Universal Design Workshop at Olympic College with Terrill Thompson

Terrill Thompson from the UW DO-IT program will be at Olympic College in Bremerton January 24^th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. to discuss Universal Design and how it applies directly to creating accessible documents and online resources.  Terrill is a respected expert in this field and we are lucky to have him come to the Olympic College campus.

We would like to extend the invitation for faculty, or staff to come to this great session.  If you have anyone interested please contact Tom Jacobs at tjacobs@olympic.edu 

Gov. Brown Eliminating Calif. Secretary of Education Post

In his first week in office, California Gov. Jerry Brown's approach to education has emerged as one reminiscent of an earlier era, when the governor didn't have an education secretary and the State Board of Education was the chief executive's primary vehicle for setting school policy.

Brown announced Friday he is eliminating the secretary of education post, saving $1.9 million a year. The position was created in 1990 by then-Gov. Pete Wilson following years of acrimony between a prior Republican governor, George Deukmejian, and the elected superintendent of public instruction, who was then Bill Honig, a Democrat.

http://www.sacbee.com/2011/01/07/3308477/brown-eliminating-calif-secretary.html#

Save the Date - 2011 PESB Conference

The 2011 PESB Conference, formerly known as the Assessment Conference, will be held April 14-15 in Spokane. 

 2011 PESB Spring Institute Strands

Teacher Programs:

·         Focusing on the impact of data collection on program changes

·         Implementing the TPA, including a focus on academic language acquisition

·         Collecting and evaluating quality evidence for Standard V, including ELL and aesthetic reasoning

·         Developing effective strategies and materials for training mentor and cooperating teachers

·         Promising practices and effective design of year long clinically based internship models, including Alternative Routes

·         Pathways and partnerships designed to recruit and retain candidates from underrepresented populations in  teacher preparation programs

For more information contact Coleen Putaansuu ,  coleen.putaansuu@k12.wa.us 

Feds Make ELLs a Priority for Tests Based on Common-Core Standards

The federal government intends to provide grants for the development of English-language-proficiency assessments that are aligned with the national common-core standards. A notice of the U.S. Department of Education's new priority to support the creation of new English-proficiency tests for English-language learners appeared this morning in theFederal Register. The deadline for comments on the notice is Feb. 7.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2011/01/feds_make_ell_tests_based_on_c.html

Washington is Second in New National Board Certified Teachers

Check out this article from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) about Washington State placing second in the country for National Board Certified Teachers!  Great job Washington!


http://www.k12.wa.us/Communications/PressReleases2010/WashSecondNewNBCT.aspx

Gates and Weingarten: Fixing Our Nation's Schools - Newsweek

Interesting Q&A session with Bill Gates and Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers on how to best fix our country’s education system.

Gates and Weingarten: Fixing Our Nation's Schools - Newsweek

Educator Supply and Demand

No timeline yet for the next Educator Supply and Demand in Washington report. This formerly biennial survey of school districts is a valuable resource that reflects shortages by endorsement for different geographical areas. The most recent survey was 2006, two years before the economic downturn. All previous reports can be found online at: http://www.k12.wa.us/certification/Resources.aspx

Some findings from the 2006 report include:

Roles/fields statewide experiencing “considerable shortage”
• Speech Language Pathologist
• Occupational Therapist
• Special Education
• Mathematics
• Physical Therapist
• School Psychologist
• Science–Physics
• Science–Chemistry
• School Nurse

Fields experiencing “some shortage” state-wide
• Early Childhood Special Education
• Middle Level–Math/Science
• Science
• Biology
• Earth Science

Implications for Colleges and Universities
• Reallocate resources from programs in areas of surplus to programs in areas of high shortages.
• Initiate preparation programs in counties with educator needs and little access to current programs.
• Form partnerships with districts, educational service districts, and businesses to provide performance-based preparation options for para-educators and career changers.
• Expand recruitment efforts targeted toward retired military personnel, state and federal employees.
• Advice program applicants and community college and high school students about educator high need areas.
• Expand the number of articulated community college-four year institution programs in mathematics, sciences, and music.
• Redesign all preparation programs to include assessment of prior learning and experience of applicants.
• Establish performance based criteria for early exit from all preparation programs.
• Consider supply and demand data when making decisions about enrollment targets and adding or deleting programs.