RE: [school-discuss] 200 teachers lose their jobs: modest proposals

["Mervyn, Jason" <JMervyn@wps.odeDoDEA.edu>]

A question for the group in this vein - I heard that elementary-level
"distance education" was being fought for in a heated conflict with the NEA.
I understood that there was a single company making quite a bit of money,
but the results of the program were the topic under fire.

I'm not an education professional; I'm a geek who is new to the environment
- currently the LAN Admin, power cord guy, etc.  I really don't know and am
unqualified to judge.  But I've just started to read David Thornburg's The
New Basics...

I'd like to know, has the technology been integrated well enough to make it
viable as an elementary education method?  I can see it either supplementing
or supplanting home schooling, or even certain instances of regular
education (like snowbound or remote areas).

Jason H. Mervyn
Computer Specialist
NY & VA DDESS
jmervyn@wps.odedodea.edu

-----Original Message-----
From: Leon Brooks [mailto:leon@brooks.fdns.net] 
Sent: Thursday, August 08, 2002 9:16 PM
To: schoolforge-discuss@schoolforge.net
Subject: Re: [school-discuss] 200 teachers lose their jobs: modest proposals

On Thu, 8 Aug 2002 21:44, mike eschman wrote:
> the average classroom will now have 33 students instead of 28 (the
> official number is 30, but it doesn't add up - everyone is too upset to
> look 33 students in the eye.]

Oh, dear. Classes become *much* less effective above about half that size.

> so kids take a beating again.

Brace yourself!

There is a good alternative for families that don't have both parents
working, 
and that is home schooling. As long as it isn't being done by obsessive 
people in order to isolate their children, it works very well. There is one 
case of retarded teenagers homeschooling with great success. If home 
schooling suits 10% of your families, your class sizes are back down to 30. 
It may also be possible (IANAL) to swing a deal with existing local home 
schoolers where some school children are rotated through their families (for

maybe a month or so at a time) and in return the homeschoolers get to use 
some school facilities (like maybe a gym or science lab) which are not 100% 
occupied.

Not a panacea, but may a piece of a workable solution.

> if you want to know why i obsess over sea level rise, any schools that
> flood this huriccane season will stay closed - all janitorial O.T. and all
> emergncy repair fund are gone.

This in a supposedly first-world country...?

> if anyone on the list has been here and gotten out alive, i could really
> use an inspirational story right about now.

Get the older kids together to brainstorm and work out on paper, various
ways 
of funding the school. Fetes and such are an obvious place to start, but I'm

sure there are other amazing and unique opportunities. Putting these things 
together and running them is brilliant vocational training for anything 
involving public contact or business methods, and it will get the children 
more on the school's side too.

Cheers; Leon