All,
Please keep your questions coming! Here is the latest video snapshot. Have a great weekend.
Sincerely,
Martin
Employees
Question – Optional Extended Day Kindergarten
Question:
I am a Kindergarten teacher in one of our schools. For several years we have had principals who have inquired how we might get a session of Optional Extended day Kindergarten at our school due to the low socioeconomic demographics of our community. Though we have a high percentage of students on free/reduced lunch, we do not qualify for Title I funds. We have been told that OEK is directly tied to Title I funds so we will not qualify unless we become a Title I school.
As we attended Common Core training at the beginning of the school year, we became acquainted with the team of Kindergarten teachers from a school which is right next door to ours, therefore shares our same community demographics. They are also not a Title I school. However, they have at least one session of OEK, and I believe another session was added because I know a teacher who was surplussed last month and was hired at this same school, also to teach OEK. Could you please explain why a school that is not Title I is able to have OEK? We would very much like to know the true criteria and why our school does not qualify when our neighbors, also not a Title I school, have OEK.
Response:
Optional Extended-day Kindergarten (OEK) programs are funded by the Utah Legislature. The distribution formulas are similar to federal rules for Title I funds, but are not limited to Title I schools. As you know from your own experience, students served in an OEK classroom enter first grade with reading and mathematics skills higher than their peers from traditional classrooms. We are hopeful that OEK funds will continue to be allocated (and increased) by the state.
Question – Fire Alarm Health Concerns
Question:
I understand that the district is doing everything it can to protect our children from excessive heat in the classroom. I am grateful for your efforts.
I do have another concern related to healthy safe environments. I was in school for a routine fire drill. Once again, I am grateful for an organized way to practice for emergency situations, but I believe we have overlooked one important health issue. We are exposing our children to very dangerous sound levels as we practice routinely for these emergencies. There are ways that the fire alarm sound could be played over the intercom so that the students know what it sounds like, but so that the volume could be controlled in a safe way.
Could we not record an alarm, and play it over the intercom for practice so that the volume can be controlled? They would still know what the sound is, and in the event of a real emergency, they would respond. Additionally, the alarm system in the building could be checked when school is not in session. That would help to protect our children’s hearing.
Response:
Not just student hearing. Since the last fire drill in the district office (we have them here too), it’s been easier to talk behind the superintendent’s back – he can’t hear us whispering anymore! More seriously, fire alarm systems are installed according to the Uniform Building Code, Uniform Fire Code and NFPA 72 Fire Alarm Code. Most fire alarm horns today are factory set according to the code requirements at 15db above the highest ambient noise. I believe 110db is max. Newer horns may have a lower and higher setting depending on manufacturer. We try and put all classrooms on the lower setting (if available) and hallways on the higher due to greater ambient hallway noise. Fire alarms are installed to a very strict code and horns are spaced and placed according to these codes. Like smoke detectors in airplanes, fire alarms are strictly regulated and tampering with them is a significant offense.
Thanks to Kurt Fisher, our district’s deputized fire marshal for his assistance in responding to this question.
Question – Teacher Websites
Question:
I noticed the Granite teacher portal offers a tutorial for setting up a teacher website through Granite school district. Rather than fussing with all new templates, and sitting through tutorials, why don’t we stick with the uen.org website format? I use my uen website as the repository for all the links I refer to during teaching (a much better option than saving links to your favorites tab – especially because there’s no physical way to back up your favorites browser folder).
With well over 400 links up on my uen website I am concerned someone, namely administration (don’t take it personally), will get a wild hare and decide we have a new “latest and greatest” Granite school website builder and will be “persuading” all of us to jump ship from the uen.org website builder. I’m not in the mood to migrate after spending the past three plus years setting up a fantastic teacher tool.
What are your thoughts? And here is a link to my website: http://my.uen.org/myuen/212513/Home Click on math fun or one of my science links – there are 40-50 links for those sections alone.
Response:
Great question and great job! It is exciting to see you have already jumped the biggest hurdle by actually having a web presence as a teacher.
Currently, the district has asked that all elementary teachers have a web presence. This can be on any platform – Dreamweaver, Weebly, Wikispaces, myUEN to name a few.
It sounds like your concern is that a particular website creation tool would be adopted and promoted by the district causing you to have to migrate your content to the new platform. I have to be honest and say that is a possibility. As technology changes and better tools become available we all need to consider them. With that said, I think your point has to be considered when making decisions regarding technology tools. The positives would really need to outweigh the negatives. We certainly don’t want to have teachers work harder for no reason. Believe it or not, we’re trying to make things easier! It is important that if a decision is made to use a new tool, you have support and assistance in taking what you currently have and migrating it. For some it will be giving support and assistance in making the paradigm change you have already made in using a fantastic teacher/student/parent tool.
In addition to the great communication potential between teacher, students and parents, we are really hoping to facilitate collaboration between teachers. Let’s say we are able to roll out electronic support for teachers – just for the sake of this answer, let’s say we develop a menu of tier 1, 2, and 3 electronic lessons and resources corresponding to the math (or science or any/every other subject) objectives. Teachers could share them, comment on them (like/dislike), improve upon them and so on. This is not a technological stretch of the imagination. It would however, be much more user friendly if the format was standardized. We’re literally working on this right now!
Regardless, your UEN website is cool. Every teacher should check this out as you have added polls, links to the school webpage, and links to curriculum in addition to all of the digital content you refer to when teaching. Again, great job!
Question – Black Friday Paychecks?
Here is a question about getting an early paycheck in November:
My question relates to our paycheck for November only. Lots of us have children and we take advantage of “Black Friday” at the stores. Having our paycheck for that would make us really happy!! Is there any possibility that our checks could be deposited before we take off for Thanksgiving break? Please 🙂
Response:
This request may be due to the fact that over the past three or four years, the Thanksgiving holiday weekend fell at the end of the month which is closer to the end of the pay period. District policy states that payday is the last working day of the month. Both policy and negotiated agreements state that payday is the “last working day of the month”, which is not necessarily always “last day of the month”. For this year, payday is Wednesday, November 30 as per policy and, accordingly, payday is also on the last work day of December usually around the 22nd of December.
There are a few other reasons why we can’t pay our employees early:
1. Cost – We lose interest on $22 million for every day we advance payday (this interest rolls into the budget to pay salaries!).
2. State Statute prohibits payroll advances.
3. It would go against negotiated agreements with employee groups.
4. When we put together the master schedule for pay periods this year, we scheduled it based upon a November 30 payday. At this point, there is not enough time between the last day of the pay period and Wednesday the 23rd to be able to get all the reporting and processing completed/reviewed and ACH files submitted to banks in time for a 23rd posting.
We continue to try to improve our services – within the parameters of law, negotiated agreement, and policy. Thanks for your question!
Thanks to the payroll department for helping with this response. Please feel free to contact them if you have any additional questions at (385) 646-4312.
Question – English Immersion Program for ESL Students
Question:
Would you please address the possibility of developing an English Immersion program for ESL students; I understand Granite District had this at one time. This program would truly help the students in their academic achievement and relocation issues.
Response:
Though we could certainly use more individual supports for some English Language Learners, our “English immersion program” is provided at every school – the core subjects are taught in the English language in all grade levels. You are right, we had a separate immersion program for English language learners, housed centrally to be able to bring the requisite resources together. The federal government descended and, while acknowledging our good intentions, labled it segregation and made us change the program. We are actively pursuing other alternatives to best serve all our children – they are not only the future of our community, they are our community today!
Thanks for the question.
Question – Teacher Lab
Question:
As teachers in the Granite School District we wish to express our feelings about the closing of the teacher lab. We feel that the lab was closed without asking the teachers how changes could be made in order for us to have better access. The hours that the teacher lab was open made it difficult, if not impossible for us to get there before it closed. Many of us used the lab before the school year began but now many of the die-cuts and other materials that were provided are not available. In the e-mail received from the district we were told that the die-cuts could be found at the pre-school office. Some of us have gone over to the pre-school offices to use the die-cuts only to be told that they are for pre-school staff only.
We would appreciate it if this problem could be addressed in order for teachers to have access to materials that they have relied on in the past. These materials were used to implement and extend the curriculum in our classrooms. Even though we have access to a few die-cuts and materials at our schools the teacher lab provided an extensive library of items not provided anywhere else.
Thank you for providing a place where we can express our concerns.
Response:
The Teacher Lab was closed based on data kept over the past several years. In years past the lab hours were extended – open early before school and open later into the evening after school. After logging visitors for considerable time, it became evident that the lab was not being used enough to warrant the expense of personnel required to keep it open, and the hours were decreased. Lab logs also showed that 70% of the use of die cuts was by preschool teachers which is why a majority of the die cuts and machines were sent to them. We know that many schools have purchased their own and, while the lines are probably longer if a teacher must wait for access there rather than drive to the lab, again, the use by a few did not warrant maintaining the lab. Lastly, many of the curriculum materials that support the core curricula were removed by specialists in the Curriculum and Instruction Department to a location in the district office. Those materials are still available for checkout by teachers throughout the district and will be delivered through district mail. Please contact the appropriate content specialist to ask about materials you frequently used and how to get the access you need.
Thanks to Teaching and Learning for their assistance in responding to this question.
Question – Insurance Premium Increases
Question:
Why are we seeing a $50 in our benefits? The increase due to the law changes should only amount to a 4% increase in premiums at the most, but this is almost a 30% increase. I doubt health care costs have gone up that much. I also know the state is responsible for scrutinizing exhorbitant rate increases such as this one. Of course I’ve never known the district to care much for social issues such as this, probably for politically expedient reasons, such as falsely indicating that it is a result of the health care law? So the next question is, what can be done to rectify a change that most of is can’t afford?
Response:
Health insurance costs have risen 10% to 15% a year each year for several years – regardless of the changes to the law (costs for medical services and especially prescriptions go up each year, even without changes to health care laws). This past year was no exception. We have an insurance committee made up menmbers of the negotiating teams of the collective bargaining units (GEA and GESPA) as well as representatives from the middle manager, office professional and administator associations. That group looks closly at industry increases and makes recommendations to the respective negotiating teams regarding changes to cover the cost increases. If you are a member of GEA or GESPA, you remember voting on those increases as part of the negotiation ratification process this past spring.
We were lucky that this year’s increase was projected at “only” $2.9 million or about 6% for 2011-12. Even though this was a moderate increase for health insurance, Granite’s state funding has been cut significantly for each of the last 3 years. Because of the funding reductions, Granite has cut $58 million from our budget in the last three years, leaving no funding to cover increases in health insurance costs. The employee health insurance committee recommended the following changes to our health insurance plans to cover the $2.9 million increase:
As such, you are correct that the district now only covers 93% of employee and non-spouse dependent insurance membership costs (down from 95%) and only pays for 78% of spouse costs (down from 80%). Your math is close, the jump from paying for 7%, instead of 5%, feels like a 40% increase and the change from 80% to 78% feels like a 10% increase.
Once again, these were costs that had risen with no increase in legislative funding to offset the increase. We often say that the first 3% of a WPU increase are used to break even (covering cost increases). As we all keenly know, there hasn’t been any WPU increase at all for some time.
Thanks to Mitch Robison, our budget director for his assistance in responding to this question.
Additional Response To The Use Of “Word Searches”
I have appreciated the many comments and feedback we have gotten on this topic thus far. Here is one from Dawn Hauser, a district specialist over curriculum and instruction, that I found particularly interesting. Keep the feedback coming!
“In response to the superintendent’s request for feedback regarding WORD SEARCHES:
In their oft-quoted “Research-Based Homework Guidelines” for teachers, Robert Marzano and Deborah Pickering (2007) discuss evidence that, when used appropriately, homework benefits student achievement. These two experts include a short list of four guidelines for teachers, the first of which reads as follows:
· Assign purposeful homework. Legitimate purposes for homework include introducing new content, practicing a skill or process that students can do independently but not fluently, elaborating on information that has been addressed in class to deepen students’ knowledge, and providing opportunities for students to explore topics of their own interest.
I can find no mention in the K-12 Utah State Social Studies Core Curriculum of identifying letter patterns or distinguishing vocabulary words from among other words and letters, the skill most arguably associated with word searches. Rather, the verbs in the core that indicate WHAT students should be doing with new social studies content and skills include: describe, analyze, compare, use, examine, explain, propose and investigate. None of these learning “actions” are achieved through word searches, which also don’t reinforce knowing and using key vocabulary.
It is impossible to argue that word searches are purposeful or legitimate for introducing new content, practicing a social studies skill, elaborating to deepen knowledge, or providing an opportunity to explore a topic independently. Adults don’t gain a better understanding of why they pay taxes or how to file by circling tax-related vocabulary words in a word search. What makes us think students will have a better understanding of important concepts and skills by doing the same? There are so many better ways students can practice and demonstrate what they know and can do with their knowledge – let’s use our professional expertise to “search” those out, instead.
Research-Based Homework Guidelines
Research provides strong evidence that, when used appropriately, homework benefits student achievement. To make sure that homework is appropriate, teachers should follow these guidelines:
• Assign purposeful homework. Legitimate purposes for homework include introducing new content, practicing a skill or process that students can do independently but not fluently, elaborating on information that has been addressed in class to deepen students’ knowledge, and providing opportunities for students to explore topics of their own interest.
• Design homework to maximize the chances that students will complete it. For example, ensure that homework is at the appropriate level of difficulty. Students should be able to complete homework assignments independently with relatively high success rates, but they should still find the assignments challenging enough to be interesting.
• Involve parents in appropriate ways (for example, as a sounding board to help students summarize what they learned from the homework) without requiring parents to act as teachers or to police students’ homework completion.
• Carefully monitor the amount of homework assigned so that it is appropriate to students’ age levels and does not take too much time away from other home activities.
Source:
Marzono, Robert J. and Pickering, Debra, J. The case for and against homework: Teachers should not abandon homework, instead they should improve its instructional quality. Educational Leadership, March, 2007, Vol. 64, No. 6, pages 74-79.”
Dawn Hauser, NBCT
Curriculum & Instruction
Granite School District
Superintendent Snapshot – Word Searches
Dear Friends:
Here is the latest snapshot video regarding a question about word searches. I have a full inbox of questions that I am trying to get to as quickly as I can. Keep submitting your questions and I appreciate your patience as I work to respond to them all. Thanks and have a great Halloween weekend!
Sincerely,
Martin