Religion in Schools

Religion in public schools is a controversial topic because many believe that prayer and religion should be featured in schools. However, the Supreme Court has ruled that schools cannot require that students participate in a school-led prayer and teachers cannot advocate for a specific religion. Students are allowed to have religious clubs or groups, and they may leave school for religious instruction. Students may also reference their religion in their homework, artwork, and projects, but it is important for teachers to remain neutral with regards to religion in the classroom.

As a public school teacher, I know I will encounter many different types of religion. In fact, I already have experienced this in a few instances. When I was substitute teaching for a second grade class last year, one of the students had not made a lunch choice for the day. When I asked him about it, he said "I'm not eating lunch today." I asked him why because all children need to eat lunch. He explained that he was fasting because of the Muslim holiday Ramadan. In my future classroom, I may encounter various fasting holidays like this or I may have students absent to observe special holidays in their religion. Because the calendar is centered around Christian holidays, students with other religions may have to miss school days in order to observe. It will be my job to accommodate students with these needs.

It will also be important to create an accepting and welcoming environment for all students. No matter what their religion, it is important that I make all students feel accepted in the classroom. They should not be afraid that they will be bullied or ostracized for having a different religion than their peers, and they should especially feel safe with their teacher. I will not discuss my personal religious beliefs, and I will not allow negative conversations about certain religions to occur in my classroom. 

Organizational Structures of Schools

This week, in my Foundations of American Education course, we looked at three different types of organizational structures for schools in America. After looking through documents and other resources on year-round schools, magnet schools, and the daily school schedule, we were asked to answer the following questions:

1. If offered a contract to teach in a year round school and the other with a traditional 10 month calendar - what would you choose? 
If I was offered contracts at both a year round school and a traditional 10 month school, I would choose the contract at the year round school. While there are no studies saying that a year round calendar boosts test scores, there are other numerous benefits to this type of calendar over the standard 10 month calendar. As mentioned in the article "What Research Says About... / Year Round School," there is a loss of learning over the summer months for students, especially for those that are economically disadvantaged. The year round calendar, which has days off sprinkled throughout the year, can help prevent this loss because students are not out of school for three months at a time. This also means that working parents will have to spend less on daycare in the summer and can instead send their children to the enrichment weeks offered at the school and spread out the weeks they have to pay for daycare throughout the year. Studies have found that parents, students, and teachers generally like the year round format. I believe that the more frequent breaks and the smaller need for remediation at the beginning of each year helps morale for teachers and can even be the answer to teacher burnout rates. When I'm a teacher, I want to work with students who are economically disadvantaged, and I believe year round schools is a fantastic way to help those who need it most.

2. What are your thoughts about the magnet school model - is it something school districts should invest resources supporting? 
Magnet schools are free public schools that students can choose to attend. Typically, students apply to the school or enter a random lottery for admission. These schools can have a higher focus on STEM, Fine and Performing Arts, Career and Technical Education, World Languages, or other specific topics that interest the students who apply. Magnet schools provide an opportunity for students of all neighborhoods and socioeconomic backgrounds to come together in their special interests. It can help integrate schools, and the special topics give students an interest in their schooling. However, minority students are still heavily underrepresented in magnet schools, and if a magnet school has tough admissions requirements, it can keep students out who do not have great grades but who may need the special resources and opportunities provided by magnet schools. Magnet schools can also take away resources that non-magnet public schools desperately need in order to survive and thrive.

I believe magnet schools have significant benefits that outweigh the cons of the programs. Magnet schools have higher graduation rates than non-magnet schools. They also have higher teacher and student satisfaction since students are learning about a theme that interests them. According to "What are Magnet Schools?" from Magnet Schools of America, it also increases parent engagement, something that all teachers wish for in their classrooms. I think school districts would benefit from funding magnet schools because student engagement and success is higher in these schools. If more magnet schools were funded and they did not have strict requirements for acceptance into the school, I believe students would be more excited about school and would be motivated to work harder in their schoolwork.

3. In a perfect world - how should the school day be organized for learning? 
Picking the perfect schedule for students is difficult because each student will react differently to traditional, block, or modular schedules. Some students thrive under block scheduling, but when I was a student, block schedules were the bane of my existence. Luckily, I only had to experience this for two years in middle school before I transferred to a school that used a traditional model. The block schedule made it difficult for me to focus because the 90 minute blocks were too long. I lost focus after about 40 minutes, with my mind wandering to other things that seem more important than school to a pre-teen girl. I imagine this would be especially difficult for students who have ADD or ADHD. In high school, my schedule was a traditional schedule. We went to each class for 45 minutes, and I loved it. I knew that I would get to go to classes I enjoyed every single day. However, with block scheduling, I dreaded certain days because I would be in my least favorite classes all day and never get to go to English or Social Studies.

After reading about the Modular Schedule on my class's web page, I cannot say that I fully understand how this type of schedule would work. I think it is one of those things that you need to experience to 100% understand it. However, it seems that this type of schedule uses shortened class schedules as well as the free time given to students to work on projects, seek assistance from teachers, and have additional study time. From what I do understand of it, it appears that this type of schedule would have a lot of benefits for some students. In fact, this might be best for a school that focuses and works with students with certain learning disabilities. It would probably help these students focus better and give them time throughout the day to seek additional help from teachers if they need it.

I do not think there is a magical answer to the way a school day should be organized. I would love to learn more about the modular schedule and observe a school that uses this type of schedule so that I could understand it better. From my reading, I think it has some great benefits for students and it seems to combine the pros of both the traditional and block schedules into one for students.

References

Huebner, T.A. (2010, April). What Research Says About... / Year-Round Schooling, Retrieved June 25, 2017, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/apr10/vol67/num07/Year-Round_Schooling.aspx

What are Magnet Schools? (2013). Retrieved June 25, 2017, from 

http://www.magnet.edu/about/what-are-magnet-schools 

Budget Cuts

Dear School Board Members,

I am proposing the following budget cuts based on our previous meeting in which it was decided that the budget would need to be reduced by 20%. Making these cuts was not an easy decision, but I think you will understand my reasonings and decisions for the budget.

First, I have decided not to make any reductions in the budget for the instructional staff. I strongly believe that cutting this area of the budget will lower morale and hurt our district in the coming years. These instructional staff members are the heart and soul of what we do, and in order for our students to be successful in school, we need outstanding teachers who are able to teach children without worrying about layoffs or cuts to their health insurance. Unfortunately, this means that some small cuts will be necessary to the support staff, with the majority of cuts happening to the budget for part-time staff. While the support staff is important for running a school, we unfortunately need to cut back on the number of support staff in order to better support our students with supplies and other resources. I have not decided to reduce the budget on the custodial staff and am only reducing the budget for building maintenance by one point because children need a working and clean environment in order to learn and stay focused.

Second, I have decided to make slight reductions to the library staff but not reduce the number of books or periodicals and journals that are available to students. For them to best learn and develop their love of reading, they need access to the best materials for research and new books. I have not made any cuts to the academic technology and teacher instructional budget because these give students and teachers access to millions of resources for learning. I have, however, decided to completely cut the textbook adoption budget. This is because textbooks are being used less in the classroom as we move towards information found with technology. The textbooks we currently have will be sufficient for the upcoming academic year.

Third, I have made slight budget cuts to faculty services. We will still provide some funding for employee teacher reimbursement and staff development. Completely cutting these programs would reduce morale and teacher incentives for success. However, some cuts are necessary because these programs are not vital for student success at this time.

Finally, I have decided to protect student services by keeping the budget for most of the programs. Research shows that these extracurricular activities as well as parental support greatly affect how successful a student will be in school. Therefore, I do not want to cut these items too much. I would like to cut some funds for summer school as well as after-school programs that are not recreational or athletic. We should cut these funds because attendance for these programs is much lower than other programs in the district, and our money would be better spent on other student programs with higher attendance and that encourage parental support and participation in their child's academics.

Attached you will find my proposed budget for the upcoming school year. I look forward to discussing this further with all of you at the next school board meeting.

Sincerely,
Kaitlynn Smith

My proposed budget

Why is public education essential to democracy?

I believe public education is vital to democracy for a number of reasons. First and foremost, public education can be seen as a way to equalize everyone in the country. Horace Mann, who developed the idea of the "Common School," once said, "Education, then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery." Mann believed that by allowing students of all socioeconomic statuses to attend the same school, children would be afforded equal opportunity given to them in the Constitution and Declaration of Independence. Mann believed that American citizens could be created in the public schools, and he advocated for a school system paid for by taxes. Unfortunately, because of his time, Mann believed the common school system should only be available to white children. However, I believe that today's public school system can provide students with equal opportunities regardless of their race, religion, gender, or socioeconomic status. (Mondale, 2001)

The second reason I believe public schools are essential to a democracy are because people cannot be informed citizens when they need to vote without an education. To be informed of the issues, citizens need to be literate and able to examine the important issues in an election. Public schools can provide them with the education and skills necessary for them to critically evaluate which candidate is best for their needs. Education level was a significant predictor for how citizens voted in the 2016 presidential election (Silver, 2016), and it will be during future elections as well because education affects their socioeconomic status, their family life, and their jobs.

The United States' education system is far from perfect. In fact, public schools in high poverty areas are not equal to public schools in affluent areas. Public schools are still highly segregated, despite the 1954 Supreme Court decision Brown v. the Board of Education. Public schools are chosen for students based on their location, and since minorities are more likely to live in poverty, schools are divided by race and socioeconomic status. These schools, according to research, "offered disproportionately fewer math, science and college-prep courses and had higher rates of students who were held back in ninth grade, suspended or expelled" (Toppo, 2016). The current American public school system is not the great equalizer it should be because of this segregation. However, it has the potential to give every student the chance at mobility and equal opportunity. If the segregation and inequality issues at public schools are resolved, they can equalize children and provide the same chances for all, just as Mann hoped. These equal opportunities will give any child a chance to be a doctor, lawyer, teacher, president, or any other thing they dream of being. It will also allow them to actively participate in their democracy. They will better understand the issues facing them and will make wiser and more informed decisions when voting for their leaders.

References

Mondale, S. (Director) (2001). The Common School: 1770-1890. School: The Story of American Education. PBS. 

Silver, N. (2016, Nov. 22). Education, not income, predicted who would vote for Trump. FiveThirtyEight. 

Retrieved from http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/education-not-income-predicted-who-would-vote-for-trump/ 

Toppo, G. (2016, May 17). GAO study: segregation worsening in U.S. schools. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/05/17/gao-study-segregation-worsening-us-schools/84508438/

A Teacher I Will Never Forget: Mrs. Slivka

For my Foundations of American Education course, we were asked to reflect on a teacher who made a lasting impact on our life and write a blog post about them. As soon as I read the assignment, one name came to mind: Mrs. Susan Slivka. Mrs. Slivka was my high school theatre director and teacher. I spent as much time in the theatre with her as I did at home with my family throughout my four years of high school. Unfortunately, Mrs. Slivka passed away last year from a long battle with cancer, and that loss left me (and all of her former students) devastated. I would be a completely different person today if I had never known her.

Mrs. Slivka and I after a performance of Hello, Dolly! my junior year of high school. 

Mrs. Slivka followed the InTASC Core Teaching Standards closely, whether she knew it or not. She particularly did well with InTASC Standards #2 and #3. Standard #2 says, "The teachers uses understanding of individual differences and diverse cultures and communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each learner to meet high standards." Standard #3 says, "The teacher works with others to create environments that support individual and collaborative learning, and that encourage positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation." She made the theatre a welcoming and loving environment. For some high schoolers, finding an adult to lean on can often be difficult. However, Mrs. Slivka treated everyone in the theatre like her own children, no matter what. She built a supportive environment for all of her students, and we all knew she was available to us at any time for anything we may have needed. Mrs. Slivka believed in all of her students and set high expectations for each us because she knew we could meet them. She was never an "easy" teacher. Her high standards forced us to constantly work, but she taught us the importance of determination, hard work, and collaborating with our peers in those standards.

When looking at various philosophies of education, I believe Mrs. Slivka best followed the Existentialism and Progressivism philosophies. The Existentialism philosophy encourages individuality and finding a person's own truth through their growth and learning. Mrs. Slivka encouraged all of us to be ourselves. The Progressivism philosophy also encourages self-expression and a focus on the students over content. Mrs. Slivka gave all of us opportunities to explore theater in our own way, and many of her students (myself included) learned more about who they are and who they wanted to be in that theater. I am forever grateful for the time I spent learning from Mrs. Susan Slivka. When I have my own classroom, I hope that my students will feel welcomed and loved the way that I felt by Mrs. Slivka. I hope they feel like I am an advocate for their needs and wants and that I am always present for them if they need me.

Technology Integrated Unit Plan

For our final project for INDT 501, our task was to create a week-long unit for our chosen SOL that integrated various technologies we worked with throughout the semester. I really enjoyed working with these technologies in this course, and I know they will help engage my future students and encourage critical thinking. Activities like games on an Interactive Whiteboard or watching videos on Aurasma allow students to engage with content in unique ways. This will keep them entertained and interested in their learning. Rather than giving students notes and having them memorize it, the activities I've created here help them put faces to the names of famous Americans and encourage them to think about how these people affect life today in the United States.

Virginia SOL: Civics 3.11b

"The student will explain the importance of the basic principles that form the foundation of a republican form of government by (b) identifying the contributions of George Washington; Thomas Jefferson; Abraham Lincoln; Rosa Parks; Thurgood Marshall; Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Cesar Chavez."

Day 1: Interactive Notebook Notes
Students will be introduced to the 7 famous Americans found in Virginia SOL Civics 3.11b through a flipbook of notes. Once completed, these notes will be put into their Social Studies Interactive Notebooks.

The flipbook can be viewed here.
The SmartBoard notes can be downloaded here.

Day 2: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln
Students will learn more about George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln today. After watching videos that work well for the third grade level, they will all respond to questions on a SmartBoard activity using their own iPads.

The SmartBoard activity can be downloaded here.
The videos used in this lesson plan are from Free School on YouTube.

• George Washington
• Thomas Jefferson
• Abraham Lincoln

Day 3: Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr.
Students will learn about the important Civil Rights leaders Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. They will watch two videos. The first video features young children reciting the famous "I Have a Dream" speech. The second is a digital story I made in iMovie about the Civil Rights movement. Then, students will critically think about our nation today and how it has and has not changed through a writing activity.

I created the interactive digital story above for my INDT 501 course. It was made in iMovie and uses photographs from WikiMedia Commons. The original blog post about this video can be found here.

Day 4: Thurgood Marshall and Cesar Chavez 
Students will work with Aurasma today to watch videos on Cesar Chavez, the United Farm Workers, Thurgood Marshall, Brown v. the Board of Education, and the Supreme Court. While watching the videos, they will answer the questions on the worksheet found below. This will help direct them to the most important information in the videos.

The Aurasma images can be accessed here.

Day 5: Famous Americans Assessment Day
Students will take a quiz for a grade. They will be able to identify the famous Americans by their pictures as well as their accomplishments.

This is the quiz the students will be taking on famous Americans.  The images used in the photo identification were found on WikiMedia Commons. I made the quiz in Microsoft Word. 

Aurasma: Cesar Chavez & Thurgood Marshall

Virginia SOL: Civics 3.11b

Aurasma is a great learning tool that uses technology to engage students in the classroom. It allows students to scan images and engage with content in a new way! It would be an amazing tool for taking students on a virtual field trip. I have created an Aurasma that teaches students about Cesar Chavez and Thurgood Marshall to help fulfill Virginia SOL Civics 3.11b.

There will be six images set up around the classroom. I plan on setting up two-three copies of each image so that each station does not get overcrowded. Students will each receive an iPad and a pair of headphones. They will go around the room to scan the images and watch the videos that relate to Cesar Chavez and Thurgood Marshall.

To view the videos associated with each image, download the free Aurasma app on an iPhone or iPad. Then, scan the image using your device's camera. The video will immediately begin playing on your device, as it is on my iPhone in this photo!

I test out the Who is Cesar Chavez? Aurasma

Aurasma does not embed videos from YouTube. So, I followed these instructions to save the videos and use them as an overlay. All links to the original YouTube videos can be found below.

All photographs used in the images below were found on WikiMedia Commons.

Aurasma One:

Aurasma Two:

Aurasma Three:

Aurasma Four:

Aurasma Five:

Follow me on Aurasma to see my videos!

Videos:

• Overlay for Who is Cesar Chavez? : Video by HomeSchool Pop (I shortened this video a bit to lessen the amount of Homeschool Pop information the students would have to watch before the informational part of the video began.)
• Overlay for What is the United Farm Workers?: Video by Hrdkored 
• Overlay for Who is Thurgood Marshall?: Video by Educational Video for Students
• Overlay for What is the Supreme Court?: Video by Citizen Genius
• Overlay for What is the Brown v. the Board of Education?: Video by State Bar of Georgia