Issue: #59

June 2015

In This Issue

Featured Article

Final State Budget

SBAC Testing Complete

Equity and Race Conference

Teacher Conference

Ravenswood STEM Students

School Supply Drive

We're on Facebook

Featured Article

SMCSBA sponsored a conference in June that focused on education, equity and race.

Final State Budget Includes

More for Early Education

The final California state budget approved by the legislature and the Governor on June 16, 2015 did not radically differ from the Governor's May Revision--the May budget called for $115.3 billion in spending while the final budget figure is $115.4 billion. It wasn't a huge increase but one that will have an impact on increased access to early education.

Included in money stacks that additional $.1 billion are 7,000 more full-day preschool slots across the state and 6,800 more childcare vouchers that parents can use to pay daycare providers.

"We are pleased that the legislature and Governor have strongly supported investments in early learning by expanding access for families of low-income to quality preschool services," notes Jean-Marie Houston, Director, Early Learning Support Services at the San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE). "A modest increase in the per child funding rate will also help programs in our high-cost county to make ends meet as they face ever increased costs to provide these services."

For approximately 40 years, SMCOE has held a contract with the California Department of Education to deliver California State Preschool services to 3- and 4-year old children of low-income families in San Mateo County. SMCOE currently has close to 800 children enrolled across the county, from Pescadero to Daly City, and plans are in the works to pursue new investments that arise from this budget.

It is not yet known what methodology the state will use to allocate these new funds, but given the fact that San Mateo County has a lower number of low-income families than many other counties in the state, Houston suspects the increased budget will yield fewer than 100 new spaces for San Mateo County families.

Also included in the June budget, thanks to an agreement Governor Brown made with Senate President pro Tem Kevin de León, D-Los Angeles and Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, a sum of $500 million in one-time spending for teacher development. Districts will receive the money on a per-teacher and per-administrator basis. They can use the funding over three years to provide training in the Common Core and other new academic standards, to support new teachers and principals or struggling teachers identified through Peer Assistance and Review programs, and to train mentor principals and teachers.

All in all, this year's budget reflects a significant increase for K-12 education. The $68.4 billion for Prop. 98 represents a 12.3 percent increase, $7.5 billion more than the $60.9 billion last year. One-time and ongoing appropriations for K-12 schools and community colleges will total $14 billion next year.

Districts Complete SBAC

Testing and Await Results

The first "operational" administration of the Smarter Balanced Assessments (SBAC) is now complete, and districts throughout San Mateo County and California are eagerly awaiting the results.

The new tests, given in an online format to students in grades 3 through 8 and 11, measure achievement of the Common Core State Standards and allow students to demonstrate their ability to write analytically, think critically, and solve problems along with their command of content knowledge. Districts throughout San Mateo County reported that the administration of the tests, which required computers and adequate Internet access, went smoothly for the most part.

This is the first year that all students took the tests in both language arts and math, and students, parents, schools and districts will soon have access to the scores. Each district will get scores no more than eight weeks after completion of the testing. Parents will get their child's scores within 20 days of the district receiving official scores or within the first 20 days of the coming school year if scores arrive after the last day of school. Scores from across the state will be available to the public via the California Department of Education's CAASPP Webpage.

In a recent survey of districts conducted by the San Mateo County Office of Education's Center for Learning Analytics, school districts in San Mateo County reported they felt more prepared this year for administering the SBAC and that the tests had fewer glitches than were experienced last year with the field test. Districts reported that overall the test administration went smoothly, though they were still adjusting to this new system of assessment.

"We tested 6,000 students and had very few problems or technical glitches," notes Phil Lind, now retired Director of Assessment and Student Services in the Redwood City School District. He added that about 50 percent of the results are in and available to his district online but they don't expect to have complete results until the end of July.

"There's a natural tendency to want to compare results to past years but this is a new type of test in a new format assessing new standards. Consequently, we can't compare results with the California Standards Tests (CSTs) from past years," notes Dr. Gary Waddell, Deputy Superintendent at the San Mateo County Office of Education. "This being the first operational administration of the new assessments, these results will tell us a lot about what students know and are able to do. That picture will become even clearer in future years as we collect additional data for comparison that will further inform our ways of knowing about our students so we can continue to fine-tune our work with them."

SMCSBA Conference Shines a Light on Education, Equity and Race

In early June, nearly 80 local school board members, community leaders, and educators gathered at Skyline College in San Bruno to discuss the important intersecting issues of education, equity, and race. Organized by the San Mateo County School Boards Association (SMCSBA) and sponsored by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the event aimed at opening a conversation about the ways in which school practices and the resulting culture can have a profound--and often unintentionally negative--effect on student success.

Eleanor Clement Glass spoke about the issue of math class misplacement
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Eleanor Clement Glass, a special advisor with the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, spoke extensively on the issue of math class misplacement, where students in minority and disadvantaged populations may be scheduled into a class in ninth grade for which they have already earned a passing grade the prior year. To address this concern, many districts have already started implementing solutions: Sequoia Union High School District, for example, recognized the problem in its own community and within a year was placing students in the correct classes between 96 and 99 percent of the time.

Practices such as math misplacement, inconsistent disciplinary procedures, and responses to parent intervention can have a disparate impact on certain student subgroups. When these trends are recognized, schools have a responsibility to intervene, argued keynote speaker Amanda Lewis, Associate Professor of African American Studies and Sociology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Racism is often subtle and unintentional, she said, but it's still consequential, and schools can often make minor changes that can result in widespread improvement.

The event closed with a panel of students discussing their personal experiences with race and equity at school. The students reinforced the idea that equity problems often aren't intentional on the part of teachers or administrators and are probably more systemic in nature. Several students lamented the lack of representation for non-white and non-Asian students in honors and Advanced Placement classes, and the student panelists also wished they were better equipped to talk about these issues with teachers and peers. Multiple panelists suggested there were a number of ways to discuss race and equity in a classroom without it becoming emotionally charged.

The conclusion many speakers came to is that change begins with the individual. The way to close the equity gap--and hopefully the achievement gap--is for individuals at the school and district level to recognize when they're jumping to conclusions that may not be supported by data. Categorization is a human response, but we as educators have to take steps to ensure that our own biases aren't having a negative effect on certain students or groups. Schools in San Mateo County are already working hard to address these gaps, but there is still more to do.

Calling All Teachers for One of a Kind Event This Summer

An exciting opportunity for California teachers is coming this summer. On Friday, July 31, 2015 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. more than 20,000 teachers from across the state will gather in 33 locations-- universities, hotels and convention centers throughout the state-- to participate in Better Together:

Better Together
California Teachers Summit
.

California Teachers Summit, a one-of-a-kind event designed to help teachers build a powerful network of peers, share best practices and access effective resources to implement the new Common Core State Standards.

The program will include nationally renowned speakers and facilitated discussions, led by teachers for teachers. Teachers will walk away with access to resources and concrete tools they can use in the classroom. The event is free to all California PreK-12 teachers, teacher candidates and school administrators. A .5 unit continuing education credit will be available to interested teachers at a minimal cost.

New Teacher Center, California State University (CSU) and the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities (AICCU) are hosting this one-of-a-kind event.For more information and Summit locations, check the registration website and Facebook page .

STEM Fair Ignites Spark for Ravenswood Students

In the Ravenswood City School District (RCSD), STEM means much more to students than science, technology, engineering, and math--and the teachers and administrators know it. For a district where 90 percent of students come from low-income families and 67 percent are English language learners, giving kids a head start in these 21st-century fields helps open doors.

Ravenswood students celebrate their success at the STEM Fair.

It's why Ravenswood participated in the San Mateo County STEM Fair in March 2015 for the second year in a row, dedicating time and resources to prepping students for presentations, and providing lessons in how to shake hands and what to wear. It's why they partnered with Facebook and community organizations to bring makerspaces--rooms stocked with laptops, 3-D printers, and robotics kits--into seven of their schools. And it's why they host events like "Dinner with a Scientist," where enterprising RCSD students who participated in the Fair get to hobnob with professionals representing a wide range of STEM fields.

Ravenswood is seeing results from their efforts already: This year at the STEM Fair, 25 RCSD students walked away with awards, and four of those students won first place in their categories. "We were jumping up and down for joy when the kids won first place," said Angelica Tellechea, the district's Community School Coordinator. "They worked so hard, and it was great to see them be rewarded."

At Dinner with a Scientist, students excitedly shared their projects with the scientists in attendance. The professionals in turn shared information about their research and the various projects they work on. Many of the scientists hoped their presence and interactions with students could spark a love for STEM in at least a few young hearts and minds.

It looks like these opportunities are having the intended effect: When one student was asked how he felt about participating in the STEM Fair and Dinner with a Scientist, he remarked, "I didn't even know I liked STEM!"

Children's Fund and SMCOE Collect School Supplies for Needy Kids

As in years past, the San Mateo County Office of Education, in conjunction with the Children's Fund of San Mateo County's annual drive, is once again collecting new school supplies and backpacks this summer for foster and low-income youth in San Mateo County.

The Children's Fund provides new backpacks and school supplies to more than 1,500 low-income, homeless, and foster youth in San Mateo County so that they can start the school year prepared with the tools they need to succeed.

A collection bin will be in the front lobby of the San Mateo County Office of Education and donations will be accepted up until August 6. Donations can also be brought to 1 Davis Drive in Belmont. Needed supplies include: backpacks in any color except red or blue, binder paper, crayons, markers, pens, pencils, rulers and composition books.

The Children's Fund also has a website where you can see the full list of items needed and donate online. Gift cards from stores (e.g., Kmart, Kohl's, JCPenney, Macys, Target, and others), and check donations are also welcome (make check payable to Children's Fund and write "school drive" in the memo section of the check). Mail donations to Children's Fund, 1 Davis Drive, Belmont, Calif.,94002. If a receipt is desired for donations, be sure to provide a return address.

You can also join the Children's Fund Facebook page.

We'll See You in August

SMCOE News and Views will be taking a break for the month of July.

Check your inbox for our back-to-school issue at the end of August.

Enjoy your summer!

Check Us Out on Facebook

The San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE) now has a page on Facebook. We'll be providing frequent upd facebook logo

ates on SMCOE events and education news of interest, adding groups of interest, and linking to other education organizations. Check us out and "like" us today on Facebook!

About the San Mateo County Office of Education

The San Mateo County Office of Education provides a variety of instructional, business and consulting services to the County's 23 public school districts, charter schools, the Community College District and County Office of Education staff.

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