| Constantly Raising the Bar |
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| Monday, May 6, 2013 11:59 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| As a kid growing up, did your parents ever set a standard and then change it on you? Something like, “If you clean up your room then you can have your friend over”. After you cleaned your room, the rule suddenly changed when your mother said |
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| Ohio's New Assessments |
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| Monday, April 29, 2013 10:18 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Along with the newly adopted standards, Ohio will also be implementing a new wave of assessments. I'll not argue in this writing about the pros and cons of standardized testing. That is a complex issue with facts and strong emotions on both sides. |
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| Common Core State Standards |
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| Friday, April 12, 2013 2:16 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| On June 18, 2010 the Ohio Department of Education adopted the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics and English Language Arts. These standards were written by a small team of authors (about 3), that was assisted by a much larger team (about 60) |
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| National Digital Literacy Day Message |
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| Friday, March 22, 2013 10:38 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Yesterday was National Digital Literacy Day. Below is a message I received from Tom Ferree, President and COO, Connected Nation: [Image:32213_105429_0.png] Friend, Today is Digital Literacy Day and we’re excited to be joining others in celebr |
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| Public WiFi - What You Should Know Before You Connect |
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| Tuesday, February 5, 2013 2:41 PM -0500 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Public WiFi access is convenient for those of us with mobile devices . It means I can take my iPad, that has no data plan, with me to a restaurant and surf the web, check email and search for answers to those nagging questions that come up in conver |
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| November Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Tuesday, November 6, 2012 1:20 PM -0500 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| This entry is being posted on Election Day 2012! By the time you are reading this, I hope you have voted or have to time vote yet today. Afterwards, take time to watch the November 6th TED-Ed video, The Oddities of the First American Election. |
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| October Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Monday, October 1, 2012 1:14 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| It is indeed October 1st (where did September go?) and below is this month's Digital Learning calendar. I want to thank Mike Goubeaux, Tech Coordinator at Versailles, for links to Thursdays' educational video sites! Sundays feature blog entries for |
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| September Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Thursday, September 6, 2012 12:30 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Stop by each day for your daily dose of technology! September's Digital Learning Calendar offers a diverse selection of web resources for the 21st Century educator. Enjoy!! September 2012 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Sat |
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| August Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Monday, August 27, 2012 3:56 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Welcome Back to School!! Whether it's your first day back or you have a week (or two) under your belt, this seems a good time to ease back into our Digital Learning Calendar resources. From blogs to current events, take it one day at a time and exp |
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| Dealing with Text Complexity |
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| Monday, March 19, 2012 1:43 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) include an entire appendix related to the complexity of text that students are expected to read. The standards were written on the premise that the texts that students are reading have gotten easier in the pas |
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| Trying Something Different for a Change |
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| Tuesday, June 19, 2012 9:11 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Not long after John Kasich was elected governor of Ohio, I attended a meeting of superintendents from around the state that was led by the executive director of the educational organization to which we all belonged. During our meeting he apprised us |
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| Add This Contact to Your Cell Phone |
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| Wednesday, June 6, 2012 9:58 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Take some time today and add a new contact to your mobile devices address book: ICE, which is an acronym for In Case of Emergency. If an emergency occurs and you were unconscious, there is no way for you to tell emergency personnel important inform |
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| Supporting Public Education |
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| Friday, May 25, 2012 12:15 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| The current state of education might be best classified as an upper level disturbance (to borrow some weather terminology) with the air being unstable and conducive to stormy conditions. • Schools are weighing the reality of the governor's budge |
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| The More Things Change The More They Stay The Same |
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| Monday, May 14, 2012 11:40 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Last fall, I wrote a letter to all the members of the State Board of Education after reading a synopsis of a meeting they held during which they complained that too many school districts were being labeled as "Excellent" or "Excellent |
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| The US Education System - More Food for Thought |
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| Monday, May 7, 2012 1:49 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| Currently many voices are echoing the same refrain regarding education in the United States, with the message being clearly stated that we appear to be acting in direct opposition to leading education programs around the globe. In a [ http://blogs.e |
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| | Why Not Learn From the Best? | | | | | Tuesday, May 1, 2012 11:45 AM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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As everyone is well aware, education in America has been under a constant barrage of criticism since at least the 1960's, at which time President Kennedy decided it was best that politicians drive educational policy in this country. That trend has escalated in the decades since so that now virtually every decision governing education is made with political agendas in the forefront.
Given this fact, one has to wonder why they continue to implement policies that are exactly the opposite of those that govern what is widely considered the most effective educational system in the world, which resides in Finland. Wouldn’t you think that if you were trying to improve our educational system we would study the best of the best and try to model it here? Wouldn’t that just make sense? Instead, if you didn't know better, you would think that we look at a model of excellence and make a conscious decision to do just the opposite. Why would we do that?
Let's look at just a few examples of where this has been true. Mandatory education in Finland begins at age seven, the school day is short, and play, socialization, and an emphasis on the arts are considered as important in the development of a child as is academic rigor. In America, discussions abound of lengthening the school day and year, we talk about the importance of forcing five-year-olds to attend school all-day to improve academic achievement, and no educational discussion at the policy-development level ever involves the importance of socialization and play. Ignoring all the evidence to the contrary, we act as if those two skills are completely unimportant in childhood development.
In Finland, standardized tests are non-existent, schools are not ranked or rated in any way, and the idea of evaluating teachers based on student test scores would be viewed as ludicrous. In America, students are tested to death in the name of school accountability, policy-makers are developing new ways to rank schools all the time, and state law has been passed which mandates that teachers will be evaluated and paid with an eye toward student performance on standardized tests.
In Finland, educators, not politicians, drive educational policy, a federal curriculum is general in nature, teachers are given the freedom to teach material as they see fit, and charter schools are non-existent because they are viewed as ineffective. In the United States, nearly all educational decisions are made by politicians, educators are invited to participate only after faulty policies have been developed, states mandate masses of very specific standards that dictate how and what teachers teach, and charter schools are sold as the end-all and be-all.
In Finland, a culture of reading exists in which parents begin developing the skill in their children at a very young age and preschool programs emphasize not academics, but socialization, the development of interpersonal skills, and the important of social responsibility. In the United States, the importance of the role of parents in developing such skills is rarely discussed, schools are held solely responsible for a child's academic abilities, and there is talk of ensuring that preschool programs emphasize academic development, not the growth of the child as a human being.
These are but a few of the differences that exist between what is considered the best educational system in the world and the one that critics contend needs much improvement. What is so perplexing is why those same critics continue to implement changes that go against what has proven to be successful. What logic is there in that?
Tom Dunn, Superintendent, Miami County Educational Service Center
If you would like to comment on this blog, click here to send an email!
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| Mentoring to Improve Self-Esteem in Girls |
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| Wednesday, April 18, 2012 3:22 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| For the second year, the Darke County ESC has partnered with 2 local elementary schools to provide a self-esteem building program to 4th grade girls. According to clinical psychologist Robin F. Goodman “Girls' self-esteem peaks when they are 9 year |
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| April Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Monday, April 2, 2012 3:32 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| This month's activities and links revolve around specific events listed for each day! Explore these web resources or use as a jumping off point and find your own related websites! April Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturd |
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| March Digital Learning Calendar |
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| Monday, March 12, 2012 12:36 PM -0400 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| After receiving some positive comments on the February Digital Learning calendar, I decided to create one for March! There is a blend of professional development type sites and student interest sites, so be sure to check back each day for a new adve |
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| Darke County Career Mentorship Program |
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| Tuesday, February 21, 2012 3:05 PM -0500 | By: DarkeCounty ESC |
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| I would like to encourage all administrators, teachers, staff and parents to talk to their students/children about participating in the Career Mentorship Program. The Darke County Educational Services offers this program, which provides two days of |
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