From the Blog

Increase Pipeline for Teacher Certification

February 18th, 2010

The Arizona Department of Education's Certification unit will be increasing the options for teacher preparation programs.  This means that universities and colleges will no longer be the only institutions where prospective teachers can become certified to instruct in public elementary and secondary schools.  As a principal at Glendale High School, I hired several teachers on emergency certificates in the early 90's. They were given the title “teacher of record” and allowed to instruct in the classroom as long as they were also enrolled in a university Post-Baccalaureate secondary education program. The teachers with emergency certificates were also able to participate in a three-year mentoring and induction program which the Glendale Union High School District offered to all of its new teachers.  These teachers told me how much they valued the district’s hands-on apprentice-type program.  They appreciated especially that they were provided with information and feedback that made it possible for them to improve their classroom instruction immediately.  Many of them found the district classes considerably more helpful than those of the university Post-Baccalaureate program. All of these teachers were highly competent in their subject matter, but needed to learn about pedagogy (instructional practices) and how to handle classroom management issues. Through our district, these teachers were given focused attention to their needs for three years, during the school year and the summer.    As a principal who always evaluated new teachers for their first three years, I witnessed that these “emergency” teachers soon became as skilled in their delivery of instruction as teachers who had graduated from the colleges of education.  Moreover, the success of programs such as Teach for America, KIPP schools, and several charter schools indicate that other options besides those of the colleges of education should be offered to prospective teachers.   For the past 7 years, I have urged the Certification unit and the State Board of Education to increase the options for teacher preparation programs.  It is a joy to be at the Department to see it happen.

Social Promotion is a Disservice to Our Students

January 15th, 2010

Over the holidays, I went to see,  in my opinion,  the best movie of 2009, The Blind Side. What a great message for educators and parents. I am now more convinced than ever that our educational system must end must end social promotion in our K-8 schools. I don't want to give the movie plot away, so I will just glean some of the educational highlights that I believe, we as educators and parents must recognize, if our students are going to be successful and  productive citizens of this country.   We must quit passing students from one grade level to the next without having them achieve the level of academic achievement needed for them to be prepared to enter the next grade level. Students get further and further behind when the system continually passes them on from one grade level to the next,  Students become unmotivated and disillusioned by the system that does not hold them accountable for learning,  and then they either drop out or never have the necessary skills to help them to enroll in higher post secondary schooling. Some even become residents of our penal system because of a lack of an education.   Through interventions during the school day and before and after school, we must remediate students' academic deficiencies and hold them accountable for their learning before they are allowed to move to the next grade level. As the old adage says, Success breeds success.   Let's end social promotion, once and for all. We will have students motivated to learn and teachers teaching students who are ready to learn.

January 6th, 2010

Great new web community for our AZ Hispanic Republicans, created by the Arizona GOP: http://azhispanics.ning.com/ or via http://www.azgop.gov

One of the tools I used to help students succeed.

October 4th, 2009

As a teacher in the mid ‘80s, I implemented an instructional program called Mastery Learning (ML) because I believed three basic principles:  all students can learn, teachers control the classroom and success breeds success.  The basic premise of ML for me, the teacher, was to teach a unit of instruction to my students and then test my students at the end.  Students would be held to an 80% mastery of the objectives taught in that unit.  Those students who did not reach the 80% mastery would be given an intervention or what I labeled a corrective and then would be retested.  The retest was not the same test as before, but a parallel test that included questions of the same difficulty, format and content.  The ML approach assisted my students in learning the subject matter and helped them to be ready for the next unit of instruction. Those students who mastered all of the objectives with 80% mastery on the first attempt would be given enrichment activities that would be at a higher level of learning in order to increase their understanding of the subject matter. Mastery Learning gave my slower learners time to learn the content at their own rate as well as giving my fast learners new material to learn in order to stay motivated and not become bored.  It also allowed me to manage my classroom for all of my students’ learning. Accountability for both Teaching and Learning does work.  If you want to learn more about Mastery Learning check out the book:  Implementing Mastery Learning

I believe all students can succeed.

September 23rd, 2009

During my time as a principal, many students come to mind that faced, but ultimately overcame, significant challenges.  Through hard work and perseverance, they became successful in their chosen careers.  In the early 1990's, when I was Principal at Glendale High, a freshman shared with me his dream of becoming an engineer. He told me that without scholarships or grants, he would not be able to afford college. Because his family was from a low socio economic background, he knew his parents would not have the money to pay for his education. Despite those obstacles, I witnessed this young man apply himself to his studies and enroll in our advanced classes. He also worked part time as a busboy to help with family expenses. He graduated with honors and received a college scholarship.  He fulfilled his dream, and graduated with a degree in civil engineering. Not long after, he returned to share his story with students who were in a situation similar to his in the early 1990's.  Some students stand up to adversity with such conviction and confidence that they become success stories. They need to be encouraged and all students need to be inspired to do the same.  As Superintendent of Public Instruction, I will continue to push for programs that help students like this young man take advantage of every educational opportunity out there.  Arizona has been leading the way in growing more Advanced Placement classes, getting technology in the classroom and asking more of every student because every student can succeed if he or she is given the tools.  We need to keep that momentum going and build upon it.

Beginning the conversation

September 8th, 2009

This is my first blog, and I am excited to begin a conversation with you about my candidacy for Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2010. Please review my website and talk to me about your concerns, ask me questions, and give me your opinion on educational issues. I have 36 years experience in education. I’ve sat in every chair – teacher – principal – administrator, so I am ready to begin the conversation.