A small group of Edna ISD administrators just returned from the annual Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) Mid Winter Conference in Austin. (It was a small group that went because the total number of administrators in EISD is a small group, and this year not all of us could go because we slashed travel budgets.) I go each year for a variety of reasons: I serve on some state-wide committees that schedule their meetings to coincide with this conference. The 4,000 school administrators in attendance draw some great key-note speakers. The sessions are presented by TEA staffers whom we assume have the inside scoop on what is coming. Other sessions are presented by school districts who have found successful solutions and innovations for a variety of issues and programs. And, the exhibit hall is full of the latest and greatest gizmos and solutions hawked by private sector folks seeking public sector dollars. At no other time during the school year are you likely to find virtually every one of the 1,000 superintendents in Texas at the same venue.
Mid Winter last year was depressing. The Legislative session had just begun and we were looking at a possible $24 billion cut in public ed. STAAR was rising, and while we TASA folks were telling the Legislature that increasing standards at the same time resources were declining was poppycock and balderdash. In the hallways between sessions we shared our strategies, our fears, our financial outlook for the coming year. We continued to hear that our governor was going to throw his hat in the Presidential race and that the Potential President Perry Platform (PPPP) ensured that the Legislature would not tap the state’s fund balance to save schools and that they would not back off increasing the accountability stakes and the implementation of STAAR. PPPP prevailed over TASA and the budgets were cut, we did not dip into the state fund balance for the coming biennium and we still got STAAR. (The cuts were not as severe as initially feared, but it remains the first time in the history of our Legislature that schools were not fully funded and no additional money was allocated for the projected additional 80,000 kids who would show up this school year.) Commissioner of Education Robert Scott was a keynote speaker, and though he attempted to put a positive spin on forthcoming budget cuts he continued to support implementing the STAAR test. In fact, he unveiled the name of the test at this event two years ago and hawked it as bigger, better, college-ready, challenging, and very much worth doing. He received both polite applause when he was through and then some very tough questions from the audience regarding the rationale behind increasing standards and cutting resources. He held firm. It was, after all, the year of the PPPP.
We had a tough spring and summer in Edna. Our funds were cut almost a million dollars. We reduced staff, cut travel budgets, re-assigned staff, froze administrator salaries, etc. Our school year began, as you know, with a cloud hanging over us, one that did not bring rain. We knew STAAR was coming and we would have to prepare kids for a more rigorous test with fewer resources, fewer teachers and smaller budgets. We focused on the new high school construction, winning athletic teams and local uplifting events like the Fair. We also joined one of the four lawsuits filed against the State of Texas claiming the current state funding of public education is unconstitutional. Those cases are styled “Umpteen School Districts vs. Commissioner Robert Scott”. Now in January STAAR is on the horizon, and we few, proud, professional Edna administrators head back to Austin for the Mid Winter Conference to learn what is going on.
I posted earlier about all the confusion with grading End of Course exams. We have our own solution in place now, but I attended sessions at Mid Winter presented by TEA and by lawyers about what we should do. No one knows and our solution appears to be as good as or better than many, though loud voices who support the PPPP continue to cry that we and others who have chosen a grading scheme that promotes student success are undermining STAAR. I testified before a sub-committee of the Legislative Budget Board regarding how the funding cuts impacted Edna. My co-testifier was old friend Alton Frailey, Superintendent of Katy ISD. We did much the same here he did there, except he cut 120 central office positions. (We only have 120 professional positions all together, so that was not an option for us.) Otherwise, we both continue to support PreK despite the cuts, tutorials and remediation despite the cuts, etc., etc. All of this led up to Tuesday afternoon’s key note address by Commissioner Scott.
The General Session began with the Clear Lake High School Symphony Orchestra, a wonderful performance by a talented group of kids. The classical music soothed me, which was a good thing as I prepared to hear Mr. Scott.
Scott began by saying that the, “carrot, sticks and bully pulpit approach used by the state and federal government” to improve public education was not working. He said that “We are complicit in creating this system and I am frustrated by it.” “Testing has become a perversion of its original intent.” Wow. Tentative applause.
He went on to say that he apologized that he could not get back every single dollar cut by the Legislature. He knew we were being asked to do more with less. He understood that his name was on the school finance lawsuits so he must be careful about what he said to us as it might come back to haunt him in the trial, but he said, “I cannot certify a ban on social promotion without providing the appropriate resources to teach kids.” Wow. WOW. Spontaneous, enthusiastic applause by all present ensued.
He spoke of saving the Regional Education Service Centers. He spoke about improving teacher quality through a variety of methods, not just the appraisal system. He spoke of amending Ch. 39 of the Texas Education Code which addresses sanctions against districts who are in financial trouble or are low performing. Wow. More applause.
He said that if it was within his legal authority to do so, he would ban the 15% grading requirement on the EOCs this year. Commissioner Scott concluded by saying, “Let me be Captain Obvious: there is change coming. There is a backlash to standardized testing and we must look to the likes of the Visioning Institute to seek new ways to assess.”
All 4,000 administrators rose to our feet in thunderous ovation. The air was sucked out of the room. We were in shock. Stunned, excited, jubilant shock. I tweeted as I left the session, “Who is this man and what has he done with our Commissioner?” He speaks as though he is one of us!
I left the convention hall and walked to a reception. As I approached the sign-in area, there stood Robert Scott. I have not been his strongest supporter, and he knows that. I told him that if what I had just heard was the new Robert Scott I would support him. He gave me a guy hug.
The PPPP critics are already attacking his stance, and there is more to come. Frankly, now that he has positioned himself to support reasonable assessment within the framework of reasonable funding I worry that he can retain his appointed position. But for now, I am encouraged by our Commissioner of Education and he has my support.
STAAR is still on the horizon this spring. But it has slipped a little in the political galaxy. That falling STAAR could be good news for kids, teachers, schools and school systems sometime in the future, like when the Legislature reconvenes in January of 2013. My telescope cannot see that far, but I have hope. Is that a wish upon a STAAR?
No comments:
Post a Comment