Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles" | Video on TED.com

I thought this video might be worthwhile for you.  I hope school districts across the country create students like this speaker that are willing to challenge what seems unchallengeable

Eli Pariser: Beware online "filter bubbles" Video on TED.com

My First Week and an Opinion on Test Scores

I have enjoyed my first week in the school district.  I have had the opportunity to meet many people that work in the school district and even the people at Lumpy’s! I have taken a ride (thanks to Mr. Smith) out to Claridge and I immediately felt as if I was back home in the country in Tioga County. I am starting to get a sense about why and how the school district has performed so well over the past few years. 

There has been a laser focus at P-T on achieving a 100% proficiency rate on the PSSA exam in English and Math.  Detractors may argue that test scores do not mean that a student will be successful (or not) in life, and I agree.  What the test scores do reflect is good teaching and powerful instruction.  The debate about whether or not test scores are good or bad is a fun one to participate in, but largely irrelevant to understand the real value of these test scores. Test scores can be used as a catalyst to start conversations about great instruction and student learning. I believe that anytime you can engage a teacher or an administrator in a discussion about what is working in a classroom, then students benefit.  So, if an administrator starts the discussion with a teacher about their classroom practice because test scores are either high or low in the school or the subject area, then that is a good thing.  Oftentimes collaboration among colleagues and sincere reflection of teaching practice result in these conversations being started; in other words, the education narrative in the school building or school district is now centered on THE MOST IMPORTANT ACT in the school district…teaching students.  So for that reason I believe a focus on test scores benefit students.

Proud to be a "Public Servant"

The recent debate in Washington D.C. concerning raising the debt ceiling enlightened me on a few things.  First, the amount of cynicism that politicians have for their own occupation is amazing. If they dislike what they do so much and they have so little respect for their profession then I question why they have even chose their occupation.  As a guidance counselor I always told students that they should follow their passion and spend the rest of their lives doing something they loved.  The rhetoric from the politicians in D.C. does not lead me to believe they love their job.   As I followed the debt ceiling debacle I heard many politicians start their interviews with “Those people in Washington “; I think they have forgotten that they are those people in Washington.  Have they forgotten that they are public servants elected to do the work of the people?  I have spent my entire working career as a public servant and I am proud that I have given my blood sweat and tears for public education.

I am happy that I have not worked in any industry whose goal is to create profits by cheating tax payers (Enron).  I am glad that I have not had to create incredibly confusing financial deals to make fake profits (Lehman Brothers).  I am proud that I work with local community members on a daily basis to try to make their life better.  I am overjoyed that I work with local small businesses to create solutions to problems that benefit everyone involved including the community.  I am proud that I work with the most democratic government entity in the United States…the local school board.  The decisions made by school boards are immediately felt in their local community.  If the school board makes a decision that someone questions they will hear about it while they shop at the local grocery store or when they are out in the community.  In other words, they are immediately responsible for the decisions they make.

School board members give their time to improve the lives of students.  Every school board that I have worked with was filled with people that had a passion to help students and the community.  Sure, different board members have differing opinions and there are moments of discord; but that is what democracy is all about.  The art of compromise occurs all of the time on school boards that I have worked with.  I look forward to working with the Penn-Trafford school board as we work with the community to provide the best learning experiences for our children.  This is why I am a public servant and this is why I am proud to be in this profession.