Vol. 35 No. 40   August 31, 2007

To contact most Department of Education & Early Development staff by email:

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Inside This Edition:

 

GOVERNOR PALIN UNVEILS WORK READY/COLLEGE READY PROGRAM - Back to Top

Governor Sarah Palin on Monday announced a new program as part of her administration’s commitment to Alaska’s workforce development.

The Work Ready/College Ready program allows students and adult job-seekers to gauge their readiness for work, college and occupational training, and to improve the basic skills valued by employers and educators. The Alaska Departments of Education and Early Development, and Labor and Workforce Development are program sponsors.

Work Ready/College Ready provides an opportunity for Alaskans to be assessed in three basic skill areas – applied math, reading for information and locating information in graphic formats – that are critical to transitioning from high school to the workplace, college or occupational training.

“This is the type of partnership I envisioned when I took office and pledged that Alaskans would be prepared for jobs,” Governor Sarah Palin said. “It shows what can be accomplished when school, work, business and industry speak the same language and share the same goals for work readiness.”

After an assessment, participants can enroll in web-based courses to improve their performance in certain skills. The training is individualized, self-paced, targeted to the basic transitional skills and delivered in a work-related, applied context. The assessments and curriculum – which are all available online – may be accessed through the public schools, at home or in any state job center.

Participants can receive a nationally recognized Career Readiness Certificate that demonstrates their basic workplace skills. More than 40 states issue the certificates, which business, industry and some postsecondary institutions recognize as a valuable credential.

“The skills needed to enter many vocations are similar to the skills needed to get into college. By 2010, three-quarters of jobs will require some type of training after high school,” said Roger Sampson, who recently stepped down as Education Commissioner and who championed the program. “Work Ready/College Ready lets students know what level of skill they need for the occupations they’re interested in, how well they match up in those skill levels, and it provides training to reach their goal.”

The state will bear the costs of providing the assessments and the curriculum through contracts with providers. The state has contracted with Worldwide Interactive Network Inc. (WIN) of Kingston, Tenn., to provide benchmark assessments and curriculum.

Through its WorkKeys product, ACT Inc. will provide the summative assessments for the Career Readiness Certificate. ACT will also provide profiles of the skill levels needed to enter more than 12,000 individual jobs in 400 occupational areas.

The State Board of Education and Early Development has opened a period of public comment through Nov. 9 on the proposed regulations to implement Work Ready/College Ready in the public schools. The proposed regulations can be seen at: www.eed.state.ak.us/regs/comment.html.

See: www.eed.state.ak.us/tls/CTE/workready.html.

 

CLARK TEACHER NAMED AMERICAN STAR OF TEACHING - Back to Top

Clark Middle School language arts teacher Art LaRue was presented Thursday with the 2007 American Star of Teaching award by U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. The special recognition was a surprise to LaRue, who did not know he was a candidate for the award.

LaRue spent the past three years at Clark and is teaching at Begich Middle School while Clark is under construction. Before coming to the Anchorage School District, LaRue was an instructor for 25 years in the U.S. Army.

“It’s his passion that inspires great learning in students and is what really makes him exemplary,” said Clark Principal Cessilye Williams.

LaRue is credited with helping raise student test scores and encouraging parents to play an active role in their child’s education. He says his students succeed because he does not “teach to the test.” While he is proud that every one of the 27 students in his class last year met or exceeded the Adequate Yearly Progress targets for language arts, he says AYP is a minimum goal and encourages his students to get more out of their education.

“Just like Art LaRue, No Child Left Behind expects results for every child. So we must support teachers who get the job done in America’s most challenging classrooms,” said Spellings.

The American Star of Teaching award is presented by the U.S Department of Education to one teacher in each state and the District of Columbia. Award criteria are based on a teacher’s success in improving academic performance and making a difference in students’ lives. The winners are chosen from more than 4,000 nominations each year.

 

REGISTER NOW FOR THE ALASKA SCHOOL WELLNESS INSTITUTE - Back to Top

Registration is still open for the School Wellness Institute to be held September 19-21 in Anchorage. A few more travel scholarships are available. Note that new sessions have been added to the agenda.

See: www.signup4.com/swi07.

 

MATH AND SCIENCE CONFERENCE SLATED FOR OCTOBER 18-20 - Back to Top

The Alaska Math & Science Conference 2007 will be held October 18-20 in Anchorage. The conference is designed for K-12 teachers.

The conference is sponsored by the Alaska Science Teachers Association, the Alaska Council of Teachers of Mathematics and Space Grant.

Participants who sign up through September 1 will receive a bargain rate of $150 for the 2 ˝-day conference. Registration goes up to $100 per day on September 2.

See: www.aksta.org/conference.

 

SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION COMMENTS ON NCLB - Back to Top

The National School Boards Association sees a growing divide between the public and policymakers on No Child Left Behind.

The association issued a statement responding to concerns raised in the 2007 Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of public attitudes toward schools.

For the poll, see: www.pdkintl.org.

Here is the statement from NSBA Executive Director Anne Bryant:
http://www.nsba.org/site/doc.asp?TRACKID=&VID=2&CID=90&DID=41502.

 

TWO WORKSHOPS SET ON THE EDUCATION OF HOMELESS CHILDREN - Back to Top

Workshops on the education of homeless children and youth will be held October 9 in Fairbanks and October 11 in Kenai.

The workshops are intended to serve homeless liaisons, Head Start staff, school counselors, nurses, registrars, principals, district federal-program staff, frontline service agencies, social workers, shelters, hospitals and others.

Participants will join Patricia Julianelle, a consultant to the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, to discuss the educational rights of homeless children and youth as defined in the McKinney-Vento Act, Head Start reauthorization, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

For more information contact Sarah Herring, Education Program Assistant, at 907-465-8723 or sarah.herring@alaska.gov.

 

AVTEC OFFERS ONLINE COURSES - Back to Top

There are online training opportunities from AVTEC, Alaska’s vocational school based in Seward. You can participate in valuable training without leaving your home or office.

Trades Mathematics Online (TMO)
Registration Deadline: Friday, Aug 31
Live online classes via E-LIVE
Every Thursday, September 6-November 30, 6-8 p.m.
Online activities, lessons, discussions, quizzes and tests.
The target audience is Construction Trades Apprenticeship candidates and other interested individuals. For additional information and online registration, see www.avtec.edu and click on Trades Math Online (TMO) under Hot Topics.

Microsoft Office Specialist – Excel 2003
Registration Deadline: Friday, September 7.
Live online classes via E-LIVE
Every Tuesday, September 18 -December 11, 4-6 p.m.
Online activities, lessons, discussions, quizzes and tests. Target audience: Anyone interested in earning a Microsoft Office Specialist Certification.
For additional information and online registration, see
www.avtec.edu and click on Excel 2003 under Hot Topics.

 

FREE SERVICE HELPS PARENTS SAVE FOR COLLEGE AND HELP THEIR KIDS’ SCHOOLS - Back to Top

Parents can save for college and help their children’s K-12 school at the same time by using Upromise®.

Upromise is a free service that allows members to earn rewards for eligible online and in-store purchases. Participating companies return a percentage of members’ purchase price to their Upromise college savings account.

Families can join, name their beneficiary, and link to their school through Upromise Schools Program, which allows members to earn bonuses for their children’s K-12 schools. There is no inventory to buy and no door-to-door sales. The school bonuses are automatically credited to school accounts.

Here’s how Upromise works. Members register their credit, debit and loyalty cards with Upromise. The company then tracks purchases and issues rewards. Members also can collect rewards by shopping online via the Upromise web site. Family and friends can contribute rewards to a family’s Upromise account.

Members can link their rewards to a participating 529 college savings plan or repayment of a Sallie Mae loan. Their eligible everyday spending can count toward paying down their loan.

Parents can join at www.Upromise.com/schools and link to their children’s school. Parents also can call 1-866-895-6788 ext 6846 or e-mail: rfletcher@upromise.com or schools@upromise.com.

 

STATE BOARD SEEKS COMMENTS ON REMEDIATION PROPOSAL - Back to Top

The State Board of Education & Early Development is seeking public comment on a proposed regulation that will require school districts to provide a remediation program for students who have not passed the Alaska High School Graduation Qualifying Examination after the fall test administration in the students’ 11th grade year.

Also under the proposed regulation, each district for which the department has developed a district improvement plan following an instructional audit must submit a remediation plan for all students who haven’t passed the HSGQE after the fall administration of the students’ 11th grade.

If instruction in HSGQE-tested skills is found deficient, the department will either require the district to provide remediation or the department will provide it directly. The department will withhold from the district state funds to cover the costs of implementing the remediation.

The board packet is available at: www.eed.state.ak.us/State_Board/.

Information on how to submit public comments is available at: www.eed.state.ak.us/regs/.

Comments on the HSGQE regulation are due by 4 p.m. September 3, 2007. The topic is scheduled for action at the September 21, 2007, State Board meeting in Anchorage.

 

DEPARTMENT PROPOSES WORK READY/COLLEGE READY REGULATION - Back to Top

The Alaska Department of Education & Early Development has proposed a regulation that would require school districts to give state-selected assessments in applied mathematics, reading for information, and locating information (from graphic sources) to students in grades 6, 8 and 11.

The regulation would take effect in the 2008-2009 school year.

The State Board of Education & Early Development has opened an extensive period of public comment--up to 4 p.m. November 9, 2007--on the proposal, which is scheduled to be considered at the board's meeting on December 7, 2007.

The proposed regulation would combine required assessments with the voluntary use of a state-selected online curriculum. Students – and adults--could access the curriculum at home, as well.

Questions? Contact Marcia Olson, Career and Technical Education Program Specialist, at 907-465-8704 or Marcia.olson@alaska.gov.

For more information on the proposal and a link to comment on the regulations, see: www.eed.state.ak.us/tls/CTE/workready.html.

 

DEPARTMENT PROPOSES READING COURSE REGULATION - Back to Top

The Alaska Department of Education & Early Development has proposed a regulation that would require, as of September 15, 2009, successful completion of the Alaska Reading course or a passing score on its assessments by teachers who are moving from an initial certificate to a professional certificate or those who are renewing a professional certificate.

The State Board of Education & Early Development has opened an extensive period of public comment--up to 4 p.m. November 9, 2007--on the proposal, which is scheduled to be considered at the board's meeting on December 7, 2007.

The scientifically based course focuses on the five critical elements of reading: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. The Alaska Reading course has added word study and comprehension through the writing of text. Research clearly shows that children learn better when teachers use direct, multi-sensory instruction. Research supports the importance of teaching reading as a sequential and structured process.

Questions? Contact Paul Prussing, Acting Director of Teaching & Learning Support, at 907-465-8721 or paul.prussing@alaska.gov.

See the proposed regulations: http://www.eed.state.ak.us/regs/comment/4AAC_12.305(b).pdf.

How to comment: http://www.eed.state.ak.us/regs/comment.html.

See the course manual: www.eed.state.ak.us/AKReading/pdfs/Participant%20Manual/Participant%20Guide.pdf.

 

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