tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53768489818507394612024-03-13T08:45:42.699-07:00Idealistically RealisticDavid C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-248006595431531672018-04-08T18:36:00.000-07:002018-04-08T18:36:34.680-07:00Consolidate ThisOver the past few weeks, especially in the aftermath of the threat of a state-wide teacher walkout in Oklahoma...and then the actual walkout which continues into day 6 tomorrow, I've heard and read lots of thoughts regarding consolidation. With all of this discussion I had been brainstorming a blog post on the topic, but I've been busy supporting my district's teachers in the walkout (both by being at the <strike>Capitol</strike> People's House in person and helping to give the ACT to our district's juniors).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2OFMt0GZtpxgncWgf4RBHinCY10LhJgZPnNWivjjScQGE5vqcwWJE0VZdyNlPs-Um6z5l4kYPpRLSfHiEOZxLwBcyb-zHz0LWTN4OuzD8wwqj7Jh66Rc0l623UZcGE00hq8ANAbMF3dGS/s1600/consolidation+ok+fl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="720" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2OFMt0GZtpxgncWgf4RBHinCY10LhJgZPnNWivjjScQGE5vqcwWJE0VZdyNlPs-Um6z5l4kYPpRLSfHiEOZxLwBcyb-zHz0LWTN4OuzD8wwqj7Jh66Rc0l623UZcGE00hq8ANAbMF3dGS/s200/consolidation+ok+fl.jpg" width="200" /></a>This evening I received a message from a good friend asking for my thoughts on how to respond to a meme making the social media rounds comparing Oklahoma and Florida in relation to the idea of consolidation. I wrote back mentioning that I've been planning to write a post about it and promised to do it tonight. Over dinner, I was scrolling through Facebook and multiple friends were sharing a post about consolidation that was attributed to one of our state senators, but not shared from him directly. I liked the content of the post, but felt the need to confirm the authenticity before sharing it myself. I've since sent the senator a private FB message and he replied confirming that he wrote it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheplvB4IAU0FhDH_bw-2afH4aRXKnof9wHD31FG66Qx3qsN8RTLljBUBuUms14KPLREof0dLKimUX_SRCMbP-EFTuh_wyy9k8S_Lc3y2LLSjdTq13OcpJEnrInlWFtFwaWtt1WBLucYHXS/s1600/Sharp+01.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1323" data-original-width="662" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheplvB4IAU0FhDH_bw-2afH4aRXKnof9wHD31FG66Qx3qsN8RTLljBUBuUms14KPLREof0dLKimUX_SRCMbP-EFTuh_wyy9k8S_Lc3y2LLSjdTq13OcpJEnrInlWFtFwaWtt1WBLucYHXS/s400/Sharp+01.JPG" width="200" /></a>So, I'd like to begin with these comments being shared around Facebook today that are confirmed to be from Senator Rob Sharp, a Republican serving Senate District 17 (eastern Oklahoma County and northern Pottawatomie County).<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">One of the many myths in Oklahoma is consolidation of school districts will save taxpayer money. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">In truth, it is quite the opposite!</span></blockquote>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftRO5_MmfbDDvCK4_-JPFhGjDoaQz8QJ0tJdCgzXBrfqeSj4pTZ2IZ9CszQyU8yg4IqPPzJ32IPNXWYoR6IdGVmao7dPQeYmAfIuYsh21h1RYkx-Fj7QVvrd_AMlrKa5AjzyhTo1oL0td/s1600/Sharp+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="539" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhftRO5_MmfbDDvCK4_-JPFhGjDoaQz8QJ0tJdCgzXBrfqeSj4pTZ2IZ9CszQyU8yg4IqPPzJ32IPNXWYoR6IdGVmao7dPQeYmAfIuYsh21h1RYkx-Fj7QVvrd_AMlrKa5AjzyhTo1oL0td/s320/Sharp+02.jpg" width="177" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The base of funding Oklahoma's education system is local dollars (known as dedicated revenue). Subsequently, there are 37 school districts that receive ZERO State appropriated dollars because of the wealth of that school district in which the students attend.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">There are another 64 school districts that receive ZERO foundation aide from the State because of the of its wealth.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The remaining school districts receive State appropriated dollars on the basis of equity. Of these school districts on the average about 52% of the school district's money comes from local dedicated funds and the remainder from State appropriated funds.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The State only supplements what the local wealth does not provide. And, this is done on a per pupil appropriation (Average Daily Membership) , and NOT DONE ON THE NUMBER OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS!</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Therefore, the NUMBER of School Districts in Oklahoma is irrelevant to the State's appropriated dollars.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">There are currently 696, 486 students in Oklahoma's public schools. If there were only 2 school districts in Oklahoma, or 515 school districts it would still cost the State of Oklahoma the same amount of dollars.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Those school districts that are losing students (ADM) are forced to close their doors by voluntary consolidation. Neither local or appropriated dollars can save that district because both local and State appropriated dollars is based on ADM.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Several problems are created with forced consolidation:</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">1) the debt of the closed district will follow to the new district (changes would be required to raise the capped debt of a school district)</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">2) the closed district probably has a very low ad valorem assessment and only posses a financial burden to the new district</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">3) BIG PROBLEM- any attempt to force consolidation would require ad valorem to be under the State legislature control. Otherwise, the State would be bankrupt without the local dollars that forms the base of school district funding.</span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">4) Currently, the State does not receive any of the ad valorem dollars. All ad valorem remains within the county for distribution. </span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">5) All buildings within a school district are approved by local taxpayer bond issues. The State has ZERO investment in local school buildings. Bond issues require a 60% taxpayer approval. And, then maintained by 35 mill levies approved by the local district taxpayers. All of this would be required to change under any attempt at forced consolidation. All local ad valorem would be required to be placed into one State-wide revolving fund for distribution. (SOCIALISM).</span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">6) Oklahoma's education funding formula is considered the best in the US. </span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">7) It is not the education funding formula that is the problem, it is the insufficient amount of revenue the State is providing as its share of the formula.</span></blockquote>
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Again, those are Senator Sharp's thoughts. I happen to find them brilliant.<br />
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Following my private messaging with Senator Sharp, he personally went to the original post where I had found the words attributed to him (the words he confirmed as his) and posted an additional statement which I feel adds greater clarity to his original comments:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij6cZWoXbrH40GTFKpBueqDTEwbXvm8h7qXB6t_lk3UnDjmtvK5vAdCpMhPvcUVlhtMlkPQNmtJS0TGGQFi8xOGYmBPZHRnKcjcY4aefFq9fUXEHi2tmpTlMg24yPhhEBAAWMyOMANpmgB/s1600/Sharp+03.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="641" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij6cZWoXbrH40GTFKpBueqDTEwbXvm8h7qXB6t_lk3UnDjmtvK5vAdCpMhPvcUVlhtMlkPQNmtJS0TGGQFi8xOGYmBPZHRnKcjcY4aefFq9fUXEHi2tmpTlMg24yPhhEBAAWMyOMANpmgB/s200/Sharp+03.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There have been two studies on school consolidation that have significant credibility:</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1) Vernon Florence's "Study on School Consolidation". Mr. Florence is probably the most knowledgeable authority on the Oklahoma education funding formula. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">His research concluded that not only does school district consolidation not save the State any money, but would actually increase costs. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">[Mr. Florence teaches education finance to superintendents at CCOSA]</span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">2) The Education Commission of the States presented a study to the Oklahoma Education Formula Task Force on December 20, 2017. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The fiscal analysts, Emily Parker and Michael Griffith, related that States that have consolidated have not experienced any savings and have actually increased costs. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The analysis from their study confirmed the Oklahoma Education Funding formula was the best in the US, and that other States would benefit from using this formula. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Parker and Griffith related on December 20, 2017, it was the larger school districts with a student population of 25 thousand plus that created the bloat of administrative and per pupil costs. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The conclusion from this study was the smaller school districts were actually the most cost efficient, student scores the best, and student appreciation for their social environment the most satisfactory.</span></span></span></blockquote>
There have been those who have countered, "Why not consolidate just the superintendents and not the actual districts themselves? Have one county-wide superintendent serving multiple school districts?"<br />
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Well, if each school district remains independent and, thus, still has its own locally elected school board you would end up with an interesting situation: one individual serving multiple sets of bosses. Each board would have to approve the hiring of the individual to serve as the collective superintendent. Each independent district would be paying a percentage of this superintendent's salary. The likelihood of unanimity of vision among all of the districts/school boards is not likely. So how does this superintendent figure out how to act when differing districts/school boards give him conflicting orders or objectives to follow? How does the superintendent appropriately divide his/her time up in serving each district? An individual can only be in one place at one time. Matthew 6:24 gives some insight here: "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hat the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other...". Granted, this scripture was alluding to a different topic, but it's still applicable here. A single superintendent with multiple, potentially conflicting/competing bosses, has virtually no ability to help oversee a quality education for all of the students being served.</div>
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If two of more local communities happen to decide on their own that consolidation makes the most sense for the educational needs of their students, then let them make that decision. There should not be any effort to impose such a forced consolidation upon any district by the government of the state of Oklahoma. In most cases it neither makes sense or cents.</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-64878275251621489502018-04-02T19:30:00.002-07:002018-04-02T19:31:16.744-07:00Oklahoma Teacher Walkout: Day OneToday has been an emotional day. Approximately 30,000 teachers, administrators, vital support staff, parents, students, and other supports (including many state employees) descended upon the Oklahoma State Capitol today to advocate for the needs of increased funding to support the educational needs of the 680,000+ students in Oklahoma's public schools.<br />
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I attempted to visit with nearly all of the Representatives and Senators who serve an electoral district that includes a piece of Moore Public Schools. Of those I visited in person, some were honest and legitimate supporters of public education even if we happen to disagree with the mechanics of how to accomplish the goals of fully funding the needs of our students. One gave a D- attempt at a song and dance around the issues--imagine that uber slick car salesman at that slick auto dealership in your town and then imagine the schmuck that doesn't have the finesse to land a job at the slick dealership and works at the dumpy lot in the "bad" neighborhood and he is trying to convince you that the 25 year old jalopy is the most advanced and equipped car ever created--that was the nature of this song and dance; I almost felt sorry for him for that poor performance. And then there were the ones who wouldn't even make time available to visit with their constituents...it's easy to guess where they stand.<br />
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But I don't want to spend too much time talking about the lawmakers, and the anger I hold for some of them. I want to focus on the aspects of today that brought me joy, and, at times, joyful tears.<br />
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I spent the whole day with Jennifer, Julie, and Shelia, three of our wonderful elementary teachers. At times throughout the day we were joined for some of our legislator visits by other amazing teacher friends. Each of these teachers shared their stories of trying to teach 30 or more first graders or kindergartners in one room. Folks, that's a whole lot of little people to tie shoes, wipe noses, keep in line or in their seat or on the story carpet, etc., all the while trying to present whole group and small group lessons to help develop their little minds. My first year I had a class of 36 sophomores crammed into a portable classroom for geometry and I would gladly take those 36 kids over even five squirmy kindergartners--yet these ladies make it look so easy. They told the stories behind why classes are so large... a new quality first grade teacher applicant could not be found despite the best efforts of the school and district. The teacher shortage is real. The struggle is real. And yet these ladies are consummate professionals who refuse to let their kids know that they are being shortchanged. With heads held high and love in their hearts for their kids, they walk into those classrooms determined to give it their all because those precious kids are worth it.<br />
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Throughout the day as I had cellular connectivity (even on a normal day at the Capitol cell service is spotty inside those thick granite walls, but more so with 30,000 people trying to use their phones), my heart would be stirred by seeing a text or social media post from teacher friends across this country letting me know that they were with us in spirit despite being in Iowa or Colorado or New York or Georgia or California. These are teachers who I've met as part of the professional development programs that have taken all across the United States and to numerous intentional destinations. You would never believe that some of the teachers I've met on those programs have become some of my dearest friends. And I love the fact that one of them has two kids who are wicked fans of the OKC Thunder and I've traveled to Sacramento to join them for a game. The simple words of love and support that they have shared today or over the past week have meant more in this struggle than they could ever know.<br />
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Only a small fraction of the 30,000 people actually came inside the Capitol building. Most rallied outside. Many shared pictures of the many protest signs being carried and pictures of dear friends and co-educators from my district marching in solidarity. Some took time to write out their teacher story of educational funding complications on social media. Catching glimpses of those postings during strong connectivity times as well as once I got home have been extra encouraging to the entire cause. Three special stories really grabbed my attention.<br />
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Story#1: One of my principal buddies, Seth Meier from Oakridge Elementary, shared one of the stories on Facebook:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3wLSKDmnXrbvIop5iu20gC3GT9xmUyxoVlrylEspX7NuVid46JyfMRypRFMwBEr7qZdDpd1XcAU1AFpOZuKeVgFuIT0bVo506AUhGuHCsG4wLdK6pn3y9XN5qq_A-80kC2IHs0nagPlq/s1600/Seth.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="372" data-original-width="1066" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3wLSKDmnXrbvIop5iu20gC3GT9xmUyxoVlrylEspX7NuVid46JyfMRypRFMwBEr7qZdDpd1XcAU1AFpOZuKeVgFuIT0bVo506AUhGuHCsG4wLdK6pn3y9XN5qq_A-80kC2IHs0nagPlq/s640/Seth.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
And for more of the details of the story, the mother herself posted about the experience <<a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10211381338508180&set=p.10211381338508180&type=3&theater" target="_blank">click here</a>><br />
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Story #2: A group of band teachers from around the state organized themselves to bring their personal instruments and play some tunes to energize the crowds outside. One of the songs that is trending across social media was their rendition of Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It". This video was captured by Jordan Nguyen, the wife of my friend Philip who teaches music at Bryant Elementary.<br />
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Story #3: I have a handful of friends who teach at Edmond Memorial High School in a neighboring district. One of their teachers carried out the idea of some of his students and brought their classroom to the Capitol lawn. This morning Regan Killackey and his students had AP English together so they could continue preparing for the rapidly approaching AP exams. This is one of the stories being highlighted within national media, such as this story and video in Newsweek. <<a href="http://www.newsweek.com/oklahoma-state-capitol-regan-killackey-teachers-protest-class-ap-english-868623" target="_blank">click here</a>></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzRdFDYBVprwB9CGoXyESpzirMu_DZjqqQfMBEhvQm8yXTIVRivCu39m-wMyYz0mZcQ50vcsLRpmZdFtc6ouXAObOcS8cvgbJy1TPMSPXcpt0amkhvi1F-egnFfwsTEwdOotmfZHhnG_D/s1600/classroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzRdFDYBVprwB9CGoXyESpzirMu_DZjqqQfMBEhvQm8yXTIVRivCu39m-wMyYz0mZcQ50vcsLRpmZdFtc6ouXAObOcS8cvgbJy1TPMSPXcpt0amkhvi1F-egnFfwsTEwdOotmfZHhnG_D/s320/classroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Today's walkout and school closing is the first of what could be many, many days. Most participants are willing to stay out of the classroom until the legislature significantly funds or creates a clear pathway to fund Oklahoma's schools. I don't know when this will occur; I hope sooner than later. The one thing that I do know is that, at least right now, our communities support our teachers because they understand the teachers did not walkout on our students--they've walked out FOR our students.</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-33628370205115332112018-03-25T13:50:00.000-07:002018-03-25T13:57:31.871-07:00Students' VoicesFrom the start, this post is not intended to address (either pro or con) the motivations nor the substance behind the recent student led "March for Our Lives". This post is NOT about defending any perspective on gun rights, gun control, the Second Amendment, etc. You'll need to go elsewhere to find and discuss those topics.<br />
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This post is about students and the rightful place for the expression of their voice. As a passionate Social Studies educator (history, geography, political science, economics, psychology, sociology, etc.), one of my primary goals is for students to think about, explore, discuss/debate, and compare the sundry aspects of human interaction across time and space. Further, I want my students to take those lessons and apply them to their personal lives and the collective lives of society for the purpose of making the world a better place. Do I proscribe for them a specific path or set of ideas that will create the perfect world? NO! The "whys" are for them to decide as are the "hows" they choose to use.<br />
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In December of 1965, Mary Beth Tinker, her brother John, and a small group of their friends chose to shift their ideas regarding the Vietnam War from conversation to action. They all wore black arm bands to their schools in Des Moines, Iowa, as a protest against the war. (Again, this post is neither pro or con regarding the merits of the arm band protest nor the war in Vietnam.) The students were coerced into removing their arm bands in the face of disciplinary action from the school district. The students' families believed that their students' First Amendment rights were being unnecessarily violated. Following years of decisions and appeals, the <em>Tinker v. Des Moines</em> case landed before the U.S. Supreme Court. In their landmark 1969 decision, the Court ruled 7 to 2 that the students' rights were indeed violated.</div>
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The Court did not rule that any/all protests by students at school were automatically protected by the First Amendment. The Court, reasonably, recognized that there would plausibly be protests which could unnecessarily disrupt the educational mission of a school and/or hinder other students from their rights in obtaining an education. While there are limits surrounding students protesting in the educational setting, those peaceful protests which do not overtly disrupt the educational process are protected.</div>
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For more information on the <em>Tinker</em> case, <a href="https://www.aclu.org/other/tinker-v-des-moines-landmark-supreme-court-ruling-behalf-student-expression" target="_blank">click here</a> OR <a href="http://time.com/5171160/gun-control-student-protest-history/" target="_blank">click here</a>.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHSf-cZOcRfTlbH06RvAW9qRy0hLJCoNl13ZnNHvN5d6J0-Lx5HhLbdU1DP8JFONGOSvbcV-gHt8Ck04bbW5NLqgiA_W9agt7MwmKJ-d3Qkta1c0SffA-jIEC18dMX7n3KKikOpk_C_C-/s1600/walkout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="432" data-original-width="800" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHSf-cZOcRfTlbH06RvAW9qRy0hLJCoNl13ZnNHvN5d6J0-Lx5HhLbdU1DP8JFONGOSvbcV-gHt8Ck04bbW5NLqgiA_W9agt7MwmKJ-d3Qkta1c0SffA-jIEC18dMX7n3KKikOpk_C_C-/s320/walkout.jpg" width="320" /></a>Questions surrounding student led protests within the educational context have come back to the forefront in the aftermath of the shooting which occurred at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018. In the shooting, 17 students and staff members from the high school lost their lives. Within the immediate aftermath of the shooting, some students from Stoneman Douglas gained notoriety by their appearances within national media. Their efforts inspired a student based movement seeking new legislation to prohibit specific types of weapons. The movement called for a 17-minute student walkout from class at 10:00 AM on March 14th as a peaceful protest against gun violence and as a demonstration in memory of the 17 individuals who lost their lives one month prior.</div>
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Again, without focusing on the merits of gun rights, gun control, or the Second Amendment, the question many schools began grappling with was whether or not prohibiting a protest/demonstration in the form of a walkout from class would violate the Constitution in light of <em>Tinker</em> and subsequent Court decisions on student protests. Many school administrators found ways of partnering with student leaders of a walkout at their local school to allow the walkout in a way that limited disruption to the educational day beyond the 17-minutes and in a context that provided as much safety as possible to students participating in the walkout (and/or any counter protests led by students with differing ideologies). Other schools have opted to try and punish their local students for participating in the walkout. It may very well be the beginning of another Court case to clarify when disruptions to the school day are considered acceptable or not. To what extent does a 17-minute walkout truly impact a school-year's worth of education? If a 17-minute walkout is unreasonable to the Court, what about a 45-minute student led pep rally??</div>
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I attended the March 14th walkout at one of the junior high schools with which I work. I wasn't there to spy and report on any nefarious intent from either the student protestors nor the local administration. I had already learned that the students who were leading the movement at this school were working with the local principal to provide the most meaningful 17-minutes possible. The focus of the walkout was remembering the 17 individuals who had lost their lives. There was nothing inflammatory presented. I was proud of the way all participating students expressed themselves.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzoOQEtp0wKo6WyYhYA0mcbo5dKrGoaoh6A7UGnIB8OCDBnNFzvwmKScW3GQCzYdU8UcSs8HGChw1IsyX7RVX2K8dV4eCnhYeCOsgALLplZZQJrJL4_LdeAC4mTqsw1At5O0dJaU9sBPDD/s1600/marchforourliveslogo3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="850" data-original-width="1600" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzoOQEtp0wKo6WyYhYA0mcbo5dKrGoaoh6A7UGnIB8OCDBnNFzvwmKScW3GQCzYdU8UcSs8HGChw1IsyX7RVX2K8dV4eCnhYeCOsgALLplZZQJrJL4_LdeAC4mTqsw1At5O0dJaU9sBPDD/s320/marchforourliveslogo3.jpg" width="320" /></a>Over the course of this weekend, my heart was stirred to see the images of students across this country collectively voicing their concerns on issues of which they are passionate--again, I'm neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the nature of the March for Our Lives. When you look at the statistics of voting and other forms of civic engagement, the participation rates of those aged 25 and below are dreadfully low even amidst a decades worth of efforts to get this demographic more engaged. I hope that today's students, regardless of their ideological bend, are inspired to think critically about a wide range of important issues and to act within the appropriate ways so as to bring meaningful change to the societies in which they live--especially to exercise their right to vote!</div>
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Most schools have as part of their mission statement or guiding philosophy the idea of helping to create civically engaged life-long learners. With such a statement of purpose, it would be highly hypocritical of an educational institution to teach about constitutional rights in their historical and political settings (as is required by the teaching standards of most, if not all, states) and then turn around and seek to deny students, as vigorously as possible, the ability to exercise those very rights. What better place than a school exists to equip students with an understanding of the intricacies surrounding their constitutional rights coupled with the appropriate ways to exercise those rights in the public forum? Teaching students how to develop their ideas into a sound argument and how to effectively champion their ideas so that they can become civically engaged life-long learners is the ultimate purpose of education. When students exercise their voice I get excited.</div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-34062704931090268492018-03-08T19:34:00.001-08:002018-03-08T19:41:23.725-08:00These Boots are Made for Walkin'<div style="border-image: none;">
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Oklahoma's average teacher pay is currently 50th out of 51 (states + DC). Hoards of teachers have already flocked to surrounding states, some of whom have increased their salaries by $20,000 per year for a move less than a three hour drive from my home in north Oklahoma City.</div>
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I've never been a fan of OEA. Shady behaviors it has conducted and some of the policies it has championed, along with the same for its parent organization (NEA) and its local affiliate within my school district have impacted my thoughts on OEA (those are stories for another time). My views on OEA, however, have not led me to be "anti-union". As a Social Studies educator, I very much understand the importance of unions within historical, economic, political, and geographic contexts. I fully understand that many of the gains and protections that are found across most labor industries or workforces are the result of difficult decisions, committed collaborative actions, and a quest for justice on the part of organized labor. As such, I respect OEA's leadership in today's press conference.</div>
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Oklahoma's teachers have not had a raise in ten years. Retirement and health insurance are not fully covered in many districts. Per pupil expenditures have decreased each year for nearly a decade...when allocated funds do not remain consistent with population increases then even in a year in which allocations are 100% equal to the year before we end up with the effect of a significant cut. Lottery funds no longer serve to extend or enhance legislative allocations. The lottery now, by default, serves to supplant those funds. Vital well-rounded educational services and opportunities for students have been cut. Teaching, administrative, and support staff positions have been eliminated. As teachers leave the state to teach elsewhere or transition into other careers, the pool of qualified teachers to replace them (if there are funds to fill the vacancies) shrinks to the point of having underqualified persons serving in the classroom. The shortage of quality teachers is real and has a profoundly negative impact on the quality of education in many classrooms. Cut, cut, cut...and yet the student population count continues to rise. Severely over crowded classrooms are the result. Imagine trying to conduct some form of chemistry experiment with thirty-five students in a science lab room where the fire code only authorizes twenty. Safety concerns further complicate the attempts to provide a meaningful educational experience in such an environment.</div>
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One of the aspects of the news conference that I truly appreciated OEA showcasing was the concerns of the association of state employees. Their salaries and working conditions also need to be addressed. The vital public services that they provide often have a direct impact on our needs within education. Our students need access to quality physical and mental health services...yet those budgets have been cut. Our students need access to appropriate roads and bridges to safely travel to and from school...yet those budgets have been cut. Our students need the protections offered from programs from the Department of Human Services and the Department of Corrections...yet those budgets have been cut. While we as teachers may be more vocal about our pressing needs, we also fully understand the larger picture. </div>
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And the larger picture is the Legislature's collective refusal to <strike>appropriately</strike> fully fund core services for the people of the state and this includes core services that are required by our state constitution. While was say "the time is now" we all know that the appropriate time has long since passed. The time was years ago. The time was to have never allowed this circumstance to occur in the first place.<br />
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So now we are at a time when we must act. WE MUST ACT. Do teachers want to walk out or have their schools close indefinitely? NO! But to gain what it takes to fully educate the children of our state--the very reason why we do what we do--we will commit to walk if necessary. We understand that closing school will cause hardships. And while many are already working together to help mitigate those hardships on students who without school food programs wouldn't eat, we also understand that sometimes results only happen when the hardships serve to squeeze the hands of those who have the power to provide the necessary results. We will squeeze the necessary hands. We will be the voice that our students need. We will be the boots on the ground at the Capitol because...<br />
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These boots are made for walkin'<br />
And that's just what they'll do<br />
Take a stand by April 1st</div>
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Or these boots will walk all over you.</div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-39327525513617974962017-05-14T18:17:00.000-07:002017-05-14T18:17:18.213-07:00Unusual Mothers Day TributeMothers Day is one of those holidays that can bring up a wide-range of thoughts and emotions for families. We reflect on life's events and wonder about the "what ifs" when life doesn't match up with our idealization what family life should be like. Television families have played their own part by ingraining into our minds images of the ideal family. The Nelsons and the Cleavers, and then the Bradys and the Huxtables established and then confirmed these idealistic images. Even with the Pritchetts, the Dunphys, and the Pritchett-Tuckers and similar families seeking to shift our imagery, there is still a strong sense of the traditional embedded within the plot.<br />
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My family and, if we are truly honest about it, most families do not match those ideal television families. In real life things get complicated, events happen, and, hopefully, we strive to make the best of them. The truth is that these life complications are not anything new. These life complications have occurred in reality LONG before those stereotypical images came into being. Broken and blended families have existed in one form or another since the beginning of time. No family is perfect and it is through those imperfections when real life is truly lived.<br />
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I've spent time today celebrating my mother. I took her to dinner. I gave her a gift. This year's celebration may have been less extravagant than other years. It has, however, had it's own unique memory in that the restaurant at which she wanted to eat was the victim of a power outage that hit a small part of Oklahoma City this afternoon--we had to quickly come up with a back up plan (see, living life amidst the imperfections).<br />
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In previous years, I've also sent special messages to my aunts and my older sisters to thank them for their mothering influence in my life and/or their own children's lives. There are many "mothers" in our lives and I've often tried to expression a token of appreciation to some of them in some small way over the years.<br />
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On my mind several times today has been a mother associated with my life and family who I've never thought to recognize and for some reason God has placed her on my mind today. And this recognition takes me back to those family imperfections discussed above.<br />
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My mom is my dad's second wife. Through a series of life events, he and his first wife separated and divorced. This blog post will purposefully avoid the "whys" of those decisions 1) because those events pre-date my birth leaving me without any first-hand knowledge, 2) because there are many first-hand perspectives which bring their own nuanced points-of-view and biases to the story (I feel like I sound like a history teacher trying to remain "politically" neutral), and 3) that's quite simply not the point of this post. My four older sisters do not share the same mother as myself and my younger sister, and I want to share a special Mothers Day tribute to her.<br />
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Christina, thank you for raising four daughters who, although technically "half" sisters, have never treated me as if I were anything less than their full brother. In many divided families (I've seen this in the families of friends and my own students), those "fractions" are emphasized and long-term the relationships are strained. Thank you for always making me feel welcomed when I've visited your home. With having nieces and nephews very near my own age, you have always welcomed me to events and parties that happened to be hosted in your home. It would have been easy to have excluded my younger sister and I, but you chose to be inclusive and I'm sure that was not always an easy choice to make. Thank you for being a wonderful grandmother to my 11 nieces and nephews and now to my many great-nieces and great-nephews. They are so blessed to be loved and cared for by so many loving family members. Christina, thank you for the role that you have played in helping to make my sisters and their families as special to me as they are. Happy Mothers Day to you!David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-72564224215205339582016-03-03T14:36:00.002-08:002016-03-03T14:36:32.731-08:00Pre-Conceived Notions #1CoolThingAll too often we express the little tiny bit of "knowledge" that we know about another person or group of people. We think we "know" something and yet only know such a small fraction. We allow ourselves to enjoy our pre-conceived notions or ideas about others regardless of the extent to which those notions or ideas are grounded in reality. This is where stereotypes come in to play and many times basing our "understandings", our "decisions", and our "actions" on stereotypes can cause significant problems and prejudices down the road.<br />
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Far too many of the "-isms" in our world (racism, sexism, ageism, elitism, etc.) are rooted in these stereotypes or pre-conceived notions. Sadly, we often find comfort in continuing to perpetuate those pre-conceived notions. After all, it is much more convenient to allow these stereotypes to continue to dominate our minds rather than delve into the messiness which is inherent in the quest of true education and understanding. Why by accurate in a greater knowledge about others when we can be comforted being our simplistic stereotypes?</div>
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Recently, I had an opportunity to help initiate the conversation about pre-conceived notions between my history & geography students at <a href="http://www.mooreschools.com/Page/19734" target="_blank">Southmoore High School</a> in Moore, Oklahoma and the literature students of my friend, Amy Besnard, who teaches at <a href="http://pvhs.chicousd.org/" target="_blank">Pleasant Valley High School</a> in Chico, California.<br />
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Amy and I met during the <a href="https://www.irex.org/projects/teachers-global-classrooms-program-tgc" target="_blank">Teachers for Global Classrooms</a> program sponsored by the U.S. State Department. This program provided 68 teachers from around the U.S. with the opportunity to interact in an eight-week intensive online course, two symposiums/conferences in Washington, DC, and a two-week study tour of one of six different countries which included the opportunity to team-teach with teachers from those countries. Amy and I, along with nine other teachers, traveled to Indonesia during the summer of 2012. Remaining good friends, we recently arranged for me to fly out to California to meet her family and for she and I to take her 11 year old son to an Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Sacramento Kings NBA game. While in Chico, I had the chance to briefly co-teach with Amy in her literature classes.<br />
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Prior to my departure, I engaged my students with a question to explore their pre-conceived notions about Californians. My students responded with their "one word" answers using the <a href="https://www.polleverywhere.com/" target="_blank">Poll Eeverywhere</a> remote response set-up. I shared the idea with Amy via texting that night and we agreed to explore the reverse topic with her students as part of our brief co-teaching time. Since my return home and the presentation of a follow-up question with my students, I have formatted all of the responses into word clouds using <a href="http://www.wordle.net/" target="_blank">Wordle</a>.<br />
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Question One (2/25/2016) -- Moore, OK students:<br />
"When I think of Californians, I think of _____. (ONE word answer)"<br />
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Question Two (2/29/2016) -- Chico, CA students:<br />
"When I think of Oklahomans, I think of _____. (ONE word answer)"<br />
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Question Three (2/29/2016) -- Chico, CA students:<br />
"In ONE word, how would you want outsiders to think of Californians?"<br />
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Question Four (3/2/2016) -- Moore, OK students:<br />
"In ONE word, how would you want outsiders to think of Oklahomans?"<br />
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When "question two" was posed to the students in Chico it was before they were allowed to see the responses of the students in Moore. Amy and I didn't want to "taint" their initial responses. Upon seeing the responses of the Moore students to "question one", Amy and I talked with her students about their reactions as well as any accuracy of and any important nuances to the words given by my Moore students. Most of her students expressed that even for the words that might be taken as "offensive", their was some level of "truth" to the words. Of course we also discussed the nuance of how some words might be more or less accurate depending upon the region or specific city of California. A similar conversation was held back in Moore as I showed my students the responses offered by the Chico students to "question two".<br />
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Amy and I each agree that our favorite part of the activity is the follow-up question offered to each group of students pertaining to how they would want outsiders to think of them. We understand our own personal nuances and complexities as a group of people much better than outsiders might. If we would do a better job of communicating who "we are" it would help. Of course if we want to make sure that the others better understand who "we are" then we should reciprocate by doing our best to learn more about the others.<br />
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The lesson is not complete for either group of students, and probably won't ever be fully complete. Learning of the history, the culture, the geography, the literature, the artistic expressions, etc. can give us significant insight in to the others and help correct our pre-conceived notions about them. With regard to that, the lesson for our students in this specific circumstance was far too short. Additionally, such learning is greatly enhanced through in-person interactions. Perhaps Amy and I can work out some caliber of Skype or Facetime opportunity for our students to interact, especially since the logistics of getting all of our students to meet physically in person would be cost prohibitive. Personal encounters are the best way to overcome our pre-conceived notions and the stereotypes (and prejudices) that develop. What a lesson opportunity that would be...<br />
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-6506260644654778402016-02-14T18:54:00.001-08:002016-02-14T18:54:21.577-08:00Do ESAs Pass the Lemon Test?<a href="http://theresekerr.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/104022506-copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://theresekerr.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/104022506-copy.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a>For each of the past several years, the Oklahoma Legislature has proposed legislation to create Educational Savings Accounts, or ESAs--more commonly know as "vouchers". These ESAs would give a portion of the funding that has already been allocated to a local public school district on behalf of a family's child(ren) to the family for them to use in funding the attendance at a private school. Such legislation is whole-heartedly support by Governor Mary Fallin as well as the leadership of the majority party in both houses of the state legislature.<br />
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My friends/colleagues within public education who blog [more actively than I] have raised numerous concerns as to the merits and impact of ESAs upon public schools in Oklahoma (and other states in which they've already been enacted). Visit the "#oklaed Bloggers" list on my blog's homepage and search for "ESAs" or "Vouchers" to read their thoughts.<br />
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In an effort not to simply overlap what has already been shared, I'd like to add another perspective as to the merits of ESAs, especially in relation to those private schools which are religious in nature (this would actually be a significant quantity of private schools). My question: Are ESAs for religious schools even legal?<br />
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<b><u>Answer from U.S. Federal Law:</u></b><br />
In 1971 the United States Supreme Court rendered its decision in the case of <i>Lemon v. Kurtzman. You can read more about this case, its background, and the decision </i><a href="http://cases.laws.com/lemon-v-kurtzman" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.oyez.org/cases/1970/89" target="_blank">here</a>. Basically, Pennsylvania enacted a law in 1968 to provide state monies to help underwrite the educational services of private (including religious) schools. A legal challenge was made in light of the "establishment clause" of the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution ("Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion") and in light of the 14th Amendment's incorporation of that legal principal to the states.<br />
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In the Supreme Court's decision, public funds which are used to support private/religious schools must pass all three components of what has become now referred to as "The Lemon Test".<br />
<ol>
<li>the legislation must have secular legislative purpose</li>
<li>the legislation must not promote nor limit religious practices</li>
<li>the legislation must result in "excessive government entanglement"</li>
</ol>
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How do ESAs stand up to The Lemon Test?</div>
<ol>
<li>I have no doubt that the authors of the legislation will defend an argument that the purpose of the legislation is to "financially equip parents with the abilities to make their own choices for the education of their child(ren)." This argument might be supported by the federal courts (of course without Scalia and with his replacement...who knows this final decision).</li>
<li>This gets tricky. Not only does the current nature of the legislation provide absolutely no measures of accountability to make sure the state funds actually lead to a quality education, but the legislation also fails to provide any legitimate oversight to make sure that these funds do not promote religious practices (that would include make them any "easier"). In order for the state to guarantee that the funds are not promoting religious practices (nor limiting them) there MUST be some significant oversight and accountability measures put in place. Otherwise, without these guarantees, ESAs being given to religious schools FAILS The Lemon Test.</li>
<li>Of course any level of true oversight and accountability which would ensure that ESAs pass step two would most assuredly create a bureaucratic situation in which there is far to much "entanglement" between the state and the religious nature of the school which would thus lead to ESAs at religious schools FAILING The Lemon Test.</li>
</ol>
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I really don't see how the federal court system would be able to allow ESAs benefiting religious schools from being able to be deemed legal according to federal law.</div>
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Answer from Oklahoma State Law:</div>
<div>
Section 5 of Article II of Oklahoma's Constitution says: "No public money or property shall ever be appropriated, applied, donated, or used, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, or system of religion, or for the use, benefit, or support of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher or dignitary, or sectarian institution as such."<br />
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If you have been following any of the news from the last year pertaining to the "Ten Commandments Monument" on the grounds of the Oklahoma State Capitol then you probably know that these words from Oklahoma's Constitution are the very basis which led to our own State Supreme Court in declaring that the monument being present on government property violated our constitution. If this privately donated monument being physically present on government property is illegal then why would anyone believe that ESAs ("public money") which benefit religious schools ("sectarian institution") would pass the test?<br />
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To me, based on how I read each the Federal and the Oklahoma constitutions, it must be concluded that ESAs, at least in relation to religiously based private schools are unconstitutional...meaning...<b><u>ILLEGAL</u></b>.</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-85195779339296216302016-02-12T15:33:00.001-08:002016-02-12T15:35:44.903-08:00Vouchers for MeThere's a lot of "voucher" talk in Oklahoma and other parts of the country right now. Special "savings accounts" are being suggested by some legislative folk for investing public tax dollars into private ventures. I kind of like this idea, so here are some of the pet projects for which I'd like to gain access to some of that "voucher" money:<br />
<ul>
<li>I don't like the routes that I feel compelled to take to get to work or to the grocery store or to church. I feel like they are overly crowded, often take me out of my way somewhat, and just don't provide the service I need. I would like an Expressway Savings Account so as to help fund private roads to get me to the places I need to get.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>I don't care too much for the options of free DVD rentals I am able to get at the local public library. I understand that I have two different municipal library organizations, each with many branches, for me to use but the options they have are just too limiting. I can get so many more options through the private online business Netflix. If only I had an Entertainment Savings Account then I would be able to watch the latest and greatest in viewing options available.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>It's a pesky double-edged sword with those libraries. Not only are their DVD offerings free, but so are their books. I like to read! But, there are only so many books that one building can own. This simply stifles my enlightenment opportunities. I would love to have a voucher program which would enable me to gain greater enlightenment through all of the offerings available through Barnes and Noble; after all, B&N not only has the big box store opportunities, but they also have online options which significantly multiple the enlightenment that I can gain. I need the legislature to approve my Erudite Savings Account.</li>
</ul>
I am sure there are many more special "savings accounts" or voucher programs that I can think of, but I need to grab dinner before heading out to watch my students play in their high school basketball games. My ultimate point is that it just seems silly for the government to compel me to pay for those private things I want in life rather than reimbursing me my tax dollars if I'm not using their public service. It seems like a no-brainer, right?<br />
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I hope my readers can easily pick up the sarcasm that I'm laying down. These roads, these libraries, these other public services have such a greater significant impact than simply my personal qualms. The same is true for public education and all of these voucher programs, disguised as "Educational Savings Accounts" which seek to take money away from the already underfunded public school system (which is a clear <a href="http://idealisticallyrealistic.blogspot.com/2016/02/10th-amendment-oklaed.html" target="_blank">obligation of the state government to provide</a>) and fund private schools. I'm sure I'll write more about the questionable legality/constitutionality of these ESA/voucher efforts. But for now, I just hope you're able to get a peak into the absurdity of the notion to begin with.<br />
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-88894237783281605652016-02-11T14:42:00.000-08:002016-02-11T18:26:30.294-08:0010th Amendment & #oklaed<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">"The powers not delegated to the
United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">by it to the States, are reserved to
the States respectively, or to the people."</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">~10th Amendment, United States
Constitution~</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Those who often like to champion the idea that the United
States government has overstepped its constitutional bounds and usurped powers
from the States and/or the people will typically include the ideals expressed
by the 10th Amendment as a significant component within their argument. I,
personally, often agree that there a many roles that the centralized government
has taken on which are not clearly articulated, nor even legitimately hinted
at, within the main body of the Constitution which, according to the 10th
Amendment, should rightly be exercised by the States (or local) governments or
by the people themselves external of government structures.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">The 10th Amendment, however, should not be solely used to
defend a State's perspective that the central government has taken away its
power. The 10th Amendment should also be a primary place for a State to look as
a guide to its responsibilities. When you look through the Constitution's
seven articles you will see many powers that are explicitly delegated to the
central government, as well as some clearly denied to it. But you should also
notice that there are a whole host of topics/powers which are not addressed,
either because the framers couldn't agree what to say about the topic, the topic was
so overwhelmingly clear that the central government should not have that specific
power, or the power revolves around a topic that was not yet an issue (i.e.
telegraphs, telephones, radio, televisions, internet, mobile phones, wifi,
etc., hadn't yet been invited). The important thing to note is that, due to the
10th Amendment, if a power, function, or role of government isn't given to the
central government then that power, function, or role becomes the
responsibility of the States.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Let that sink in...it's not simply that it's a right to be
demanded by the State, but it is a responsibility, an obligation, a duty that the
State actually use and fulfill that power, function, or role.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">To me, the two most imperative aspects of these
10th Amendment powers, functions, roles that are reserved for the States...and
thus, obligatory for the States to fulfill...are public safety and education.
Only once those two functions are satisfied can we then worry about other
roles.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Public safety includes police, fire, and other emergency
health related services. It also includes safe and high-quality roads, bridges,
and other forms of imperative infrastructure. The people have a
reasonable expectation that such services are provided by their State
and/or local government.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Further, the people have a reasonable expectation that the State
and/or local government should work to provide an educated population. This
isn't simply for my personal benefit or for the personal benefit of my
children (of which I personally have none). This is for the collective benefit of the whole of society. Think of
all of the goods and services that are provided within our State's economy.
Think of the public safety measures noted above (emergency and infrastructure).
Think about the cashier at your local convenience store, the pilot of your
airplane, the doctor providing your open heart surgery, or the plumber
repairing your busted pipes. Think of these and so many more. Can you honestly
imagine ANY of these individuals being able to serve the needs of society
without having obtained ANY form of basic education? If you said yes, then I'll
call you a liar.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">An educated population is the cornerstone for our
democratic-republic and economic institutions. Without an educated population
the whole of society fails. This is why we pay tax dollars to fund an extensive
public education service. We don't pay the taxes to simply benefit our personal
children or grandchildren. We pay them to help guarantee a basic education is
provided for the society as a whole.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Because education is NOT delegated as a power to the central
government, the 10th Amendment makes the providing of such educational services
obligatory on the States. It is one of the chief responsibilities of
the States to make sure that such is provided and properly funded.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">Any politician who claims to be a champion of the 10th
Amendment when he or she is trying to prevent the central government from taking
some action loses all credibility if, in the same breath, he or she seeks to
take action to limit, restrict, or destroy the State's obligation to provide a
basic quality education to its people. It is imperative that elected leaders
are held accountable regarding whether or not they fulfill the State's end of
the 10th Amendment obligations.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt;">It is my hope that all Oklahomans reflect upon the necessity
of making sure that our educational system is able to provide an educated
citizenry for the future of our state. It is imperative that our
leaders' love of the 10th Amendment is expressed through their zealous defense
of the future of #oklaed.</span><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-26204285882105546632015-12-03T20:35:00.002-08:002015-12-05T18:46:26.664-08:00Breaking the SilenceThis evening during a district-wide rally at one of our high schools, my school district "broke the silence" regarding the perspectives of teachers and administrators on the condition of public education in Oklahoma (which has many parallels with other states). Moore Public Schools produced this video using interviews from a variety of our teachers who lent their voice in "Breaking the Silence" to tell their personal stories.<br />
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Watch this 12 minute video here:<br />
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Teacher Dedication:<br />
<ul>
<li>I spent 4 years preparing for my career as a teacher at Mid-America Christian University (Oklahoma City, OK); graduating with my Bachelors of Science in Secondary Social Studies Education in 1999.</li>
<li>I spent 2-1/2 years enriching my content knowledge for the courses I teach by taking night classes and summer classes at the University of Central Oklahoma (Edmond, OK) while I taught full days: graduating with my Masters of Art in Political Science: International Affairs in 2003.</li>
<li>I am currently in my 16th year of teaching. 13 of those years have been focused on preparing upper-level students to take college equivalency exams through the Advanced Placement (AP) programs in United States History and Human Geography.</li>
<li>I consistently attend conferences and workshops during my summers, weekends, and evenings to be as well prepared as I can to equip my students with the critical thinking, content knowledge, and life skills they need for post-secondary education and for life in general.</li>
<li>I've had several opportunities to travel internationally for the primary purpose of interacting with students and teachers in other countries; I share those experiences with my students and colleagues.</li>
</ul>
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Teacher Respect:<br />
<ul>
<li>There are many who encourage me in the pursuit of my "noble profession".</li>
<li>I've had parents with tears in their eyes hug me to say "thank you" for going far beyond the call of duty to help their child...and I've also been cussed out by other parents because I refuse to water down my standards to enable a lazy child to skate through life.</li>
<li>I've witnessed legislative bodies at both the state and national levels praise the worth of my efforts and then turn around and impose increased hurdles which I must jump through to prove my professional worth.</li>
<li>I've been given gifts and invited to family meals by students and their families in Kenya, Korea, and Indonesia who barely knew me but did so because their cultures highly respect those who give their lives to help students...and I've had unruly parents at our local football games threaten my life because I dared to politely suggest they be respectful to the kids on the field who happened to be losing a game in spite of giving their fullest efforts.</li>
</ul>
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Teacher Pay:<br />
<ul>
<li>For having a Masters Degree and being in my 16th year of teaching, I currently earn a pre-taxed salary of $40,385.04 for this school year. At 6.75 official working hours per 182 contract days that comes out to $32.87 per hour. This may seem "nice"--and it would if I did in fact only work 6.75 hours per day. With arriving early EVERY DAY to provide tutoring and other enrichment opportunities for students and with staying late EVERYDAY to provide the same tutoring/enrichment opportunities and to grade (for a student to truly be prepared for success in an AP class--especially an AP US History class--there is an "ungodly" amount of writing students must complete) the countless thesis statements, short answer questions (each is three paragraphs minimum), traditional long essays, and document-based essays--for my students to fully understand their individual strengths and weakness and to see the ways that they can grow in their abilities I must provide appropriate written feedback on each of these writing assessments. This grading most often spills over into the nights and weekends. Much of why I'm still single is because I've discovered asking your dinner date to help score essays on the Pre-Civil War Reform Movements isn't that attractive of an offer.</li>
<li>Granted there are many variables to economic/cost of living conditions in other states, but it would be almost impossible for me to move anywhere else in the United States to teach and not earn more money (in many places significantly more) than what I'm earning here in central Oklahoma (and Moore P.S. actually pays above the Oklahoma state minimum schedule as set by the legislature).</li>
<li>I don't live in a large house. I have a modest home built in 1951. If I had a family, even just a spouse OR one child, this house would virtually be too small. Granted, if I was married there would most likely be a second income, but then there are various child-care costs associated with two working parents beyond just the cost to feed and clothe everyone. If I was a single parent, I'm just not sure I could make ends meet--beyond not truly having the time to actually "be there" for my kids with all of the time my job takes beyond the 6.75 hours in the contract.</li>
</ul>
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Teacher and Student Assessment:<br />
<ul>
<li>If 100% of my students arrived in my classroom at the start of the year 1) coming from a home environment in which all of their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs were met, 2) could read at grade level--most high school texts are written on a 7th grade level and most college level texts used in an AP class are written on 10th grade level, 3) knew how to put together a coherent thought in proper English, 4) had the maturity and personal discipline to behave in class, 5) had the personal initiative to complete homework assignments on time, and 6) were at least willing to work hard then I would be 100% comfortable saying "sure" evaluate my teaching and their learning by giving one high stakes test on one day near the end of the year. But since those 6 goals aren't present for ANY of my students then this idea is completely absurd.</li>
<li>Even with the "high stakes" nature of an AP exam, students are not prevented from graduating high school or moving on to the next grade level because they didn't "pass" this one test on this one day. Failing to earn a 3 or higher on that AP exam simply means that as a high school student they have not yet met the standards by which college students are evaluated (which shouldn't be a surprise since they are not college students).</li>
<li>Being in my class, seeing what I do, and having an understanding of how it all fits together over the course of the year is the only way to truly get a sense of my worth as a educator.</li>
<li>Seeing the growth over time on a wide-range of formal and informal assessments, as well as observations through one-on-one teacher to student conversations, small collaborative discussions, and full class interactions over time throughout the school year are the only ways to truly get a sense of the educational growth a student has obtained within my class.</li>
</ul>
<br />
Why Teach?<br />
<ul>
<li>Because of all of the things I stated in <a href="http://idealisticallyrealistic.blogspot.com/2015/06/why-teach.html" target="_blank">this previous post on this topic</a>.</li>
<li>Because of the joy of seeing a student's eyes open when they "get it".</li>
<li>Because of the opportunity see growth in critical inquiry a student shows.</li>
<li>Because that one hour of the day might be the only time a student feels safe from the other crap in his/her life.</li>
<li>Because I know that a student is better off when they leave my classroom because of the experiences we've shared.</li>
<li>Because I love to hear the stories of the opportunities and successes my kids have had in their college and/or career life.</li>
<li>Because I'm not in it to get rich; I'm in it to help enrich.</li>
</ul>
I truly hope that more teachers (not just Moore teachers) will Break the Silence and share what's on their hearts. I'm proud of my colleagues from across my district who shared their hearts in this video; they are a blessing to me!!David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-64624661785414520132015-08-16T20:23:00.002-07:002015-08-16T20:23:25.258-07:00Sharp Dressed ManForgive my tardiness in providing my response to one of the latest #oklaed blogger challenges. My friend "Blue" over at <a href="http://bluecerealeducation.com/" target="_blank">Blue Cereal Education</a> presented the idea that every teacher needs his or her own "Entrance Video" [or song] in the spirit of professional wrestlers (<a href="http://bluecerealeducation.com/blog/entrance-videos" target="_blank">click here for Blue's initial post on this topic</a> and then <a href="http://bluecerealeducation.com/blog/entrance-videos-compilation" target="_blank">click here for Blue's compilation of other blogger's videos</a>).<br />
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My initial thought to Blue's request was "oy vey". However, the more that I think about the idea, the more fun in now sounds. Just picture it: as the teacher steps into a classroom full of students eager for the the learning to begin a song starts, not just any song, but a song announcing that they audience is to be met with a figure of greatness...not just a mere mortal...but...wait for it...a teacher.<br />
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There are many articles, blog posts, and YouTube videos which have attempted to elevate the status of teachers within society to something beyond the images of a glorified babysitter or the mantra of "those who can, do. those who can't, teach." Most thinking people understand that both of these images of just plan horse sh!t, and those who want to help present a superstar status of teachers (which I appreciate so much!!) do their best to showcase teachers as such. A video from the comedy due Key & Peele made the rounds this summer and attempted to elevate the image of teachers to something comparable to that of highly sought after professional athletes.<br />
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So without much further ado, I want to present the "Entrance Video" that I would want played on my behalf as I step in front of my students:<br />
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Lyrics [with my edits]:</div>
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Clean shirt, new shoes</div>
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And I [know right] where I am goin' to</div>
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Silk suit, [bow] tie</div>
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[Teachin' kids] the reason why</div>
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They come runnin' just as fast as they can</div>
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'Cause every [kid respects the] sharp dressed man</div>
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Gold watch, diamond ring</div>
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I ain't missin' not a single thing</div>
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And cufflinks, [kind grin]</div>
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When I step I step out I'm gonna [teach you kid]</div>
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They come runnin' just as fast as they can</div>
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'Cause every [kid respects the] sharp dressed man</div>
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Top coat, top hat</div>
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Well I [can dream] 'cause [teacher's] wallet's flat</div>
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Black shades, white gloves</div>
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Lookin' sharp and [doin' what I] love</div>
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They come runnin' just as fast as they can</div>
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'Cause every [kid respects the] sharp dressed man</div>
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So next time you hear this song, just picture Mr. Bow-Tie Clad Burton stepping in front of a room full of AP United States History or AP Human Geography students ready to learn about their world.</div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-90537132408545252202015-07-13T21:08:00.001-07:002015-07-13T21:08:25.012-07:00Favorite Lesson<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_X7lOTduMI4jR3yv9gW8XLvDWjQKtSMHVFzCdxsoXmnNRvZjs5WdhjIZsCrnpmNQLtR1ULNTZDgfJfcbqvBJyFIr653Y-qsdBgji8JRG5Chd_1O98UqLCvVbnKjS2SlAMput5ulzYIzpj/s1600/IMG_0759%255B1%255D.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_X7lOTduMI4jR3yv9gW8XLvDWjQKtSMHVFzCdxsoXmnNRvZjs5WdhjIZsCrnpmNQLtR1ULNTZDgfJfcbqvBJyFIr653Y-qsdBgji8JRG5Chd_1O98UqLCvVbnKjS2SlAMput5ulzYIzpj/s200/IMG_0759%255B1%255D.PNG" width="200" /></a>At the conclusion of this past Sunday's #oklaed twitter chat our moderator for the evening, <a href="https://twitter.com/watersenglish" target="_blank">Michelle Waters</a>, challenged those in Oklahoma who write blogs which address educational themes to compose a post on the topic of our favorite lesson plan. Michelle is an English & Language Arts teacher within the greater Oklahoma City, OK area and an active #oklaed twitter participant. She has some wonderful posts over at her blog: <a href="http://www.mrswatersenglish.com/" target="_blank">Mrs. Waters' English</a>.<br />
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My favorite lesson, or at least one that I really enjoyed using, from this past school year used a "Speed Dating" conversational format through which my AP United States students taught each other about an individual from the Progressive Era reform movements of the 1880s to 1920s. I have previously mentioned this lesson as part of another #oklaed bloggers challenge in my post titled <a href="http://idealisticallyrealistic.blogspot.com/2015/06/1coolthing.html" target="_blank">#1CoolThing</a>. This lesson can be easily adapted to other academic levels; the teacher can edit timing and/or expectations as appropriate for his/her students' needs. Also, while I have modified some of the expectations to meet the needs of my students, the premise behind this lesson did not originate in my brain. I participate in a private Facebook based professional learning community and learned about this strategy in this forum.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Speed Dating with Progressive Reformers</b></span></div>
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Learning Objectives:<br />
<ul>
<li>College Board, AP United States History 2014-2015 Curriculum Framework</li>
<ul>
<li>Key Concept 6.3.II.C: Challenging their prescribed “place,” women and African
American activists articulated alternative visions of political,
social, and economic equality.</li>
<li>Key Concept 7.1.II.A: In the late 1890s and the early years of the 20th century, journalists
and Progressive reformers — largely urban and middle class, and often
female — worked to reform existing social and political institutions at
the local, state, and federal levels by creating new organizations aimed
at addressing social problems associated with an industrial society</li>
<li>Key Concept 7.1.II.B: Progressives promoted federal legislation to regulate abuses of
the economy and the environment, and many sought to expand
democracy.</li>
</ul>
<li>Oklahoma Academic Standards, United States History 1878 to the Present</li>
<ul>
<li>Content Standard 1.3.C: Evaluate the contributions of muckrakers including
Ida Tarbell and Upton Sinclair that changed
government policies regarding child labor, working
conditions, and the Sherman Antitrust Act.</li>
<li>Content Standard 1.3.D: Analyze major social reform movements including
the Women’s Suffrage and Temperance Movement and
their significant leaders including Susan B. Anthony,
Alice Paul, and Jane Addams.</li>
<li>Content Standard 1.3.H: Cite specific textual and visual evidence to compare
and contrast early civil rights leadership including the
viewpoints of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. DuBois,
and Marcus Garvey in response to rising racial
tensions, and the use of poll taxes and literacy tests
to disenfranchise blacks and poor whites.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
Procedures:<br />
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<li>Ideally, students will have independently read the appropriate textbook passages relevant to the various reformers of the Progressive Era.</li>
<li>The teacher should cut the <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1ND1fIDTsLaN0hPYzRtWVVnUVU/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">List of Reformers</a> so that there a bunch of small strips of paper with only one reformer's name per strip. Then fold, wad, or ball these strips of paper and place them into a hat or bowl. Have each student draw out one strip of paper and this will be her/his assigned reformer. If the class size has more students than the quantity of reformers on the master list the teacher is free to 1) select additional reformers to be included (especially a reformer important to the state or local region of the students) or 2) double up on one or more of the reformers as the teacher deems appropriate. These assignments of reformers can be made immediately at the beginning of class on "Day One".</li>
<li>Day One: Give each student one copy of the <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1ND1fIDTsLaekV4N2tqSkppWkU/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Reformers Research Guide</a>. Each student will complete this guide during one 55 minute class period; if additional time is need students may complete the remainder of the guide as homework that night. If students have access to computers, tablets, or smart phones provided by the school or through a <a href="http://searchconsumerization.techtarget.com/definition/BYOD-policy" target="_blank">BYOD policy</a> then students could have access to the internet for researching the assigned reformer. If this is not the case then the teacher will need to explore resource options available in the classroom or school library or possibly assign this component totally as homework for students to research at home.</li>
<li>Day Two: Prior to students arriving, arrange classroom desks so that they are in clearly defined pairs. There are numerous ways to do this; I found that this <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1ND1fIDTsLaelJNb1RLZmpsYjA/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Suggested Rotation Guide</a> worked best for my needs within my classroom...the pairs of desks arrange in an almost complete circle. If I had created a complete circle then during the rotations, non of the students on the "inside" would ever interact with nor learn from the others on the "inside" (same would be true for those on the outside). This almost complete circle allows students on the outside to rotate in and those on the inside to rotate out. Either allow students to select their own seats within the set up or assign them (I put numbers on each desk and then students drew a number out of a hat as they arrived in class).</li>
<ul>
<li>Hand each student a copy of the <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1ND1fIDTsLaYUNjeEZDS0g4amc/view?usp=sharing" target="_blank">Chat Log Sheet</a> on which they will take notes about the people they meet during each "speed date". Students may use their personal copies of the Reformers Research Guide to reference during each "date".</li>
<li>Briefly explain the idea of "speed dating" in which each pair will have a set amount of time to visit with each other (somewhere between 3 to 4 minutes). In this amount of time they are to share about their reformer and learn about their partner's reformer; they should record what they are learning about the reformers they "meet" on the Chat Log Sheet. At the end of the set time they will rotate to the next seat and repeat the process with their next "date".</li>
<li>Set your timer and go. DING! Students switch partners according to your rotation plan. Set timer again and go. DING! Repeat as often as possible but still leaving students approximately 5 to 6 minutes at the end of class to complete the final three reflection items at the bottom of the Chat Log Sheet.</li>
<li>Collect both the Reformers Research Guide and the Chat Log Sheet from each student to be used for your assessment purposes.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixKK4W1sFngBBoztNxEAIwuVyWEfAhLb0ew5Asuh4dXk0bmnsAL4iFyn5zs7_k62FPXpu2qxHm31mLdk0fVxSctRTEJD_QXsaOr-C61zT9Ff3SpiFr9ro29OKlzBEFODPMqvZV9NSht8zs/s1600/IMG_4116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixKK4W1sFngBBoztNxEAIwuVyWEfAhLb0ew5Asuh4dXk0bmnsAL4iFyn5zs7_k62FPXpu2qxHm31mLdk0fVxSctRTEJD_QXsaOr-C61zT9Ff3SpiFr9ro29OKlzBEFODPMqvZV9NSht8zs/s200/IMG_4116.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjB-3ib79O5BBwcaxlKHyi5dA76LmZufw-qZb1qx9PRRXegffqqKxKVNDUASNoxC0p3hyJ8WvttLzqP69VcFF14eu6yDlO1SLk56GfXKeq1n0SYNuAWS4DfrnhUFPCEPu_wQFELfoSmp0I/s1600/IMG_4119.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjB-3ib79O5BBwcaxlKHyi5dA76LmZufw-qZb1qx9PRRXegffqqKxKVNDUASNoxC0p3hyJ8WvttLzqP69VcFF14eu6yDlO1SLk56GfXKeq1n0SYNuAWS4DfrnhUFPCEPu_wQFELfoSmp0I/s200/IMG_4119.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5wS5YzGmwDhtyCRX8OzhNcS5AFUS3Kt95uZz4G_vgcBQ1AUb6bwsysx6T4P7WS2iiE1gqRyeoqMjgAm4dMd_oEwP-yR-5clIMmFhYL5TkVypbUwjZOaTSmZuoRk0JmR_xJTHtKQvDz2m9/s1600/IMG_4133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5wS5YzGmwDhtyCRX8OzhNcS5AFUS3Kt95uZz4G_vgcBQ1AUb6bwsysx6T4P7WS2iiE1gqRyeoqMjgAm4dMd_oEwP-yR-5clIMmFhYL5TkVypbUwjZOaTSmZuoRk0JmR_xJTHtKQvDz2m9/s200/IMG_4133.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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Student Responses: Overwhelmingly my students indicated the activity was "fun" and yet actually allowed them to get to know a wide range of reformers from the Progressive Era. Some "complained" that the limited amount of time made them feel rushed but realized that the rapid nature of the moment forced them to both listen better to their partners and to focus on the most important elements of their own assigned reformer. The formal assessment at the conclusion of the larger unit revealed that collectively the students ultimately learned more information about each of the reformers of this era than if I had simply attempted to lecture over them alone.<br />
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What Went Wrong:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>The name of the activity "Speed Dating" initially gave some of my students a bit of concern. "Ewe, I don't want to date him!" I had not planned for the fact that I would have to clearly explain the conversational format was simply known as "speed dating" but that I had no agenda of anything romantic being in the works.</li>
<li>Another problematic moment came in one of my class periods in which I had a smaller number of students. The rotation process I was following ended up having pairs of students revisit each other prior to each student having visited all of the others. I had to adapt my rotation plan mid-stream to help guarantee that this did not occur. So my word of warning was...pay attention! Following a couple of minor reassignment of seats the rotation process continued without a hitch and repeat visits did not happen.</li>
</ul>
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In the future, I can see this activity also working within other eras of history in which students need to explore a large number of personalities and yet the teaching time is short: the various leaders involved in establishing colonies in North America (each of Britain's "thirteen" but also French, Spanish, and Dutch), the era of 1830s-1840s reform movements often associated with the impact of the Second Great Awakening, and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-1960s. I'm sure creative teachers within other disciplines can find a relevant use for this type of activity within their classes.</div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-22727791129055823822015-06-30T22:46:00.000-07:002015-07-01T14:23:36.800-07:00Cases by the Caseload<div>
Over the past couple of weeks there have been some judicial rulings which have caused quite a stir. Most of the cases that are gaining lots of attention in my neck of the woods have been from the U.S. Supreme Court. However, as of today, there is a decision here in Oklahoma that has a some members of our legislature discussing impeachment proceedings for SEVEN of our nine States Supreme Courts justices. I've picked a sampling of these cases for me to share my insights regarding the decision which was rendered.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/kgou/files/styles/medium/public/201407/Supreme_Court_2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/kgou/files/styles/medium/public/201407/Supreme_Court_2013.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Oklahoma State Supreme Court<br />
Nominated by Judicial Commission & appointed by the Governor<br />
Tenure: 6 year terms renewable through retention by popular vote<br />
Back: Vice Chief Justice Douglas Combs, James Edmondson, Steven Taylor, Noma Gurich<br />
Front: Joseph Watt, Chief Justice John Reif, Tom Colbert, Yvonne Kauger, James Winchester</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
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<b><i>Prescott v. Oklahoma Capitol Preservation Commission</i>:</b> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<a href="http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=476438" target="_blank">read opinion here</a>)</span></div>
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In the decision issued today, the State Supreme Court ruled (7 to 2) that the placement of a Ten Commandments monument paid for by private funds and placed on the grounds of the Oklahoma State Capitol violates Article 2, Section 5 of the Oklahoma State Constitution which prohibits the direct or indirect use of public property for the benefit of sectarian religious purposes. State Attorney General Scott Pruitt has publicly decried the decision and has requested a rehearing focusing on his assertion that the Ten Commandments are a significant foundation of Western legal traditions.</div>
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While I hold great value for the Christian scriptures in general and the Ten Commandments specifically, I believe that the court rendered the appropriate decision. Yes Judeo-Christian ideologies are important within Western history, concepts such as "don't murder" and "don't steal" are not exclusive to the Judeo-Christian tradition. Legal codes in ancient Greece and Roman which predate the influence of Jewish and Christian influence in Europe share these ideas so Pruitt's historical context loses merit. When a larger display of monuments representing various legal codes of Western tradition is placed on the Capitol grounds, then the historical context argument may have merit. But as of now, these justices have made the appropriate ruling and there is no reason to suggest impeaching them for simply doing their job.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://legal-planet.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Supreme_Court_US_2010-1024x683.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://legal-planet.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Supreme_Court_US_2010-1024x683.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Supreme Court of the United States<br />
Appointed by the President & confirmed by the Senate<br />
Tenure: life-time<br />
Back: Sonia Sotomayor, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Elena Kagan<br />
Front: Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice John Roberts, Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg</td></tr>
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<b><i>Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission</i>:</b> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<a href="http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/14pdf/13-1314_kjfl.pdf" target="_blank">read opinion here</a>)</span></div>
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By use of the initiative process (a procedure in various states through which the people themselves can propose and vote on laws external of the elected legislature), the people of Arizona, in an effort to limit partisan gerrymandering, removed from its state legislature the power to redraw the map of election districts based upon the decennial U.S. census and gave this power to a newly created state Redistricting Commission. The Arizona legislature sued claiming that this process denied them of a prescribed power found in Article 1, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution: the power to conduct elections is given to the "legislature". The Supreme Court ruled (5 to 4) that the word "legislature" in this particular section of the Constitution referred to all legislative/lawmaking powers within a state, including the initiative process if allowed in a specific state, and thus the Redistricting Commission is constitutional.</div>
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I am not a fan of gerrymandering when it is accomplished for the purpose of giving one political party an unfair advantage over another; nor is this practice considered legal if it can be proven as the primary cause of redistricting efforts. Having said that, my initial reaction to this ruling was "what on earth?...'legislature' clearly means the elected representatives in a state!" So, while supportive of Arizona's efforts to limit gerrymandering I was aghast at the absurdity of the ruling...until I read it. That same Article/Section gives Congress the power to alter the criteria for election laws. Initiative and referendum (a procedure in which a legislature refers a proposed law to the people rather than to the governor) both became popular in the early 1900s. As states have added these procedures Congress began passing legislation to respect the changes these states made in their lawmaking practices. As of now, I support this decision.</div>
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<b><i>King v. Burwell</i>:</b> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<a href="http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/14pdf/14-114_qol1.pdf" target="_blank">read opinion here</a>)</span></div>
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The Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare, requested states to establish health care exchanges to help increase the quantity of people covered by a health insurance plan. ACA further authorized the federal government to create and oversee an exchange within a state which opted not to create its own exchange. Further, ACA offered tax credits to individuals/families whose income met certain requirements so as to help them afford the selected insurance plan. A lawsuit was filed contending that ACA only authorizes the tax credits in situations where a state established its own exchange and not within those states where the federal government created the exchange. The Supreme Court ruled (6 to 3) that the tax credits in state with the federally created exchange are legal. The heart of the ruling is premised on the idea that in many complex items of legislation the individual components are best understood within context of understanding the whole.</div>
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I do not like the Affordable Care Act. It is overly complex. It was rushed through Congress without thorough debate. Promises were made to both Senators and Representatives in order to get them vote for it which were then never fulfilled. I disagree with federal government requiring the purchase of a commodity simply based on living in this country (that is 100% different than the requirement to purchased car insurance because that is linked with a personal choice to drive a car). I disagree that the penalty for not having health insurance is now considered a tax; taxes should not be used as a penalizing method. Further, now that it has been declared a tax that makes the whole bill a revenue bill and since the revenue component did not originate in the House of Representatives and Article 1, Section 7 of the U.S. Constitution requires all revenue bills to originate in the House. There is simply a whole host of messy situations around the the entirety of the ACA. And yet, it is still currently law. Until such time as it is removed by legislative vote, overturned by the Supreme Court on some other legal argument yet to be raised, modified in some significant way, it is still the law. The ruling given in this case makes sense to me. While the wording of the tax credit passages did not specifically cite "federal exchanges", federal exchanges were authorized in other passages and understanding of the fullness of the ACA expresses an intent consistent in the offering of the tax credits for all exchanges period.</div>
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<b><i>Obergefell v. Hodges</i>:</b> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<a href="http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/14pdf/14-556_3204.pdf" target="_blank">read opinion here</a>)</span></div>
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This decision (5 to 4) on the understanding of marriage is certainly making itself manifest through all forms of media attention. I'm sure my comments on a couple of the above cases have been enough to prompt angry villagers to threaten to burn down my home and/or run me out of town. Because this specific case is so complex, not only in the text of its ruling but also within the emotional stirrings that it makes within people on each side of the outcome, I will not provide my comments at this time in this forum...maybe another day.</div>
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All in all it's hard for me to clearly identify my personal approach to legal interpretation. There is an originalist/textualist/strict interpretation ideologue living within side of me. I want to base my legal insight on the words that were written within the mindset of the person that wrote them. Words have power; why did this person (or group of people) use this arrangement of these specific words? There was a purpose! At the same time, I truly recognize that there are a host of issues/ideas/technologies that have developed subsequent to the penning of those specific words that could never have been in the frame of reference of those who penned the words. I highly doubt that Ben Franklin and James Madison could have ever conceived of the idea that McDonalds and Holiday Inn could be construed as something so intrinsically linked with interstate commerce that they would envision the use of Civil Rights Act of 1964 as a means to help facilitate equity within interstate commerce/travel. Times change and even my strict interpretation gut knows I have to be loose/liberal enough to apply those original words into the most appropriate context for today. See...it really is a clash between the idealistic and the realistic sides within my core.</div>
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<br />David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-31143889652524600222015-06-28T21:04:00.000-07:002015-06-29T05:33:13.710-07:00#1CoolThing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisuWBhlaY8kXi-UiDJ_k1zUdH0yZ0dpZhou5ITN52VC49TnWsuMgHUGb0-ZJJMn2bOTP3tvnE9PhF7YbDLv9BJN9mE1x3QSjSUPzs8a8vIOrVnQ5lGM4nqqqK7HJsN54OVefLGKnqER7Df/s640/blogger-image--276274608.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisuWBhlaY8kXi-UiDJ_k1zUdH0yZ0dpZhou5ITN52VC49TnWsuMgHUGb0-ZJJMn2bOTP3tvnE9PhF7YbDLv9BJN9mE1x3QSjSUPzs8a8vIOrVnQ5lGM4nqqqK7HJsN54OVefLGKnqER7Df/s200/blogger-image--276274608.jpg" width="200" /></a>Each Sunday evening at 8:00 PM Central Time a group of individuals who care about education within Oklahoma gather for a Twitter chat. There are faithful regulars, there are semi-regulars (like myself), there are infrequent visitors, there are pure lurkers, and other classifications I'm sure. All using the common hashtag of #oklaed within our postings, the volunteer moderator of the week posses a series of questions around his/her choice topic and then the various active participants respond. Most often there is lots of favoriting, retweeting, and side-bar conversations around the issues raised. As far as interactive and conversational professional development goes I find these sessions, more often than not, highly worthwhile.<br />
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The session that finished just a little while ago was led by <a href="https://twitter.com/TeachFromHere" target="_blank">Scott Haselwood</a>, a math teacher in Edmond, OK. Through my time interacting with #oklaed I have learned that Scott is #Amazeballs in his incorporation of technology into his classroom instruction and is encouraging of other teachers as they seek to incorporate more technology into their classrooms or even just to stretch themselves by trying some new teaching strategy which they've never explored before. A theme which he uses as part of his encouraging spirit was the underlying theme of tonight's chat: #1CoolThing. To get an idea of these chats visit this <a href="https://storify.com/watersenglish/oklaed-6-28-15-1coolthing?utm_campaign=website&utm_source=email&utm_medium=email" target="_blank">archive on storify</a> of tonight's chat.<br />
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Scott's final question of the night was more of a challenge. "Q8) Reflection makes us better - blog about your #1CoolThing lessons and share them with us! #oklaed."</div>
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So here is a sampling of #1CoolThing ideas through which I have had success engaging students.</div>
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<b>Twitter Chats: </b>Modeled on the idea of the #oklaed Twitter chats, I've incorporated Twitter chats into my AP United States History class. Throughout the course we use "Opposing Viewpoints" primary source documents as we explore a particular historical concept or idea. Students read the two perspectives overnight and then...in the past I would have them discuss the documents within a small group following a list of questions...I moderate the Twitter discussion during class-time using pre-selected questions and then as students answer I provide additional prompts to individual students or the full class as needed to insure that full understanding is obtained. Here is a sample Twitter chat on the debate between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson on the question of having a national bank (<a href="https://storify.com/APteacherBurton/the-national-bank" target="_blank">archived on storify</a>). One of the flaws which we've encountered is that not every student's posts show up in our hashtag feed. I know students' individual phone/tablet or Twitter account settings can impact this, but even when all else seems "right" there are still a couple which don't show up. Perhaps there is a Twitter expert our there who wants to share her/his thoughts with me??</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij8r_vH2By4SvQiFLlZa4keFa3wKAWmV_7nQuyqSS81JevU2Tk5M_UAzh3z5m1OpdYNC8y1dnQDqUXW0z3LrP8Ms1orpAq1Q_rWILRbWZGXU77ZTwpK14jQ6oXRWPu90-cBToaExoYBI_O/s640/blogger-image-122166265.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij8r_vH2By4SvQiFLlZa4keFa3wKAWmV_7nQuyqSS81JevU2Tk5M_UAzh3z5m1OpdYNC8y1dnQDqUXW0z3LrP8Ms1orpAq1Q_rWILRbWZGXU77ZTwpK14jQ6oXRWPu90-cBToaExoYBI_O/s320/blogger-image-122166265.jpg" width="320" /></a><b>Speed Dating:</b> You have three minutes to get to know each other. DING! Now swap partners. Another three minutes. DING! Repeat... No my purpose is not to help my students find a prom date nor the love of their lives. But the idea of timed conversations between two individuals is a great way to have students teach each other. I used this conversational format as a way of teaching the various leaders of the Progressive Era Reform Movements to my AP United States History students. Each student was randomly assigned an individual reformer and then given time to research this person and his/her reform efforts/successes/failures so as to become an "expert" on this individual. Then during our "speed date" session each student is paired with another and in three minutes they rapidly teach each other about their reformers. DING! Switch partners. Repeat. This is a great way to cover a large number of important figures from a specific era in history within the short amount of time available for teaching in a survey history course.</div>
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<b>Student Created Websites:</b> Do you use a portfolio concept or have some other type of large project to be completed over time? Why not allow students to develop some 21st century skills along side the learning of the necessary content? Within my AP Human Geography course I have my students create a website which enables each of them to compare four countries (different regions, different cultures, different economic standings) as we progress throughout the units of our course. For each unit, students will add new information relevant to each of their countries and to study at hand (population demographics, cultural issues, political structures, agriculture & rural issues, economic development & industry, urban life, etc). While there are various platforms for creating free websites, I've come to enjoy weebly. <a href="http://burtonscountryportfolio.weebly.com/2014-2015.html" target="_blank">Click here for examples created by my students</a>. In the future I need to incorporate more of the blogging feature for students to better reflect upon their learning; I can also see students interacting with each other via the blogs to compare their personal findings with the findings of their peers.</div>
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<b>Now It's Your Turn: </b>If you're a teacher, what is #1CoolThing that you've used to successfully engage your students in learning? If you're not a teacher, think back to when you were in school...what was #1CoolThing one of your teachers did to help enhance your learning experience? Feel free to share in the comment section below or compose your own blog post and add the link in the comment section below.</div>
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-46616115790138162312015-06-27T18:13:00.001-07:002015-06-27T18:27:51.267-07:00Why Teach?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46ZuX0YE7MEDscU5q9qoqlU1j_2_WioK3BiiJs2hZyv1RNK-sTdsyt-IkfLJTnCku9ZVptJL0pHZEYVtcau_EqsJPnSlY74K0wfR5tGLRKSimqZsuFjQfIbmyjyOPiEUUcGz_UIgN_2gb/s1600/Burton+Classroom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj46ZuX0YE7MEDscU5q9qoqlU1j_2_WioK3BiiJs2hZyv1RNK-sTdsyt-IkfLJTnCku9ZVptJL0pHZEYVtcau_EqsJPnSlY74K0wfR5tGLRKSimqZsuFjQfIbmyjyOPiEUUcGz_UIgN_2gb/s640/Burton+Classroom.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">a panoramic view of my classroom; spatial distortions courtesy of iOS</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 11.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Recently Mindy Dennison presented a challenge to those in Oklahoma who write blogs which address educational themes
to compose a post on the topic of “Why Teach?”. Mindy is a friend, a current
music teacher in Choctaw, OK, a former colleague where I teach, and an active
#oklaed twitter participant. She has some wonderful posts over at her blog:
<a href="https://thisteachersings.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">This Teacher Sings</a>.</span><br />
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A little over a year ago I was involved in a lengthy project to explore lots of my thoughts regarding education and my place in the "teacher world". This project, a lengthy portfolio-application, resulted in my selection as the Moore Public School District's 2014 Teacher of the Year. Several of the entries help to explore Mrs. Dennison's requested topic, but I think the "Philosophy of Teaching" entry as a whole best encapsulates her desired intent. So, rather than creating a whole new writing for this post, I'll just provide a sample of something that I've previously written...<br />
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<span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thomas
Jefferson articulated, “If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state
of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be" (</span><a href="http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/mtj:@field(DOCID+@lit(tj110163))" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">source link</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">). While the basic core of education is to ensure that information is passed along
from one generation to another, I believe that teaching’s ultimate purpose is
to equip students to be productive members of society so that they can engage
with others for their mutual benefit. I use the ideals of global education to
focus my classroom environment so as to meet this definitive purpose of education;
when students explore questions, respect multiple perspectives, effectively
communicate ideas, and act so as to have a positive impact (</span><a href="https://asiasociety.org/files/book-globalcompetence.pdf" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">source link</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">), they
become the educated citizens idealized by Jeff</span>erson.<br /><br />While there is legitimate value in knowing the rules of grammar, the scientific method, the steps of a geometric proof, or the sequence of events in history, these lessons without real-life application carry little meaning beyond the test. Regardless of whether curriculum objectives are created by the teacher or externally by district, state, or even federal educational leaders, exceptional teachers know how to use their instructional goals so as to engage their students in real-life inquiry and to further develop the critical thinking skills which their students will need throughout their lives. Outstanding educators enable students to use the elements of the lesson so as to gain a greater understanding of the bigger picture of life. My ultimate desire is to facilitate the dialogue occurring in my classroom with the expectation that my students will take greater ownership of their personal learning and explore answers to critical questions for their historic or geographical understanding. I then want them to seek the most productive manner in which to turn those answers into meaningful action plans to assist their fellow citizens on this planet. Further, distinguished teachers use innovative technologies to enhance their students’ 21st century skills. The very nature of human interaction, especially within the workforce, changes daily due to new technologies. I believe that our ever globalizing world requires me as teacher to incorporate as many hands-on technology opportunities into my lessons as I can; teaching is not about my comfort level but about the needs of my students.<br /><br />Personally, my educational philosophies are incorporated into greater opportunities for my students to interact with myself, their peers, and their global community. I share a host of relevant resources and lead test review sessions through my <a href="https://twitter.com/APteacherBurton">Twitter account</a> and my <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MrDavidBurton">Facebook page</a>. My students’ desks are arranged in groups so I can facilitate their collaboration in analyzing historic primary source documents or global current events articles and enhance their understanding. Additionally, blogging, website design, video creation, and a host of other online technologies enable my students to interact with the world.<br /><br />The rewards for teaching come in many forms. Throughout my career I have received numerous letters, cards, e-mails, and verbal accolades from both students and parents showing their appreciation for the impact that my class and I have made on their lives and education; gifts and mementos have also been given, including an original painting which continues to hang in my classroom. In similar fashion, my colleagues and administrators have recognized my efforts through the various letters of recommendation they have attached to grants for which I’ve applied and by naming me as Southmoore’s 2013-2014 Teacher of the Year. The variety of grants I have received, especially for international study tours, and my annual invitation to the reading/scoring session for the AP US History exam are further testaments to my teaching accomplishments. However, no personal reward in my career is as meaningful as when one of my students takes what he or she has learned and uses it to impact their world.</span>David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-8191876940052262932015-06-23T20:38:00.000-07:002015-06-23T20:38:01.532-07:00Symbolically Speaking<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"Symbols are the imaginative signposts of life."</span></div>
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--Margot Asquith, English author & prime minister's wife</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tDlyicwr2EQ/UoRGwkE0ytI/AAAAAAAAFis/swQw-vyIA8s/s1600/green_red_ampleman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tDlyicwr2EQ/UoRGwkE0ytI/AAAAAAAAFis/swQw-vyIA8s/s1600/green_red_ampleman.jpg" height="200" width="125" /></a>Symbols invoke many things within out thoughts, minds, and emotions. They provide instructions: Ampelmann (German term for the little cross-walk figure) tells us when it is safe or not to use a pedestrian cross-walk. They keep us out of uncomfortable situations: figures similar to Ampelmann let us know which restroom facilities are the most appropriate for our personal use. They remind us of aspects of our identity: the band of gold worn on the 4th finger of the left hand many anything to you? Symbols are used to send a clear message.</div>
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Throughout western culture, especially within European expansion and subsequent American historical development, flags were used in various symbolic ways: to show ownership, to establish a land claim, to denote "we were here" (especially here first...U.S. flag on the moon). One of my favorite comedic commentaries on this idea of a flag's symbolic importance of establishing territorial ownership is a sketch by Eddie Izzard. <a href="https://youtu.be/uEx5G-GOS1k" target="_blank">Video Link (caution, some "language" is used)</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.greeleygazette.com/press/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Gadsden-flag-original-Marine-flag.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.greeleygazette.com/press/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Gadsden-flag-original-Marine-flag.gif" height="133" width="200" /></a>Flags have been used to rally support of a cause. The Gadsden flag was used to encourage support of the "Patriots" within the American Revolutionary War--"Don't Tread On Me"--as a reminder of the violations of the rights guaranteed to all British subjects which had recently been carried out by the British government and military. It's interesting that some symbols/flags are appropriated by other groups...sometime with a similar cause. In that many supporters of contemporary "Tea Party" ideology believe that a large, powerful, centralized government is disrespecting the legal rights of the citizenry, many "Tea Party" rallies and events will make use of the Gadsden flag as a symbolic connection with that revolutionary spirit.</div>
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The United States Supreme Court has acknowledged the power of our country's flag as an important symbol. In a controversial decision which continuous to garner lots of debate, the Court has ruled hat as such a strong symbol of our country and then government which oversees the country, citizens of this country are protected in their right to use this symbol as they seek to communicate their ideas about this country. This includes a protection for the destruction of this symbol as part of a lawfully protected protest of government policies. Personally, it breaks my heart to see a symbol that so many have died to protect being desecrated...primary our service personal are risking their lives in service of the country, but when the flag, as a symbol of that country, is at risk they will fight to protect it as well.</div>
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Simply put, there is power in the use of flags for a symbolic purposes with our country's cultural and historic background.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Southern Cross"</td></tr>
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One flag/symbol that has garnered lots of attention in recent days in the wake of the tragic shooting of worshipers at Charleston's Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. The Confederate battle flag, also known as the "Southern Cross", serves as a strong emotionally charged symbol to people of a variety of backgrounds. Many white southerners, including members of my own family, hold strong devotions to ideologies of "states' rights" and believe that there is a deep connection with this ideology and the reasons for why South Carolina and 10 other states seceded from the United States between late 1860 & mid 1861 and ultimately formed the Confederacy. As I read <a href="http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/csa_scarsec.asp" target="_blank">South Carolina's declaration of secession</a> (and those of other states) I read of a state government who supported one sole "state right" (the owning of black slaves) and to prevent other states' from exercising a "state right" to prevent residence of their state from being placed into slavery (the federal fugitive slave laws limited non-slave states from exercising such a "right")---but that is a discussion debate for another time.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Stars and Bars"</td></tr>
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During the early Civil War battles it became evident that the flag which the Confederacy adopted as its official governmental flag, the flag known as the "Stars and Bars", carried to<b>it was the misappropriation of this symbol that is the major catalyst to the continued hostilities</b>.<br />
close of a visual similarity to the flag of the Union, especially at a distance, and led to confusion among both sides of soldiers during battle. Thus, another flag was eventually adopted for use by the Confederacy during battle: the "Southern Cross". Again, my purpose here is not a discussion of the ideology of the Confederacy. What I've shared thus far is simply to provide a brief background into this symbol's origin. It this is where the story of the Confederate battle flag ended then continued controversy surrounding the war-era symbol would be nothing like what it is today. However, </div>
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It would be after the war, after the surrender of the Confederacy, after the coming of federal Reconstruction policies, and after growing dissatisfaction of some southerners with the social, economic, and political changes in the South that various vigilante groups, most prominently the Ku Klux Klan, emerged to harass, attack, and lynch southern blacks. The Klan appropriated the Confederate battle flag as a symbol of their efforts to help create a "new South". This "new South is quite simply the old South with its race-based caste system substituting slavery with a different form of subordination for blacks since slavery had been legally eradicated by the 13th Amendment. In combination with the white-hoods of the Klan, the Confederate battle flag become THE primary symbol of the terror inflicted upon any Southern black who gave even the slightest appearance of not being happy to reside at the lowest rung of this race-based caste system.<br />
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Over the next several decades the power and influence of the Klan ebbed and flowed and geographically spread itself west (with strength in 1920s-30s Oklahoma) and north (esp. Indiana and Ohio). As black soldiers returned from World War II and began efforts to obtain something similar to the racial equality, or near equality, which they saw in Britain and France they were met with resistance. As that resistance grew, especially in opposition to the <i>Brown v. Board</i> decision and subsequent efforts to fulfill its call for the integration of schools, in reaction to the restaurant and department store sit-in movements which began in Oklahoma City with Clara Luper and gained national attention in Greensboro, in response to the bus boycott in Montgomery, in retaliation to the Selma march, etc., etc., etc., this Confederate battle flag was THE symbol used by whites who sought to put blacks in "their place". State governments also made use of the flag part of official policy. South Carolina used the 1960s civil right movement as the rationale for its decision to fly the Confederate symbol atop its capitol's dome.<br />
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This flag was THE symbol of the continued effort to deny not only equality of political, social, and economic rights to black, but also to deny simple basic respect for human dignity. Regardless of what historic backdrop brought the creation and initial use of the flag, regardless of any authentic, perceived, or pretended political "states' rights" style ideology claims that surround the flag, it cannot be denied that THIS flag become THE symbol of both independent vigilante group efforts and state/local government efforts to retain white-supremacy even with the use of violent terrorism, torture, and murder. Your "heritage" argument has been sidelined by their "hate" agenda because they hijacked this symbol for their evil acts.<br />
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Display of this symbol can be appropriate within an authentic and accurate historical display, like a museum. However, this symbol, because of how it was misappropriated, has not place on the formal and ceremonial political/governmental property at any level within this country. If this upsets you then take out your discontent on those who hijacked this symbol for their terrorist purposes.</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-39054678545500451752015-06-18T12:59:00.000-07:002015-06-18T12:59:02.156-07:00Messiness of Money <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The United States Treasury Department released information yesterday evening indicating plan to replace the image of Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill as part of the previously determined plan to have the $10 bill edited by the year 2020. Hamilton's image would be replaced by the image of a female who has yet to be determined.</div>
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I have no problem with the incorporation of a female image into a prominent place within one of the commonly used pieces of paper currency within our country. A country's currency is one of the best ways to show and stress that which is valued within that society. I had the opportunity to visit Ireland in 1999 prior to the country switching over to the Euro. I was stricken by the fact that the people featured on the Irish Punt were not famed political leaders as is so common elsewhere (during the same trip I had visited the United Kingdom--every paper bill features the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II).</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Joyce, novelist and poet</td></tr>
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I was pleased with the online reports of a movement earlier this year to hold an unofficial competition to select the ideal female candidate to be selected for use on a piece of paper currency within the United States. Perhaps it was this movement which has inspired the Treasury Department's design to make such a change on the next piece of paper currency which has already slated for an edit. However, it seems to me that the Treasury Department failed to pay attention to the rationales behind the specific bill which was the "target" for the female image movement.</div>
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Andrew Jackson is a prime example of a historic figure to whom I refer as a "complex character" in American history. Yes, he is the hero of the Battle of New Orleans (War of 1812), he is the champion of the common man, and the era of his influence saw an expansion of democratic ideals and virtually universal suffrage for white men. And yet...much of his military fame following the Battle of New Orleans is connected with fighting the Seminoles in Florida. There is the ardent attacks of the Second Bank of the United States and the veto of its recharter which led to a major economic panic/depression shortly after he left office. And, of course, there is the entirety of the saga of Indian Removal...even though the worst of the "Trail of Tears" experiences occurred following the conclusion of his time as President they are still intricately linked with policies created by he and his administration. <b>Andrew Jackson's policies regarding American Indians and the movement of the Southeastern tribes to lands west of the Mississippi River outweigh, by far, any of his redeeming qualities</b> (much like Nixon...his foreign policies which brought greater peace with China and the Soviet Union are overshadowed by Watergate).</div>
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In my opinion, it is Jackson who should be replaced on the $20 bill rather than Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill. Hamilton, in a similar spirit as with Jackson, is a self-made man born into lowly circumstances. He emerged as one of the heroes of the American Revolution (a close aide to General Washington) and of the founding era. While serving as the country's first Secretary of the Treasury under President Washington, Hamilton's financial programs helped set the fledgling country on a stable course; much of our modern fiscal policies are directly linked with the success of his early ideas--even though each Jefferson and Jackson were anti-National Bank we do still have a centralized "bank-like" institution which fits in best with the spirit of Hamilton. If we are going to have famed politicians on our MONEY, the man who is chiefly responsible for our national economic policies is certainly a figure to be honored.</div>
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So, in order to take a step toward greater gender equality in honoring those of our country's past, let's replace someone more commonly associated with the negative events of the our past rather than the one whose policies we still use on a daily basis.</div>
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Give Jackson the ax on the $20 but keep Hamilton.</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-31553183516607792032015-06-15T15:07:00.001-07:002015-06-16T06:29:47.996-07:00Identity<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">"In the social jungle of human existence, there is no</span><br />
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For nearly a week I've felt the "need" to write something on the topic of identity. I've mentioned this desire to a couple friends and they have been rather encouraging. What probably put me over the edge most was an NPR story I heard this morning while driving from Oklahoma City to Tulsa for a civics education conference. NPR ran a great story dealing with "identity" surrounding Jeb Bush's expected announcement of his intentions to run for the Republican nomination for President. <<a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/06/15/413927208/he-was-born-republican-royalty-but-jebcito-is-from-miami" target="_blank">link to the story</a>></div>
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The article centers around Jeb Bush's strong connection to Latin-American culture, despite being Caucasian himself, because of having married a woman from Mexico and raising for their children in and around the Latin, largely Cuban, culture within Miami, Florida.</div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">In fairness, Mr. Bush was not attempting to claim his ethnic/cultural heritage had changed. Simply speaking another language surely wouldn't be enough to change that caliber of identity, would it?</span><br />
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There are many things which relate to our identity: race, ethnicity, gender, sex, faith, occupation, talents, etc. But recent events raise the question as to how much of our identity is within our control rather than imposed upon us by commonly held attitudes from society. Is there a point at which so much of what society perceives about you makes it so that you can't change that aspect of identity regardless of what you do?</div>
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Technology has brought human society to the point where we can surgically change the appearance of our sex--our maleness or our femaleness into the other. Does the removing/changing of organs actually change our identity?</div>
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Technology can also help modify the appearance of our skin-tone: tanning beds and crimes can make you darker...might even by a few options, other than make-up alone, for going lighter. And I would imagine that with tattoo technology, there is probably some way, while highly prolonged to accomplish, to make a more permanent change of this caliber. Throughout my travels I've felt strong draws to the cultures of other ethnic/peoples; to me it's not a stretch to see myself wanting to truly identify with one of those cultures if I did in fact live among them permanently. I'm doubtful, however, that I can fathom the desire to belong would be strong enough that I would seek to alter my physical appearance in any significant way. Is it possible to be both an insider and an outsider at the same time?</div>
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As you ponder that question, but before you actually answer, think about those of a mixed racial or ethnic background. As is common among so many Americans, I could call myself a Euro-mutt since I have a mix of so many backgrounds. If you were to turn my genealogical background into a pie chart the single biggest slice, comprising nearly fifty percent, would be "German". However, the ethnic identity with which in most commonly identify myself isn't German...nor is is English--the origin of my surname. I most commonly connect with the "French-Cajun" line of my family even though this slice would be less than twenty percent of my pie. Much of this is linked to a stronger connection with parts of my father's side of the family rather than my mother's as well as a strong historic interest in the era of history in which the British government forced the French-Acadians to leave what we now know as Nova Scotia following King George's War (early 1700s); a vast quantity of these deported Acadians migrated to French controlled southern Louisiana becoming the Cajuns.</div>
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Another example of this mixed heritage pondering...several years ago I had a student who had a white mother and a black father. I don't know which part of his heritage with which he most identifies, but he made a point on several occasions of referring to himself as a "Half-rican American". My suspicion is that he strives to embrace the fullness of his genealogical heritage as part of his identity...and this may go in phases throughout his life.</div>
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Our current president is from a mixed racial background. While he was raised in an environment primarily around his mother's family and "white culture", in his adulthood he seems to be more embracing of the "black" side of his identity. Should it matter how President Obama prefers to identify himself? Is any less black by embracing "white culture or any less white by embracing "black culture"? He is who is he is regardless of how you or I perceive him.</div>
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I chuckle to myself as I typed that last line. I love how so many within my faith tradition celebrate when, in the spirit of Romans 10:9, myself or anyone else in our tradition proclaims to be a "Christian". Why is my identity as a Christian respected when I make the claim and yet so many of these same people, even individuals who are dear friends, reject the profession of faith made by President Obama? Why do they embrace me as a Christian and yet lambaste his as a "Muslim" when he and I have each publicly made th same confession of Jesus being Lord?</div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Are there limits to when an individual can self identify in the manner which they choose? Should self identification be subject to the approval of others? How many members of society would need to agree? Should it matter what me and my friends perceive about another person, especially if we don't personally know him/her and will most likely never meet her/him?</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">Or is identity totally subject to perceptions of others? Is our identity limited to what others believe about us? What if what the others believe is not grounded in reality?</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">I guess at its heart, I do understand that much of identification efforts throughout human history have been a way for us to divide ourselves into groups. We love to have the "us" and "them" mentality. We like winners and losers; and unfortunately all too often it is the winners who create the identification labels for the losers...the losers then choose to accept the label as a second or third (or worse) tier status or to embrace the label and wear it as a badge of honor over time...the whole history of the term "Okies"??? That's one term of identity that I as a life-long Oklahoman still have trouble embracing.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">There are a handful of identity labels that I wish all of us would just agree to focus upon: humans and sons and daughters of God. I think a focus on these identifying labels would help lead to greater interactions of a most positive nature. This would make me "happy"...an identity I love to live.</span></div>
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><br /></span>David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-6524562266329103322015-06-09T19:33:00.001-07:002015-06-10T14:09:10.912-07:00Change is...<a href="http://www.mnicolefashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/keep-calm-change-is-coming-3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.mnicolefashion.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/keep-calm-change-is-coming-3.png" height="200" width="171" /></a>I've spent sometime today contemplating "change". I decided to type "change is" into a Google search to see what insight auto-fill might provide for me.<br />
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Change is...<br />
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<li>certain</li>
<li>gonna come</li>
<li>inevitable</li>
<li>the only constant</li>
<li>hard</li>
<li>good</li>
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There have been many changes I've experienced in my life: moving from one home to another, watching marriages (and divorces) in my family, deaths...births, new jobs, new relationships, new cars, friends have come and gone (and some came back). Change happens!<br />
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I almost freaked out with a change I learned about earlier today. I received an e-mail job posting for a coaching job at my school; the job is a position held for the last seven years by a teacher in my department whom I respect very much. I thought "NO...he can't be leaving!" Within about 30 minutes I learned that he was just quitting the coaching position and would still be teaching with us...WHEW!<br />
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A big change in my professional life this school year was the redesigned curriculum framework for AP United States History (APUSH). I've known about this coming change for several years; it was originally announced in 2006 or 2007 and has gone through an extensive process of work and revision along with the process of reformatting the end of course AP exam my students take for potential college credit. I've articulated in other settings, <a href="https://okeducationtruths.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/the-legislative-apush-push-back-a-teachers-perspective/" target="_blank">blog posts</a>, personal conversations, etc., how much I support this redesigned APUSH. But that doesn't mean the change has been without struggle. I've had to reconsider how I teach various historical thinking skills and essay writing within my classroom. Couple the struggle of working with what I believe is a positive change with the subsequent attacks on that very change by our state legislature in Oklahoma...the nature of the change demanded by the proposed legislation would have had Oklahoma dumping the College Board's APUSH, creating our own "APUSH-like" course, creating our own "APUSH-like" test, and then twiddling our thumbs as NO COLLEGE ANYWHERE would award credit or advanced standing for this nonsensical change...I'm SO GLAD that Representative Fisher's and Senator Breechen's respective bills ultimately went nowhere significant (I'm still disappointed in some members of the House Common Education Committee).<br />
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The spring semester of 2008 saw me make a decision to embrace a change in my career: to leave Moore High School after 8 years and join the land of SaberCats over at the brand new Southmoore for the next fall. To give up my HUGE classroom and its semi-circled tiered floor, its TONS of storage, and its office with a couch in exchange for a smaller, much smaller, classroom in a new building. Would the changes be worth it? Have the changes been worth it? Unequivocally...YES! I don't regret this set of changes in the slightest.<br />
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We Southmoore SaberCats are in the midst of more change as we transition from the end of year seven to the beginning of year eight. Roy Smith, our founding principal, elected to retire at the conclusion of this year. Thus, we have a change in leadership. When Mr. Smith announced his retirement in April there was lots of buzz in the school (heck, in the WHOLE district) as to who would replace him. Would the new person bring TONS of change? How would the new person fit in? Would we like him? Would it even be a "him"? Would he or she be someone who already worked in the district or be an "outsider"? Lots of questions in preparation for the impending change.<br />
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While the new principal for Southmoore was named in mid May and while I had a brief e-mail exchange with him before the end of the school year, today was the first opportunity that I had to meet Danny Reed. He knew that as soon as the school year was over I was off to Louisville to score the essays written by students for this year's APUSH exam. So we decided to go have lunch today to visit and get to know each other [insert the "brown-noser" accusations from colleagues here, haha].<br />
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While I am sad to see Mr. Smith go, after today's lunch I am excited about Mr. Reed's arrival. Yes...changes are coming. But I don't fear these changes and I don't think there will be extreme changes immediately (if ever). I have the feeling that Mr. Reed wants to get a feel for who we are as SaberCats and learn about the great things we've been doing. He will then explore the best opportunities to build on our successes and guide us in taking them to a new level.<br />
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<li><span style="color: red;"><b>Update, June 10: </b>At our lunch I learned that Mr. Reed is fluent in Spanish and we visited about what an asset this would be with our changing community demographics. Today I got to see this in action while Mr. Reed was visiting with one our summer custodians. I was impressed!! Let's just say I am uber excited for the future here at Southmoore.</span></li>
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Will these changes make everyone happy? Surely not. Will all of the changes make me 100% happy? Doubtful. But change is coming. The only thing I can control is my response to these changes. I choose to be supportive and embracing of the coming change in all ways that I can be. I want to help make Southmoore the best it can be; I'm choosing to embrace growth. I know that our best days are still in the future.<br />
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Go Cats! Go Cats! Win! Win! Win!</div>
David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-63004706892548396012015-06-04T17:17:00.001-07:002015-06-27T17:41:32.825-07:00APUSH Re-Redesign<a href="http://m.quickmeme.com/img/a3/a3a2d3e00b1c8272a4c23a88f35991f3d723b1d34ce152b77e8916bc52c6fc11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://m.quickmeme.com/img/a3/a3a2d3e00b1c8272a4c23a88f35991f3d723b1d34ce152b77e8916bc52c6fc11.jpg" height="320" width="246" /></a>In August 2014 the College Board, non-profit organization which oversees the Advanced Placement courses and exams which enable high school students to earn college credit, launched the redesigned version of their AP United States History program. The redesign process took nearly 10 years; I received regular updates via emails, summer professional development, the annual reading/scoring session for the essays students wrote for each year's test, and periodic visits to the College Board's website. The redesigned curriculum framework had been almost finalized for about 3 years but activation of the new course was delayed until the final details of the structure of the new exam was settled.<br />
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Almost instantly various radicalized partisan groups began complaining about the redesign. The loudest and most vocal of these groups happened to be fringe conservatives who have their own agenda they'd prefer to push within academic settings. These fringe conservatives just happened to have allies within various state legislatures and/ local school boards and began an assault on the redesigned APUSH framework. Early efforts were focused in Texas, moved to Jeffersom County Public Schools in Colorado, and then within Oklahoma and Georgia in the winter/spring 2015 session.</div>
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I wrote this guest post on the okeducationtruths blog to contextualize my thoughts on the outbreak of the APUSH attacks with my home of Oklahoma --> <a href="https://okeducationtruths.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/the-legislative-apush-push-back-a-teachers-perspective/" target="_blank">click this link</a></div>
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To summarize a long story of a hard fight...teachers, administrators, students, parents, and those who care about quality education raised such a fuss (with the help of local, national, and international media support) that the House version of the bill met a a quiet death and the Senate version never saw the light of day. APUSH in Oklahoma survived for tomorrow...so far.</div>
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<b>JUMP forward to the June 2015 APUSH reading. </b>During the Open Forum, in which College Board leadership shares information and then holds a Q&A with the teachers who are in attendance, it was announced that a re-redesigned version of the curriculum framework was set to release at the end of June 2015. In an effort to calm the complaints of these radicalized partisan groups (including a handful of less vocal liberal voices), the redesign team went line-by-line through the framework seeking to edit any of the descriptive terms which served as "low hanging fruit" which had been latched onto by these groups as "proof" of their claims that the College Board was seeking to push a political agenda within the framework and teaching of the course. Some additional language was edited/added/deleted to help clarify to teachers the intent of some key concepts which unintentionally ended up being ambiguous.</div>
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The newest version of the APUSH framework will be available to the public on the College Board's website by July 1, 2015.</div>
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The hope is that the attacks from these agenda pushing groups will be squelched. I share the same hope because I fervently believe that the APUSH course in its [re-edited] current form does more to 1) teach in-depth topics of American history using the latest scholarship and 2) develop critical thinking skills for students to use in historic study, other/all future academic pursuits, and as a life-long learner.</div>
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<b>MY PRAYER is that Representative Dan Fisher, Senator Josh Breechen, </b>and others of their ilk with the Oklahoma and other state legislatures will actually take the time to legitimately read the re-redesign framework before using anymore of their cookie cutter pieces of legislation.</div>
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<b>THANK YOU TO...</b></div>
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The students and teachers of Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado for your spirited leadership with your fight and for your encouragement and support within Oklahoma's fight;</div>
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The amazing teachers, APUSH and others, within Oklahoma (#oklaed) who stepped up to defend the integrity of our course and what you do within your classrooms...and for stepping into a media spotlight as appropriate;</div>
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Trevor Packer, College Board Vice President of AP programming, for the leadership and support which you and your team offered within a host of places around the country this year and your encouragement to me personally (I've witnessed #Proof that you care).</div>
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<b>In my eyes, you are all my heroes and rock stars of quality education!</b></div>
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So now, let's finish the last three days of this reading strong as we reward our students for their strengths on the Short Answer and Essay portions of this exam. Let's relax some to allow our minds and bodies to recoup from the stresses of Redesign 2014-2015. And let's spend an appropriate amount of time prepping for Re-Redesign 2015-2016.</div>
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<b>#APUSHforever</b><br />
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David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-19124299051617996962015-05-26T19:56:00.000-07:002015-06-28T21:39:13.344-07:00A Teacher Like Me?<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9fgyhZ3Jpv9gM8_G77eXZxWkywZMQ-UfnA5T7cT6JE6WvTI9mNHr_fF0b-UFrpS7QoaRw1bFV4rm7K16P5DM6L9WvYvUWLyy7NWiLn6uDdyZBPaSBcNqrAxSWOe0K6PvotLwao34QD_R/s1600/teacher+like+me.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9fgyhZ3Jpv9gM8_G77eXZxWkywZMQ-UfnA5T7cT6JE6WvTI9mNHr_fF0b-UFrpS7QoaRw1bFV4rm7K16P5DM6L9WvYvUWLyy7NWiLn6uDdyZBPaSBcNqrAxSWOe0K6PvotLwao34QD_R/s200/teacher+like+me.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">image inspired by my pro-teacher<br />
friends at www.teachlikeme.org</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Homework...please begin by reading this Washington Post article from May 21st: <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2015/05/21/why-we-should-diversify-the-overwhelming-white-u-s-teaching-force-and-how/" target="_blank">Why We Should Diversify the Overwhelmingly White U.S. Teaching Force--and How</a><br />
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I have often found myself reflecting on the issues of race and gender within education, probably more so race since there are more male teachers within secondary education where I work.<br />
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Working within a suburban community...and in all honestly, a suburban community which had its major growth boom within the late 1960s through early 1980s as a by-product of the "white flight" linked with the era of "busing"...I have often wondered why there aren't currently more teachers of an ethnic minority background teaching within our community. I've asked myself a variety of questions on this topic:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Why don't the proportions of ethnic minorities teaching within my district's schools resemble the overall proportions within the community itself?</li>
<li>Are teachers of an ethnic minority background less interested in working within my district? If so, why?</li>
<li>Is my district (intentionally or latently) less interested in hiring ethnic minorities?--this is a tough question because if I know like the answer is "yes" then I need to wrestle with what would compel me to continue working for such a district</li>
<li>Do other teachers notice the disproportional representation? Do administrators notice it? Do students and families notice it?</li>
<li>Does the community within my district truly care about this issue? If not, why?</li>
<li>Is there some significant value in a student being able to look across a campus and see a teacher who looks like him or herself?</li>
<li>Could seeing an increased quantity of teachers from various ethnic backgrounds inspire more of our own minority students to think that a career in education could be something they should explore?</li>
</ul>
I've also often wondered why there are not more students of ethnic minority backgrounds (especially black and Hispanic) who enroll within the Advanced Placement courses that I love and teach. The proportional enrollment of black and Hispanic students within our AP program is no where near the proportional divisions within our whole student population. I'm convinced the answer is NOT due to any lack of ability. And more questions arise:<br />
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<ul>
<li>How can we change this? How can we get more black and Hispanic students to take AP level course work?--and this is not and should not be simply to develop a magic quota of representation within the program</li>
<li>To what extent am I best suited to be a leading voice to help spark change? Will black and Hispanic students see merit in some white guy's efforts to get them to enroll in such programs? Is some form of outreach effort better suited to be lead by a teacher from an ethnic background similar to the students?</li>
<li>Would having more teachers of ethnic minority backgrounds teaching AP level courses help improve the enrollment of students from these backgrounds?</li>
</ul>
The motto used by my school is "Creating Avenues to Success" (inspired by our mascot: Saber<b><u>Cats</u></b>). While we do truly strive to explore and provide many paths to help our students succeed, I do wonder if seeking greater ethnic diversity among our faculty and administration would help to inspire even more students to explore paths that might not have otherwise considered.<br />
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A greater diversity in the backgrounds of our teachers inspires a new richness of conversations within our classrooms and educational experiences for ALL of our students. Additionally, having a greater diversity of teachers helps to reiterate that the diversity of our student population is valued and that we do, in fact, care about Creating Avenues to Success for ALL of our students.<br />
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What are your thoughts? I'd love to hear your insight...both in response to the article and what I've shared here.David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5376848981850739461.post-19496485857715469382015-05-25T20:35:00.000-07:002015-05-25T20:39:17.950-07:00Idealism v. Realism<a href="http://complementarytraining.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/drawing-idealist-pragmatist-w800.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://complementarytraining.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/drawing-idealist-pragmatist-w800.jpg" height="199" width="320" /></a>I have no idea of the directions this blog will go nor the issues it will address.<br />
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As of now I see addressing lots of political issues, especially those global in scope since I do have a Masters in Political Science: International Affairs. I will also address a variety of educational topics since my career is high school education and my undergraduate degree is Secondary Social Studies Education. I'm pretty sure that history, religion, culture, geography, and music will also become important themes.<br />
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But I do know that a central theme throughout all of what I envision for this blog space is the conflicts between idealism and realism. There are a whole variety of ways that each of us think the world "should" be. You and I will probably agree on some of these points and disagree on others. But there are a whole host of reasons for why things are the way that they are. We have all kinds of institutional processes and expectations for why we do what we do and, unless we formally change these, we must morph our idealistic goals so that they legitimately fit within what is allowed.<br />
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For example: in an ideal world (at least from my perspective) I should be able to drive from Oklahoma City, OK to Dallas, TX in an hour-and-a-half or less. However, the reality is 1) there are firmly established speed limits along I-35 and these change while going through highly urban areas and 2) I'm not on the road alone so my driving "skills" must be balanced against the safety of others.<br />
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But through this forum, perhaps my idealism can spark some brainstorming into ways of overcoming those institutionalized barriers or convincing others for the need to eradicate such barriers.<br />
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<br />David C. Burtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08599123214307900490noreply@blogger.com0