Rethinking Schools Extra credit

EDSS 530 Rethinking Schools

Creating Democratic Schools (Extra credit)

The article states democratic school culture is the best professional development. It also states very early in the article that it cannot be done with a faculty that is not convinced and involved. Teachers may want to get involved but the habits developed over the years are hard to change. The other conditions for successful endeavor is a positive environment, a small school with small classroom size, ongoing communication and updates, an empowered committee that is flexible in size and in reasoning and a timeless group that supports continuous dialogue, content and social change.
The environment becomes a key factor whether or not the conditions are present for the thoughtful teachers to work collaboratively and openly or encourages resistance, secrecy and sabotage. In creating a democratic school culture, the size of the school is important. It’s hard to turn a giant cruise liner on the ocean, but yet a small power craft is able to turn on a dime. That kind of flexibility is needed to insure the rapid adjustments to change and modifications in a democratic school culture.
The staff’s timepiece has no minutes. They must spend countless hours reviewing and developing issues of behavior, school management, and student-teacher relations. Even a seemingly minor item like wearing hats requires attention, discussions, and a decision. These changes don’t require red tape and time consuming bureaucratic deliberations. Small makes democracy and rethinking schools feasible.


EDSS 530 (Debate over differentiated pay) Extra credit


Having experienced the corporate world with major companies and being in business for one’s self you get different perspectives on compensation plans. Pay for performance or alternative compensation is rapidly becoming a debate in education. My first job was a very good job with an excellent company. The employees were paid a very fair market wage. At the end of the year we were evaluated and a raise was received based on previous year’s performance. The raises were usually from 3-7% of your salary. It became the talk around the company that why break your balls for that extra 2-3 percent. Coast and a at the end of the year your still making a good wage. Some employees can accept that philosophy, others couldn’t.
Is there a parallelism between that job and teaching? Merit pay seems to be a negative in the eyes of progressive teachers and their union activists. Younger teachers struggling can’t run up the career ladder without post graduate degrees could be outstanding teachers and not be paid what they are worth. Of course the opposite is true also, with the statistics and rankings of education in California, most of the teachers are being overpaid. Do results count? Do you link results to test scores? Some say it’s unfair. Are the changes really going to improve the learning curves? Now is a time when teacher retention is a problem and it is hard to attract and retain young teachers who feel the current pay structure is unfair because they have to wait 20 years to catch up to the pay scale of the burned out veteran down the hall. If they move they lose their seniority.
Pay modifications occurred in Florida and was done by politicians and the business community. Based on test scores, 75% of teachers in affluent communities received merit pay, yet only 3% of teachers in low income schools received merit pay. The parallelism here is the corporate world where one salesman has a great territory the other salesman has a schlock territory. That schlock territory will perform because that salesman is motivated to make money and will find a way. Those teachers in the low income areas can perform and should be paid if they find a way (that is what there are paid to do) and no pay if they don’t.
The teachers need to be involved and there are ways to compensate performance. Too many teachers are satisfied with their comfort levels as the employees in my first example and don’t want change. Performance pay structure works in the private sector where unions are not involved

Final Paper!!

Management Plan

EDSS530 Classroom Expectations
Students are expected to:
Be Respectful
Be respectful of yourself, your environment, your classmates, and your teachers. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. All students want a safe and secure classroom.

Be Co-operative
Work well with your classmates. Act mature and accept others opinions and ideas openly. Act like a leader and inspire others to live to their full potential. Compliment and praise a job well done.

Be a Contributor
Be on time for class. Be in your seat before the bell rings working on assignments. Participate by completing class work when it is assigned. Work quickly and quietly on individual assignments. Work co-operatively on team assignments. Follow directions promptly and accurately. Be on task and use your time wisely.

Be Courteous
Demonstrate courtesy towards the teacher and fellow classmates by using etiquette and kindness. Speak politely to one another. Food and drinks (water is the exception) are not allowed in class room.

Be Appropriate
Remember the classroom is an academic setting and topics of conversation, comments and words should be professional in nature. Vulgar language and insults are never appropriate. Violation of this rule will result in an essay explaining why such language is unprofessional in an academic setting.


Consequences: Failure to comply with the expectations listed above will result in the following:

First Incident: Verbal or inferred physical proximity, Confiscation of disruptive materials if applicable.

Second Incident: Loss of points, classroom cleanup, redirect and reflect or other appropriate consequence.

Third Incident: Office or parent referral can occur at any time. Parents will be notified if an office referral is issued. This will occur with three missed homework assignments, three lates for class, and any other three inappropriate actions.



I will collaborate with people of strength including our peers, professors, co-operating teachers and faculty members of our school. If help is needed I will request it.

RR5 (Teacher Quality: Conversation on Quality)

The article on teacher quality sparked my interest because of the poor record in education throughout the California School System. What does it take to be a quality teacher and where do I stand and what do I to become a quality teacher?
The article was an interview with Gloria-Ladson Billings, a leader concerning education of Afro-American children. She wrote the book, The Dream Makers. In the book she asked the communities to identify good teachers and defined quality teaching. It is where you graduated from? Is it the curriculum and classes you studied? Subject area you mastered? It isn’t so, according to Gloria. Quality teaching doesn’t happen in a day. It takes time to develop. Each setting is different. Some teachers are lucky to have a pulse.
You have to understand kids, understand the community you work in, and understand concept. Teach in La Jolla and go to East San Diego and see if you make it. Settings are a factor in teaching. The good ones are not graded on their test scores, the good ones are the ones “that their students come out able to solve problems, able to make decisions, able to critically analyze their environments. If that's not happening I really don't care what your certificate says.” (Billings, “Rethinking Schools” Winter 2005 2006). Teachers get paid for results, but not the results on the standardized tests.
This information is important now as I set my goals on becoming a quality teacher. I need to know where I’m going. The activities and beliefs I undertake are what are going to make me a quality teacher.