News-Record.com

It's a shame that no one thought to consider the timing of this meeting, which will not only occur during the school holiday but also during the weekend preceding Christmas. The timing almost guarantees a miniscule turn-out.

This is similar to the timing of the BOE meeting earlier this month to discuss arts and music curricula that was scheduled on the same night as numerous student performances across the county.

The tsk-, tsk-, tsking about parents being unconcerned and uninvolved will inevitably follow.

Good point, Dave. I should have mentioned that there are also plans afoot to have a meeting at the school. Right now the date, time and place are TBA, but it won't be until after the new year.

So even if you have last minute Christmas shopping to do or vacation plans, this won't be the last chance to participate in the discussion.

IF you are concerned about Grimsley and other school violence issues, this is the time and voices need to be heard. It appears to be a very legitimate addressing of the issue and possibly even a potential model for all our schools. Grimsley was an incident quite similar to many that were pre-gang that maybe, with proper intervention could have stopped much of the gang in school problems that evolved.

You can keep moaning and complaining or get involved. Saying no one cares, I can’t make a difference may be the greatest lie of our times. There is a serious change in Board outlook and Grimsley may finally be the beginning of legitimate change. It is a multi-racial issue and is being approached in a way that provides real hope again.

Another issue being hidden is the longer school year/longer school day issue. Some studies show that lengthening the school day may help, some show changing the curriculum may help more, especially with violence and learning environment. Our experts flown in by Terry backed down when asked how important lengthening the day or year was compared to teacher preparation and curriculum. One nationwide study showed yoga as an effective stress release valve and that adding a session of yoga to the school day had no negative effect to academic performance, suggesting that time on subject matter may not be as important as school environment.

Why no blogg on the issue of length of day/length of year and school/classroom learning environment? Could Grimsley have been prevented by more outlets for learning and activities involving both neighborhoods? It looks like it to me, but I have learned to ask questions and expect legitimate documented answers. The solution to our issues and schools may fall in line with an old Russian saying about men on a boat capsized at sea…Pray to God and swim to shore.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and may the rain be steady, the fields fertile and your harvest plentiful.

The news showed the meeting on Saturday and sadly there were about 5 people there. I think the timing is the worst issue with attendance, at least I hope so. I do hope the school will offer another forum at the school, where everyone should be on equal footings with no one neighborhood/group of people will fill left out.

We have to take our schools back from thugs and disinterested students. Bad behavior should not be tolerated. High expectations of behavior should be the norm, not the exception.

The real question is what level of behavior is okay and what will we do with students that don't meet that level of behavior. The ones that need the most help are not being reached. I don't see this as a racial thing, but many do. I think that by not having a strict guideline we leave much to interpretation by individuals. We need to show children what they can do and not do with clear instructions. What we let them get away with in school, will get them fired at a job. They can't yell at their bosses, be late for a job, not dress appropriately, etc.; yet we let them get away with this all the time in school. I don't think we do them a favor by turning a blind eye. I know we aren't doing the students that come to learn any favors by ignoring those that break the rules.

Garth,
longer days and more days might be effective, but way too costly. Better to use the time efficiently instead of taking care of disciple issues, and testing, testing testing. Now we test every 15 days to see if we 'master' something, then benchmarks, psat's, writing benchmarks, regular teachers test etc. I agree we need to understand if kids are actually mastering a subject, but shouldn't the regular teachers test do that? Or maybe we use the 15 day test instead of having the teacher do another test; of course many of the 15day tests don't correspond with where the teacher is on their subject. Iknow they are suppose to,but I doubt that every teacher stays on task, or even agrees with the order in which the GCS staff says they have to teach.

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Garth, I've been blogging about the extended day/year for some time now. Here are some links for you to munch on:

http://erikhuey.wordpress.com/2007/12/10/on-school-time-it%e2%80%99s-better-not-more-jlf/

http://erikhuey.wordpress.com/2007/11/27/griers-going-to-do-it-anyway/

http://erikhuey.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/more-class-time-not-correlated-with-better-performance-cj/

http://erikhuey.wordpress.com/2007/11/01/grier-suggests-longer-school-day-year-hpe/

http://erikhuey.wordpress.com/2007/08/17/better-instruction-not-more-time-jlf/

Dave, thanks for noticing the timing on the arts issue. The report was supposed to be delivered on Dec. 4. Despite the rescheduling -- perhaps because of it -- many arts education supporters cancelled other plans so they could attend the meeting.

Garth, you seemed positively rejuvenated Thursday! I am glad to see Hope has found you (or vice versa) this Christmas season.

Amanda, Erik, Debora,

Joyeux Noel, Feliz Navidad, Happy Hanukah and best wishes for a healthy and joyous new year.

Just read this bit from an article in the High Point Enterprise:

"The National Association of Elementary School Princi pals points out that teaching middle schoolers to set goals is one way of helping students develop life skills they need to deal with opportunities in and out of school.
The NAESP also suggests that young teens be encour aged to join school clubs, or ganizations and sports where they can have a sense of be longing. Educators say those “structured outlets” could help keep them from joining gangs and participating in other de linquent behavior.
Zach Burnett, a Welborn seventh-grader, says he has adjusted quickly to middle school with the support of friends and an active school day that keeps him busy. He helps produce a morning tele vision show that is broadcast throughout the school and is active with student council and the orchestra."

One of the consultants who spoke last Thursday mentioned he was doing some scheduling work for a school that was giving away instruments and encouraging students to participate in band. The reason was that the school had gang problems and they were trying to move the kids away from the gangs by involving them in the band. (A friend of mine suggested a great bumpersticker for that school, "Gangs of Bands -- Not Bands of Gangs".)

Garth, you were instrumental (pardon the pun) in getting the Aycock drumline off the ground. Do you have any statistics on the participants? Do they have fewer behavioral issues than Aycock students who are not involved in drumline or other arts/athletics programs?

Perhaps encouraging expanded involvement in arts programs and athletic teams may play a part in a comprehensive strategy to reduce behavioral problems and gang activity.

It is my understanding that the Piedmont Triad Partnership's Community Arts Initiative may be considering a trial program of this sort.

I have only lived in this County for the last four years.

I am beginning to think that Garth can be the spark for a new age for Guilford County schools.

I only hope that other members can jump into the fire together with him.

Garth and Pierce, your ideas are great. We must think outside the box to save our children and schools. Grimsley is in a wonderful position to create a successful model for the rest of the country to follow. Grimsley presently has Black and White parents working together to obtain resources to help our children. Various churches and community organizations have signed up to assist in a variety of ways.

We can improve our schools, but we as parents must step up to the plate and provide assistance. It is far more cost effective to education a child in school than it is to lock a child up. Perhaps if we didn't spend so much money locking children up, there would be more money available for the arts.

Keep your eye on Grimsley. Better days are ahead. :-)

Garth as an agent for change? Give me a break. He has done nothing for us at Southwest with the same problem and now he mouths off about Greensboro. FIX HIGH POINT FIRST! He, like the rest of the board is afraid of these children and will do nothing but hold a low attended, symbolic meeting. Garth is a silly boy with delusions of grandeur dancing in his own head. He promotes himself as this great new wave of energy and then holds flowers for Terry Grier at the meetings, literally, and then approves giving him a raise. What happened to "Get Grier Out of Here," what are we going to do hope for allergic reactions from the flowers mighty Garth gave him? Garth, I'll give you 50 dollars if you can make it through a meeting without talking about yourself. You make the meetings intolerable with your self-righteousness blabble. I thought Dot Kearns was bad. And I voted for Garth. I guess I will place that in the same catagory as my wasted vote for Bob Dole. But at least I didn't have high hopes for Bob Dole. If Garth and the board were serious about discipline, they would throw the troublemakers out all over the county and let them see how easy it is to make it in life without an education. There are too many kids seeking an education to have it jeopardized by the few.

But they will just have to suffer as long as we have a board like this.

HA HA HA,

I think that you are right about one thing and totally wrong about another. Firstly, Garth has spent one year on the board playing nice about discipline and not enough of his board colleagues want to help. I have seen some signs that this is about to change.

Secondly, have you had your head in the sand about SW? Go and ask anyone that lives in the Whites Mill area. Garth and Garth alone pulled off the mighty achievement of giving those people he choice to attend their local school. He is a folk hero!

Sounds like Hahaha is one of Garth's fellow members of the school board.

Whoever the funny person is it seems that he/she knows Garth quite well.

Garth is only person and to affect change and enforce discipline, he has to have 5 more votes.

Let's see I can only count Garth, Anita, Darlene as those who truly wish to see discipline restored.

I can't think of 3 others on that board who want the same.

That's why Darlene will be reelected easily in 2008. Amos is up for reelection too. We need to start looking for talent to run for the Cooke/Childs seats.

I think Kris Cooke is much improved since the two muppets Mendehall and Sykes jumped ship. Anyone with half a brain would be better than Walter Childs.

Kris Cooke works very hard to please parents. Sometimes this is in the best interest of education in Guilford Co. and sometimes it is not. Her weakness is getting the proper balance throughout the system. For instance she is for millions for athletics at Page. It is no doubt needed. However, all schools should have had equal opportunity to present their athletic needs before Board Members get locked in on Page. She voted against role models like Edward R. Murrow and Ronald McNair. She is not a leader in education she is a follower.

That being said, she is a nice lady and a hard worker. The drive for excellance is not one of her priorities.

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