Matt Flory wrote: >>I AM NOT SAYING THAT MORE FUNDING DOES NOT MEAN BETTER OUTCOMES, I AM SAYING THOSE OUTCOMES ARE NOT EVIDENT. As advocates for education funding we need to do a better job of making the differences between x, x+$1 million and x-1 million more apparent to elected officials and the people that vote for them. That's where I think we need to start telling the stories. What have we lost/seen go by the wayside? What did we have when we were kids that our kids don't have now? What are we afraid of losing? For example, are our high schools getting the help they need to apply to college when our guidance counselor to student ratios are what? [Minnesota Secondary Student/Guidance Counselor Ratios are 249:1 not 100:1 as recommended by the National Association for College Admission Counseling] How many schools have seen their media center (school library) hours cut from FT, to .5 to .25? How many elementary schools might have to cut their SEM coordinators this year? (They're the one that deliver gifted and talented services (challenging curriculum) using the inclusion model. If that happens, how are we going to "push the edges" of our kids who want/need more? What's going to happen to elementary band, music, art? Middle school/junior high band, world languages? I just checked the state report card, the Saint Paul elementary my kids attended; now kids at grades 11/9 so we're what, 5 years away? According to the report card, they don't offer physical education. No [EMAIL PROTECTED] They do not have a media specialist. NOBODY staffing the media center? This was an issue when my kids were there - having to wait for the library to be open to use for research. How do they manage? So, of course, I had to check junior high. Harder to see what they've lost in terms of staff, but if you go to the last page the secondary report card it has very readable district financial information, including 2002-03 data that shows we spend $111 less per pupil on central administration than state average (realize there may be lots of reasons for this, e.g. districts with fewer than 1,000 students having to have many of the same legally mandated compliance administrators (people who monitor compliance programs to make sure no laws being violated; lends weight to the argument that we should offer more local control/flexibility, reduce need for compliance/monitoring). So, of course, I had to check the high school. One media specialist for 2,081 students? I wandered around and didn't find the recommended school library media special/student ratio, but what I DID FIND is a must read! Toolkit for School Library Media Programs, American Library Association http://www.ala.org/ala/pio/campaign/schoollibrary/schoollibrary.htm
It has sections on collecting and telling the stories. Posted to http://www.stpaulneat.org/Resources.html The school report cards are at http://education.state.mn.us/ReportCard2004/ Don't be put off by the stars. Will have to wait for another day to tell the story of how Minnesota schools could teach reading and math all day, every day and nothing else, and still be "excellent schools." By the way, all this wandering around the Internet stems from the theory that we have to use the data to make informed decisions (adds credibility). --Jennifer Armstrong Payne/Phalen _____________________________________________ To Join: St. Paul Issues Forum Rules Discussion Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/
