Category: Education

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Texas Comptroller Cutting 12000 Elementary Teachers?!

Update 01/13/2011:

Someone from my area e-mailed her directly for clarification and here’s her answer:

January 11, 2011

Mr. ******

Dear Mr. *****:

Thank you for your message concerning our recent Financial Allocation Study for Texas (FAST) report.

The education of Texas school children is among the state’s highest priorities. The recommendations in the FAST report are intended to provide school districts with options to manage their budgets during these difficult times.

The FAST report does not recommend firing Texas teachers; the report recommends replacing the current 22-students-per-classroom cap in grades K-4 with a requirement that districts maintain an average of 22 students per teacher for those grade levels. In practice, this would give school districts the flexibility to have slightly more than 22 students in a particular class as long as it was offset by a classroom with fewer than 22 students. In this way, districts could determine student class size based on the needs of their particular students and district rather than a state-set mandate.

To read a detailed description of our recommendation to allow school districts to maintain an average of 22 students per teacher, please see Page 31 of the FAST Appendix, which can be found at www.fastexas.org/study.

In addition, we have recommended a study of the growth in school district administrative positions. Reducing growth of these positions could result in increased resources for teachers. Please see Page 32 of the FAST Appendix for more information on this recommendation.

Legislative action would be required to adopt any of these recommendations, which may be discussed in the 82nd Legislature convening Jan. 11. If you would like to contact your state legislators concerning education policy, you can find their contact information at www.fyi.legis.state.tx.us.

We hope this information is helpful.

Sincerely,

Susan Combs

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

So if the above e-mail is indeed true (and it starts at page 30, not 32), then I would like to do the decent thing by retracting my anger towards the Comptroller.  I guess I will not read from The Dallas Morning News anymore.

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As I am about to go to sleep, I come across this disturbing news that the newly elected Texas comptroller is planning to cut 12,000 elementary school teachers to save $500 million! What the %23@#!$!$

Of all the stupid things to do to save money, you cut education?! Cut your own salary first! Even more infuriating is the fact that I see this on her website!

Combs

I added the red circle to point out that she promised two things she’s breaking as we speak! What kind of baloney is this?! How is she FOR education by destroying the basic foundation of the education: elementary schools?! Kids first get exposed to school through this system and I can’t see any of my kids being happy to hear that their teachers may not return next year!

I am soo mad right now! I hope people take notice and address this!

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“Rain Man” Conversations During Lunch

We went to Starfire Grille for lunch today.  We were eating our meals when a father and son duo walked in.  Didn’t think much of it at first except for a bit loud son.  He soon got loud and I soon figured out that he was mentally challenged.

He was rather loud.  We kept eating.  Until JJ brought up the issue.  He asked what’s with him and normally, I’d have bypassed the conversation until I realized that every opportunity can be an opportunity to learn.  So we had our conversation that no one is best at everything.  And that some of us are born with certain conditions that may seem worse than others on the surface.

We talked about “Rain Man” and “Forrest Gump” and the kids seemed to take it in well.  I had told them that most of the time, these mentally challenged people are not hurtful though they may seem so on the surface.  Most of how your kids see others, I believe, are stemmed from how you as parents teach and raise them.  If I had taught my kids to be afraid or be mean to people who are different, chances are that would have everlasting impact on their future behavior.

I am thankful that the opportunity surfaced and that the kids took it in well.

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Are you an overprotective parent or a neglectful dad?!

New Scientist Article

I just read this article and learned that the kids with over-protective parents and/or neglectful fathers grow up with slow brain growth!  😮  Wow… we all want to protect our kids… but with something like this, it does bring up a good counter point of when is a parent too protective?!

To think that my being overly protective can prohibit or slow my kids’ brain growth and development is shocking to say the least!  In the end, I am sure as a parent, we would want to choose safety over intelligence but if we can balance that well and not bind our own kids, we should make conscientious choice to do so… even if it’s only half true!

While I understand that many will display concern to avoid blame game, it does raise up a good point that when you overprotect a child, that child will become less and less involved in decision making process, let alone thinking for themselves… that’s the biggest factor/danger that any parent should be aware of…

Again, as a parent, if I had to choose between safety of my kids and their intelligence, I’d choose safety hands down… but if I can help it, I need to also learn to let go and let them start “walking on their own” whenever I can.

All of us Asians have gone through much of this in our childhoods, mine included, but since most of us came out decently (or so I tell myself :P), surely it isn’t the end of the world… 

It is however, very shocking to learn that NEGLECTFUL FATHTERS have equal impact on inhibiting the children’s mental development!! o_O I am more concerned about that…  Time to spend more time with my kids!!!!

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Is GT All It’s Cracked Up To Be?!

No, I am not talking about cars… though it is something I can easily talk about.  I am referring to the “Gifted & Talented” program.  One of our kids, I won’t mention who, has been nominated and admitted into the GT program.  I for one am not so sure about it though… especially in regards to long-term perspective.

Sure it allows advanced or fast-learning kids to not get bored by giving them more stuff… but I see more drawbacks than anything else… Let me explain.  First of all, smart people are easily anti-social and tend to not work well with people… especially those that they don’t consider as intelligent.  Second of all, smart people don’t understand how the world turns.  On the daily level.  Intelligent people tend to get isolated from what normal average people feel and experience.

Ok, so you may think that I am exaggerating things and stereotyping people a bit.  And that is true but so far, I haven’t been proved wrong.  I worry that GT program would isolate the child even further than necessary from regular people and how things turn around daily…  If you recall, I have said over and over that I’d trade smart kids for sociable ones on any given day!  Smart kids tend to think better of themselves.  My wife’s friend’s child is showing such symptoms, as well as co-worker’s son.  I am not saying that all smart people are evil.  But it sure seems easy to become so…

If this world is to become a better place, we need people who can tolerate others and work with others.  Together.  Not a bunch of smart self-reliant people.  Take that as my 2 cents… If humility can be in co-existence though… then it can save the intelligent.

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Lego Short Film

I have always been a big Lego person and a supporter… it is by far the single best toy a kid can have! So when I came across this video short, I was immensely pleased and just HAD to share it! Enjoy! And if you have kids, get them some Lego!!

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CNN Money’s Video Interview on St. Philip’s Academy in Newark, NJ

A school in Newark, NJ has really inspired me to see what true education is all about!  These are the truest moments when I applaud our education system and the teachers.  I sure hope that my kids can someday go to schools like this one…