Longer school day, year on the horizon?
Superintendent Karl Springer has made no secret of the fact that he wants Oklahoma City school kids in class more hours and more days in the year.
The Oklahoman reported in May on his hopes for implementing a district wide calendar that would shorten the summer to just a few weeks but adds shorter breaks throughout the year .
“The long-term effect of that could be wonderful,” Springer told The Oklahoman. “If you think about our kids starting in kindergarten and going through 12th grade and getting an extra hour of school each day, they’d get a year’s more time in class than they would have otherwise.”
But even with seven schools in the district already using the calendar, the idea could have been considered nothing more than a pipe dream. Longer school days and longer school years require lots of money to pay teachers, and school districts across the state are strapped for cash.
Rumors are surfacing that the district might put one or both changes - longer school days and years - on the table for the union to consider may as early as the 2011 school year.
Ed Allen, representative of the Oklahoma City American Federation of Teachers, has said if such an offer was brought forward the union would be amicable.
So where would the money come from?
The Baltimore Sun reported that Baltimore schools unveiled a myriad of reforms; among them was the proposal to use the recent federal teacher jobs money to give teachers a $1,500 signing bonus. Could that pot of cash also coming to Oklahoma be used to pay teachers for working longer hours and longer years?
Lights on Afterschool
Afterschool programs across the state are charging up for the eleventh annual Lights on Afterschool event – a day each October dedicated to bringing awareness to the importance of safe places for kids to go after schools close.
It’s a nationwide event that has the Empire State Building and Mount Rushmore turning on the lights in support of after school programs.
The Boys and Girls Club of Oklahoma County is holding a carnival for students and parents.
Earlier this month it was announced that Laticia Wade of Stratford was named one of only 18 Afterschool Ambassadors throughout the nation and would be responsible for hosting a Lights On event here in Oklahoma.
Visit this website to find out what’s occuring in your community: http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/loaFindEventState.cfm?state=OK
Movie “Waiting for Superman” causes splash
The early release of the education documentary “Waiting for ‘Superman’” in select cities – New York. Los Angeles, etc. – has stirred waves in the education community.
The film – created by the same man who backed “An Inconvenient Truth” – tracks the pitfalls of American education through the eyes of students attempting to escape failing schools and drop out factories.
I haven’t seen the film myself, but have read enough reviews both positive and negative to make me want to see it. According to www.imdb.com it will open in Oklahoma theaters on Oct. 8.
Most praise for the film says it uses real emotion and drama to draw attention to the education crisis in the United States. Critics are saying the film oversimplifies a complicated issue by demonizing teachers unions and teachers. A number of unions have spoken out about the film’s shortcomings.
I’ll reserve judgement until I’ve actually watched the film, but if it works to put education issues in the spotlight, it has at least done some good!
Perhaps following the movie’s release, all across the state local school board meetings will be packed with concerned citizens and principals will be bombarded with volunteers and donations.
Or maybe it’s just a film.
Listed on wimgo Movies under Documentary
New roofs and AC units for district schools
In 2007, voters approved a $248 million bond issue for Oklahoma City Public Schools – funding that was timed to pick up as the MAPS for Kids funding expired.
Last week, the school board approved a plan for $103 million of that funding, which will almost entirely be spent on replacing and repairing roofs and heating and air conditioning systems in the district’s buildings.
There will be about $17.8 million available through 2014 for the facility upgrades, and the district is working on identifying priorities. Already a roof has been replaced at Dewey Elementary School, and HVAC projects were completed at Eugene Field and Shields Heights elementary schools.
The next priorities will be roofs at Arthur, Buchanan, Horace Mann, Prairie Queen and Rockwood elementaries and Northeast High School.
