TEACHERS' MESSAGES 2004

NOVEMBER 10, 2004

Last week, the State Board of Education continued to review the 2003-04 performance of middle schools under the ABCs. As you know, few middle schools (about one-third) met their growth goals, and there has been discussion across the state about whether the ABCs growth calculations should be re-calculated without including sixth grade reading - the subject and grade with the lowest performance. It is important to remember that the issue regarding middle schools does not affect student scores at all. It only affects the calculations of school-wide growth using the ABCs formula (http://abcs.ncpublicschools.org/abcs/ - Setting Annual Growth Standards).

At the November meeting, I presented the Board members with the views expressed by local superintendents, principals and teachers at their regular advisory meetings. I also described two options: (1) approving the Compliance Commission recommendation to re-calculate the growth without sixth grade reading, and (2) maintaining the results of the 2003-04 ABCs results. If you recall, the advisory groups' recommendations for the 2002-03 growth results were to stand by the remarkably high rate of success that year and not to make changes to formulas based on one year's data. We now have two years of data and it is time for us to look at every grade level to see if any of the formula values need to be adjusted for 2004-05. Also, we are working to meet the legislative requirement that we review the entire ABCs model. That comprehensive review, as well as any needed changes, will be done prior to the 2005-06 school year and that review process will become a routine event every five years.

Regards,
Tricia Willoughby

In this Biweekly Teachers' Message:

1. November State Board Meeting Highlights
2. Writing to be Included in 2005-06 ABCs Model
3. Gov. Easley Proclaims November American Indian Heritage Month
4. SBE Teacher Retention Task Force Meeting Summary
5. SBE Ad Hoc Committee for Academic Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships
6. National Board Certification Update
7. Wake County Teacher Named to All-USA Teacher Team
8. Certified Teachers Being Sought to Develop Online Courses
9. Program Offers Students Advice on Mathematics Readiness
10. Nominations Being Accepted for Mathematics and Science Award
11. NC Action Plan for High School Innovation Conference
12. Raising Achievement/Closing Gaps Conference Scheduled for April
13. LEARN NC's October Update Online
14. Grant Opportunity

November State Board Meeting Highlights

The State Board of Education today approved its biennial budget request for 2005-07 in addition to including writing assessment results at grades 4, 7 and 10 in the ABCs performance composite for 2005-06 using a statistically generated confidence interval. The Board also approved the 2003-04 Annual Report on School Crime and Violence. (A news release on the Annual Report on School Crime and Violence is available online at www.ncpublicschools.org under "In the News.") More information on these and other items on the Board's agenda are posted online at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/sbehighlights/

Writing to be Included in 2005-06 ABCs Model

Effective with the 2005-06 school year, results of state writing assessments at grades 4, 7 and 10 will be included in the performance composite of the ABCs using a statistically generated confidence interval. This decision was part of the State Board's agenda last week. The writing assessments will be administered in 2004-05, but will not be part of the ABCs growth or performance composite calculations. Writing results for the 2004-05 school year will be reported by school and local education agency and will be used as part of the Student Accountability Standards policy for grades 5 and 8. Including writing in the performance composite in 2005-06 does not affect teacher incentive bonuses under the ABCs.

Gov. Easley Proclaims November American Indian Heritage Month

Gov. Mike Easley signed a proclamation designating the month of November as American Indian Heritage Month and urged the state's citizens to recognize and celebrate the many achievements and contributions made by native inhabitants. According to Census 2000, almost 100,000 American Indians live in North Carolina, which gives our state the largest American Indian population east of the Mississippi River and the eighth largest American Indian population in the nation. The state is home to the following eight American Indian tribes: the Coharie, the Eastern Band of Cherokee, the Haliwa-Saponi, the Lumbee, the Meherrin, the Occaneechi Band of Saponi, the Sappony and the Waccamaw-Siouan. For additional information, please contact the N.C. Commission of Indian Affairs at 919.733.5998 or visit its Web site at http://www.doa.state.nc.us/doa/cia/indian.htm

SBE Teacher Retention Task Force Meeting Summary

The State Board of Education's (SBE) Teacher Recruitment and Retention Task Force met on Monday, Oct. 25, to continue its discussion of issues surrounding the recruitment and retention of teachers. Harry Wilson, the SBE's Legal Advisor, summarized selected statutes pertaining to teacher recruitment and retention. The issues discussed included teachers' planning time, duty free time, extra duties, the school improvement team/selection of team members, parental responsibilities and the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards. In-depth discussions centered on enhancing the teaching profession/barriers to entering the profession; teacher preparation; teacher induction, beginning teacher support and mentoring. Also, Gaynell Gull, DPI Teacher Education Division, provided a presentation on the 2004 Review of Interim Licensure Requirements. The next meeting of the task force is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 17, in the 7th Floor Board Room, Education Building.

SBE Ad Hoc Committee for Academic Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships

The SBE's Ad Hoc Committee on Academic Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships met on Thursday, Oct. 28. Committee Chair Kathy Taft reviewed the committee's work and progress, stressing the importance of the committee's work in defining academic rigor and indicating that the committee's work will be extended to include participation in the process of selecting an implementation proposal on the new high school exit measures (using EOC scores and successfully completing a senior project) adopted by the SBE, effective with the freshman class of 2006-07. DPI Accountability Director Lou Fabrizio presented several proposals for implementing the exit standards, including a pass/fail approach, a weighting approach, and a compensatory approach. He also reported on input received from local superintendents during their recently quarterly meeting. The Ad Hoc committee members expressed their preference for the pass/fail proposal noting that it would be more easily implemented and communicated to the public. DPI's Testing and Accountability staff will now fully develop some options for implementing the pass/fail proposal, along with developing details on the options for retesting and related issues. SBE members and DPI staff will then host a series of six public input sessions to be held across the state. Dates and locations for these public input sessions will be announced soon. The Ad Hoc Committee will expand its membership to include high school educators (principal, teachers, guidance counselor), a superintendent, a school board member, an LEA testing and accountability coordinator, and a parent as it proceeds into developing a recommendation for a high school exit measure implementation method for the full SBE's consideration. The next meeting for the Ad Hoc Committee has been set tentatively for Tuesday, Nov. 16, from 11 a.m.- 1 p.m., in the SBE Lounge, Education Building, Raleigh.

National Board Certification Update

North Carolina teachers seeking National Board Certification may apply for funding to cover one retake entry for 2004 - 2005. Congress has provided funds through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education for first time participants only. Candidates who received subsidy funding for the initial process or funding for retakes in the past cannot apply again. NBPTS and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction assist teachers with the application process for the Candidate Subsidy Program. National Board candidates who may need to apply for retake funding should review the information/guidelines at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/nbpts. The application window for retake funding is Nov. 16 - Jan. 15. The available funding for retake applicants is limited and will be granted on a first come first served basis. For more information about Advanced Candidacy and Retake Funding, please contact Jeanne Washburn at 919.807.3373 (jwashbur@dpi.state.nc.us), or Deanna Harris at 919.807.3358 (dharris@dpi.state.nc.us).

Wake County Teacher Named to All-USA Teacher Team

Congratulations to Wake County Schools' teacher Lindy Polling for being named to USA TODAY’s 2004 All-USA Teacher Team. Poling, one of 20 teachers nationwide selected for this honor, will receive a trophy and $500 and her school - Millbrook High - will receive $2,000. To read more, please go online to http://www.allstars.usatoday.com

Certified Teachers Being Sought to Develop Online Courses

LEARN NC is seeking certified teachers to develop online courses in the following areas: AP Art History, AP Computer Science, AP Macroeconomics, AP Microeconomics, AP Spanish Literature, Honors Contemporary Law&Justice, Honors Earth Science, Honors World Civilizations, and Honors World History. Qualified teachers will have at least two years' experience teaching the course face-to-face, and will have attended the AP Summer Institute where applicable. No previous online course is required, though it is helpful. Course developers will be compensated for completing the course, and will be offered the opportunity to teach the course online in 2005-06 for additional compensation. Additionally, CEU credit is offered for the training involved in learning how to become an online instructor. Developers will be asked to participate in a nine-week online course during the fall semester that will introduce them to and model effective online pedagogy, and will receive two days of technical training and support in the spring. Target completion date for course development is July 15, 2005. Teachers interested in participating need to respond by Jan. 15 to Ross White, LEARN NC, ross@learnnc.org or 919.962.8888.

Program Offers Students Advice on Mathematics Readiness

The NC Early Mathematics Placement Testing Program (NC EMPT) program gives high school students advice on their readiness to take college level mathematics courses and aims to reduce the percentage of freshmen at state-supported universities requiring remedial mathematics courses. For more information, please visit the NC EMPT Web site at www.ncempt.org or contact Ellen Hilgoe, East Carolina University's Mathematics Department, 252.328.6418, or ncempt@ncempt.org.

Nominations being Accepted for Mathematics and Science Award

The Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST) is the nation's highest honor for teachers. Each year two teachers from each state, one each from mathematics and science, are honored. A supervisor, principal, teacher colleague, parent, student, or member of the general public must nominate teachers. Self-nominations will not be accepted. In 2005, only between seven and 12 mathematics and science teachers will be eligible. To nominate a teacher, download the nomination form from PAEMST (www.paemst.org) or NCDPI Math (www.learnnc.org/) and return to Bill Scott (Math) or Clara Stallings (Science) at NCDPI Mathematics and Science Section, 6352 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-6352 or fax 919.807.3823. Applications are due May 2.

NC Action Plan for High School Innovation Conference

The Public Schools of North Carolina and other key partners invite you to participate in the North Carolina Action Plan for High School Innovation Conference, scheduled to take place Dec. 2 at the North Raleigh Hilton (Raleigh) and Dec. 3 at the Adams Mark Hotel (Charlotte). The North Carolina Action Plan for High School Innovation will provide short and long-term strategies for high school reform in addition to a call to action for every North Carolina community. For more information or to register, please go online to http://www.ncpublicschools.org/newschoolproject/

Raising Achievement/Closing Gaps Conference Scheduled for April

The Ninth Annual Raising Achievement and Closing Gaps conference will be held April 4-6 at the Sheraton Four Seasons/Koury Convention Center, Greensboro. Participation is limited to 3,500 participants on a first-come, first-served basis. The deadline for submitting the $110 registration fee is March 4, or when capacity is reached. Registration information has been mailed to local school systems but also is available online at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/schoolimprovement/closingthegap/conference/ by clicking on the appropriate link. The registration form must be downloaded, completed and mailed to DPI at the noted address. Online registration is not available. The registration packet also contains the Call for Proposals form for the 2005 conference. Again, the form must be downloaded, completed and mailed to DPI or emailed to jham@dpi.state.nc.us. The deadline for submitting proposals is Nov. 30. For more information, please contact the Division of School Improvement at 919.807.3609 or 919.807.3911.

LEARN NC's October Update Online

LEARN NC's October update offers educators information on alternative discussion formats, the use of comics in the classroom, professional development by email, and an introduction to North Carolina mammals. Check out these articles and more by going online to http://www.learnnc.org and clicking on the appropriate link.

Grant Opportunity

Public schools located in communities served by Barnes&Noble are eligible to apply for grants to programs that support the arts, literacy, and K-12 education. Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis. For more information on this and other grants and contests, please visit TechLearning's Grants column at http://news.techlearning.com/cgi-bin4/DM/y/ekGm0FKgZD0E2V0Cr3U0Ag