the whole deal and past couple of days have been kinda of scary. he’s a bit crazy and has a history of violence against women….AND my classroom is easily accessible. it is on the backside of campus near an open delivery gate. there are no security cameras on my wing. and my classroom is a free standing satellite classroom. i am near no one.

i’m shaking. but i am confident that if he came to campus and attacked me…my current students would totally have my back…they’ve offered it…gosh i have great students…not to mention, badass kungfu like self-defense skillz.

so anyway, in the latest wave of his stalking, he has made crazy threats like “i know your job is already on shaky grounds…” WTF? No It’s Not! and i was assured of this by my principle today….this former student has also threatened to out me at work…to “tell the administration about my doings.” Little does he know…they all know about me already.

so yeah…this kinda sucks.

but, i did find out that it is surprisingly easy in louisiana to get stalking orders….when i was 20 and trying to get one against an ex…it was HARD. but a few years ago some chick in denham springs tried to get restraining orders against a former boyfriend and couldn’t…a few weeks later, he killed her…and the laws were subsequently changed. now, it was as easy as telling the police my story…

well, maybe the fact that i am a teacher and he is a former student played a role in how easy it was…

the police went his house to tell him that he is not allowed on campus and if found on campus will be arrested for trespassing. they also told him that he is not to contact me for any reason…if he does, he will be arrested for stalking…

so

let’s see what happens? i’ve bought some pepper spray.

By H. JOSEF HEBERT, Associated Press Writer Wed Nov 7, 10:50 AM ET

WASHINGTON – Programs that focus exclusively on abstinence have not been shown to affect teenager sexual behavior, although they are eligible for tens of mil lions of dollars in federal grants, according to a study released by a nonpartisan group that seeks to reduce teen pregnancies.

“At present there does not exist any strong evidence that any abstinence program delays the initiation of sex, hastens the return to abstinence or reduces the number of sexual partners” among teenagers, the study concluded.

The report, which was based on a review of research into teenager sexual behavior, was being released Wednesday by the nonpartisan National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

The study found that while abstinence-only efforts appear to have little positive impact, more comprehensive sex education programs were having “positive outcomes” including teenagers “delaying the initiation of sex, reducing the frequency of sex, reducing the number of sexual partners and increasing condom or contraceptive use.”

“Two-thirds of the 48 comprehensive programs that supported both abstinence and the use of condoms and contraceptives for sexually active teens had positive behavior effect,” said the report.

A spending bill before Congress for the Department of Health and Human Services would provide $141 million in assistance for community-based, abstinence-only sex education programs, $4 million more than what President Bush had requested.

The study, conducted by Douglas Kirby, a senior research scientist at ETR Associates, also sought to debunk what the report called “myths propagated by abstinence-only advocates” including: that comprehensive sex education promotes promiscuity, hastens the initiative of sex or increases its frequency, and sends a confusing message to adolescents.

None of these was found to be accurate, Kirby wrote.

Instead, he wrote, such programs improved teens’ knowledge about the risks and consequences of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and gave them greater “confidence in their ability to say ‘no’ to unwanted sex.”

The sponsors of the study praised Kirby for his “thorough research” and for being “fair and evenhanded,” but they also acknowledged that ETR Associates developed and markets several of the sex education curricula reviewed in the report. Several of the previous studies that were reviewed also were written by Kirby.

The report noted that there continues to be “too high levels of sexual risk-taking among teens” with 47 percent of all high schools students reporting having sex at least once and 63 percent saying they have engaged in sex by the spring semester of their senior year.

“Many teenagers do not use contraceptives carefully and consistently,” said the report. About 40 of every 1,000 girls age 15 to 19 gave birth in 2005, the last year for which data was available, the report said.

he was killed in a drug related incident. he was actually trying to rip off his dealer…so the dealer killed him. five shots at close range. he was 18 and still classified as a sophomore. sad isn’t it.

i never taught him. i’d see his name on the suspension list. i saw his mother in the office when he had his expulsion hearing. i typed in the 4-page incident report that cause his mother to miss work to hear, yet again, that her son is distraction and danger to the students on campus.
today, the kids all touted that he was too young to die. they sang in praise that he’ll always be missed and never forgotten. they talked about how great he was? what? i remember the loud sign of relief when the tale of his removal was spread throughout the campus 4 weeks ago. The students were happy about his expulsion. is their change in opinion simply out of respect for the dead?

i want to pass judgment. he assaulted one of my colleagues. he wasn’t a good person.

High Stakes Testing has been touted as a panacea that would bring accountability to teaching and substantially boost performance by students. “Measurement” as President Bush puts it “is the gateway to success.”

Yet, since the 1970s when states first started entertaining the idea of standardized testing….the gates to successful learning have not magically swung open. Repeatedly, it has been proven that a central focus on standardized testing neither improves nor proves knowledge retained. There are too many variables to create a one size fits all test.

No Child Left Behind requires the states “to make progress towards student proficiency in math and reading.” Sounds good. right?….yet there is no guiding standard to testing proficiency. It is left to the state to define proficiency and to create the tests that determine sufficient progress.

Louisiana next year, will take testing absurdity to a new level. Each student will be required to take an “exit test” to pass a specific subject. For example

….Ms. Vona has been teaching you English IV all semester. At the end of the semester, you have a C in her class. You’ve passed her class. But, you have not passed the subject. You still have to take and pass the state designed English IV test. If you do not pass this state standardized test, you have to retake the class….

Reality Check: At the beginning of the 2008-2009 year, Louisiana will have THE highest standards for testing students. Currently Louisiana is ranked 35 for drop out rates with 69% of students not graduating…Are we setting our kids up for even more failure…or are we to now teach the “exit test” and not the students?

now, these students are working on a project that is for my class…but they have gone so far above and beyond the “hello jean low” requirements. They are producing extended tracks, mixing their own beats [with the new badass digital keyboards in my classroom], and laying down well thought out vocals.

they are taking SO much pride in their work.
my students really are amazing!

The new regime has requested that all teachers and administrators within the school district list out all of the problems within the school district. I’m on page four and not done…but i keep finding myself wandering onto the same question and the same rant over and over….

Is the educational system designed to fail Title 1 school districts?

The structure of the educational system relies on a set of assumptions surrounding the role parents will take in continuing education outside of the classroom. These assumptions, that form the basis of the educational system, are typically made by well-educated, affluent white men raised by more than one parental figure. I shall call them the “governing men.”

The governing men assume that the parents will monitor and insure the success of homework and studying and act as “tutors” if the student does not understand a concept. They assume that the parents will be home to insure that the homework is done. They also assume that the parents will take an active role in their child’s education.

People living in poverty do not fit into these assumptions. Many parents have some level of illiteracy that does not afford for them the skill set to tutor their child. Many parents work long hours that leave the children at home alone and without the supervision needed to monitor work habits. Many parents, due to their own lack of adequate education are apathetic towards their child’s education….and often times hostile toward the educational institution that failed them.

There is a buzz surrounding “parental involvement”…afterall, it is one of the many tenants of No Child Left Behind. Yet, there is no adequate protocol and guidance given to schools for parental involvement with parents that don’t fit into the foundational assumptions. Schools are left hanging when looking to involve a parent with a 7th grade reading level, that works three minimum wage jobs, has no car, has her two kids, her daughters baby and her sisters two children living with her in a two bedroom apartment that she can barely afford and is hostile towards school administration…

The above description is for the majority of the families I teach. We are failing to involve these parents. A school cannot succeed without some level of parental involvement….How do we reach out to them?