SchoolMatters Blog

iPods, cameras replacing pen, paper

The morning after our schools were featured on ABC World News, Brandon Shulleeta has a nice story in today's Daily Progress that covers Albemarle County's classroom technology projects in detail... Brian Wheeler

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9/14/09 * Daily Progress [full story]

Students are playing math games on iPod touches and reading electronic books instead of hard copies. Teachers are being recorded on cameras. And principals are attending conferences without leaving their offices.

Albemarle County schools are using new technology this year in an effort to better interest and excite students.

“We’ve watched many videos where the instructor’s not engaging,” said Luvelle Brown, the school division’s chief information officer. “The students didn’t have a clue what was going on.”

School division leaders are recording teachers and posting the videos on an internal Web site this year, which they hope will encourage discussions about what teachers are doing right and wrong.

ABC World News visits Monticello High School

It was great to see Albemarle County Public Schools featured on ABC World News tonight.  Mae Craddock's classroom (English - Monticello High School) was highlighted for her pilot project using Apple's iPod touch to replace traditional hard copy textbooks. 

The students certainly looked very engaged and Ms. Craddock and our technology team deserve a lot of credit for their innovations.

Brian Wheeler

Class of 2008: Men and women built for others

During the past two weeks, I had the pleasure of attending seven graduation ceremonies in Albemarle County Public Schools (Our comprehensive high schools--Western, Albemarle, Monticello; CATEC; Ivy Creek School; Murray High School; and our Post High Program). 

At the comprehensive high schools, the Chair of the School Board typically offers a welcome on behalf of the Board. I recently read Season of Life by Jeffrey Marx and that served as the inspiration for my comments to the graduates (below).  Marx tells the inspirational story of two remarkable coaches of the 2001 Gilman High School football team (Baltimore, MD), Joe Ehrmann and Francis "Biff" Poggi.  Their philosophy, as adults working with young people, is to ensure their students are "built for others."

Brian Wheeler

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Remarks to the Class of 2008
Western Albemarle High School graduation, May 30, 2008
Monticello High School graduation, May 31, 2008
Albemarle High School graduation, May 31, 2008

On behalf of the Albemarle County School Board, I welcome you to this celebration honoring the accomplishments of these students.

On behalf of the Board, I want to thank the staff and the family members who have helped these students reach this major milestone of graduation. 

I read a book recently about a minister who tells the young people around him that his job is to love them, and their job is to love each other.

The minister was an all-American football player at Syracuse.  This minister was an all-pro defensive tackle for thirteen years with the Baltimore Colts.

This book was about the Season of Life--The 2001 season of the Gilman High School football team.

Reverend Joe Ehrmann coached the Gilman boys while growing his Building Men & Women for Others ministry in inner-city Baltimore.  Building men and women for others…

Ehrmann’s approach to loving his players and teaching them to love each other and live by a code of conduct certainly made me think about the relationships we want to build in Albemarle County.

Seniors, you have a lot of adults here that love you.  Sometimes it might have been tough love, right?  But I do know that this faculty, your family and friends are all here because they love you and want you to be successful.

My question is… have you been built for others?  What are you going to do with the talents you have?  How will you present yourself to the world?

At a team picnic, parents come up to Coach Joe Ehrmann and ask him how successful he thinks the football team will be?  Are they going to be winners?

Joe says, “I won’t really know for twenty years.”  Twenty years...

“Life [won’t] be measured in terms of success based on what you’ve acquired or achieved or what you own.  The only thing that’s really going to matter is the relationships that you had. It’s gonna come down to this: What kind of father [or mother] were you?  What kind of husband [or wife] were you?  What kind of coach or teammate were you?  What kind of son [or daughter] were you…? Success comes in terms of relationships.”

Seniors, your twenty years begins today.  Will you be built for others?

I wish you lifelong success in this community and beyond as you embrace lifelong learning and take ownership of your future.  Think about your personal code of conduct , about your integrity, and about the relationships you can create and sustain with the people all around you.

Love each other.  Become men and women built for others.

Thank you and good luck.

Brian Wheeler
Chairman
Albemarle County School Board

Improving how we use our resources

In June, the Albemarle County School Board retained the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute (CEPI) at VCU to conduct a "resource management review" of our school operations.  At our business meeting last week, the School Board received our first presentation about the findings and we have scheduled an in-depth work session to review the Institute's recommendations for this Thursday.

I can tell you that during the presentation by Dr. William Bosher, I was squirming in my seat frequently.  It appears they have identified a number of key areas where we can make improvements in our school operations.  He also had plenty of accolades for things Albemarle is doing really well.  That's exactly what I was hoping for with this review, but it can be difficult to hear it all at once.  Some things we have held sacred may need adjustments.  The end result should be a better operating school division that makes the most efficient use of your tax dollars in pursuit of our community's goal for a world class school division.

I am still reviewing the final report, but I am making both the slides and the report available on my website for your review.  The report includes 176 findings and observations, and 117 recommendations in eight focus areas.  Here is a list of the chapters to give you some sense of the scope of the project:

1. Part One: Fiscal Planning, Budgeting and Related Services
2. Part Two: Facilities and Student Population Planning
3. Part Three: Curriculum, Instruction and Student Services
4. Part Four: Technology Planning, Systems, and Utilization (Instructional & Administrative)
5. Part Five: Human Resources
6. Part Six: Policy Development, Communications and Community Relations
7. Part Seven: Support Operations: Building, Food Services and Transportation
8. Part Eight: Organizational Development, Leadership, Central Administration

The school division has also created a website home for this study and here you will be able to track our next steps as well as the short-term and long-term decisions we make to address these findings.

Please let me know what you think about the report's conclusions.  Now back to my reading...

Brian Wheeler

Program of Studies recommendations

At this Thursday's meeting, the Albemarle County School Board will take action on the Superintendent's remaining recommendations for the High School Program of Studies.

Final Program of Studies recommendations:
http://www.wheeleronboard.com/docs/20070308-POS-final.pdf

If you have been following this issue, please review page 5 of the PDF linked above which covers some changes made after recent School Board feedback:

Levels in courses

"This recommendation is intended to provide schools, through the school improvement process, the flexibility to combine levels of classes. As clarified to the Board in discussion on February 8, the Academic level, as currently piloted in the Division, combines Advanced and Standard levels. This recommendation provides schools the flexibility to combine levels identified by schools through the school improvement process. Other options might be pursued through the school improvement process with the goal of ensuring opportunity and access to high-level curriculum and instruction for all students. "

In other words, the recommendation allows the combining of Standard and Practical or Standard and Advanced levels, as determined appropriate by each school.

Exam exemptions

Attendance requirements for exam exemption will be removed beginning with the 2007-08 school year.

Additional Recommendation: Students who have documented excused absences for illnesses/health reasons during second semester 2006-07, will be eligible for exam exemptions.

Brian Wheeler

Chinese surges in popularity: As economy ascends, so does language for area students

Monticello High School student Tom Campbell flattered his teacher of Chinese by declaring in class that he wants to take the language in college.

“Holy cow, you talk about having a calling card,” said Fred Tucker, the only instructor of Chinese in Albemarle County schools, to the aspiring biotechnology major. “If you know Chinese, the tech links that will evolve over time between China and the United States - Chinese will be of great assistance to you.”

The numbers support Tucker. China is expanding rapidly, and more in the academic realm are taking notice.

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Locally, the enrollment in Chinese 101 at the University of Virginia increased from 62 in Fall 2004 to 94 in Fall 2006, and 40 students were on the waiting list this past fall, said Ran Zhao, a professor of Chinese language at UVa.

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Albemarle County schools implemented a Chinese language course at Monticello three years ago, and the class has slowly gained interest. Fifteen students are now enrolled with Tucker, six more than last year.

Albemarle may nix weights for grades

11/11/06 * Daily Progress [full story]

Albemarle County high schools may eliminate weighted grade-point averages, raising questions about the role grades should play in encouraging students to excel – and how successful students should be rewarded for it.

The county school division formed a committee this year of principals, guidance counselors, teachers and students to discuss grading changes. The group has recommended to Superintendent Pamela Moran that the county treat grades equally in all three levels of academic difficulty – standard, advanced and honors/Advanced Placement.

Don Vale, director of curriculum and instruction for the division and the committee leader, said that by eliminating the weighted GPA, students would become motivated to take a challenging course load to attract the attention of colleges and to stretch their potential, not to raise their GPA.

Under the county’s current system, standard-level courses in the county’s high schools receive no weight, while advanced courses receive 0.5 “quality points” and honors/Advanced Placement courses are given one quality point. A student who makes an “A” in four standard classes gets a 4.0 GPA; a student with the same grades in four AP classes would have a 5.0.