Trickle Down Education - Ridgefield Press, February 25, 2016

Could someone explain to me what has changed in Ridgefield's educational Neverland except the replacement of one superintendent with another?

Specifically, with fewer students to teach, what is the supposed cause for the extraordinary increase now before us after years of reasonable increases? I just want the facts and figures. No educational mumbo jumbo, puleeeze!

Fewer students, possibly one less plant to support but we need more employees? Where's the rationale in that?

Have Ridgefield's children been educationally disadvantaged over the past years? Or is this a political move by our new superintendent, trying to make a statement and a 'name' for herself?

All I know is that beyond a certain point, more money does not equate with a better education -- here or nationally. In my opinion, administrators and teachers have been feathering their nests for far too long in the educational industrial complex. It's more top down economics; the kids get the least benefit.

We need an activist, democratically elected Board of Education, Board of Selectmen and Board of Finance to maintain a fair balance in this town -- as they have demonstrated in the past -- and put a lid on this ridiculous financial flim-flam before it gets out of hand again.

AP > Tablets are coming to a classroom near you

By STEPHANIE REITZ

updated 9/3/2011 12:59:22 PM ET

HARTFORD, Conn. — For incoming freshmen at western Connecticut's suburban Brookfield High School, hefting a backpack weighed down with textbooks is about to give way to tapping out notes and flipping electronic pages on a glossy iPad tablet computer.

A few hours away, every student at Burlington High School near Boston will also start the year with new school-issued iPads, each loaded with electronic textbooks and other online resources in place of traditional bulky texts.
While iPads have rocketed to popularity on many college campuses since Apple Inc. introduced the device in spring 2010, many public secondary schools this fall will move away from textbooks in favor of the lightweight tablet computers.

Apple officials say they know of more than 600 districts that have launched what are called "one-to-one" programs, in which at least one classroom of students is getting iPads for each student to use throughout the school day.

Nearly two-thirds of them have begun since July, according to Apple.

New programs are being announced on a regular basis, too. As recently as Wednesday, Kentucky's education commissioner and the superintendent of schools in Woodford County, Ky., said that Woodford County High will become the state's first public high school to give each of its 1,250 students an iPad.

At Burlington High in suburban Boston, principal Patrick Larkin calls the $500 iPads a better long-term investment than textbooks, though he said the school will still use traditional texts in some courses if suitable electronic programs aren't yet available.

"I don't want to generalize because I don't want to insult people who are working hard to make those resources," Larkin said of textbooks, "but they're pretty much outdated the minute they're printed and certainly by the time they're delivered. The bottom line is that the iPads will give our kids a chance to use much more relevant materials."

The trend has not been limited to wealthy suburban districts. New York City, Chicago and many other urban districts also are buying large numbers of iPads.

The iPads generally cost districts between $500 and $600, depending on what accessories and service plans are purchased.

By comparison, Brookfield High in Connecticut estimates it spends at least that much yearly on every student's textbooks, not including graphing calculators, dictionaries and other accessories they can get on the iPads.

Educators say the sleek, flat tablet computers offer a variety of benefits.

They include interactive programs to demonstrate problem-solving in math, scratchpad features for note-taking and bookmarking, the ability to immediately send quizzes and homework to teachers, and the chance to view videos or tutorials on everything from important historical events to learning foreign languages.

They're especially popular in special education services, for children with autism spectrum disorders and learning disabilities, and for those who learn best when something is explained with visual images, not just through talking.

Some advocates also say the interactive nature of learning on an iPad comes naturally to many of today's students, who've grown up with electronic devices as part of their everyday world.

But for all of the excitement surrounding the growth of iPads in public secondary schools, some experts watching the trend warn that the districts need to ensure they can support the wireless infrastructure, repairs and other costs that accompany a switch to such a tech-heavy approach.

And even with the most modern device in hand, students still need the basics of a solid curriculum and skilled teachers.

"There's a saying that the music is not in the piano and, in the same way, the learning is not in the device," said Mark Warschauer, an education and informatics professor at the University of California-Irvine whose specialties include research on the intersection of technology and education.

"I don't want to oversell these things or present the idea that these devices are miraculous, but they have some benefits and that's why so many people outside of schools are using them so much," he said.

One such iPad devotee is 15-year-old Christian Woods, who starts his sophomore year at Burlington, Mass., High School on a special student support team to help about 1,000 other teens adjust to their new tablets.

"I think people will like it. I really don't know anybody in high school that wouldn't want to get an iPad," he said. "We're always using technology at home, then when you're at school it's textbooks, so it's a good way to put all of that together."

Districts are varied in their policies on how they police students' use.

Many have filtering programs to keep students off websites that have not been pre-approved, and some require the students to turn in the iPads during vacation breaks and at the end of the school year. Others hold the reins a little more loosely.

"If we truly consider this a learning device, we don't want to take it away and say, 'Leaning stops in the summertime.' " said Larkin, the Burlington principal.

And the nation's domestic textbook publishing industry, accounting for $5.5 billion in yearly sales to secondary schools, is taking notice of the trend with its own shift in a competitive race toward developing curriculum specifically for iPads.

Ridgefield Press 08/11/2011 > A common Sense Approach to Grants & Abatements

Written By Jan Rifkinson

At the August 3rd Board of Selectmen meeting, the Jesse Lee Church requested an approximate $800 tax abatement  on about $12k in income derived from a parking lot business on their property.

After some discussion, the propriety of granting this abatement was tabled with the not-so-unusual statement by First Selectman, Marconi, that it had been rubber stamped for years without question based on some agreement made between some people at some time, some where.

In my view charity is a wonderful part of Ridgefield's heritage. What is problematic for me is how the monies are distributed.

When the last Charter Revision Commission was in session, I suggested that the BoS appoint a 'Grants Commission'.

Going forward any organization that wanted a grant would apply to that Commission in writing, explaining why a grant was needed. The Commission would  weigh the various requests, review usage reports from past recipients and present their recommendations to the BoS, which by charter, must disburse monies.

By doing it this way, I reasoned, disbursing grants would be independent of personal relationships and political spheres.

The Charter Revision Commission researched, honed and accepted this approach, presenting it to the Board of Selectmen who promptly killed it.

The First Selectman was protective of the current system. Di Master's voiced her opposition by saying that 'handing out grants was one of her most satisfying responsibilities'. Andy Bodner mused that the amount involved (currently in excess of $225k) wasn't enough to change the system. Both J Plock and B Manners were also skeptical.

I believe a common sense argument could be made that all grants, rent & tax abatements should fall into a single category so tax payers could easily see how many of their tax dollars were disbursed in this manner.

We might all be surprised how much we spend in discretionary funds.

Teacher's Unions Explained

Labor vs Education > Letter to the Editor, Ridgefield Press, Published 2011/03/17

Parents, PTA, READ, etc -- you are all sheep. Why do you exhibit only Pavlovian reactions to school budgets without considering the consequence?

You use your considerable organizations to pressure taxpayers to pay more, but not for education. Of the approved 2010 budget, 81.12% went to salaries & benefits, NOT to education.

High School: 1 Principal, 4 Assistant Principals, 4 Deans. Really?

What is the school doing with the $59,800 taken in Tiger Hollow gate receipts? This could have been a German class.

Students from 7-12 grades could supply their own netbook to plug into the schools' formidable IT system & save several hundred thousand dollars annually. How many teachers would that represent?

And none of this would cost taxpayers one extra penny.

Believe it or not, I stand with you on educational values. So you tell me, what's wrong with the current picture:

1. Middle school German will be eliminated (Mandarin was already cut)

2. Again, no literacy teacher will be hired

3. Art classes will again be reduced

4. Eight teachers will be cut next year

Clearly, labor is costing your children some education.

The political pressure applied by you parents, PTAs and READ is misplaced. Like a laser beam, you should be focused on labor costs which can be contained. Excellent teachers should be paid more. Bad teachers should find another job.

I believe in the right to negotiate but I believe it is time to change our approach to labor negotiations in order to benefit our children's education.

We are not beholden to the unions. This attitude has been exhibited in the past but times change, the truth emerges and our negotiating principles must change too.

We CAN re-open contracts. I ask you: what do you think is going to happen next year when teacher payroll goes up 3.0%?

Mark my words, education will suffer.

CT lost out on $175,000,000 in Federal education grants. Now what?

From "The Day - State News"

Hartford (AP) — Connecticut's school superintendents will get a briefing on new education laws and how the state will cope with losing out on $175 million in federal school reform grants.

The superintendents and officials from the state Department of Education are planning to gather Wednesday at the Capitol for their annual update before the start of the new school year.

One topic will be revising Connecticut's school reform plans now that the state has failed to qualify for the Obama administration's "Race to the Top" education grants.

Connecticut requested $175 million to pay for a package of reforms passed by the legislature this year. State Education Commissioner Mark McQuillan is expected to tell the superintendents on Wednesday which reforms can still be enacted.