Congratulations to Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy for being one of 27 finalists for the National Schools of Character Education competition, sponsored by the Character Education Partnership! This is a wonderful accomplishment for which the students, the staff and the entire community should feel proud. (more…)
Archive for March, 2009
It Builds Character
Monday, March 30th, 2009Our Urbanized Mayberry
Monday, March 23rd, 2009I am so encouraged by the comments that readers have posted on my blog! There have been many great suggestions on which I will follow up, and there have been several valuable constructive criticisms. We’ve publicized my blog through many channels, but I hope those of you reading today will help spread the word and urge people to post comments so we can expand these important community conversations. I love the fact that Alexandria is both an urban city and a small town (an “urbanized Mayberry” according to the Washington Post), and that so many people are engaged in and willing to comment on issues relating to education. (more…)
The Value of Pre-K
Monday, March 16th, 2009Last year in Alexandria, 264 parents reported that their children had not participated in a preschool experience prior to entering kindergarten. Before those children ever walked through the door of an Alexandria public school, their readiness skills already lagged behind those of their peers. According to Nobel Laureate of Economics James Heckman, half of the achievement gap between white and African-American children we see in 12th grade is present before kindergarten starts because more white students have access to high quality pre-K. (more…)
School Report Cards
Monday, March 9th, 2009During my first few weeks in Alexandria, I had the pleasure of touring each of our schools. In most cases, the principal and I were also joined by one or two School Board members, the PTA president and some members of the senior administrative team. What great exercise! I’m not sure how many miles I walked, but I visited every elementary, and nearly every secondary, classroom and peeked in every closet. It was quite eye-opening. (more…)
Strategic Planning
Monday, March 2nd, 2009Many thanks to the PTA Council for coordinating a wonderful event! Over 400 book group participants attended Dan Pink’s presentation at T.C. Williams High School on February 24 and several of you wrote about how much you enjoyed the book. I am pleased to read from the comments last week that we agree – learning and teaching must integrate new technologies. We need to continue efforts to raise achievement on standardized tests because at a minimum, all ACPS students should master those grade level skills, and at the same we must build on 21st century skills. We need to create new and better ways to measure creativity, empathy, critical thinking and more. So how do we continue? (more…)
