Focus Leader: Theresa Meyers
Secretary: Avis Minger
Focus Group: Bay Area
Notes From WASC Meeting---December - 2004
For Task #1: Add parents to "Responsible People", for the task itself,
have it read "increase by 10% or 2 proficiency", and add STAR results
to "Methods to Report".
For Task #2: Parents couldn't be involved in this item. It was suggested that
sets of leveled readers could be purchased and checked out to ES's for purposes
of assessing students in primary and elementary grades. Time could be set aside
at one or two regular meetings for students to read to their ES's to demonstrate
their level of proficiency. Students needing additional tutoring or supplemental
curriculum could be identified and helped.
For Task #2a: No changes.
For Task #3: Definitely parents could be added here as responsible persons.
For Task #3a: Again, we felt parents could be added as responsible people involved
with this item.
For Task #3b: We felt ES's needed to be added to the list of responsible people.
For Task #3c: ES's should be added to the list of people responsible, and bilingual
consultants and teachers should be added to the list of resources.
For Task #3d: Add ES's to list of responsible people.
For Task #4: Add ES's to list of responsible people, and add the webpage vendor
list (especially the descriptions), as a method to report. We may want to add
a comment area for vendors for parents and ES's to share their experiences with
particular curriculum.
For Task #4a: No changes.
For Task #4b: Add the school newsletter under methods to report.
For Task #5: Add "use of narration skills" under resources. We felt
that using narration/oral language skills as part of an assessment would be important
for children in kindergarten and first grade.
For Task #6 and #7: It was suggested that Write Reflections would be a good resource
for both of these tasks. It also might be useful to have an absolute standard
set of rubrics determined only by level of skill, and not tied to any particular
grade level. Questions which might be useful for parents and students to have
concrete answers for are what is an adequate level of writing skill for most
people? What writing skills will most people need to be successful at work if
they are not pursuing writing as a profession? What level of writing skill is
needed to succeed in college? At what point are we identifying ability that goes
beyond "skill" and becomes art (as in gifted kids who may one day go
on to be journalists or creative writers/professional writers)?
Task #7a: No changes.
Task #8: Add Write Reflections as a resource. (Write Reflection is no longer
on the approved vendor list as it mostly used by school districts and/or schools
as their overall writing program is usually from $250 for the Basic model and
upwards. Suggested that the school purchase the Basic Model K-5 and provide training/classes
to students. Older students that need help with their writing can also use the
format until the 6-8 program is completed. The information for this is program
is included below.)
WriteReflections
2434 Crews Lake Hills Loop N.
Lakeland, FL 33813
(863)644-7976
www.writereflections4u.com )
Task #8a: It was suggested that Stanford's online EPGY (Educational Program for
Gifted Youth) would be a good resource.
Task #9: Add to resources: Write Reflections, using narration skills, exploring
the relationship of improved narration skills to improved composition skill in
pre-literate children, non-writing elements which contribute to writing skills
(which parents might not be aware of, such as using narration), generating a
list from ES and parent experience (and other educational sources) of things/strategies
you can do with younger kids before they are writing that will help them succeed
at writing when they get to it, emphasizing the importance of reading well written
literature and non-fiction to children because the language they hear (and whether
it has or lacks richness in vocabulary, expression, content and style) is the
language they will eventually use for both speaking and writing.