I’m going to be attending The School Law Institute at Teacher’s College. Can’t wait to see what thought processes and writing develop from the experience!

This NYT article discusses a current gap in the marketplace - experienced, trained/ educated welders, nurses, civil engineers, etc. There are needs for all sorts of craftspeople - a basic supply and demand issue. And those with experience will be aging out. We need guidance, programs and support for our schools to identify and work with those students who may be interested in these (and other) fields.

Food for thought.

The School For The Animals

An old story tells of the creation of a school for the animals. In this school, everybody took the same four courses: flying, swimming, climbing, and running. Among the students were a duck, a flying squirrel, a fox, and an elephant. These four were highly motivated, and wanted to get good grades, so they all tried very hard.

The duck did fantastically well in swimming and flying, but he lagged behind his classmates in climbing and running, so focused special attention on those two subjects. However, his feet became so sore from trying to run and his wings were so bedraggled from trying to climb that by the end of the year he not only failed both those subjects, but made C’s in swimming and flying, which had once been his two best subjects.

At the beginning of the school year, the squirrel was first in his class in climbing and running and was second only to the duck at flying. But as the months wore on, he missed so much school from catching pneumonia in his swimming class that he failed everything. To make matters even worse,
because the squirrel constantly squirmed and chattered in class, and had difficulty paying attention, he was diagnosed with a learning disorder. The squirrel eventually was placed in remedial classes and had to be medicated in order to continue with his school work.

The fox was a natural in his running class and scored well in climbing and swimming, but became so frustrated at his inability to get good Grades in flying that he began assaulting his classmates. He even tried to eat the duck. His behavior was so disruptive he was expelled from school. He fell in with a rough crowd and eventually wound up in a center for animal delinquents.

The elephant, meanwhile, developed low self-esteem because he couldn’t do well in any of the subjects. When he sank into clinical depression, his therapist persuaded him to try a different school that focused on subjects such as lifting and carrying. The elephant was disappointed, because careers in lifting and carrying were not as prestigious as careers in flying, swimming, climbing, or
running. Even though he always felt inferior, he managed to make a decent living and support his family.

See here and here for some blogger insights.

UPDATE: More analysis.

Here’s an interesting resource for deciphering the most current education related buzz words. Acronyms not included.

Dialogue from a local superintendent, facing the challenge of a mixed urban/ suburban/ rural district in Sullivan County, NY.

Check this out!

Lots of good news and insights here.