Article 2

Making your Field Trips More Meaningful

http://ascd.org/publications/newsletters/education-update/oct10/vol52/num10/making-your-field-trips-more-meaningful.aspx

I chose to research this article since more and more these days it seems as though principals are denying teachers the ability to take students on field trips.  I remember when I was a student in elementary, middle and high school that field trips were the best part of the school year.  Not only did we learn, but we had fun at the same time.  Now days, with testing, budget constraints, instructional time and teacher performance in question the possibility on taking a field trip are often non-negotiatable within the school.

In the article, it is stated that a well facilitated and properly planned field trip can actually provide students with valuable learning experiences and increased academic benefits such as relating content with actual engagement with peers and experts.  It is important, however, when a teacher is planning a field trip, to take consideration of how the trip is going to enrich student learning and also expose the students to various other parts of their community in which they may be interested in pursuing a career.

It is mentioned in the article that when designing a field trip, utilize tour guides or staff during your visit, maybe check to see if there is an educational department within your site, and if there are any “hands” on activities  for the students.  Also, as a teacher, do not try to fit too much in at once on the field trip.  This may cause the opposite reaction in the learning process with an over abundance of information.  Other idea s during the planning process  include visit the field trip site in advance, student preparation for the field trip, student self-exploration, be the facilitator, and lastly, provide a learning activity at the site.

Lastly, if the field trip is not financially able to be funded there are field trip grants available.  It is understandable that a principal might not see all of the benefits of a field trip right from the start with all of the other daily duties of the school and budget concern but these opportunities for the students are vital in student learning.  Properly planned and organized field trips demonstrate not only increased student learning but, also application of learning within the content area.

Article 1

Klein, Alyson. November 16, 2010. NEA Asks Education Department for Regulatory Relief.  retrieved from Education Week. Http://blogs.eweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2010

This article primarily discusses how the NEA is asking for regulatory relief of the NCLB Act so schools do not have to wait for the newly appointed congress to renew the law and apply its changes to Elementary and Secondary Education.  The NEA contacted Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan concerning a lack of flexibility in major components of the NCLB Act.

The key areas that were of concern of the NEA were Highly Qualified Teachers, AYP, utilizing multiple measures to get credit for AYP, increased flexibility with for testing special education students, design individual growth models, and revamping graduation rate calculations to name a few.  How do all of these areas concern a principal?  Well, if you are a principal of a small, rural district, the provision of highly qualified teachers, especially special education teachers who may need more than 1 certification to meet the highly qualified benchmark may create an issue with meeting this standard.

One of the other major suggestions to Mr. Duncan pertains to providing more flexibility for school to test students in special education and ESL for 3 years instead of just the one year in the country already stated in the ACT. This will enable the AYP calculations to be a bit more consistent.

Overall, I thought that this was a very interesting article.  I agree with the NEA about presenting these changes to Arne Duncan if we want to get the most out of the NCLB Act in 2014.