Dress to Learn

I never thought I would say this, but our high school needs a tighter dress code. It’s not a personal issue with me. I believe wholly in broad individual rights, but, give me a break.

I can stand outside my door at any given transition period and tag a half-dozen kids easily for dress code violations. I see students with saggy pants, flip-flops, t-shirts at their knees, holes in jeans, pajama bottoms, and way too much cleavage. I allow many to pass because I have priorities other than fashion police. If I tag anyone for violations, it takes time to process, e. g., stop the kid, get his/her name, write a referral, get him/her to the office, etc. Is that right or not?

Obviously, Texas school districts wrestle with this issue universally. Bryan ISD assigned a committee to recommend whether the dress code ought to be relaxed. At the same time, Seguin ISD announced no changes in its policy, but will initiate “a more strict enforcement” of the existing dress code. On the other side, Gonzales ISD received national news attention last year for requiring dress code violators to wear prison-style navy blue jumpsuits.

Most districts, and I admit I have not surveyed all, have a dress code that speaks to apparel, hair, and body similar to the general guidelines of Bastrop ISD as follows:

· Clean body and clothing;
· Pants, slacks, shorts, or skirts worn at the waistline;
· Covered midriff;
· Shirts may be worn out, unless they are longer than the bottom of the fingertips when the arms are fully extended at the side;
· Appropriate shoes; no house shoes;
· Shorts must be as long as the bottom of the fingertip with the arms fully extended at the side.

Other districts go into tedious detail involving skirt/shirt length, spaghetti strap width, body piercing, tattoos, etc.

So, what’s the answer to all of this diversion from education? Some districts have a good, simple answer: the uniform. It takes away any guessing for the parents and staff. It reduces time spent policing a detailed dress code policy. It allows students to focus on learning rather than be distracted by appearance. Kudos to the districts of Wylie, Houston, and Palestine for implementing a sane approach to dress.

I cannot say it any better than this, “In its quest for excellence, Mesquite ISD is committed to requiring a higher expectation of dress for our students. The district believes that students should dress in a way that is appropriate for the learning environment. Maintaining a school atmosphere suitable for academic study will help students focus on the business of school.”

Supreme Court Rules

Thank you to the Supreme Court and (soon-to-be former) Justice Souter for the decision in the case involving the strip search of an Arizona middle-school female student in pursuit of drugs as a violation of her Fourth Amendment rights. So, someone told the school administration that this 13-year old girl was holding drugs, i. e., prescription ibuprofen. An assistant principal at a school with a zero-tolerance drug policy directed the school nurse to search the girl including removing her bra and panties. (She held nothing, incidentally.) Unbelievable! All I want to do is ask the universal question, “What the hell were you thinking??” You ever hear of “call the parents!?”

All said, this has nothing to do with education, but, rather, is an individual rights case (thus the Fourth Amendment stance). The case on which the Court ruled that impacts education is Forest Grove School District v. T.A. The plaintiffs claim that the school district failed to identify their child as ADHD and, therefore, refused services. The parents placed the child in a private school and, subsequently, sued the district for reimbursement ($5,000 a month). The Court ruled that even though the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) meant to control the costs of private school placement, it does not preempt a hearing officer or federal judge to order reimbursement under certain circumstances.

What does that mean? It means that the door is open for parents who disagree with a district’s decision of providing special education services can opt to take their business elsewhere at the district’s (taxpayer’s) expense. As Justice Souter (are we going to miss him or what) wrote in the dissenting opinion in the 5-4 decision, “Special education can be immensely expensive, amounting to tens of billions of dollars annually and as much as 20 percent of public schools’ general operating budgets.” I say that the majority of districts’ special education personnel have the best interest of the student at heart and mind. This decision opens the door to parents who disagree with any district decision to go elsewhere and send the tab to the taxpayer. This is not the intent of IDEA.

What say you?

Roll Over Gutenberg!

I read as much as I can. I started to say that I read a lot, but that is meaningless. I know folks who read more than I do and I know folks who read less. I even know folks who say that they don’t read at all. Can you imagine?

I guess it all comes down to what reading is. I am not talking about reading a newpaper article or two on Sunday, although I do that. I’m not talking about incidental reading one does daily, like directions to a restaurant. I mean reading a novel for enjoyment or a non-fiction book that sharpens one’s understanding of the world or a magazine or professional journal to engage in a deeper thinking about one’s environment.

Now, I find myself retrieving my reading material as much, if not more, from internet sites. I actually reviewed an 18C book written by a French philosopher explaining his religious views. Thank you Google for offering millions of books online. Which brings me to the core of this post: HB 4294 allows districts to use textbook funding for electronic textbooks. Wow! Think about it, or rather, what do you think about it? Go to Steve johnson's article, How the E-Book Will Change the Way We Read and Write, for a fun read.

New Laws, or not

Yea, HB 3646 passed through Gov. Perry. So, according to the new law, teachers et al will get a minimum $800 (based on 187 days) raise next year. Wow, that is a whopping $66.66 per month before taxes and TRS over a 12-month pro-rated contract. Granted, that the required increase is on top of the amount the employee would be entitled to under the district's 2008-09 salary schedule, if it were carried forward to 2009-10. That may average out to about a whopping $1,000 per year. Now I can finally max out that credit card, go on that summer long European vacation, pay for my son’s college, and everything else that is absolutely out of reach on a teacher’s salary.

And, to add promise to penury, it’s all dependent on stimulus money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Unfortunately, the feds have yet to rule on whether the funding can be used to provide an across-the-board pay raise in Texas. So, don't spend that windfall yet.

Otherwise, Perry vetoed HB 130 that would have established a $25 million grant for pre-kindergarten programs to expand to full-day. He also vetoed HB 2656 (submitted by Rep Miller, R-New Braunfels) that would have increased the number of retiree representatives on TRS by one. This was an about-face from his election campaign promise of “changing the makeup of the board so it would include greater employee representation." Both of these passed through the legisalature virtually unopposed.

Once again, the politicians fail to get it.

Block vs. Traditional Schedule

Our high school is returning in the fall to a traditional schedule of seven periods per school day. This comes after the past several years of working on a 4x4 block schedule. I have taught both and can list my personal pros and cons of both.

Our district trustees were up front about the change having nothing to do with learning, but everything to do with finances. Facing a $1.6 million shortfall in January, they supported a few major changes to cut $1.2 million, one of those being a return to the 7-period day. I do, however, disagree with a statement made in their publication Across the Board of April 20, 2009 that the cuts will not adversely impact educational programs. I believe that is an inaccuracy. We cannot change from a block schedule back to a traditional schedule without some adverse impact. If I am wrong, please, tell me how. The publication offered no insight to that statement.

I have done a literature search of the schedule issue. I found no significant data that supports one schedule over another. It seems that support of one over the other comes from personal preference. As a vocational teacher, I preferred block simply because the time allowed for in-depth work on long-term projects. As a language teacher, I can debate the pros and cons either way. From an employee perspective, I find a 7-period day more physically demanding.

I know that as a teacher you have very little, if any, say on the schedule in your district. I would like to hear, however, what you prefer and why. If you have found any research supporting one over the other in a significant manner, cite it. I want to review it. If you feel strongly from experience about one over the other, I want to hear that as well.

Professional Associations

There are several teacher associations in Texas, all vying for your money. Which is the best? I am current in American Federation of Teachers - Texas. However, I do not plan on re-newing my membership. Why? They do not seem to have an effective lobbying presence in the state legislature. I don't know, maybe it's because they are a really blue organization in a very red state. There is another reason. They don't respond to my inquiries via email. I ask questions, they fail to respond.

So, to which professional association do you belong? How is it working for you? I have a couple of months to be persuaded to join another.

Cheers.

Howdy Texas Teachers

Welcome to the Texas Teacher Talk blog. This is designed for every teacher in the state who wants to chat about texas education issues. All topics are open from helping students to certification to pay raises (or the lack of).

It's all about sharing infomation that helps your colleagues better serve their students, their community, and themselves. It's all about patting yourself on the back and giving your peers a well deserved high-five. It's all about venting your spleen and speaking your opinion. It's all about you, the Texas teacher.

Y' all come back real soon :-)