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What Is The Value Of This?
RVSD Parents Voice Testing Concerns...

ACCORD – Common Core and the tracking of student performances via new technology dominated discussion at the Rondout Valley School District's October 14th board meeting.

The presentation by Lisa Pacht of Orange-Ulster BOCES on NewWave Telecom & Technologies Inc., a full-service information technology and business services company based out of Maryland, explained how its services could be used to track student performance and collect data.

Deputy Superintendent Dr. Timothy Wade gave an update on the expansion of half day Pre-K to full day through a grant provided by state, with 18 students now enrolled and 17 coming regularly, along with bussing for the 3-4 year olds... and car seats.

"I've been in the class. There is one teacher and two teaching assistants," Wade said. "It's been a smooth opening, it's been great."

Then came the meeting's public comment period, dominated by residents concerned about the Common Core curriculum.

Kim Cohen of Accord, an RVSD parent and university educator, expressed concern that the new curriculum is too focused on testing and leaves no time for the types of learning that create good college students and foster intellectual curiosity, such as project-based learning methods.

"The standards may get students where they need to go but it doesn't teach them how to get there on their own," she said.

Lori Traver of High Falls, another parent and a self-described conservative who said she lives paycheck to paycheck, first denounced the idea that "only liberals keep their children from taking the standardized tests" by stating that she opts out of the testing for her children. She then asked the school board to add up the number of hours that students spend taking standardized tests before taking on anything else like NewWave.

Sheryl Delano, a teacher of 29 years at Rondout Valley, also spoke against the Common Core.

"We know our kids. We know what they know and we know what they don't know," Delano said. "This is attempting to pigeon-hole teachers and students... What are they testing? What is the value of this? This whole system takes away the creativity and all of the individualized curriculum we have built. We have to be concerned about the whole student; I don't want us to lose sight of that and just focus on the data."

She then gave an example: "A little girl came up to me and told me she'd lost her grandma," Delano said. "It wasn't about times tables that day; it can't always be about data. We're better than that."

After public comments committee heads gave their reports.

The technology committee reported that the iPad's rollout hasn't gone as smoothly as they'd hoped but the technology director is not discouraged... and a new feature for teachers this school year is access to Google docs.

It was also noted that the district had penetration tests to test its security.

"The external test — which is people trying to get in from the outside — went very well," Wayne Beckerman said. "The internal test was okay, and the test of the wireless system was okay."

A separate check on email responses did not do well at all, it was added.

Wade reported that the district's curriculum committee is looking into solutions for students who finish course work but don't pass the regents test, possibly adding special test prep classes after school for 18 or 19 year olds who have regents exams to pass in order to receive a diploma. The committee is also looking at the requirements for hiring highly qualified special education teachers, who currently have to be duel certified in special education and their content area.

"We are looking at how to get highly qualified teachers when we're not, in fact, hiring any new teachers," Wade added.

The wellness committee reported that there are 450 students who receive free or reduced lunch at present, with new efforts being looked into for better outreach to those needing help with their free or reduced lunch program applications.

Sam Longbotham and Sean Konz, the student members of the board, reported that there will be a student forum meeting this Friday morning, October 17, where high school students will be able to talk about what's going on in school.

The board voted to create a computer technologies club and yoga club at the high school.

The final order of business was to announce that the October 28th school board meeting is canceled; the next meeting will be on November 4th.



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