CAPSO Midweek E-Mailer

We strongly encourage group registration by school. When schools register their faculty members and administrators as part of a group - parents and board members are welcome, too! - convention badges are mailed to the school in advance of the convention. That means no waiting in lengthy registration lines upon arrival at the event. Just pick up a copy of the program book and a plastic badge holder, and you're "good to go."

It only happens once every three years. Register now!

ACT: Good News and Bad News

The ACT is a national college admission and placement examination that has been administered in all 50 states since 1960. The exam, whose results are accepted at all U.S. colleges and universities, assesses four content areas: English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science. (A Writing component is optional.) The test has grown in popularity, with last year marking the first in which a greater number of students opted to take the ACT than the rival SAT. In California, the number of ACT test-takers has risen 60 percent over the course of the last five years.

ACT's most recent annual report indicates that the percentage of students who met benchmarks in all four content areas assessed by the exam increased. Surpassing the benchmarks is indicative of improved chances of passing entry-level college courses. Over the course of the last six years, the percentage of U.S. test-takers meeting all four benchmarks has increased 14 percent. That's the good news.

The bad news is that while performance on the test improved relative to prior years, the absolute number of U.S. test-takers meeting all four ACT benchmarks stands at a meager 24 percent. To the extent that ACT results can be generalized to all high school graduates hoping to enter the realm of higher education, three-quarters appear to be less than college-ready. Education Week reports the story, here.

According to ACT, a nonprofit entity headquartered in Iowa City, Iowa, its college admission and placement exam is neither an aptitude, nor an intelligence test, but an exam whose questions, "are directly related to what students have learned in high school courses." According to the test maker: "Because the ACT tests are based on what is taught in the high school curriculum, students are generally more comfortable with the ACT than they are with traditional aptitude tests or tests with narrower content."

The Obama administration hopes to make "college and career readiness" a key focal point of its national education policy. In March, 2010, the U.S. Department of Education released a document titled "ESEA Reauthorization: A Blueprint for Reform," which contained a prefatory letter from the President in which Mr. Obama declared: "We must ensure that every student graduates from high school well prepared for college and a career."

The Administration's apparent intent is to replace ESEA's current "proficiency" criteria, as determined by each state and subject to USDE approval, with a new set of criteria that serve as a proxy for college and career readiness. The Common Core State Standards Initiative is generally viewed as the vehicle by which a national curricular framework for achieving such a goal will be put in place. New assessment instrumentation linked to the common standards has yet to be approved. In light of widespread charges of "dumbed down" state assessments, and given the disappointing ACT results, one would hope that an improved evaluative framework can be implemented sooner, rather than later.

New Carolyn Coil Workshop from CPSAC

The California Private School Advisory Committee, K-12 is pleased to present a new, three-day workshop for nonprofit, private school teachers, and administrators of students enrolled in grades K-9. The workshop, which is subvented in part by ESEA, Title II, Part A funding, will be offered in two locations.

Monitoring Student Progress:

Using Data and Assessments to Drive Instruction

Presented by:

Carolyn Coil, Ed. D.

Download a registration form

Dates and Locations

Salinas

November 7 & 8, and December 7, 2011

Sacred Heart School

123 West Market Street

Salinas, CA 93901

Visalia

November 9 & 10 and December 6, 2011

George McCann School - St. Mary's Parish

506 N. Garden St.

Visalia, CA 93291

For Both Locations

Per-Person Registration:

Early Bird (postmarked or faxed before Sept. 26, 2011): $75.00

Postmarked or faxed after Sept. 26, 2011: $90.00

Registration fee includes workshop materials, continental breakfast, and lunch, each day of the program.

Program Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., each of the three days.

Please mail your completed registration form together with a check or purchase order payable to "SCOE Private Schools" to:

Private School Liaison

Sacramento County Office of Education

P.O. Box 269003

Sacramento, CA 95826-9003

Space is limited.

Registration will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis!

Workshop Description

This three-day workshop consists of an initial two-day workshop with a one-day follow-up session. In the first two days, you will learn how to use pre-assessments and formative assessments to monitor student progress and drive instructional decisions, along with ways to meet the needs of all students, including both struggling and gifted students. In the follow-up session on the third day, we will discuss how the implementation worked, share successes and ideas, and discover ways to deal with challenges in the implementation process.

You will discover ways to accommodate different learning preferences and readiness levels as you implement a number of practical differentiation and assessment strategies. You will also learn how to help students with motivation, organizational skills, study skills, or appropriate classroom behavior, and how to monitor their progress and steps to improvement. Each participant will receive a seminar packet, a CD with forms and templates in PDF and customizable Microsoft Word format, and a copy of Carolyn Coil's new book: Differentiation, RTI and Achievement: How They Work Together. You will learn how to use the Coil RTI Progress Monitoring , a graphic organizer with both pre-assessment and formative assessment data that helps show problem areas for an individual student, the interventions tried, and ways to measure student progress.

You are encouraged to register and attend as a school team of teachers and administrators.

Workshop topics include:

Pre-assessment, formative assessment, and summative assment: an introductory overview.
Designing and using pre-assessments to determine entry levels for students.
How to differentiate instruction based on pre-assessment data.
Using formative assessments to monitor student progress both academically and behaviorally.
Learning how to use the Coil RTI Progress Monitoring Form™ with four types of assessments: test scores, checklists, teacher observations, and performance assessments.
Designing differentiated instruction and making instructional decisions for both gifted and struggling students based on pre-assessments, formative assessments, and progress monitoring.
Planning behavioral interventions and using formative assessments in developing listening skills, study skills, and organizational skills.
Dealing with problems such as negative peer pressure and fear of failure, and monitoring student progress in these areas.
Developing an implementation plan that includes pre-assessments and formative assessments to use with targeted students at your school.
Discussing and analyzing the results of your implementation plan.

About the Presenter

Carolyn Coil, Ed. D.,is an internationally known presenter and educator. An enthusiastic, motivating, and energetic speaker, she has worked in the field of education for over 30 years. She has a master's degree in gifted and special education and a doctorate in educational leadership. Carolyn currently teaches courses in gifted and talented education and presents workshops for teachers and administrators on a wide variety of topics, including Assessment Strategies, Gifted Education, Differentiation, Learning Styles, Motivating Underachievers, and Parent/Teacher Collaboration. She has taught at all grade levels and has been an Adjunct Professor at several universities.

Carolyn has presented at national, state, and local workshops throughout the United States and in several countries in Europe and Asia. She is the author of a number of best-selling educational books published by Pieces of Learning, including Solving the Assessment Puzzle, Activities and Assessments for the Differentiated Classroom and Differentiation, RTI, and Achievement: How They Work Together. She has also been listed in numerous publications, such as the International Who's Who of Contemporary Achievement, 5000 Personalities of the World, and Who's Who in American Education.

Quick Takes

Education an Afterthought at GOP Debate

Education policy issues received scant attention at the second debate of Republican presidential nominee hopefuls, conducted just two days before Texas Governor Rick Perry announced his candidacy. With time running out in the two-hour program, moderator Bret Baier asked two of the contenders, former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, and former Godfather Pizza CEO Herman Cain,whether they would continue to enforce the No Child Left Behind Act, if elected. Both men offered a clear indication that they would not support continuing enforcement. Mr. Cain remarked, "I believe that the federal government should be out of the business of trying to micromanage the education of our children." Mr. Huntsman opined that the NCLB "...ought to be done away with," and specified the need for "choice" and "vouchers." A transcript of the debate can be found, here.

Governor Perry, who Education Week's Alyson Klein has called the "anti-Obama" (with respect to his views concerning national education policy), has spurned the idea of national content standards, refused to participate in the Obama administration's signature Race to the Top Fund program, and more recently told the National Conference of State Legislatures that the federal government needs to stop "dictating" school policy. More on Governor Perry's views is reported by EdWeek, here.

Green Schools Summit & Expo

From Green Technology

Green schools save money, make for healthy students and teachers and can help pave the way to a vigorous green economy and good jobs. The fifth annual Green California Schools Summit & Expo, taking place October 17-18, 2011 at the Pasadena Convention Center, is the place to learn about all aspects of green schools - from funding, to new building technologies, to implementing green curriculum.

This year, for the first time, the Green California Schools Summit and the Green California Community Colleges Summits will be held concurrently. Carl Pope, Sierra Club executive chairman and co-chair of the newly-formed Blue-Green Alliance, will be the keynote speaker during a general session open to attendees from both summits. Among the features will be a full education program, a Leadership Awards reception and a special one-day Green Curriculum Institute for educators featuring the new Environmental Education Initiative. For information and to register for the summit, visit this web page, or call Cindy Dangberg at 626-577-5700.

Note: Educators affiliated with CAPSO member organizations

can receive a 20% discount by entering "CAPSO" (all caps) when registering online.

Fall Online Workshops from Facing History and Ourselves

Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior

October 10, 2011- December 14, 2011

Using Facing History and Ourselves' unique sequence of study, teachers will examine how history is shaped by hatred, indifference, and denial, as well as by caring, compassion, and responsibility. We will explore the range of choices that led to the failure of democracy and ultimately the murder of millions of Jews and other targeted groups. Throughout the seminar, we investigate the complexities of human behavior, judgment, memory, and how we can make a difference in the world today. Apply now.

Choices in Little Rock: An Approach to Teaching the Civil Rights Movement

October 6, 2011- November 23, 2011

In 1957, nine black teenagers faced the threats of angry mobs on their first day of school in Little Rock, Arkansas. Their attempt to desegregate Central High School ignited a crisis that historian Taylor Branch described as "the most severe test of the Constitution since the Civil War" and illuminated the question of membership in a democracy. Using our resource Choices in Little Rock, participants examine ways to engage students in the issues raised by the civil rights movement in the U.S. and their implications for today, as well as how to facilitate difficult classroom conversations about race and difference. Apply now.

Both courses offer academic credit options.

What Does a Lobbyist Do?

When I was in 7th grade I decided I wanted to be an architect. It was a dream that died a quick death when, in my 8th grade Industrial Arts class, I discovered that drawing a straight line posed a considerable challenge, even with the assistance of a T-Square. Shortly thereafter, I decided that a career as a diplomat was better suited to my particular skills set. I even wrote a letter to then-Secretary of State Dean Rusk, apprising him of my intentions, and was delighted to receive an encouraging reply bearing his signature.

I did end up spending several years abroad, though I can't say I worked for the State Department. I was a farmer. Honest. And when I began grad school at UCLA, I sold waterbeds at a tony establishment called Innerspace Environments. I can still recall inducing dubious customers to stretch out on a vibrator-equipped bed in a softly lit area, assuring them that waterbeds do not cause seasickness, and getting them to lie completely still before flipping the switch and reciting in dulcet tones: You are now experiencing the Tranquil-Ease Sonic Massage Unit.

I viewed my entrance into the field of education as a continuation of the informal teaching and administration I had done as a camp counselor and youth group leader. The greater the experience I acquired, the more I came to realize that it was the generalists who tended to be most effective. Looking back, after more than 35 years in the profession, I can clearly see how there's a bit of the architect, farmer, diplomat, and salesperson in every educator.

If there's one thing I never, ever, ever expected to become, it's...well, when I meet people for the first time and am asked what I do, I wish you could see their reaction when I announce, quite matter-of-factly, that I am a lobbyist. The response is almost always a two-stage process beginning with a look of puzzlement, as if the person is wondering whether they heard me correctly. There follows a look of concern, as if the person who, just a moment before had seemed perfectly at ease in my presence, is now trying to ascertain whether he/she has been exposed to a source of contamination. It's as if they're trying to remember whether it was my photo they saw on the FBI's most wanted list. Some actually shrink away.

Let's face it. When one thinks of lobbyists, one often conjures images of sumptuous meals, five-star junkets, and hoards of cash channeled to influence public officials. Reality, however, paints a far different picture. For instance, lobbyists in the State of California are prohibited from making or arranging gifts whose value exceeds $10 to any state elected officer, legislative official, or state agency official whom their employer or lobbying firm lobbies, during the course of any calendar month. If I take a legislator, or one of his/her staff out to lunch, chances are it's going to be at McDonalds. I'm barred from making campaign contributions to candidates for election to the state legislature, or any government agency I lobby. Moreover, all registered lobbyists in the state of California, lobbying firms, and organizations employing lobbyists must file quarterly reports with California's Secretary of State. These filings are available for public viewing online.

Let's dispel another illusion: lobbying is anything but glamorous. The work begins with the monitoring of thousands of bills. To facilitate the task of locating potential bills of interest, I use special tracking software that allows me to enter various search terms, or references to existing state laws, and then lets me know if any new or amended bills meet my criteria. Next comes the hardest part: reading the proposed legislation, examining the existing laws and regulations, and determining whether a particular measure is sufficiently helpful or harmful to the common interests of California's private schools to warrant advocacy. Fortunately, I am assisted in making such calls by CAPSO's outstanding Public Policy Committee, officers, and board members, some of whom are, themselves, seasoned lobbyists. Being relatively new, I am privileged to learn from these most capable veterans.

Prior to taking an official position on a bill - an action requiring unanimity among CAPSO's member organization representatives - I will always contact the author's office to learn more about the measure from the staff person assigned to handle the bill. There's almost always a story behind the introduction of a bill, and understanding the factors and actors that precipitated its introduction are critical for effective lobbying. If CAPSO is considering possible opposition to a bill, or seeks to amend a portion of a bill's current language, I frequently speak or meet with representatives of the bill's sponsor(s), or key supporters. In "best-case scenarios," the polite presentation of a reasonable request results in either the acceptance of proposed modifications, or willingness to negotiate amendment language with which both parties can live. In many instances, such discussions, which often take place in the office of the bill's author, result in the strengthening of the proposed legislation, not only in a political sense, but with respect to its content and structure.

When CAPSO takes formal positions on pending pieces of legislation, I apprise the bill's author of our position in writing, and prepare to offer testimony (either in support or opposition) when the bill is heard in key committee hearings. Prior to such hearings, I will furnish every member of the committee with a letter enunciating CAPSO's position, and will speak with both the author's key staff person and the committee staffer assigned to the bill, so that they are familiar with our views. This is all part and parcel of the culture and etiquette of lobbying. Simply showing up at, say an Assembly Education Committee hearing and opposing a bill, with no advance notice of any kind, is frowned upon...no matter how powerful the entity doing the lobbying. Brevity, thorough preparation, clarity, and courtesy are also part of the culture of effective lobbying.

Lobbyists who do their jobs well will often be contacted by legislative staff members wishing to gauge the disposition of particular stakeholder groups to an idea, or bill in the making, to request information, or to ask questions about existing laws and regulations. When a committee staff member phones or e-mails me to ask such questions, I know I'm doing something right.

Of course, there's one more element to my work as a lobbyist that bears both mention and emphasis. When CAPSO takes formal positions on pieces of pending legislation, I invite you to lobby along with us by using CAPSO's Legislative Action Center to make your voice heard. Once the second year of the current legislative session picks up steam (in January, 2012), you'll undoubtedly see bills of interest appearing here, with friendly exhortations from CAPSO to send pre-scripted e-mails to your State Senator or Assembly Member. Please bookmark our Legislative Alerts and Updates webpage, and sign up for our Action E-List, so that we inform you of legislation of interest in a timely manner.

With your active participation, CAPSO can continue to assist California's private schools to pursue and achieve their distinctive missions and visions in an environment that remains free of excessive regulation and interference. That's a win-win situation for everyone!

Ron Reynolds

Publication Note

The next edition of the CAPSO Midweek E-Mailer will be published September 14, 2011.