If you have ever had the opportunity to watch our legislators in action you might walk out of there asking that question. If you ask them, everyone will tell you they do care about kids. When you watch them, you learn differently. I have been a lifelong Republican, but I have always held the belief that you vote for the person, not the party. Joe Dorman, Katie Henke, Scott Inman, Mike Shelton, Colby Schwartz and others all earned some respect for their defense of students.
During the most recent debate in regards to HB 2625 several members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives shared that when they passed the amendments to the Reading Sufficiency Act in 2011, they did so thinking it was good for kids. Few of them consulted educators about it or did their research. They simply looked to Florida and ALEC for their ideas. They didn't bother to see if it was truly successful. Yes there were some successes in Florida, but for the most part it was a monumental failure. The big difference between Oklahoma and Florida is money. Florida poured much more money per student into their schools when they implemented the retention laws. Oklahoma is instead faced with questions like "How much is enough?"
Now that they have had time to see the impact their legislation has had on people, several of them are apologetic. One of the outgoing representatives commented that she had an opportunity to serve at two different stages in life. In between she experienced the effect of her decisions while in the house, both good and bad. She cautioned fellow members to keep that in mind.
It is true that many students in Oklahoma struggle with reading. I will not deny that point. I strongly oppose the idea that forcing students to repeat a grade based on one arbitrary test score. I don't care how you try to sugar coat it or share some scripted remarks about "Good Cause Exemptions," it still boils down to one test. No matter what gains have been made during the year, if the student does not perform on that day they wouldn't move on. Currently there are students all across the state waiting for the governor to sign the bill that have improved their reading comprehension more than one grade level this year, but still would not be eligible for promotion even with the "Good Cause Exemptions."
It was hard not to notice that minutes after the representatives overwhelmingly decided that their previous decision was not good for kids, a press release from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction was published. I would expect the Superintendent to comment on significant education related legislation.
I will tell you that I truly want every student to be able to read. I do not like being accused of not caring about kids because I oppose the retention component of the RSA law. In fact quite the opposite is the case. When I look at the students that did not succeed on the test across the state I can't help but notice that most of them are on an IEP, have been referred for special education and did not qualify because there is not a significant discrepancy, are English language learners, come from single parent homes, live in poverty, are hungry, are highly mobile, or have already been retained (in reality many of them qualify in several of these areas). If these needs are not met, we cannot expect students to make significant gains in reading.
Back to my original question, "Who cares about kids?" I see them everyday. The teachers, parents, grandparents, secretaries, assistants, cooks, administrators, bus drivers and custodians that take the time everyday to show the kids that they are loved. The legislators that are not afraid to stand up and say, "I screwed up." The news reporters that are not afraid to dig deeper into the data that is released by the State Department of Education and discover that the majority of students that are not successful are IEP or ELL students. The bloggers out there that call it like it is. These people don't just say they care, they live it out every day. I am proud to be associated with all of these individuals. I work with some very passionate people, serve some very passionate parents.
To the parents out there, thank you for letting me have the opportunity to be a part of educating your children. It is a calling I gladly accept and I always strive to do what is best for kids.
During the most recent debate in regards to HB 2625 several members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives shared that when they passed the amendments to the Reading Sufficiency Act in 2011, they did so thinking it was good for kids. Few of them consulted educators about it or did their research. They simply looked to Florida and ALEC for their ideas. They didn't bother to see if it was truly successful. Yes there were some successes in Florida, but for the most part it was a monumental failure. The big difference between Oklahoma and Florida is money. Florida poured much more money per student into their schools when they implemented the retention laws. Oklahoma is instead faced with questions like "How much is enough?"
Now that they have had time to see the impact their legislation has had on people, several of them are apologetic. One of the outgoing representatives commented that she had an opportunity to serve at two different stages in life. In between she experienced the effect of her decisions while in the house, both good and bad. She cautioned fellow members to keep that in mind.
It is true that many students in Oklahoma struggle with reading. I will not deny that point. I strongly oppose the idea that forcing students to repeat a grade based on one arbitrary test score. I don't care how you try to sugar coat it or share some scripted remarks about "Good Cause Exemptions," it still boils down to one test. No matter what gains have been made during the year, if the student does not perform on that day they wouldn't move on. Currently there are students all across the state waiting for the governor to sign the bill that have improved their reading comprehension more than one grade level this year, but still would not be eligible for promotion even with the "Good Cause Exemptions."
It was hard not to notice that minutes after the representatives overwhelmingly decided that their previous decision was not good for kids, a press release from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction was published. I would expect the Superintendent to comment on significant education related legislation.
I will tell you that I truly want every student to be able to read. I do not like being accused of not caring about kids because I oppose the retention component of the RSA law. In fact quite the opposite is the case. When I look at the students that did not succeed on the test across the state I can't help but notice that most of them are on an IEP, have been referred for special education and did not qualify because there is not a significant discrepancy, are English language learners, come from single parent homes, live in poverty, are hungry, are highly mobile, or have already been retained (in reality many of them qualify in several of these areas). If these needs are not met, we cannot expect students to make significant gains in reading.
Back to my original question, "Who cares about kids?" I see them everyday. The teachers, parents, grandparents, secretaries, assistants, cooks, administrators, bus drivers and custodians that take the time everyday to show the kids that they are loved. The legislators that are not afraid to stand up and say, "I screwed up." The news reporters that are not afraid to dig deeper into the data that is released by the State Department of Education and discover that the majority of students that are not successful are IEP or ELL students. The bloggers out there that call it like it is. These people don't just say they care, they live it out every day. I am proud to be associated with all of these individuals. I work with some very passionate people, serve some very passionate parents.
To the parents out there, thank you for letting me have the opportunity to be a part of educating your children. It is a calling I gladly accept and I always strive to do what is best for kids.
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