offered Scholarships Totaling $16,388,024

Spring Branch is a District focused on ensuring that our students are prepared for college and post-secondary success.  As part of that commitment, and given the increasing costs of college, our Post-Secondary Counselors work hard to identify and promote scholarship opportunities for students.  These efforts resulted in $16,388,024 being offered to Spring Branch ISD seniors in 2007-2008.  This is an increase of approximately $1.5 million over 2006-2007.  In addition, the percentage of students receiving scholarships also increased from 21.22% to 26.36% of our students.

City of Houston to Hold Kendall Branch Library Update Meeting on July 1, 2008 at 7:00p

The City of Houston sent me the email that appears below concerning a meeting to update the community on the new Kendall Branch Library.

Many of you will remember the hundreds of emails, multiple meetings, and significant community effort made to concerning the Library.  Ultimately, the City decided to relocate to property located at 609 North Eldridge.

I had not started this blog while the Kendall Branch Library discussions were occurring, but if you are interested in the history, here are a few documents:

My March 30, 2005 email to the community with many additional community member emails concerning the Library

SBISD flash email dated May 10, 2005

May 11, 2005 email from Councilmember Pam Holm regarding City's decision to relocate the Library

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Community Meeting On Kendall Library

WHEN: Tuesday, July 1, 2008

WHERE: Tracey Gee Community Center, 3599 West Center Drive, Houston, Texas 77042

TIME: 7:00 PM

INVITED: All Area Residents and Library Patrons

PRESENTERS: City of Houston: General Services Department Houston Public Library City Council Member Pam Holm

The City of Houston will presenting an update on planning for the new Kendall Library to be constructed at 609 North Eldridge. For more information please contact Amy Yancy in Council Member Pam Holm's office at 832-393-3007 or at amy.yancy@cityofhouston.net We look forward to your attendance!

Recap of Tonight's Board Workshop Meeting

Our Board held its monthly workshop meeting tonight. Here's a recap of the issues discussed and actions taken on tonight's Agenda.

Our first Agenda item was an update and discussion of the recommendations from the Academies and Pathways Task Force. (For more information, please see this prior post).

We followed that discussion with a discussion about the proposed Board Policy concerning implementation of the Academies, EGA (Local) Innovative and Academy Programs.  Consensus was reached that the Board believes the District should proceed cautiously with implementation of Academies. The Board had many questions about implementation, cost, and the possible campus selection criteria. I reiterated the concerns I raised during our April 28, 2008, Board Meeting about the sustainability of the programs given our budgetary pressures and my strong belief in the need to maintain the integrity of our neighborhood schools.

Our next agenda item was a continuation of the discussion from last night's Board meeting about the proposed new homework policy (EIB (Local) Academic Achievement: Homework). The discussion continued to be very robust around this controversial issue. In the end, the Board voted to reconstitute the Homework Task Force, provided a great deal of consensus-based guidance, and referred the 14 amendments I proposed to the Task Force for consideration. The Task Force will be asked to provide the Board with a final recommendation at our December Board meeting so that, once voted on in January, the District will have sufficient time to provide the necessary staff development to ensure successful implementation.

Our final agenda item tonight was very simple (which we needed after the extensive discussion on the 2 items above). We approved minor revisions to Board/Superintendent Operating Procedures numbers 32 and 33.

How Fast Can You Name All 50 States (See If You Can Beat My Time of 3:40)

I previously posted this website about how to learn the 50 states.

Here's another website that times how quickly you can type in all 50 states.  Here is my result:

Recap of Tonight's Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Our Board held its regular monthly meeting tonight.  Here's a recap of the issues discussed and actions taken on tonight's Agenda.

We had three special presentations this evening.  First, we recognized our District's Finance Department, under the leadership of our Associate Superintendent for Finance, Karen Wilson, for their receipt of the Outstanding Award for Financial Reporting.

Our second special presentation recognized one of our State Senators, Kyle Janek, who represented a portion of Spring Branch in the Texas State Senate from 2002 until his recent retirement.  The Board will vote on this Resolution honoring Senator Janek at our July Board meeting.

Our next special presentation was the presentation to the District's Administration Building of a No Place for Hate banner by the Anti-Defamation League.

Our final special presentation was by the Buffalo Creek McTappers, who did several tap dancing numbers for the audience.

Next came two surprises.  First, the District recognized Bob Sharp, our long-time Director of Communications, on his impending retirement.  Bob has been with the District for 20 of his 30 years.

That was followed by the Board giving me this plaque as recognition for my year as the Board's President.

We had one member of our community speak during Citizens Participation to thank the District for its use of the person's bank.  (Sorry, I didn't write down the name of the Bank).

Next we held a public hearing on After School Child Care.  This hearing is required by law, and in my time on the Board, I do not believe we have had anyone appear to speak.  That was again the case tonight.

We then proceeded to our Board Member Liaison reports.  Here are the materials I provided in my legislative update, and the materials Board Member Wayne Schaper provided in his Facilities Update (here, here, here, here, and here). 

We then received a positive update on the status of the District's FY 2008 Audit from our external auditor, Null Lairson.  The audit will be finalized by October.

We then had first readings of the following Board policies: EGA (Local) Innovative and Academy Programs, EIE (Local) Academic Achievement: Retention and Promotion, FJ (Local) Gifts and Solicitations.

Our first action items on the Agenda included the approval of the Budget Status Summary Report with Budget Amendments as of May 31, 2008, the FY 2008 Final Amended Budget and Designations of Fund Balance, and the Facilities Improvement Program Monthly Status Report with Project Detail Changes as of May 31, 2008.  As we do in every monthly meeting, we also approved the awarding of a variety of contracts (part 1, and part 2).

We also approved the continuation of the Lease between Spring Branch and the Japanese Institute of Houston, and the Cooperative.

As part of the 2007 Bond Program, we will need to be able to house students from a particular campus off-site while of the campus is being reconstructed.  In order to accomplish this need, the District will construct a transitional campus to be located.  Tonight we approved the Schematic Design for the Transitional Campus to be located at the Spring Branch Education Center.  Consideration has been given to the possibility that this campus may be used beyond the ten years of the current bond program.

We also approved architect assignments for 2007 Bond projects to be completed during the 2008-2009 Fiscal Year.

Next we considered amendments to Board/Superintendent Operating Procedures numbers 32 and 33.  No new amendments were offered, and these two operating procedures will be on our Workshop agenda tomorrow night for final approval.

Our final action item tonight was the consideration of potential amendments to EIB (Local) Academic Achievement: Homework.  While I respect the work of the Homework Task Force, which met for over a year, I believe that there are additional components that should be included.  To be clear, I am not anti-homework.  I am, however, anti-homework that is busy work, or as my fellow Trustee, Dave Converse put it, "mind-numbing."  I also believe that homework, like all of the things we ask of students in school, should be focused on preparing our students to be successful in the 21st Century global workforce with all the skills necessary to do so.  As a result, I proposed 14 amendments to the Policy.  After much discussion tonight, and knowing that this item is on the agenda for tomorrow night for further discussion, this item was postponed for further consideration until tomorrow.

For additional articles I have posted on homework, please click here.

We concluded our meeting with the approval of the items on our Consent Agenda.

Another Interesting Article on Homework that Advocates Ending Elementary School Homework (from a former homework fan)

As I have continued to research in preparation for tonight's Board discussion on the District's homework policy, I continue to find interesting articles.  Here's one from Jay Matthews that appeared last year in the Washington Post. 

Mr. Matthews cites the research by Duke psychologist Harris M. Cooper, a leading expert on homework, whose reviews of homework research conclude that, for elementary school students, the correlation between time spent on homework and achievement is almost zero.

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Hit the Books
Forget the daily mountain of homework. For young children, reading should be the only requirement.

By Jay Mathews
Sunday, August 5, 2007; W22

MY MOST VIVID HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT MEMORY is the log cabin my fourth-grade daughter made out of Tootsie Rolls.

Okay, okay. I hear you other parents snorting in disbelief. She didn't make the log cabin. All those tears and recriminations and toothpicks broken trying to hold the cursed thing together were mine, not hers. I made the log cabin. At least, I tried.

I remember many elementary school assignments. There was the bird cage fashioned out of Pop-sicle sticks, and the incomprehensible collages of magazine clippings, and the map-coloring, book-reporting, spelling-list-memorizing and other things I have repressed.

Please don't misunderstand me. I like homework. Among education columnists, I am Mr. Homework. I never pass up an opportunity to skewer anti-homework books and commentators. In middle schools, and particularly high schools, I think students should do more homework. The national homework average in 2003 was 50 minutes a day for 15- to 17-year-olds, leaving plenty of time for the two hours and eight minutes each day they watched TV, according to time diaries collected by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research.

I think homework's long losing battle against television is one of the reasons we have seen no significant increase in high school reading or math achievement in the past three decades.

But here I am talking about homework for elementary school children, not high-schoolers. What most people don't know about elementary school homework is that the research strongly suggests that it is a waste of time, something I began to suspect after my daughter's eighth or ninth collage. Middle-schoolers and high-schoolers who do their homework do better in school than those who don't. But Duke psychologist Harris M. Cooper, a leading expert on homework, has conducted reviews of homework research that conclude that, for elementary school students, the correlation between time spent on homework and achievement is almost zero.