| 1. | 2/5/2008 1:56:00 AM | I would like us to look at the 10 day schedule for elementary schools. I have found the 10 day schedule has made little or no difference on the number of specials the students miss on early release days. I was under the impression we made the schedule so that it would balance out. My students have art, music, and phy. e. in the afternoon. The students in my class miss their special every time we have an early release day. It also means that every time we have an early release I do not get my prep time. This has happened every year since we implemented this schedule. |
| 2. | 2/5/2008 3:48:00 AM | If we can't be flexible here then we can't meet student needs. Subject areas should have wieghted priorities that adjust as students develop needed skills. For example: Kindergarten students are better able to comprehend science concepts as they acquire math and literacy skills. Thus more time can be spent on science in the second semester. |
| 3. | 2/5/2008 4:11:00 AM | Throughout school buildings the 30 minute IMC time (teacher prep) is not being implemented by IMC personnel. Consistancy is key. |
| 4. | 2/5/2008 2:08:00 PM | Very important, but let's use our resources wisely. We need to make sure core areas can implement ideas and beliefs before we create new programs to implement same beliefs in other areas. |
| 5. | 2/5/2008 3:30:00 PM | The 10-day cycle was a good resolution, however it hasn't completely fixed the problem. If I have a special at the end of the day on an early release, I still miss my prep time as well as since the days are evenly numbered, the same day tends to fall on Friday, so my students continue to miss the same special. |
| 6. | 2/5/2008 3:36:00 PM | I'm not opposed to alternative scheduling, however I forsee difficulties especially at the high school level with extra curriculars. I would be supportive of year round school with more frequent breaks during the year. |
| 7. | 2/5/2008 4:08:00 PM | This could help us keep our progressive edge. |
| 8. | 2/5/2008 4:58:00 PM | I agree that older students would probably function better with a later start and year round school would be a better use of our buildings. These are things to consider, but not rush into. |
| 9. | 2/5/2008 6:53:00 PM | I am in favor of year round school. |
| 10. | 2/5/2008 8:44:00 PM | I would be willing to begin teaching at 7:30 if my day ended at 2:30. This would allow time for an intervention without the child being pulled from anything else. |
| 11. | 2/5/2008 9:28:00 PM | At the elementary level, we need consitant, yet appropriate schedules! it is extremely difficult to meet the needs of all students, as well as the curriculum expectations when each day the schedule for when students go to reading support or special education. It is also important that schedules are similar across buildings so that curriculum is being taught appropriately and equally. |
| 12. | 2/5/2008 9:58:00 PM | Pertaining mostly to all of the pull outs...Reading kids are pulled at reading times.... doesn't seem to be the most beneficial for these students. |
| 13. | 2/5/2008 11:03:00 PM | It's time to evaluate the 10 day schedule. |
| 14. | 2/6/2008 3:05:00 AM | Common planning time...PLEASE!!! I have had none for the last 4 years with my teaching partner!!! This is so important, but not done in my building! I'd also like to see a weekly schedule revisited. The 10-day is fine, but still confusing. |
| 15. | 2/6/2008 3:07:00 AM | Although it is not my top priority, I can see it being very beneficial to explore. |
| 16. | 2/11/2008 6:16:00 PM | Lets change the 10 day cycle. It is not doing what it needs to do. |
| 17. | 2/12/2008 10:07:00 PM | ELL studnets have difficulty fitting all academics into a building where teachers can't talk daily with the ELL teachers. |
| 18. | 2/14/2008 9:52:00 PM | I understand the incredible amount of work that went into creating the 10-day schedule. However, rotating schedules for 'specials' teachers are incredibly difficult. Students need to remember to bring materials to school on an alternating schedule - asking elementary students to keep track is very difficult.
I don't know if it's possible to change, but my job is very difficult. |
| 19. | 3/4/2008 3:01:00 AM | Maybe some built in time for teacher collaboration? This would in turn affect the students as teachers would be better prepared. |
| 20. | 3/4/2008 1:59:00 PM | More work on internet based (virtual classrooms) classes at the high school level would assist in scheduling difficulties and would not interfer with the regular day. |
| 21. | 3/4/2008 2:50:00 PM | I listen to the news about the virtual schools. I fear that we are losing students to these virtual schools. Why are we not part of these virtual schools? There are times when special education staff might be more helpful to students if they were working with them in a support role by providing after or before school tutoring or support to their families. There might be some consideration to allowing special ed. staff with a specific duty being on a flexible schedule. |
| 22. | 3/4/2008 3:01:00 PM | Could we extend Summer School for those that really need it? We could provide Summer School at home schools with small groups of students. |
| 23. | 3/5/2008 7:40:00 PM | At the elementary level we are going to need a way to keep our heads above water. Some districts have added 15 minutes on to the end of the school day in order to open up one afternoon per month for building staffs to work together. |
| 24. | 3/5/2008 8:57:00 PM | I'd like to see alternatives chosen from evidence based programs that have high success rates and show at least medium - large test populations. |
| 25. | 3/6/2008 5:05:00 PM | Elementary needs to rethink how we set up the structure of the day, how colleagues can have a common daily prep time as well as a building wide common prep time. (More planning time) Do we become specialized and become really great at something or do we continue to be Masters of all (at least in theory)? This type of discussion needs to take place. |
| 26. | 3/6/2008 6:38:00 PM | Here is never enought time to get all things done in one day. Too much to do, we teach every subject and planning takes alot of extra time before or after school. 45 minutes of prep a day only just starts to get things done! |
| 27. | 3/6/2008 6:40:00 PM | This is great, but how we find time to do alternative programming is another question. Right now, pacing is so tight in some subjects that we don't even have enough time to go back and reteach. |
| 28. | 3/6/2008 7:26:00 PM | It would be nice to have a day to plan with your colleagues such as Madison does each Monday at 2:30 p.m. This would afford staff the opportunity to plan, meet and better serve the needs of our students. |
| 29. | 3/6/2008 8:05:00 PM | For your comments at the meeting I think this is a high school question and therefore don't feel I should comment from the elementary perspective. But are you also talking about year round school? Changing how we do inservice days? |
| 30. | 3/6/2008 8:47:00 PM | An an added art class for each classroom at the elementary level will create a much needed additional prep for teachers. |
| 31. | 3/6/2008 10:37:00 PM | As long as it does not increase teacher planning time that is already limited. I am all for serving our students better, but we need the time to prepare. |
| 32. | 3/6/2008 10:51:00 PM | I'm all about better serving our students, but that means I, as a teacher, need more time to PLAN to better meet the needs of our students' needs. They go hand in hand. |
| 33. | 3/17/2008 9:19:00 PM | Charter School or alternative MS/HS in our community. These have proven to be most beneficial to those students who might slip through the cracks of a traditional school setting. |
| 34. | 3/18/2008 2:10:00 PM | Great idea one of the best, but it will go nowhere without the commitment of time and especially funds (money) to start,support and evaluate it over time. I cannot see much happening in this area because it is really one that makes a lot of sense. This would need to be supported by the public and I don't see this happening it this economy. |
| 35. | 3/18/2008 2:48:00 PM | Interesting idea...hope we explore it fully before acting on it. |
| 36. | 3/18/2008 4:17:00 PM | Sounds intriguing. |
| 37. | 3/19/2008 1:22:00 PM | We are seeing so many more students who do not function well within the traditional school setting, not to mention students with real mental illness. |
| 38. | 3/19/2008 1:50:00 PM | If this means an alternative school by the middle school level, I'm all for it. |
| 39. | 3/19/2008 4:54:00 PM | More choices or alternate choices available for high risk/behavior problem studets |
| 40. | 3/19/2008 5:41:00 PM | Hopefully students will be "caught" before they fall through cracks and even before high school's crossroads program |
| 41. | 3/20/2008 3:18:00 AM | What type of alternative programming and what are we trying to accomplish? |
| 42. | 3/20/2008 1:48:00 PM | nice to hear about the possible grant for 8th graders, but it is already clear which 6th graders are headed in that direction. So to me the alternative learning should begin there - why wait? |
| 43. | 4/7/2008 9:56:00 PM | A need that should be based upon research and not the opinion of a few. |
| 44. | 4/7/2008 9:21:00 PM | As long as this doesn't force others to curtail the traditional programs. This could be a double edged sword. |
| 45. | 4/8/2008 1:15:00 PM | Many hurdles here. Students and jobs, athletic monster etc.... |
| 46. | 4/8/2008 1:03:00 PM | This is a sweeping statement. It should include things like AP students and at risk students. There needs to be more opportunities for our students who don't fall in traditional learning situations well. We need to have access to different services BEFORE they fail as freshman and sophmores and juniors not just seniors. |
| 47. | 4/8/2008 12:10:00 PM | I believe in block scheduling at the high school level. |
| 48. | 4/8/2008 12:26:00 PM | I think we spend a lot of time on the approximately 10% who may not fit into the traditional mold. It is important to have some flexibility but we also need to look at the needs of the average student. |
| 49. | 4/8/2008 3:02:00 PM | another that, on paper, looks great
Will this become dictated after a trial year? Does this come as a result of difficulty of advanced students (unable) to take specified classes-- a 'zero hour'-- or for the crossroads needs?
Could we explore lengthening the school day, and then every few weeks or so taking off a whole Friday? it would reduce heating, busing, food costs to have an occasional day off. Allowed by the state? |
| 50. | 4/8/2008 4:21:00 PM | this woudl save us money in the long run and help out our students. I would happily serve ona c ommittee to look into this |
| 51. | 4/8/2008 5:41:00 PM | I think that block scheduling would be good for my area. We could have skinny's and blocks and with this it may be able to accomadate a later start along with department planning and allow for time available with other areas such as special education and ell. |
| 52. | 4/8/2008 5:08:00 PM | I believe that if we can generate additional learning time at lower levels than the high school and concentrate on teaching courses that further the applications of their knowledge. Currently, teachers are having to reteach students concepts that they should have mastered at the lower levels. This takes important time away from the more indepth skills they should be learning at the high school level. |
| 53. | 4/8/2008 8:52:00 PM | Until someone has a clear vision on this one and "sells" it to the district, building by building, doubt and fear of conflict will kill this one. |
| 54. | 4/8/2008 7:58:00 PM | I think it is something worth looking at but it certainly presents its challenges as it interfaces with other systems i.e. transportation, parent's work schedules, employer work schedules, sports, and employees daycare issues. |
| 55. | 4/9/2008 4:10:00 PM | I do not see this as a feasible possibility given budget constraints and staffing. How will we pay to operate 2 shifts for staffing needs? |
| 56. | 4/9/2008 5:14:00 PM | I am interested in this. Not just looking at start and end times, or what time of year we offer school, but also looking at some sort of block or modified block schedule. I am concerned about teachers being "forced" or "encouraged" to teach classes or to teach during times of the year in which they do not want to, if that differs from general schedule that was understood to be in place when they took the job. I am also concered that if a current teacher chooses to teach a class that would be offered in the evening, for instance, then retires or moves, would the replacement teacher be forced to teach that schedule or would the choice be freely given to the replacement teacher? |
| 57. | 4/10/2008 1:16:00 PM | Very interesting idea here. Don't know how this will work or what it will look like, but keep this in mind: young people today live and are used to an on-demand world. As a result of that, the reality is that they expect life to be on demand as well (and as consumers, they will force the market to change to suit that expectation). Schools need to begin to address this change in expectation of our primary customers (students and parents). Boy, this seems like a headache of a discussion though. |
| 58. | 4/10/2008 4:36:00 PM | block scheduling for science |
| 59. | 4/10/2008 7:09:00 PM | Why don't you just say block scheduling since you have been pushing for it for quite a long time. |