Schools are laying off teachers and canceling humanities classes nationwide, putting the check before the child.
Students expect to suffer because of budget crisis
[Terence Chea; Jun. 09, 2010]
Students who graduated from high school this spring may have collected their diplomas just in time, leaving institutions that are being badly weakened by the nation’s economic downturn.
Across the country, mass layoffs of teachers, counselors and other staff members are leading to larger classes and reductions in everything that is not a core subject, including music, art, clubs, sports and other after-school activities.
Educators and others worry the cuts could lead to higher dropout rates and lower college attendance as students receive less guidance and become less engaged in school. They fear a generation of young people could be left behind.
The American Association of School Administrators estimates that 275,000 education jobs will be cut in the coming school year, based on an April survey. Other AASA surveys found that 52 percent of administrators plan to cut extracurricular activities, and 51 percent are reducing elective courses not required for graduation.
Tupper Lake Central Schools in New York, will lose 25 percent of its instructional staff in the upcoming school year, which will probably result in bigger classes and the elimination of electives such as photography, modern art and ceramics.
Silver Creek High senior Anthony Chavez said he worries that students won’t get the same opportunities with just one counselor for more than 2,400 students. “Through my four years here, my counselors helped me with everything. I’m the first generation in my family to go to college,” he said. “I didn’t even know what SATs were.”
And it’s not just our neighbors who are losing out, we are losing teachers and programming right here too.
Teacher layoffs putting Modesto’s Fremont Open Plan in jeopardy
[ J.N. Sbranti; Jun. 02, 2010]
After thriving for 34 years as an alternative elementary school, teacher layoffs are putting Modesto’s Fremont Open Plan in jeopardy.
The alternative school has nine teachers, but two of them are retiring and three others have been told they’re being laid off because of budget cuts.
Modesto City Schools is slicing $25 million from its 2010-11 budget because of funding shortfalls. To save money, the district is boosting class sizes and reducing teachers. That includes laying off about 55 elementary school educators, based on seniority.
“We feel the continuity of our program is in jeopardy,” Fremont Open Plan parent Patti Reeder told trustees.
They weren’t the only community members to share their concerns. With teacher layoffs and school closures, scant humanities or after school programs, some look to other methods of learning.
EDUCATIONAL EMPOWERMENT
- LEARN – Interview a family you know (youth and guardians) regarding education. How have the education levels and educational quality in Modesto affected them? What choices have been made because of it? What options have or have not been available?
- ACT – What can you do about it? Using your own self-described super power, work with friends, family, neighbors, or other Super Heroes to empower one youth, or one community, with better access to education or a higher quality of educational richness.
- IMAGINE – Unleash your creativity. Tell me about how you would solve Modesto’s educational issues if you had any resources you needed, and be specific about which change would solve which issue. Share your strategy through your videos, images, and blog posts, and post a link to them in the comments below.
- Ask A Mentor for Help
Upon arrival I drove to Atwater, California where Xia lived and is staying at his place for now. He welcomed me and made his small place to accommodate me as well. So we spent good hours going over education cuts in California and all over the United States. He told me that a lot of after school programs are being cut such as Leadership Clubs to Music Clubs. This is a bad thing because without these clubs students would not be able to accomplish things outside of school that can benefit the community and their education. No music clubs meant no one to help students who are musically talented sharpen their skills. We need everyone to be aware of this and we need to do something about it as soon as possible!
LEARN:
I interviewed one of Xia’s close relative. They are a nice family of six. Two children are in high school and the other two are in elementary. I talked to the parents and they are very well aware of how the downturn of the economy has effected their children’s educational system. The dad told me that he got laid off from his older job not too long ago and was struggling to find another job which he did found just two months ago. The mom is a stay-at-home mother and raise the four children mostly on her own because the father works all day and only come home late at night.
Their second oldest son who had after school tutoring two years ago doesn’t get it now. They don’t speak English very well because they’re South East Asian so this make it a lot harder on them as they try to communicate with the school and what the school is doing in terms of trying to cope with budget cuts. Their translator who usually translate between them and their student’s teacher during a student-parent-teacher conference has been laid off so this only really just deepens the wound.
Not only that a lot of elementary school traditions such as Field Day and yearly field trips has been cut. They have noticed that within the past year or two the elementary school that their children are attending had dropped field trips entirely. This is very devastating because when I was younger one of the things I really enjoyed and remember from elementary school were class field trips whether it was to the Monterey Bay Aquarium to learn about fishes and dolphins or the the local library they all sculpted who I am today. You can’t just learn day in and day out of a book, field trips are essential to educational growth! Kids need to be able to experience the Science Museum or the Space Museum or whatever museum their city has to offer because believe it or not children will be more prone to remembering something when it’s hands on and it’s right in front of them.
The family hasn’t really been able to do anything about the changes in the education of their children. This is a very sad situation because the problem is beyond them and their own budget. They are trying their best to cope with the changes as with the school.
I am not sure how I could help with this growing problem. But I told Xia I would do everything in my “power” to help out his community.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Reduced Electives!
– The Reduced Electives attacks!
– It has 33 hit points.
You attack the Reduced Electives and miss.
– The Reduced Electives casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You distract the Reduced Electives, and attack it for 3 damage.
– The Reduced Electives attacks you for 44 damage.
The Reduced Electives defeats you.
It keeps its treasure, but you are paid 43 gold pieces for your bravery.
i agree with you that my family cant change the school system, although myany of my family members work in the school system we have not found a way to convince them that there ia a problem we just have to be thankful we all haves jobs.
Hello, foolish mortals. Foolish, feeble, weak and angular mortals. This is Sad Sack reporting from mission control (i.e., my couch). Apparently there was some sort of “mission” we super types had to accomplish by yesterday which I did not do. Obviously. I didn’t do it because I am very busy and important and have many demands for my time…and, also, I have no arms. That always tends to drag out the amount of time it takes me to do stuff. Any stuff. Like, for example, just scratching my butt is a major undertaking that rarely ends in any kind of real satisfaction. Sigh. Sigh. SIGH.
Trying to scratch in a puddle of Awkward Sauce
Well, anyway, today I put some effort that-hey, you know what would be awesome and super helpful? Elves. Little, tiny, Keebler-style elves that could just hang around here and like, scratch me when I itch…and maybe wipe the sweat from my flanks on a hot day…that’d be so good, man, I need elves. Elves. ELVES. So, today I put some effort into solving the educational crisis and here’s what I came up with:
I was, like, supposed to learn something about the educational something or something. So I made a phone call to my alter ego’s Aunt Jan. Aunt Jan teaches fifth grade at an elementary school in Riverside, California and that totally qualifies her to talk about whatever it is we’re supposed to be talking about. She laid out how the state and nationwide cuts to educational funding have affected her school (and probably every other school in California especially Modesto). Apparently, the government’s made it more difficult for schools to qualify for Title 1 funds. These funds are supposed to level the educational playing field for disadvantaged kids and pay for things like; extra staffing, reading specialists, educational assistants, PE teachers and music programs. Yeah, all that shiznit. In fact, Aunt Jan’s school has dropped the arts altogether. Teachers are told to focus mainly on test scores for language and math. They’re even discouraged from putting student artwork on the walls because it’s considered a waste of time. Class sizes for kindergarten through third grade have also been affected by funding problems. The average size went from 15 or 20 kids to 30 kids per class in a few years. They were able to eliminate many teachers. Unfortunately, the ones remaining have to deal with book shortages and scrounging for desks and chairs. Also, the increased class sizes mean no small group interaction. Aunt Jan admitted that because of these obstacles, some kids will probably fall through the cracks.
Hmm. Okay, my own self-described super powers are as follows: Evil Eye, Wall of Impenetrable Despair, Really Awkward, Stinkybutt and Tedium.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered Political Red Tape!
– The Political Red Tape attacks!
– It has 9 hit points.
You attack the Political Red Tape, but miss.
– The Political Red Tape attacks you for 11 damage.
You stab at the Political Red Tape, but it dodges.
– The Political Red Tape casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You attack the Political Red Tape and miss.
– The Political Red Tape casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You distract the Political Red Tape, and attack it for 11 damage.
You defeat the Political Red Tape.
It was guarding 49 gold coins.
I interviewed a family with middle schoolers. One 7th grader and the other 8th grader. They’re both into music and the previous year were part of an after school program where they learned how to play instruments including piano and guitar. Due to the budget cuts, the school had to terminate the program.
We need after school programs like these to keep our youth from trouble on the streets and to nurture their musical talents.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Reduced Elective!
– The Reduced Elective attacks!
– It has 27 hit points.
You attack the Reduced Elective, but miss.
– The Reduced Electives attack, but your armour protects you.
You stab the Reduced Elective for 6 damage.
– The Reduced Elective attacks you for 21 damage.
You attack the Reduced Elective, but miss.
– The Reduced Elective attacks you for 24 damage.
The Reduced Elective defeats you.
You are paid 48 gold pieces for your bravery.
i support you and lets save those programs
After much preparing, it is finally fine for me to begin my first mission! Though, I suppose I should be honest that most of the preparations were taken care of by my host. She worked hard and deserves some well earned rest to recover from her cold. When she feels sick, I feel sick and there’s nothing more than I hate in the world than feeling sick.
The first mission was to help first the education situation over in Modesto. This was not an easy task for several reasons. One, I’ve never been to Modesto save for a handful of times so I don’t really know much about the city. Two, I don’t know anyone who went to school in Modesto. But, as is my nature, right when I was feeling down, I thought to myself, No, Mr. Freckles! Don’t you dare give up on me! Where there is a will there is a way!
And what a rage filled way there is!
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Teacher Lay-offs!
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks!
– It has 13 hit points.
You attack the Teacher Lay-offs and miss.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks you for 15 damage.
You stab at the Teacher Lay-offs, but it dodges.
– The Teacher Lay-offs slashes at you, but you dodge.
You distract the Teacher Lay-offs, and attack it for 1 damage.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks, but your armour protects you.
You attack the Teacher Lay-offs, but miss.
– The Teacher Lay-offs casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You stab the Teacher Lay-offs for 4 damage.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks, but your armour protects you.
You attack the Teacher Lay-offs and miss.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks you for 17 damage.
The Teacher Lay-offs defeats you.
You are paid 50 gold pieces for your bravery.
For me the schools loosing teachers hit home a little harder than most. My wife is a CSU Stanislaus graduate student who was teaching young high school kids how to better speak in a speech class when the budget cuts to the schools eliminated her job. I decided to take a look deeper into what was going on.
I decided to take a look around and went to a local junior college and my friend told me that his music program that he was majoring in was being drastically cut and that he may have to wait. Another told me that her art program was going to be removed completely and that she would have to go to another school entirely or even another state for her degree! This simply won’t do! I have to find a way to help the people I care about succeed in their own goals! If it’s bad here at the junior college the children must be suffering an even greater injustice! That’s why I decided to take action… Adouchi the Shadow of Vengeance was going to get some action done… starting with our apathetic and corrupt government!
The shadows slipped around my form as I called them to become Adouchi and before long I was heading to the California capital building.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Reduced Electives!
– The Reduced Electives attacks!
– It has 25 hit points.
You attack the Reduced Electives, but miss.
– The Reduced Electives slashes at you, but you dodge.
You distract the Reduced Electives, and attack it for 2 damage.
– The Reduced Electives casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You cast a magic missile spell at the Reduced Electives, wounding it for 4 damage.
– The Reduced Electives attacks, but your armour protects you.
You stab at the Reduced Electives, but it dodges.
– The Reduced Electives slashes at you, but you dodge.
You cast a cleansing beam spell at the Reduced Electives, wounding it for 6 damage.
– The Reduced Electives attacks you for 7 damage.
You cast a water jet spell at the Reduced Electives, wounding it for 6 damage.
– The Reduced Electives attacks, but your armour protects you.
You cast a water jet spell at the Reduced Electives, wounding it for 13 damage.
You defeat the Reduced Electives.
It was guarding 36 gold coins.
thats awful that people put so much time and effrt into there majors, and they get cut. my friend was going to school in Oregon and her school shut down and now she is stuck waiting to get into stan you being up a really good point!
The family I interviewed has only had their children in school for a couple of months. They feel the quality of education their children are receiving in Modesto is decreasing to a worrisome quality. They feel their children will be ill-prepared for their future academic careers. Because of this, this family is trying to be more hands on when it comes to academics.
Being the superhero that I am, I planned to do something about the shortcomings of Modesto’s education system.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Political Red Tape!
– The Political Red Tape attacks!
– It has 9 hit points.
You cast a cleansing beam spell at the Political Red Tape, wounding it for 16 damage.
You defeat the Political Red Tape.
It was guarding a Creativity and 48 gold coins.
Where are the school districts heading some may ask? Down the wrong path that’s for sure. I remember the time when school was looked at with enthusiasm and excitement. A place to make friends and participate in various clubs; if you’re a musician then one could join choir or band, if you believe you’re athletically talented join a sport. Within this recession extracurricular activities are being viewed as unimportant, and are perceived as a money waster in schools.
As I set out on my mission I came across a distressed family who is in fear of their children’s school experience. As we conversed I was in complete astonishment to discover that the AVID program has been eliminated, as well as music and sports cuts. I also was informed that there has been a rising issue of classroom sizes have being expanded. The distressed parents are in fear that without the help of AVID that their dear child will turn away from college. Huh?? What?? No college?? I’ve heard enough of this nonsense. I am the Fierce Dreamer, and since these children’s dreams are being crushed one by one, well it’s my job to intervene.
Have no fear, Fierce Dreamer is here! I have composed a bullet, fire, and water proof plan to correct the wrong doings of these dream crushers.
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Teacher Lay-off!
– The Teacher Lay-off attacks!
– It has 14 hit points.
You cast a water jet spell at the Teacher Lay-off, wounding it for 6 damage.
– The Teacher Lay-off attacks you for 18 damage.
You stab the Teacher Lay-off for 2 damage.
– The Teacher Lay-off slashes at you, but you dodge.
You distract the Teacher Lay-off, and attack it for 7 damage.
You defeat the Teacher Lay-off.
It was guarding a Creativity and 39 gold coins.
I interviewed a family that I am very close to and asked them how they felt about the educational quality in Modesto. I have two elementary age children of my own and found myself agreeing with many of their answers. The particular family I spoke with was not happy with the recent reduction in first grade teachers. There was a manageable amount of students before, but now they are dealing with an overcrowded classroom. This has affected the quality of learning. Not enough individual attention is given to each student and it shows. They have thought about moving their child to a private school, but have been happy with their public school in years past. They are having a much different experience so far and are considering various educational options for their child.
Art and music class is no longer offered in the school they attend. With the budget cuts, these were the first to go. However, some of the friends I spoke with felt that it is not a matter of money. It is a matter or priority. How bad do they want it? Since more emphasis is on raising test scores, less priority is given to the arts. Perhaps more art classes will help raise test scores.
A professor I spoke with expressed his concern with the lack of music in schools. According to him, music is linked to better test scores in science and math. In fact, most of the people he knows in the medical field are musicians. He felt it is important to get young children involved in music – the sooner the better. Keep it in the schools.
Modesto schools are suffering. Bring back the art classes! No music? What are we to do? Leave it to Supermom to save the day and the artistic future of our children! I must take action! Our youth deserves a more well-rounded education. Let’s not let our kids suffer any longer.
SAVE THE ARTS!
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered an Over-full Classroom!
– The Over-full Classroom attacks!
– It has 25 hit points.
You distract the Over-full Classroom, and attack it for 2 damage.
– The Over-full Classroom slashes at you, but you dodge.
You cast a fireball spell at the Over-full Classroom, wounding it for 9 damage.
– The Over-full Classroom attacks you for 28 damage.
The Over-full Classroom defeats you.
It keeps its treasure, but you are paid 36 gold pieces for your bravery.
Corrupt Angel Investigates: Okay, okay so I couldn’t go investigating the matter in my superhero skivvies, so I’ve gone in pursuit of knowledge as my less conspicuous self. Can’t have a superhero roaming the neighborhood. What would the neighbors think? So, I asked one family…..,we shall call them the Smiths to protect their anonymity,….. how their experience was with their children’s school. Well, I was shocked to learn that their children’s favorite after-school program had been cut from the budget, the art club. “What no art club??!?!?!?! This will not do!” It turned out that the kiddies had become listless zombies and had fallen prey to less creative outlets of their time. the DREADED T.V.! This definitely sounds like a job for Corrupt Angel.
What to Do?: So how can I solve this conundrum? Well I will use my super duper tele-mind warp (yes that’s what it’s called!) to shape the minds of the community. Trust me I never use this power for evil…….promise. Anyhow, all they need is a little gentle persuasion in the brain to solve this problem. I’ve decided that all we need is for people to pitch in and work together to fill in where the schools are lacking. So, I told Mrs. Smith my idea and she immediately decided it was great. Here’s the plan: Go to the schools and devote spare-time and materials to restart the after-school program. Best yet, it won’t cost the schools a dime!
See how Corrupt Angel saved the children of Modesto….
Chani, I loved your take on this mission! We should all be caring about saving the children of Modesto!
You bravely venture forth to attempt 1:Educational Empowerment…
You encountered a Teacher Lay-off!
– The Teacher Lay-off attacks!
– It has 15 hit points.
You attack the Teacher Lay-off, but miss.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks, but your armour protects you.
You attack the Teacher Lay-off, but miss.
– The Teacher Lay-offs attacks you for 23 damage.
You attack the Teacher Lay-off, but miss.
– The Teacher Lay-off attacks you for 14 damage.
The Teacher Lay-off defeats you.
You are paid 33 gold pieces for your bravery.
Yes agree we need to come together and solve this crisis i beliee you can make the change
Education is a big elephant to try to conquer.
I spoke to a family of two children I know about how the education levels and educational quality offered by their daycare has affected them. They thought the quality of their daycare was really great, but it came at quite a cost – literally. They worried about what they would do when the oldest was ready to go the kindergarten – the cost break of public school will be very helpful, but they are strongly considering private schooling. They think the arts and outdoor play has been immeasurably beneficial, and don’t want it to leave it behind.
What can I do about it? Read my solution here
You bravely venture forth to create Educational Empowerment when…
You encountered Reduced Electives!
– The Reduced Electives attack!
– It has 27 hit points.
You stab at the Reduced Electives, but it dodges.
– The Reduced Electives casts a spell at you, but you resist.
You attack the Reduced Electives, but miss.
– The Reduced Electives attacks, but your armour protects you.
You distract the Reduced Electives, and attack it for 2 damage.
– The Reduced Electives slashes at you, but you dodge.
You stab the Reduced Electives for 2 damage.
– The Reduced Electives attacks you for 39 damage.
The Reduced Electives defeats you.
It keeps its treasure, but you are paid 80 gold pieces for your bravery.