Don't Know Much About History

A blog reader pointed me in the direction of a Wall Street Journal interview of  Pulitzer Prize winning historian David McCullough about students' lack of knowledge about U.S.  history. "We're raising young people who are, by and large, historically illiterate,"  he says in the interview.  

Last week, the U.S Department of Education released the results of the 2010 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment in U.S. History.   It found that only 12% of high-school seniors scored proficient or "have a firm grasp of our nation's history." 20 percent of fourth graders and 17 percent of eighth graders tested proficient. 

Having lectured at more than 100 colleges and universities over the past 25 years, he says, "I know how much these young people—even at the most esteemed institutions of higher learning—don't know." Slowly, he shakes his head in dismay. "It's shocking."

McCullough points to a few factors that he believes are part of the problem, including the background of history teachers.

One problem is personnel. "People who come out of college with a degree in education and not a degree in a subject are severely handicapped in their capacity to teach effectively," Mr. McCullough argues. "Because they're often assigned to teach subjects about which they know little or nothing." The great teachers love what they're teaching, he says, and "you can't love something you don't know anymore than you can love someone you don't know."

Another is the method of teaching history:

"History is often taught in categories—women's history, African American history, environmental history—so that many of the students have no sense of chronology. They have no idea what followed what."

In textbooks, McCullough says that minor historical figures have overshadowed the major ones, in part due to political correctness.

many textbooks have become "so politically correct as to be comic. Very minor characters that are currently fashionable are given considerable space, whereas people of major consequence farther back"—such as, say, Thomas Edison—"are given very little space or none at all."

He also says that many history books are boring and not especially well written. McCullough says that he studied writing along with history, which helps him to develop plot and characters.

"You know that the Brooklyn Bridge exists," Mr. McCullough explains, referring to one of his former subjects. "I've got to get you so involved in the story of how it was done that you begin to wonder, 'Oh my God! Are they ever going to be able to do this?'" Thus, via his writing style, he hopes to impart a lesson of history: "There's no such thing as a foreseeable future."

In the end, McCullough thinks parents and grandparents need to share a love of history with children.

It's not their fault our children are ignorant, he says animatedly. "It's our fault," he says, pointing to his chest. "I mean the parents and grandparents of the oncoming generation. We have to talk about history, talk about the books we love, the biographies and histories." He continues, "We should all take our children to historic places. Go to Gettysburg. Go to the Capitol."

What do you think about how history is taught in the Norwalk schools?  Do you think it gets short shrifted compared to the tested subjects--math and English?

BOE Reinstates Housemasters, West Rocks Assistant Principal

Norwalk High School and Brien McMahon High School will each keep all four of their housemasters next year. In addition, West Rocks Middle School will retain its second assistant principal.

The Norwalk Board of Education decided Thursday night to overturn decisions made a week earlier to cut one housemaster position at each school. Also, all of the housemasters, as well as both assistant principals at West Rocks and Ponus Ridge middle schools were made 12-month employees. Last week, those four positions had been cut to 10 months.

“I am so happy for the kids and so proud of our Board of Education,” Brien McMahon principal Suzanne Koroshetz said after the board's unanimous vote. Koroshetz advocated for the restoration of four 12-month housemasters with the help of several Brien McMahon administrators, parents and teachers, who cheered and hugged after the vote.

At the meeting's start, Chief Operating Officer Craig Drezek told the board that $500,000 had become available for next year’s budget after changes in the district’s health insurance projections — mostly because of revised estimates because of employee contract changes.
Another $100,000 became available because of cuts in repairs and maintenances. “We budget some money for a rainy day fund. Well, it’s raining,” said Drezek.

As part of her budget reinstatement plan, Superintendent Susan Marks had initially put forth a proposal to reinstate the Central Office’s grants instructional specialist at $162,000. But school board members Steve Colarossi and Artie Kassimis resisted the proposal. “I suggest this position be a lower-level position,” said Colarossi, who advocated for the reorganizing of the Central Office.

Marks, Board Chairman Jack Chiaramonte and board member Jodi Bishop-Pullan all spoke on behalf of the Central Office. “The Central Office is being devastated In order to improve processes, you need people,” said Marks. Bishop-Pullan spoke about the complexities of federal grants and reporting that required expertise.

After a lengthy conversation, Marks suggested she would take the grants position off the table. She insisted, however, that she be allowed to reorganize the Central Office with the $80,000 budget surplus that remained after the restoration of the high school and middle school administrators, as well as any other funds that become available in the coming months.
“We have to give the superintendent latitude to come up with a plan and not have the board micromanage her,” said board member Glenn Iannacone.

The board also discussed elementary teachers and class sizes. Last week, the board voted to cut nine elementary teachers. That number stands. However, the board decided to add four reserve teachers to next year’s budget. Drezek said the funds budgeted for unemployment benefits would fund the reserve positions because no teachers will be let go. All positions are being eliminated through attrition. One reserve teacher has already been slated for Cranbury Elementary School.

After a review of class sizes by Drezek and Bruce Mellion, president of Norwalk’s teacher union, Drezek said only a few classrooms hovered near the limit of 24 students per class, the teacher’s contractual limit. “We’ll be monitoring the situation very carefully, week by week,” said Marks.

Special BOE Meeting Thursday 6/23: Possible Restoration of Positions

The Board of Education will be meeting tonight, Thursday, at 7:15 p.m. in the Concert Hall at City Hall.  On the agenda is the "Discussion and Possible Action to Reinstate Positions to the 2011-12 Operating Budget and additional reconciliation options."

I expect there to be discussion about the high school housemaster.  Maybe the West Rocks assistant principal.  I wonder what the "additional reconciliation options" means.

Also on the agenda--"authorize superintendent to hire instructional staff over the summer" and discussion about renaming the Center for Global Studies.

For the Finance Departments latest docs on the budget reconciliation, click here.  

School Budget Draws Mixed Reaction

A version of this story appears on TheDailyNorwalk.com

Two days after passing a budget with more than $4 million in cuts, Norwalk school board members and school officials had a range of reactions — from "devastated" to  "less harmful" — about the end result.

The school board worked late into the night Tuesday, debating and voting on the cuts that brought its budget down to $155 million. By the end, 33 positions were eliminated and several nonpersonnel expenditures were reduced. Cuts include 10 teachers, two high school housemasters, West Rocks’ assistant principal, central office administrators and security positions at the high schools. (Click here for the full list.)

“I hated doing it,” board Chairman Jack Chiaramonte said of the cuts. “We tried to keep the cuts away from the kids directly.” The board decided not to cut first grade aides, intervention aides, library aides, or the third grade strings program.

The board’s four Democrats voted against the budget. Jodi Bishop-Pullan, who has been on the board for 12 years, said, “This was the worst budget I’ve gone through. I’m devastated by how much was cut. It just wasn’t enough money. You can blame the city or you can blame the unions. In either case, I just can’t condone this budget.”

Bishop-Pullan is especially worried about the high schools. “I’m concerned about the student-to-teacher-to-administrator ratio if we lose the housemasters,” she says. “A lot of the problems that happen in urban high schools can be avoided with the right staffing.”

Chiaramonte said the cuts will take a toll on Central Office. Three top administrator positions were cut: the director of elementary education, instructional specialist for grants and instructional specialist for social studies/grants. “Jobs at Central Office will be more stressful. People will have to do the jobs of two or three people,” he said.

Superintendent Susan Marks said she is also concerned about the “very, very thin” Central Office. “Successful school system need resources in the schools, and they also need resources to support the schools and be responsive to teachers and parents." She said cuts in Central Office affect curriculum development, professional development and administrator evaluations. Nonetheless, she said, "We don't have a choice. There are things that have to get done."

With 10 teachers cut, Marks says she will be paying close attention to class sizes next year.

Steve Colarossi, chairman of the board’s finance committee, said most cuts have some affect on student achievement, however, he said the board was successful in minimizing the impact of the cuts. “I think these were less harmful types of cuts.” He said he sought to minimize the number of people who would lose their jobs by reducing positions of people who were retiring or leaving the district.

Mayor Richard Moccia was at Tuesday’s meeting until the end. He broke two significant ties voting in favor of two elementary assistant principals and against two high school housemasters.

Like Colarossi, Moccia is a satisfied with the results. “This detailed review by Dr Marks' administration and the Board of Ed members resulted in a collaboration that avoided the dire the predictions that some had made about the future of our system,” he said.

Midway through the meeting, when he heard that the board had $2.1 million remaining to cut, Chiaramonte had an outburst about the lack of union concessions. “I thought to myself: That was the amount we would have had if the teachers took a pay freeze," he said of the moment. “They could have saved their co-workers jobs.”

The teacher’s union retirement play yielded $130,000 in savings instead of the anticipated $350,000 from an early retirement incentive package eventually offered by the teachers' unions.

Colarossi also took issue with some of the superintendent’s proposed cuts, especially the elementary school-based ones, and advocated for preserving first grade and intervention aides. “Every study I’ve read says the best way to reduce the achievement gap is to promote early childhood learning.”

Moving forward, Marks plans to work with the board on strategic planning. “Our budget decisions must relate to the needs of the school system,” she said. “They should also be tied to accountability, good teaching and consistency from school to school."

Chiaramonte is hopeful the district will be able to restore both housemaster and the West Rocks' assistant principal positions. Marks said the district is negotiating health insurance contracts that will produce savings. At Tuesday’s meeting, the mayor also suggested non-personnel items for possible savings. “We should know about these positions pretty soon,” said Chiaramonte.  

UPDATED: BOE Reconciles Budget

A version of this story appears in TheDailyNorwalk.com

Norwalk elementary schools were largely spared, but the district’s central office staffing took a big hit as the Board of Education passed its reconciled budget on Tuesday night. By 1:30 a.m., after more than 5 hours of public comment, back-and-forths and several tense moments, the school board adopted a budget of $154.8 million with a 5-4 vote, ending the night with a $55,000 surplus.  Democratic Board members Jodi Bishop-Pullan, Heidi Keyes, Migdalia Rivas and Rosa Murray opposed the budget.

For the elementary schools, the board voted to keep the assistant principals, library aides, and the third grade strings program.   Intervention aides, the Roton Planetarium program and first grade aides were also retained.  However, three Columbus Magnet School aide positions were cut, as were nine elementary school teacher positions which will be determined primarily by class sizes next year.

At each of the high schools, one housemaster, and police and security positions were eliminated. One Norwalk High School physical education teacher's position was also eliminated.  One of the two West Rocks assistant principal positions was cut as well.  However, towards the end of the meeting, the superintendent and the board acknowledged that the housemaster and West Rocks assistant principal positions are priorities for restoration.

The ax fell on the Central Office too. Three top administrator positions were cut:  Director of Elementary Education, Instructional Specialist for Grants, and Instructional Specialist for Social Studies/Grants.

“The Central office gave a lot to this budget,” said Superintendent Susan Marks, who had been criticized by some board members for suggesting too many program cuts on the elementary level.

About 150 people, mostly staff and smattering of parents attended the meeting.  Although lists of cuts have been circulating in the public and at finance committee meetings, this was the first time that the entire school board went over, line by line,  the cuts proposed by the superintendent and members of the board.  Over the course of the evening, the Board eliminated $4.16 million from the budget.  That number factored in approximately $600,000 in union concessions from the teachers, administrators and custodial unions combined.  Several of the board members called the $130,000 concession from the teacher's union "disappointing" since it fell far short of the anticipated $350,000.

Procedurally, the meeting got off to a rocky start when board members couldn’t agree on which excel spreadsheet to work off of.  Rivas said that a spreadsheet created by Board Member Sue Haynie that was on the projector should not be used because it was not circulated to the public, “My community has not seen this document,” she said.  Haynie explained she had made it to make the list easier to understand. Murray, who was attending her first meeting after being reappointed after Susan Hamilton resigned, recommended that going forward the district's finance staff should prepare documents and that that they be distributed through the finance committee chair.

Audra Good, Brookside PTO president who is also a first grade aide the school, stayed for almost the entire meeting was also confused throughout the meeting.  “It’s tedious, very confusing and seems disorganized,” she said.  “I’m not sure how well they communicate among themselves and know procedures.” 

First, the board tackled cuts that had the backing in the Finance Committee and Budget Committee.  In support of Superintendent Susan Marks, Sue Haynie stated for the record after each applicable cut, “This cut was recommended by the superintendent.” 

Board member and finance committee chair Steve Colarossi presented his own list of administrative cuts totaling approximately $100,000 to the board  for its consideration.  He proposed reducing items such as legal fees, conferences, travel, advertising, and furniture.  The Board accepted all of the reductions with the exception of their $20,500 membership to the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education.

The board didn’t start addressing the most contentious cuts until after 11 p.m.  On the issue of cutting two house masters at the highschools Bishop-Pullan spoke in favor of keeping the housemasters, “I don’t see how we can lose more adults in the high schools,” she said. Murray, Haynie and Keyes we in agreement, however Colarossi, Kassimis, Chiaramonte and Iannaconne voted in favor of the cut.  Rivas abstained. Mayor Richard Moccia, an ex-officio member of the BOE, used his tie-breaking vote to endorse cutting the house masters .

Moccia also broke the tie on the proposal to cut  two elementary assistant principals.  However, this time he voted to keep them in the budget.  

Several parents and staff spoke against the cut of six library aides during the public comment section of the meeting.  The board voted 7-2, with Colarossi and Haynie in favor of the cut.   The strings teacher was also retained after a 6-3 vote, Colarossi, Kassimis and Haynie voted in favor of the cut. 

While the board voted not to eliminate Ponus’ second assistant principal, the board did vote 5-4 to eliminate the West Rocks assistant principal.  Bishop-Pullan, Murray, Keyes and Rivas voted against the cut.   Colarossi and Haynie stated that West Rocks did not have significantly more students than Nathan Hale, which only has one assistant principal.

The board voted 6-3 to cut the Director of Elementary Education in spite of the superintendent’s arguments to preserve the position. Haynie, Keyes, and Chiaramonte opposed the cut. 

“We need someone to support and evaluate the principals,” Marks said.  Colarossi, however, stated that there aren’t any good principal evaluation tools.  “I don’t think the position works despite the good people who work in it,” he said.  Murray suggested that the Superintendent evaluate the elementary principals directly.  Haynie stated that some of the responsibilities of the eliminated grants and social studies specialist position were supposed to be taken over by the director of elementary education.   

Here is the list of eliminated positions at meeting's end. 

1.     Nine elementary and one high school teaching position; 

2.     Two high school secretary positions

3.     Three Columbus aides

4.     Two Central Office instructional specialists

5.     Director of Elementary Education

6.     IT Staff developer

7.     Librarian at Brien McMahon High School

8.     Guitar teacher

9.     One security position at Norwalk High School

10.    1.5 literacy coaches

11.   One middle school guidance counselor

12.   One finance/HR Department position

13.   One secretary position

14.   One Food service worker

15.   Custodial vacancy position

16.   0.5 reserve nurse position

17.   Head of security at Brien McMahon

18.   0.5 technician position

19.   Four reserve teachers

20.   Two reserve aide positions

21.   Police security funds at high school

22.  Two high school house masters

23.  One West Rocks assistant principal position

Special Budget Reconciliation Meeting Tuesday

[updated: meeting time is 7:45 not 7 pm]

The Board of Education is holding a special meeting Tuesday at 7:45pm in the City Hall Concert Hall.  After several months of school budget limbo, the BOE is making strides towards a reconciliation.  But where the chips/cuts may fall is still anyone's guess.

BOE chairman Jack Chiaramonte says the purpose of the meeting is for the board to review the budget cuts.  Although the agenda reads "Discussion and Possible Action 2010-11 Budget Reconciliation", Chiramonte says that it unlikely that any vote on the budget will take place on Tuesday. 

The BOE is looking for $4.6 million in cuts to bring its budget to $155 million for next year. 

Finance Committee Chair Steve Colarossi says that he's planning to present an "alternative budget plan" to that of the Superintendent's that "lessens the impact of cuts on elementary schools".  The current proposed budget eliminates intervention aides, some first grade aides, half of the library aides and two elementary assistant principals.   Colarossi says that in his plan the burden "shifts more towards Central Office."

Also on the budget, it seems like the teacher retirement savings plan has attracted fewer teachers than expected.  According to Bruce Mellion, about five teachers have signed on to the plan so far. The deadline for signing onto the plan was Friday.   The $350K in savings from the retirement packages is predicated on 10 teachers taking it.   I haven't confirmed the numbers with Central Office yet.

DTC Picks Murray for School Board

Rosa Murray is back on the Norwalk Board of Education. Murray, a District A Democrat, was selected unanimously Wednesday evening by the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee to replace departing school board member Susan Hamilton.

"I am very excited to serve the Norwalk community as an experienced and now returning board member," said Murray, a former chair of the Board of Education. "I look forward to establishing relationships with board members and create a culture of working together to respond to the needs of the district."

Murray had served four consecutive four-year terms — that's 16 years — before losing her seat in the 2009 election. In that election, three incumbent Democrats were defeated, shifting the balance of power on the board 5-4 in favor of Republicans. Murray says that she has been attending meetings regularly over the last year and a half "to be knowledgeable about the work at hand."

Murray steps in during the final days of an arduous budget reconciliation. "I've been there before with a tight budget. I plan to work in a bipartisan collaborative way with my fellow board members."

"Rosa’s previous service to the BOE means that there is no need for on the job training," says Democratic Town Chair Marc Bradley. "I look forward to having such a strong Democratic voice back on the board.”

"Rosa has a sense of history with the community," says Jodi-Bishop Pullan, senior Board of Education member. "She also knows the process. That experience is useful since there is a lot of new staff and we are short-staffed." Norwalk's Superintendent Susan Marks and Chief Operating Officer Craig Drezek have been at their jobs less than a year.

Murray has two daughters who have graduated from Norwalk High Schools. She is a past president of Parents for Norwalk High. Currently, she is the guardian and active grandmother of two children who attend Norwalk schools. 

Hamilton is leaving her school board position after 7 1/2 years because she is moving to Westport. Last month, Republican Artie Kassimis replaced Erin Halsey, who also left the school board to take a job as city clerk.

Two Norwalk Assistant Principals Take Stamford Jobs

Two Norwalk assistant principals are taking the top jobs at Stamford elementary schools. Michael Pisseri is leaving Ponus Ridge Middle School at the end of the school year to become principal at Davenport Ridge Elementary School. His colleague Mark Bonasera, an assistant principal at West Rocks for the past two years, was named principal at Julia A. Stark Elementary School on May 24.
"The fact that Mike Pisseri and Mark Bonasera are becoming principals in Stamford speaks for the caliber of our administrators in Norwalk," said Superintendent Susan Marks in an email. "I know that Mike and Mark will be strong principals who will do the best on behalf of their new school communities."

According to an article in the Stamford Advocate, Bonasera and Pisseri were picked from a candidate pool of 57 people, including 14 internal and 43 external applicants. Neither Pisseri nor Bonasera could be reached for comment.

In addition to Pisseri and Bonasera, several other administrator positions will be open at the end of school year. Marie Allen, the other assistant principal at Ponus, will vacate her position at the end of the school year and become principal of Briggs High School. Two Norwalk High Housemaster positions will be open — Gwendolyn Young is retiring and one position has been vacant since Kevin Walston left earlier this school year to become principal of Harding High in Bridgeport.

In the elementary schools, Columbus' longtime Assistant Principal Herman Davenport is retiring, and Marvin has had an interim assistant principal since Kristen DiPalma left in December. 

As a result of this year's tight budget, Ponus' and West Rocks' second assistant principal jobs, as well as housemasters and elementary principals, have been considered for elimination. As of yet, no decision has been made by the Board of Education on the future of these positions.

Norwalk School Human Resource Director Fay Ruotolo said that despite the uncertainty about the positions, they have been advertised. "We have posted these positions now to attract the strongest candidates. Although we may not be able to fund every position, when the board does reconcile the budget, we will be prepared with a slate of candidates to interview for the positions that survive."

Super Tuesday in Norwalk: Budgets and Sharpton

As if $4 million in budget cuts didn't create enough drama in Norwalk...  Yesterday, we learned that Al Sharpton will be attending the NAACP rally decrying the arrest of Tanya McDowell for sending her son to a Norwalk school and demanding equal education for all. 

First the BOE:
I was surprised to see that BOE meeting is going to take place in the Concert Hall.  I haven't heard much rallying about getting parents to "come out".  What I have heard is a lot of confusion.

First, there was Marks' initial list (swim, hockey teams, school to career, band transportation).   After the public hearings,  Marks put forth a second list with some items taken off and new items (librarians, planetarium, central office specialists) put on.  Most recently,  the Finance Committee meeting discussed an "uber list " combining both lists.  At this point the unions got involved again adding their input.  It seemed at that meeting that we were starting from the beginning.  The finance committee agreed on about $2 million in cuts (we need $4.6).  Of course, they don't have the final say.

Okay, so now it's June and we're supposed to reconcile this budget by the end of the month presumably.  On Tuesday's agenda it says "Discussion and Possible Action 2011-12 Budget Reconciliation"  and the June 21st meeting may be canceled due to graduation. So are we to assume that everything is going to be discussed maybe even voted on Tuesday when there is already a packed agenda?

From Day 1 of the budget process, I have been waiting to hear robust discussion by the ENTIRE board and the superintendent about  budget plans and proposed cuts.  We've had public hearings, slide shows, written question/answers which few people probably read, but I don't recall one meeting when the entire board sat and discussed in depth the proposed budgets cuts. 

Public hearings are good, they allow the public to air their thoughts, but they are not a back and forth. Last year, there were some very useful PTO Parent Budget Workshops for parents to ask Central Office  administrators questions.  The finance committee meetings are open but few parents attend.   They are useful for getting into more detail on budget line items, but they shouldn't replace budget discussions by the entire board as they seem to have this year.   Nothing should replace the work of our elected officials as an entire group reviewing the superintendent's budget and making sure that it  promotes the goals of the district, as best it can. 

Tight budgets and and substantial cuts are anxiety provoking, too be sure, even in best of circumstances.  But unfortunately I don't think they are going away. Good budget processes and predictability can help lessen the anxiety, I think. 

I hope after the budget reconciliation is done, the Board can have a post mortem discussion about the process:  what was done well, and what can be improved.  I think this idea was mentioned by Susan Wallerstein.

Also on the agenda is the hiring of an interim Director of HR, constructions plans for Rowayton and Naramake. Click here for the agenda and actions. 

Here's my post from TheDailyNorwalk.com on Sharpton:

Civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton will attend a rally Tuesday in support of a Bridgeport woman who was arrested for sending her son to a Norwalk elementary school. The rally, organized by the state and Norwalk chapters of the NAACP, will be held at Brookside Elementary School from 6 to 8 p.m.

Also Tuesday, Tanya McDowell is scheduled to appear again in state Superior Court in Norwalk for proceedings related to the larceny charges filed against her in the school case.  As part of her case, McDowell also faces separate narcotics and breach of peace offences. 

A postcard advertising the rally was distributed last week calling for participants to “rally to fix the broken educational system – because no child should live in fear that their parent will be arrested for trying to get them a decent education.”

Organizers are hiring buses to transport participants coming from New Haven, Waterbury, Hartford, Bridgeport, Meriden, New Britain and Stamford.“It’s about equal education,” said Bobbi Brown, youth council president for the NAACP of Bridgeport. “We’re going to get a lot of young people to come out and make some noise. Having Al Sharpton there will shine some light on the situation.”