District Administration - May 2008 - (Page 14)

BRIEFINGS NewsUpdate Georgia County Nixes Single-Sex Plan THE GREENE COUNTY GA. SCHOOL DISTRICT HAS DECIDED TO drop its measures to adopt separate classrooms for boys and girls after waves of controversy broke out from outraged parents who were not consulted ahead of time, says district spokeswoman Judi Collins. Hailed by school oﬃcials as a “research-proven” way to ﬁx the district’s rock-bottom test scores, plummeting graduation rates and high numbers of teenage pregnancies, the move would have made it the ﬁrst public school system AP PHOTO / JOHN BAZEMORE in the country to go entirely single sex. “We just got so excited about how single-gender education could help our kids that we got ahead of ourselves,” said superintendent Shawn McCollough at a meeting in late March of parents, teachers and community members from Union Point Elementary, Greensboro Elementary, and Carson Middle Schools. “We should have our parents and teachers more involved in the process,” he added. The rural four-school district is not giving up on the concept of separation by gender, but is now using feedback from school stakeholders to inform its decision. The district recently held a series of voting sessions in which parents, teachers and community members were asked to complete a survey indicating their level of interest in having singleSuperintendent gender education as a choice in their child’s school. McCollough responds Parents’ votes will be given the most weight, and the high to parents’ concerns school is not being considered for any number of single-gender about the district’s now-in-ﬂux gender classrooms, says Collins. separation plans. McCollough and a leadership team developed a plan based on the survey results and at press time had presented it to the Board of Education for review and approval. Only after any single-sex classes are oﬀered for 2008-2009 will parents decide whether to actually register their children for them. The XO laptop carries a modest $200 price tag. Third-World Laptops Come to Alabama Schools FIRST THROUGH EIGHTHGRADE students in Birmingham City (Ala.) Schools will soon each have their own computer, and it will be a laptop designed for children in third-world countries. Under a purchase agreement signed by Mayor Larry Langford, the 30,000student district will receive 15,000 of the computers from the nonproﬁt foundation One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) by the start of the 2008-2009 academic year. Called the XO laptop, the rugged, waterproof machines don’t run standard Mac or Windows programs but rather a free, open-source version of Linux that features wireless capabilities and a “mesh networking” system that will allow classmates to collaborate on group projects and build oﬀ of each other’s work. The computer’s use of open-document formats will also allow students to program, reinvent, and reapply the software and content, which has been designed to teach math, science, reading, social studies, and art and design. To utilize the laptops’ Web browsers and Wi-Fi system, the district is beginning a major technology upgrade with a portion of the $300 million it received from a 1 percent sales tax increase, chief curriculum oﬃcer Claudia Williams told The Birmingham News. Although originally targeted for the developing world where per capita education spending is less than $200, OLPC spokeswoman Jackie Lustig says people in the United States are “blown away” by the laptop’s capabilities and low cost, and the group is in discussions with several other states and cities about pilot programs. District Administration Tech-Empowered Superintendents THE CONSORTIUM FOR SCHOOL NETWORKING (CoSN) just launched a new free leadership initiative, “Empowering the 21st Century Superintendent,” designed both to provide superintendents and other school leaders with the latest tools and resources to understand the transformative role of education technology, and to lay out a blueprint for technology EMPOWERING the 21st Century leadership and action. Superintenden “Innovation and new ideas for enhancing the educational experience come from educators at all levels, but often some of the most eﬀective efforts begin with a visionary perspective from the top,” explained CoSN CEO Keith Krueger during the initiative’s launch at the National School Boards Association conference in March. The set of resources includes a detailed toolkit for technology leadership (available at www.superintendentempower.org) and a video presenting superintendents’ personal thoughts on 21st century learning (available at sponsor site www.pearson foundation.org). State superintendent associations have already joined in the eﬀort and embedded the resources into conferences and publications. Consortium for School Networking (CoS 14 May 2008 http://www.superintendentempower.org http://www.pearsonfoundation.org http://www.pearsonfoundation.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - May 2008

District Administration - May 2008
Contents
Editor’s Letter
Letters
News Update
Security Update
Curriculum Update
Inside the Law
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Book Excerpt
Addressing Food Allergies
Algebra: Changing the Equation
Stopping MRSA
Resources to Support Disabled Learners
Web Tools: The Second Generation
How Well Does This Web Site Work?
New Products
Speaking Out
Supervisor’s Opinion
Professional Opinion
Leadership Books
Research Center
Calendar of Events
Products Showcase
Understanding the Times

District Administration - May 2008