Now it's a federal case

 Now it’s a federal case!

Learning to read is a funny thing.  Everyone thinks they have the one and only road to heaven.  Over the years that road has frequently changed. Resulting in different kids being in the third reading group.  Yep, like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.   Now the highway runs ONLY to the Science of Reading which is a primarily phonics-based approach.  

In years past, Lucy Calkins developed an approach that is called “balance literacy”.  It emphasizes student choice in selection of reading materials, reading comprehension and meaning.  Students are encouraged to use a variety of strategies, such as picture clues and sentence meaning to figure out unfamiliar word. Techniques that closely align with mature reading skills.  New York City at one time used this approach for all of their schools.  Critics argue that there is not nearly enough explicit instruction in phonics which causes students to have difficulty decoding words.  The program was developed at Teachers College in Columbia University.  Recently, they have added more phonics to the program.

The Fountas & Pinnell programs use phonics and phonemic awareness but not to the exclusion of fluency, vocabulary development and comprehension.

Well none of that was any good for the “true believers” in the Science of Reading.  So those folks did what any  red, white and blue blooded American would do, they went to court in Massachusetts claiming that these other methods were not backed by sufficient research and were making false claims to the extent that the consumer protection laws should be applied to stop school districts from using and promulgating these alternative methods.

The judge in the US District Court declined to be a warrior in the reading wars.  He said, “The court cannot find defendants’ research inadequate…without delving into the merits of the defendants’ approaches to literacy education”

So there we are, left in a world where differing approaches to teaching reading can still co-exist.   You can’t even make it a federal case.

 

 

Pay now or pay later

 Pay now or pay later

Medicaid pays for a lot more than your neighbor’s visit to the ER or your visit for a well-baby check.  In the next several years, the bills passed by the House of Representatives will cut 687 billion dollars from the plan.  What does that mean, on the ground?

That’s a great deal of waste, fraud and abuse.  This is one of the biggest cuts to Medicaid in history.  Community based services for people with disabilities are not federally mandated.  But these are the services that allow people with disabilities to remain in their communities and to thrive.  Over 700,000 people are currently on waiting lists for these services.  With cuts this list can only grow.  Sixty-nine percent of the agencies providing these services are already declining new clients.  A third of the agencies are considering closing.  Without these community based services, people with disabilities will need to be served in more costly residential placements.

The new regulations are more complicated and require frequent eligibility checks.  Those will create administrative costs that will be subtracted from funds that can be used to care for people.  And more complications mean slower processing and more opportunity for error.

What will people do if they can’t get medical services from their local provider?  First of all, many will probably wait until they are a lot sicker.  Then they will seek medical care in their local ER.  The ER can not turn them away if they can’t pay.  But the service must be paid for somehow, some way.   And it’s the rate payer who will ultimately bear the burden as their health insurance goes up to cover the hospital costs for all of those unfunded ER visits.  And managing short term virus in a physician’s office is a great deal cheaper than the same service in the ER.  ER facilities are already overwhelmed meaning long waits.

The question isn’t so much will these services be paid for, it’s more who will do the paying and how much more will they cost depending on the provider.  So when you think the cuts in Medicaid don't impact you because you have private insurance, think again.  The piper must be paid and you could be the payer.

 

 Robbin’ the Hood and Standing Tall

Most people remember the tale of Robin Hood who took from the rich to give to the poor.  We have our own version of Robbin’ the Hood today.  A recently enacted budget bill in the House of Representative will cut Medicaid benefits for about eight million people.  This is a number estimated by the Congressional Budget Office which is a non-partisan group that advises Congress on the cost of legislation or on the savings of legislation.

Approximately 22.7% of those with disabilities are employed.  It is probably safe to assume that a large portion of the remaining 77.3% are using Medicaid for their health care.  The coverage for Medicaid and eligibility varies from state to state.  In all states you can qualify for Medicaid based on income, household size, disability and family status.

In states that have expanded Medicaid coverage, you can qualify based on income alone.  If your household income is below 138% of the poverty level you qualify.  Maryland is one of the states that elected to have expanded Medicaid coverage.   That expanded coverage came with more federal assistance.

The recent budget bill claims to be one of the largest tax cut bills in history.  And that is correct, especially if you are a billionaire or a multi-millionaire but not quite to the billions yet.  The US has one of the largest budget deficits in history.  It is moving towards 4 Trillion dollars.  The tax cuts will increase that deficit.  The cuts to Medicaid and SNAP (food stamps) are meant to reduce that increased deficit a bit.

Because people with disabilities tend to have lower incomes, they will disproportionately be impacted by these safety net funding programs.  The coverage for medical services for people using Medicaid is capped.  Consequently not all medical providers will take Medicaid patients.  It is hard enough being an individual with a disability.  Getting the medical care you need should not be thought of as “gaming the system”.  

Robin Hood would have been quite upset with today’s version. Robin Hood believed that no one stands so tall as when he stoops to help the vulnerable.   Today we are “robbin’ the neighborhood” to provide benefits to the rich.  Maybe we need a few more of us to stand tall.

Are teachers paid enough

 Are Teachers Paid Enough

Well now that depends on who you ask.   Of course, the teachers’ unions don’t think so.   And they aren’t likely to feel any sense of responsibility to the whole.  Baltimore County is going to renegotiate its 3-year contract with the Union because it isn’t getting enough money from the County to meet its commitment.  Administrative positions have been reduced, instructional materials, and maintenance, but it still isn’t enough.  The Union doesn’t want to hear that.  In fact, teachers in school districts with unions earn roughly 24% more than districts without unions.

The Union has said, “low pay limits the ability to attract and retain quality educators in the profession amid a looming educator shortage and sagging educator morale due chiefly to low pay and poor working conditions.  In Maryland, the Blueprint requires that starting teachers earn at least $60,000.  Some districts are funding that increase by limiting the salary increases for 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th year teachers.  Maryland is the 6^th highest paying state for teacher salaries.  The average teacher salary in Maryland is $82,877.  Maryland is behind California, New York, Massachusetts, Washington, Washington DC and Connecticut.  All of these states have a much higher cost of living than does Maryland.

Public school teachers in Maryland work, at most, 190 days a year.  Ten of those days are for professional development or days to do end-of-quarter grade calculation.  The average non-teacher employee works 236 days a year (that number excludes 14 federal paid holidays and 10 vacation days).  Lots of folks don’t get all those holidays.  Teachers work 6.5 hour days.  They have 20% of their day non-teaching for lesson planning and collaborating with peers.  Good teachers spend extra time at home.  Remember the average non-teacher bear already works an 8 hour day.  You will notice that the Union seldom mentions actual dollar salary when they ask for a percentage increase.  The new State license regulations do not even require a Masters Degree.

So you decide, is low pay really the reason folks don’t want to be teachers?

Why do you care?

 Why do you care?

 

There is a movement afoot to ban books.  Not just any books but any books that discuss diverse populations such as LBGQT, English as not the first language, people with darker skin tones- all of these books are considered divisive and discriminatory against folks whose skin is light colored and who speak pretty good English and seem to not have any disabilities.

Maryland is listed as one of the states with the most banned books.   That is odd since Maryland is true blue and has a law AGAINST school systems banning books.   The consequence of a school district banning books is that the Maryland State Department of Education is supposed to withdraw monies for libraries for that jurisdiction.  In fact, Carroll County public schools has banned so many books that that county alone has caused Maryland to be one of the states with the most banned books.  None of the other 23 school districts has banned books.   As yet, the MSDE has failed to provide the consequence to Carroll County schools.  The State Legislature might need to pass another law requiring the MSDE to obey the laws it has already passed.  

The Naval Academy has also removed over 350 books from its library because they discussed diversity, equity and inclusion.   Odd since one would think the Academy would want its midshipmen to understand the diverse population they will swear to give their lives to protect.

One of the purposes of education is to get students to think for themselves.   In a democracy it is very important to have informed citizens.  In fact, that is the prime reason we have education funded by the public.  Probably everyone would say they support the notion that students should think for themselves; we just don’t like it when their thinking for themselves differs from what we want them to think.  So the solution to that challenge seems to be to limit the ideas kids get to read about so they don’t have the opportunity to think thoughts that are unlike the ones we want them to come to “independently”.  

As a child my parents were all in favor of my education through reading.  Our financial situation did not allow for the buying of books.  So I got to go to the public library every week and take out a stack of books.   I could pick anything I wanted and frequently picked biographies of famous people.  Some of those famous people were diverse in background.  Although at that time, there were no LBGQT books around.  I learned a great deal about other worlds of other people.  Today our nation is much more diverse.  Why would we want to deny our kids the chance to peak into the windows of other cultures?  They will be richer.

Martin Niemoller a famous Lutheran pastor wrote:

First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.

 

And this is why you should care.

The kids are not doing well

 The kids are not doing well..

The pandemic is over but there is a new “virus” spreading through our student population.   It is an epidemic of anxiety.  School counselors are reporting that children as young as 6 are talking about killing themselves and describing ways they might do it.   Counselors, parents, and school staff are asking why?  Why now?

There are lots of possible answers.   For younger children who spent their early years of schooling online, the answer is that these kids are too challenged by the in-school experience with so many students and no developmentally appropriate tools to respond to both the demands and the differences.  Anxiety is the body’s response to a perceived threat.  So, we move to “fight or flight” preparing for danger.  Younger kids will experience somatic symptoms like stomach aches, headaches or disrupted sleep.  Other kids express their anxiety with lots of what if questions: “what if you forget to pick me up”,  “what if no one likes me at school” and for some of our Hispanic children, “what if my parents are gone when I get home”.

Causes of the anxiety may be environmental- parents fighting, food insecurity, ICE taking away a loved one.   Older kids are aware of the news.  The Pew Research Center reports that more than half of all middle and high school students are worried about a shooting event at their school.  The Lancet polled kids nationwide and found that 45% felt climate change impacted their daily lives.

Many experts point to social media and excessive phone use.  Children are having “phone-based childhood” where instead of playing in person with others, their interactions are screen based and kids are missing out on the experiences which teach resilience and develop a growth mindset.  

One of the positive outcomes of social media is that children are more aware of mental illness. As a result, mental Illness has lost some of its stigma and given people access to more resources. Even the language is changing.   Professionals recommend saying the words, "mental illness" rather than "mental health".   Maybe being clinically anxious has been given a certain amount of social panache.

At least kids are open to telling us they are not doing well.  Now what are we going to do with that information?

Can't Imagine why there is a teacher shortage?

  

Can't imagine why there is a teacher shortage

Florida is facing a severe teacher shortage.   Almost every state is, particularly in Maryland.   

A teacher in Satellite Beach, FL is not going to have her contract renewed.  You might wonder why.   Is she a bad teacher?   Nope, families have rallied around her because she is a great and compassionate teacher.   Did she do something immoral in the community?   Nope, not that either.  Well then what dastardly dead did she do to warrant such a serious consequence, even possibly losing not just her job but her license to teach.   SHE CALLED A STUDENT BY HIS PREFERRED NAME!!!  Oh no, not that.   Yep, and in Florida that is grounds for dismissal if parents don’t agree IN WRITING that it’s ok.  The principal has said that “teachers like all state employees are expected to follow the law”.   

Over 26,000 people have signed a petition calling the teacher an “advocate for respect and student rights” and demanding that her contract be renewed.  A group of Satellite high school students held a walkout in support of the teacher.   A parent testified before the school board saying, “The teacher made a difference in her classroom and in the lives of our students, including my own child; she deserved more than a quiet exit.  She deserved fairness, context and compassion.”  

Brevard County where the school is located is where the right-wing conservative group Moms for Liberty was founded.   The are working to prohibit teachers from discussing gender and sexuality during school hours.   Florida has the Parental Rights in Education law which has been dubbed “Don’t Say Gay” by its critics.   It bans the discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in lower grades.   Teachers have been investigated for showing elementary age children Disney movies that have a gay character. 

This teacher did NOT teach about sexuality.  What she did was use a student’s preferred nickname.  As one person testified, “There was no harm, no threat, no malicious intent, just a teacher trying to connect with a student, and for that, her contract is not going to be renewed, despite her strong dedication and years of service?”  Yep, that seems to be the case, at least in Florida and 13 other states that have restrictive speech requirements for their teachers.

Let’s keep trying to recruit teachers and then wonder why there is such a shortage when there are all these reasons for losing your job that have no relationship to the quality of your teaching.