Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Education Ride 365: Should The Arts & Other Extracurriculars Take A Back Seat To---> THE TEST?

On Day 50 I saw some very interesting artwork while exploring the area around Alpine TX.  The artwork was painted on a hearse---a Cadillac---parked near the town square in Marfa TX.  Artists amaze me. 

In fact, the artist who painted the Cycle of Education would be mentioned on this blog and elsewhere in my travels much more often had the business side of that process---handled by her manager---gone more smoothly.  Despite my inability to recommend the business aspect of her work, I will say that she certainly is an incredibly talented person.  I was told that her parents really wanted her to be a nun.  She really wanted to be an artist.  They now understand what for years they could not.  She is a true artist.  A uniquely talented individual.

Must we make sure that the academic mission of our schools---particularly the high stakes standardized exams that almost exclusively determine the official measure of a school's success, failure, or mediocrity---not undercut fine arts and other special programs that play an extremely important role in developing well-rounded young people?  Or, is a school's overriding mission measured by academic achievement, even at the cost of extracurricular development and expression? 

As a principal I engaged in the practice of "pulling" students out of art, band, p.e., and other "extras" if the data told me they needed additional tutoring in order to "pass the test".  The test is quantifiable.  It is the key measure of success many schools are judged by.  My regrets and reservations about that practice---that bow to perceived necessity---have been discussed a bit in at least one earlier post on this blog and will be discussed in more depth in future posts. 

Art and other extracurricular offerings do not lend themselves to quantification...to objectively determining a school's success, failure, or mediocrity.  Nonetheless, art (for one) is one of the most amazing of human abilities...of human accomplishment.  What do you think?  Should students with significant learning gaps or other impediments to passing "the test" still be entitled to participate in the extracurricular mission of schools?

---

Riding Stats: Day 50---65 miles traveled, 1 hour and 08 minutes of moving time, 1 hour and 35 minutes of stopped time, 51.8 miles per hour average moving time, and 20.8 miles per hour overall average.  Day 51---15.2 miles traveled.

Posted at 7:57 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Education Ride 365: Protecting America Once The River Runs Dry

On Day 49, after a very short night at a hotel in Laredo looking out over the border crossing below, I pulled out en route to Alpine, TX.  This would be the beginning of nearly a week in the Big Bend country of southwest Texas.

During the days leading up to Day 49, as well as during the days that followed up to my arrival in San Diego on Day 63, I have spent many hours riding along the southern border of the United States.  At first I was struck by the number of checkpoints, law enforcement K-9s, and border patrol vehicles I encountered.  They do seem to be on full alert, taking their job of protecting the border and keeping illegal aliens out very seriously. 

As I have gone further, though, it is very clear to me what a daunting task they have.  How they can, at best, check a mere fraction of the vehicles.  How they are on hilltops and hiking in patrols across the desert, with miles of adjacent borderland unpatrolled.  How the Rio Grande River is basically just a creek throughout much of its run, providing no barrier between nations whatsoever, just as you see it in the picture below.  That is the mighty Rio Grande...just a foot or so deep here and many, many places.

I remember speaking with classrooms of students just a few years ago about how America is the wealthiest country in human history...and how we are living in its wealthiest time.  I explained to them that this is not guaranteed to last.  How the fate of our country could turn any day.  And, consequently, how important it is that we educate the youth of our nation as a top national priority if we intend to maintain our economic fortunes.

Like the river that helps protect our border against illegal immigration, the river of American economic prosperity is running dry in too many places.  So many people who did the right things to invest in their education, investments, and other means of caring for their future are now seeing prospects for a return on their effort running dry.  At the same time, public education budgets in America are being shaved to the bone.  As an example, I just read that San Diego is currently preparing to cut yet 1600 more teachers, which will result in middle school classes soaring to over 40 students each.  That is one example of a national drama playing out in all sectors of an economy now even admittedly sacrificing education for other priorities.

This drying river of opportunity and quality jobs seems as real as the border patrol's inability to protect a lengthy southern border from yet more undocumented children in our classrooms.  Texas is in year one of two year education budget cuts totaling $4 billion, even when 68,000 students are being added...many of them non-English speaking children of illegal immigrants.

Will the sands of time see America prosper again?  Or, is time catching up with America and our better days will prove to be behind us?  I propose that the more we drain from the river of education, the further we will stagnate and bottom out as a great power that once was.  Don't let this happen!

---

Riding Stats: Day 49---398.7 miles traveled, 6 hours and 54 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 2 minutes of stopped time, 57.7 miles per hour average moving time, and 40 miles per hour overall average.

Posted at 7:44 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education

Friday, March 2, 2012

Education Ride 365: Nothing Ventured Nothing Accomplished!

One key goal regarding college is to get someone else to pay for it...and I'm not talking about family either!  My presentation to the students of Santa Maria emphasized the importance of starting now to avoid a lifetime of school debt and/or other financial challenges associated with paying for post-secondary education all by one's self.  Scholarships and grants can be earned by those who: 1) take care of their grades throughout secondary school, 2) are well-rounded by virtue of going beyond academics to active participation in other school activities, and 3) who show that they care about people other than themselves by, for instance, participating in volunteer activities serving others.  Engaging in these three activities and recording your efforts to do so can pay for a great education!

Following the assembly, the students all had an opportunity to view the Cycle of Education and have their picture taken by it.  Some even had their picture taken on it...including the very gracious Principal of Santa Maria MS, Ms. Elizabeth Garza (pictured below).

I had a super time in Santa Maria ISD.  It is always fun to have interaction with young people!  Thank you so much faculty, staff, and students of Santa Maria MS.  In particular, thanks go out to Ms. Kelly Cotton for arranging the visit and chronicling it in their school newsletter, which can be viewed by clicking here.

Thank goodness for the enjoyable time at Santa Maria, because the ride itself from San Antonio to Santa Maria, then on to Laredo, was a soaking wet beat down.  In the last substantial town before riding the last hour to Laredo---in total darkness along the Texas/Mexico border, on uneven surfaces, and continuing rain---a Chrysler 300 kept edging into my lane for 50-70 feet before I backed off only to see him veer across my lane, clip a car in the turn lane, then hit yet another car head-on that was traveling the opposite direction.  It was a bad scene.  Thankfully there were no fatalities, but it reminded me just how precious and unpredictable life is.  It also reminded me how crucial it is to stay ultra-aware while traveling on a motorcycle...a lesson that may have paid off a few dozen miles down the road when my slower speed allowed me to react safely to a (four-legged) coyote crossing the road about forty feet in front of me.

It was a day of extremes---> the joy of trying to make a difference with young people enabled by braving the risks of the road!  Onward I travel! 

Onward go the students of Santa Maria MS!

---

Riding Stats: Day 48---458.1 miles traveled, 8 hours and 50 minutes of moving time, 4 hours and 10 minutes of stopped time, 51.8 miles per hour average moving time, 35.2 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 83.9 miles per hour.

Posted at 9:33 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_48

Friday, March 2, 2012

Education Ride 365: First Two Month Route Summary, January & February 2012

My blog post features are just getting out of San Antonio, but I am currently in Yuma, Arizona!  Soon I will write about the many neat places visited between San Antonio and Yuma AZ, but this post will provide an overview of the complete route of Education Ride 365 during the months of January and February.  Displaying this properly in Google Earth is still baffling me (I spent all afternoon today working on doing so) but here is a much less cool rendering created using my Garmin GPS software.  The first is a static map, while the second is an animated map.  Hopefully I can get the Google Earth representation figured out...surely I will by year's end!

January total mileage---> 4157.21
February total mileage---> 3989.26
Two-month total mileage---> 8146.47

Posted at 7:17 PM (permalink) 5 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Education Ride 365: Perceptions Of Reality; Reality Of Perceptions

My family moved around the southern United States quite a bit during my youth.  On two different occasions we lived in San Antonio.  On Day 47 of Education Ride 365 I left Nassau Bay TX headed for this great city.  It was an unexpected destination made possible by a change in scheduling.  I welcomed it because I would have an opportunity to visit my old neighborhood for the first time since graduating from high school in 1986.  One thing that struck me during this visit were some examples of the varying relationship of perception versus reality.

My family was the first owner of the home above.  My fifth grade year was spent here, on Mule Tree Road.  I was excited to locate this home and I also thought it would be neat to drop in on the elementary school I spent my fifth grade year attending.  Granted, I didn't have an appointment at the school, but I am an alum after all! 

Sometimes perception matches reality...at other times there is quite a divergence.  My visits chronicled on this blog to various neighborhoods I lived in as a child have been, more often than not, examples of my perceptions not matching reality.  Hills I thought were so steep that we were taking our lives in our hands as we rode our radio flyer wagons down recklessly without helmets, turn out now---through grown-up eyes---to have been not so steep after all.  A lake in Florida we jumped into to retrieve our model rockets (filled with "lizardnauts" braving their lives in the name of science)...with waters we were sure were inhabited by alligators...turned out to be not nearly as big to adult eyes as the oceanic body of water we perceived it to have been as children.  The "great" distances it seemed we had to travel on our motocross bicycles to get to the neighborhood convenience store, a friend's house, or other haunts of childhood exploration now seem, to adult eyes, to not be that far at all.  I have discovered that my childhood perception on so many of these things didn't match reality!

I was reminded during the visit to my fifth grade elementary school, however, of one perception that tends to mesh with reality.  This is the perception one gets of a school's climate from the souls who work there.  The front office is where it starts.  I have found this perception to match reality so many times during my career working in the schools, and visiting other schools, that I believe it to be an accurate barometer.  Are the adults on campus friendly to visitors?  Do they smile?  Do they appear to enjoy their job...to enjoy being where they are at?  Or, do they ooze indifference and obsession with their own state of being over that of their customers?  I use the word customers here for a reason.  Healthy schools have a customer service orientation.  Each person who walks through those doors is treated as a customer, no matter the purpose of their visit.  No matter any extraneous factor that would cause them to project negativity or indifference towards visitors to their campus.  When a negative school climate exists in this form---I have found time and time again---it tends to be characteristic of most all relationships on campus, all the way down to those between the teachers and children...in more cases than not.

Upon leaving my elementary school pondering this issue of perception versus reality, good customer service versus bad vibes, I located another home my family was the first owner of, on Pebble Dew Drive.  It was the home above, the one I lived in when I graduated from high school.  The single home I spent the most years in as a child.  I knocked on the door and met the current owner.  He was a very nice fellow and was holding a yorkie that looked much like my first family yorkie, Sarge, who we welcomed into the family when we lived in that home!  Just like the other homes I've lived in and visited during this journey, I noticed elements of the yard's landscape that I slaved away helping to create as a boy.  I went around the corner and got reacquainted with the parents of my first true love...probably one of the truest loves I've ever had.  They live directly behind this high school home, a convenience I enjoyed throughout my tenth grade year!

Yet again, however, I was reminded of the disconnect between perception and reality of the world as experienced by a child.  My fifth grade home was so much closer to this home than I perceived it to be back then.  So too was the building that housed "That'za Pizza" where I worked briefly for a friend of my step-father who was fired in the PATCO air traffic controller strike in 1981.  Blossum T. Athletic Center, the huge complex all NWISD schools used for many sporting events in the eighties---and the place where my association with the San Antonio Spurs was hatched (I took pictures for them in the eighties)---now seems right down the street from my home...whereas during high school I perceived it to be miles away.  Perception does not always match reality.

My second school visit of Day 47 was to Douglas MacArthur High School, the huge high school I attended as a youth.  My graduating class was over 900.  We had about 3200 students at Mac in 1986.  The school was then laid out like a college campus, with separate buildings for the various subjects.  The Math Wing (building) no longer exists...it is a parking lot...nor the English and other wings.  The school is now all one huge, almost completely rebuilt, complex.  One of the only remaining vestiges of the Mac I knew is the huge arch, with the frieze pictured below, that was once the entrance to the auditorium but now greets visitors as they enter the building proper. 

This Douglas MacArthur frieze espouses "Duty, Honor, Country" to all who enter.  It represents to those who walk under it the values this campus wishes to project---> a perception of the school that hopefully is the reality of those who inhabit it.  In like fashion, school employees---especially those who greet the customers walking through their doors...no matter the purpose of the visit---should project a friendliness and overall customer service orientation that seems to be a hallmark of school's with a healthy school climate.  If you as an employee suggest your school is not a warm, welcoming place, reality tends to be that most people who enter (including students...the most important customers of all) will feel the exact same way! 

That is a reality as I perceive it!

---

Riding Stats: Day 46---244.3 miles traveled, 3 hours and 42 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 52 minutes of stopped time, 66 miles per hour average moving time, and 32.3 miles per hour overall average.  Day 47---59.54 miles traveled, 1 hours and 38 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 31 minutes of stopped time, 36.4 miles per hour average moving time, 11.5 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 78.6 miles per hour. 

Posted at 8:23 AM (permalink) 3 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_46, Day 47, Campus Climate, Customer Service Orientation

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Education Ride 365: Sometimes The Buffet Is Not As Satisfying As A Dish Cooked To Order!

After my Day 45 visit to the Harris County Juvenile Justice system, I hurried along I-10 just over an hour away to the Taylor Career and Technology Center in Beaumont ISD.  This is a place "where minds and hands work together."

It strikes me that if there were more places like Taylor Career and Technology Center, our juvenile justice system might be smaller.  Taylor is an inspiring place.  It gives students a very real world opportunity to apply the knowledge they are learning in their core subjects.  It provides them with a vision that these studies are meaningful and applicable beyond some distant goal of going to college to eventually apply that knowledge to a career.  It gets them started on a career path now, in the restless teenage years of trying to discover one's identity.

That is by no means suggesting these students will not get education beyond secondary school.  In fact, most all of them already are---> while they are completing secondary school.  Taylor partners with Lamar University to place students in work-based learning programs at the Lamar Institute of Technology for which they earn post-secondary credits.  They are getting a jump on their future instead of floundering around like so many secondary students who are just waiting to step on the starting line of a traditional university program. 

Offerings at Taylor include:

• Culinary Arts/Hospitality Services
• Cosmetology
• Business
• Graphic Arts
• Computer Systems Technology & Computer Networking
• Welding
• Metal Trades
• Building Trades
• Auto Collision & Auto Technology
• Child Guidance
• Petrochemical Plant Processing

We know "vocational arts" programs are not new in American schools.  Many of us also know that the proverbial pendulum had swung away from investing in these programs in favor of, basically, an orientation that most every student who will be successful in the new American economy will need to go through a traditional four-year university degree program.  This pendulum is swinging back.

Many progressive districts are attempting to address this need for more immediately relevant and targeted instruction by establishing select magnet schools.  Often, these schools are modeled as more sophisticated versions of vocational schools.  Some focus on a particular general field of specialty (technology, law, medicine, etc.), while others contain various "schools within a school" to offer a wider array of specialties.  These schools are in high demand.  They tend to be the better schools in most districts.  The students, on average, tend to be more motivated.  The campuses tend to be better resourced.

One troubling aspect of these school is the enrollment process.  Most are not open enrollment campuses.  In some districts parents "camp out" all night for a spot in line to get their child in.  Others have a lottery system of selection, where the opportunity to participate in an enriched educational experience boils down to luck.  When pre-entrance merit is the basis, all kinds of perplexing questions are in play.  There is simply more demand for this sort of schooling experience than there are spots.  This reality seems to fly in the face of equal educational opportunity for all public school students. 

Education beyond high school is indeed important and a university education, in particular, is a great thing.  Nonetheless, it is abundantly clear that young people are searching for direction before they turn 18.  Many high school students are turned off by the (necessary) curriculum they must master because they don't see any connection between it and what their life will be.  We often don't provide clear enough connection between abstract knowledge and practical application.  In their minds they are slaving away now to get a taste of some pie in the sky in the distant future.  The more we let them taste the pie now, the less likely they are to develop 'disorders' that will prevent them from tasting it later.  They are hungry, but even so, sometimes the buffet is less satisfying than an individual dish prepared to taste.

The Taylor Career & Technology Center lets students taste the pie now.  Their students are gaining a clear direction just as they have the restless hunger for relevance we know is a central characteristic of the teenage years.  Their students learn the core curriculum, they apply it to future vocations, they compete with other students in competitions designed around the particular skills they are learning, they are guided along the path of scholarship acquisition to fund further education, and they are developing a network of associates likely to follow a similar career path in life. 

I salute Principal Thom Campbell-Amons, Technology Director Doris Cyrus, and all the other focused faculty and students at Taylor!  I would also like to thank them all for showing me such kindness and consideration during my most enjoyable visit!  I was so impressed by the students in particular.  They are taking hold of their future, applying their knowledge and skills, and are on course for a productive role serving themselves, their families, & this country!

---

Riding Stats: Day 41---175.9 miles traveled, 3 hours and 19 minutes of moving time, 1 hour and 26 minutes of stopped time, 53 miles per hour average moving time, 37.1 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 84.6 miles per hour.  Day 42 and 43---Rest and catching up.  Day 44---52.54 miles traveled, 1 hour and 50 minutes of moving time, 4 hours and 54 minutes of stopped time, 28.6 miles per hour average moving time, 7.8 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 79.3 miles per hour.  Day 45---202.5 miles traveled, 4 hours and 50 minutes of moving time, 6 hours and 48 minutes of stopped time, 41.8 miles per hour average moving time, and 17.4 miles per hour overall average.  Day 46---244.3 miles traveled, 3 hours and 42 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 52 minutes of stopped time, 66 miles per hour average moving time, and 32.3 miles per hour overall average.

Posted at 11:09 AM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_45, Day 46, Vocational Schools, Magnet Schools

Friday, February 24, 2012

Education Ride 365: Developing & Exercising Patience With The Undeveloped Seemingly In Need Of Exorcism!

Posted at 5:51 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_45, Day_46, Discipline, Juvenile Justice

Monday, February 20, 2012

Education Ride 365: Two Whirlwind Weeks Before Heading To The Show!

From the Georgia Aquarium, on Day 27, I headed back west.  Through Gadsden AL to Memphis TN.  Then on to Jackson MS, before making my way for a stay in Marshall TX, then a brief stop in DFW for motorcycle maintenance and family visits, before heading to Austin TX for the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) annual conference at the Austin Convention Center!  It was a whirlwind 14 days!

In an effort to get up-to-date, below I will note a few highlights and share some pictures from those two weeks.  In future posts I will detail more education stories and insights I picked up along the way.  Hopefully...then I can get totally caught up to today---Day 51, February 20---of my year-long odyssey!  My goal is to get current, then stay current!

On Day 30, in Memphis TN, I met with the administration of a top-notch private Catholic School---> Christian Brothers High School.  What a gracious and progressive bunch of folks.  This high school has a healthy revenue stream and they are using it, in part, to develop and implement 21st century technology solutions to school operations and instruction.  They are blessed with resources beyond what most any public school has and they are using these investments to create efficiencies through technological innovations that are bound to benefit the education of their students.  I intend to discuss these further in future posts.

I then met with J. Terence Patterson, Education Program Officer for the Hyde Foundation, in his magnificent Memphis office overlooking the Mississippi River...sitting in Tennessee looking across the river to Arkansas.  The Hyde Foundation's role in education is, in their words:

Mr. Patterson is a very impressive individual.  He is a graduate of Harvard and clearly a passionate advocate for closing the achievement gap for all students.  We discussed the great need for improvement in so many failing schools across our country that, by virtue of their abysmal performance and federal regulations/legislation, the Department of Education should have stepped in some time ago to straighten out.  Yet, the DOE is seemingly unresponsive or otherwise ineffective in enough cases of extreme need that private entities---such as the Hyde Foundation---are pledging to fill the vacuum.  Mr. Patterson and I discussed implications for the public system of private entities gaining a greater foothold in the landscape of American education.  Will this trend create further weaknesses in public education, or will it eliminate some of the chaff so the more worthy public institutions of education can regain their reputation as effective entities?  There is a huge debate to be had here.  Future posts on this blog will explore it in much more depth.

January 31st, Day 31 of Education Ride 365, I visited Dr. Chris Washam at Mississippi College in Jackson MS.  We discussed a whole range of issues, including the positive and negative impacts of school accountability systems in the form of high stakes standardized testing.  This is a ripe subject for discussion.  Ours was wide ranging.  In particular, I was curious about his analysis of the tension (as well as points of convergence) between a school's academic mission (judged today to be effective---or not--- almost exclusively by "the test") and the other components of a well-rounded education such as the arts, athletics, and other forms of self-expression and critical thinking.  What kind of person (individual) do we really want to develop as a product of American education? 

This same topic was the basis of much of my discussion later in the day with the very knowledgeable Assistant Superintendent Tim Martin (no relation) of the Clinton Public School District.  This district is one of only four districts in Mississippi rated with their highest distinction---> it is a Star District.  The district is diverse, has shown significant growth over the years, and is now achieving at a high level by the state's standards.  How does their state's standards compare with those of other states?  That is a topic we discussed in the context of the developing common core curriculum and assessments being adopted across our country by most every state but Texas and Alaska.  It should provide a true basis of comparison to judge the quality of education from state to state.

After a lengthy discussion of his state's current accountability system, I came away feeling it was much more progressive than that of states not based upon a "growth model" ...including the one in Texas.  This will be discussed further in future blog posts.

I was also interested in the "bridge school" concept Clinton Public Schools employ.  I was part of such a "bridge school" in Lewisville ISD (TX) that served only 9th graders 'bridging' the significant divide between middle school and high school.  Clinton has a 9th grade bridge, as well as a 6th grade only campus to bridge the elementary to middle school divide.  I think this is SO wise.  More about why and my experience in a bridge school in later posts!

I received quite a welcome in the town of Hawkins

upon entering back into Texas on Day 32! 

February 1st---Day 32---I was hosted in Marshall TX by a very engaging couple, Harry & Tyna Leonard.  Our discussions regarding education were interesting and are sure to come up in future posts.

February 7-10 the Cycle of Education was displayed in EdClick's booth during the 2012 annual conference of the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA).  We met so many dedicated, passionate educators throughout the conference.  Others were folks we knew from years of working in the Texas public education system, such as Joan Gore and Janet Corder (pictured above), both retired from Lewisville ISD but both also very much still involved in the education scene in Texas and beyond.  The Cycle was a big hit and many educators took pictures sitting on and/or standing beside it.  There are no doubt many such pictures circulating around schools today!

---

Riding Stats: Day 27---231.1 miles traveled, 6 hours and 23 minutes of moving time, 7 hours and 21 minutes of stopped time, and a max speed of 81.4 miles per hour.  Day 28---Day of rest.  Day 29---308.6 miles traveled, 5 hours and 7 minutes of moving time, 4 hours and 37 minutes of stopped time, 60.3 miles per hour moving average, 31.6 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 82 miles per hour.  Day 30---41.38 miles traveled, 1 hours and 2 minutes of moving time, 2 hours and 57 minutes of stopped time, 42 miles per hour moving average, 9.3 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 75.3 miles per hour.  Day 31---244.2 miles traveled, 3 hours and 44 minutes of moving time, 1 hour and 33 minutes of stopped time, 65.4 miles per hour moving average, 46.1 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 87.3 miles per hour.  Day 32 (Feb 1)---295.3 miles traveled, 6 hours and 2 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 19 minutes of stopped time, 48.8 miles per hour moving average, 31.5 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 87.6 miles per hour.  Day 33---175.6 miles traveled, 3 hours and 35 minutes of moving time, 1 hours and 4 minutes of stopped time, 48.9 miles per hour moving average, 37.8 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 87.2 miles per hour.  Day 34---14.65 miles traveled, 19 minutes and 34 seconds of moving time, 9 minutes of stopped time, 47.5 miles per hour moving average, 33 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 83.2 miles per hour.  Day 35 and 36---cycle maintenance.  Day 37 (Feb 6)--- 208.4 miles traveled, 2 hours and 59 minutes of moving time, 37 minutes of stopped time, 69.7 miles per hour moving average, 57.7 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 85.1 miles per hour.  Day 38---19.46 miles traveled, 48 minutes of moving time, and a max speed of 78.9 miles per hour.  Day 39 and 40---Cycle on display at Austin Convention Center. 

Posted at 5:15 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_27_through_Day_40

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Education Ride 365: All Animals Tend To Serve Most Properly When Properly Trained!

I pulled out from Ray's place in Jacksonville on Day 25 headed to Milledgeville, the antebellum capital of Georgia.  Milledgeville was the state's capital city from 1804-1868 and vestiges of this past are readily evident.  My goal was to stay in this historic city at the home of my friend Sherri Kent for a couple of nights, with a side trip just north to Athens GA, the hometown of my all-time favorite band---> R.E.M.

I never ended up riding to Athens, however, due to forecasted heavy rain that never ended up materializing.  No matter, as I could tell by twenty miles or so upon approaching Milledgeville that this was a special place for motorcycle riding!  The city is located along the geographical fall line, where water from one side of town flows toward the Atlantic Ocean, while water from the other side of town flows to the Gulf of Mexico.  The city has elevations, curves, and a rural setting prime for fun motorcycle touring.  Accordingly, after a night of rest, I spent an entire day exploring the rural roads surrounding this city of around 20,000 people.

While out on the Cycle of Education, I passed the central offices of the Baldwin County Public Schools.  Prominently displayed in the parking lot, on a hill off the road, was a school bus that caught my attention.  Initially I wasn't aware of the program it represented, but I decided to stop for a photo nonetheless.

The "Hope Bus" belongs to the "Parent University" program Baldwin County Public Schools launched in 2008.  This program "is designed to communicate with and connect with parents and guardians on how to be more involved as partners with the Baldwin County Public School System in the educational process of their children." 

After researching the program, I discovered that it is an attempt to respond to the anxieties I heard fairly regularly from parents during my time as an administrator and that I have already heard numerous times during Education Ride 365.  Specifically, parents want to be more involved supporting schools in the education of their children, but many are not confident in their ability to do so.  They are looking for guidance and support from the schools that need their support!  Baldwin County Public Schools are wise enough to meet this need.

I am reminded of a comment in response to my January 29th blog entry:

Parental involvement is often advocated as an important component for improving student performance. But the comments in this post indicate that parental involvement can be a detriment if their goals don't align with the goals of the school. If we look across an entire school, does a policy of increasing parental involvement in education help or hinder educators doing their jobs?

Parental involvement can help and hinder educators.  There will inevitably be a measure of both.  The degree to which parental involvement can help rather than hinder can be enhanced, it seems to me, by programs like Baldwin's "Parent University."  This type of program can better prepare parents for participation in constructive engagement.  It can give them the confidence and knowledge necessary for such participation.  It enlists them as active participants and can thereby lend perspective on (and dare I say empathy for) challenges the schools face working with young people in our diverse, relatively permissive society.  It calls them off the bench, teaches them the game plan, then sends them out on the field.

No sizable group of people will participate in any endeavor in a wholly positive manner, but educational institutions can and should better direct and nurture constructive engagement to maximize positive parental involvement.  The effort to do so should be well worth the payoff.

There are other ways educators can maximize the extent of constructive parental involvement.  I intend to discuss these in future posts.  People want to serve constructively in worthwhile efforts. 

My host in Milledgeville---Sherri Kent---is a perfect example.  She served our country in the military for many years, has participated in countless charitable events, and she currently volunteers her time weekly at the world famous Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta...though she lives over two hours away and keeps a busy work schedule.  Her husband Hal was similarly driven to make a difference.  In fact, he was tragically killed just over a year ago by a drunk driver during a charity bicycle ride across the United States.  He gave his life serving others.

On Day 27 of Education Ride 365, Sherri took me to the Georgia Aquarium to share her passion for this amazing educational institution and teach me more about developing an understanding of it.  Below are just a few pictures I took that day of this marvelous place:

Most all people want to serve other beings---of all species---in an effort to make this world a better place.  Many don't know how.  Thank you Sherri for sharing your home, the wonder that is the Georgia Aquarium, and for helping me consider how I and others can better serve all living organisms in a more constructive manner! 

---

Riding stats--- Day 25: 245.1 miles traveled, 4 hours and 46 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 15 minutes of stopped time, 50.9 miles per hour moving average, 30.2 overall average, and a max speed of 75.5 miles per hour.  Day 26: 106 miles traveled, 2 hours and 18 minutes of moving time, 6 hours and 2 minutes of stopped time, 45.8 miles per hour average moving time, 12.7 overall average, and a max speed of 91.9 miles per hour.  Day 27: 231.1 miles traveled, 6 hours and 23 minutes of moving time, 7 hours and 21 minutes of stopped time, and a max speed of 81.4 miles per hour.

Posted at 9:15 PM (permalink) 8 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_26, Day_26, Day_27, Georgia Aquarium, Baldwin County Public School, Parent Universitys

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Education Ride 365: Fantastic Place, Fantastic Educator, History Made!

The next leg of my trip, once again, hugged the east coast on Highway 1A...this time from Flagler Beach up to and through St. Augustine to the home of Ray King (pictured below) in Jacksonville. 

I was on schedule...until the beauty of St. Augustine Beach summoned me and The Cycle Of Education to a side road in front of a long-established house.  I stopped to take a photo of the historic lighthouse that graces the backyard of this relatively small, unassuming home. From the website:

A Spanish watchtower, built in the late 1500's was the predecessor of the present St. Augustine Lighthouse. St. Augustine is the site of the oldest aid to navigation in North America. The original watchtower became Florida's first lighthouse in 1824. However, by 1870, the tower was threatened by shoreline erosion and construction began on the current lighthouse. The new tower was completed in 1874. The old tower succumbed to the sea during a storm in 1880.

The only good angle I could get to photograph it was from the front of a small home tucked into a small neighborhood behind a small elementary school.  After parking the cycle and grabbing my camera, I heard a voice invite me into the backyard for an even better angle.  The voice came from behind a screened door and, with cane in hand, the owner of the voice and home---Halver A. Stedman---then took a few steps outside to put a face with the voice.  I thanked him and proceeded to the backyard for a few shots. 

After doing so, I almost headed straight for the motorcycle to get going to Ray's in Jacksonville (as I was already going to arrive later than planned), but I felt an obligation to thank the gentleman for allowing me into his backyard.  So I approached the screened door and could see him sitting there in a recliner holding a cigar and sipping what I later discovered was a glass of brandy.  Halver rocked himself up out of his recliner and came to the door for what turned out to be a most pleasant 20-or-so minute chat before he invited inside to continue our discussion. 

We had a great deal to discuss--come to discover--because he was an educator for 49 years before retiring in 2007.  In fact, he played a significant role in the public education system serving St. Augustine FL over the past half century.  He is a most interesting part of its history.

His career in education started after serving four years in the active military (and another fours years in a part time military role) during the 1950s.  Following his four years of active duty, he began preparing himself to be an educator.  In 1958, after also playing semi-pro baseball while preparing to teach, he was hired in his home state of Maine to teach five subjects AND serve as the high school principal!  Yes, his first year as an educator--1958--he was the principal as well as a teacher of multiple subjects!  I asked him how this came to be and he told me that the coach of his semi-pro baseball team just so happened to also be superintendent of the schools!  Often times who you know is at least as important as what you know.

Four years later, after his mom called the superintendent in the St. Augustine schools asking if they had any openings so she could coax Halver down to Florida, he was hired to teach Math in the district he would serve for the next 24 years of his career.  That was 1962 and it would be eight more years before he was principal again.  Leading up to his first principal position in Florida, Halver studied elementary education expecting to be named to an elementary school principal position.  Instead, in 1970 St. Augustine was integrating the races in their schools and he was asked to take charge of the high school under those tumultuous circumstances. 

He recounted how even parents who basically agreed with integration (or at least where not opposed to it) felt a tremendous amount of pressure and concern that they or their children would face repercussions as a consequence.  He also noted that it was difficult to prevent bullying of the black children due to the practice of large groups of white students surrounding them to, in essence, shield the bullies from intervention by teachers and administrators.  We have come a long way in America.

After serving the first decade of integration at that high school, Halver Stedman was named the first principal of the district's new "Nease High School."  I went by there and can say...that is one beautiful high school.  He served as principal there for the first five years of its existence and had just reached the point of it humming along when he learned that both of his assistant principals would be leaving that same year.  Just when he could have relaxed a bit from the huge responsibility of launching a large high school (as well as the prior ten shepherding in integration at the other), he now faced the prospect of yet another beginning---> building a new administrative team. 

Just at that time, the little elementary school his house sits behind had an opening for campus principal.  He could walk there in less than a minute.  They had, by his telling, an excellent faculty.  It was simply too enticing for a man who had just seen the district through integration of a high school and, then, the opening of a new flagship high school....with 17 years of service as a principal in the district and 28 years of total experience as an educator.  Then, after a year as principal of the elementary campus, Flagler College offered him an opportunity to teach on their campus.  He accepted and went on to serve there until 2007.

Halver Stedman was a dedicated, accomplished educator for a total of 49 years!  How respectable is that!

I was lucky to make his acquaintance.  It was hard to leave his delightful company!  He and his wife, a former school nurse for many years, even invited me to stay at their home in Maine this summer when I take Education Ride 365 up there!  I plan to do so!

Ray King was understanding when I arrived at his home in Jacksonville several hours later than I said I would.  He knows my mission on Education Ride 365 is, first and foremost, to discover ever more about education in America!  After my arrival, he and I went out for a late dinner, spoke about his fond memories of the quality schools he attended as a child (and now lives next to) in the heart of Jacksonville, before turning in for rest to prepare for a scenic ride the next day back to St. Augustine for lunch and to give me time to visit the sights.  Ray was a kind and interesting host!

St. Augustine is a most beautiful city!  My favorite city on this journey thus far!  If you've never been...think about visiting St. Augustine---> the oldest city in America!

---

Riding Stats: Day 23---84.64 miles traveled, 2 hours and 7 minutes of moving time, 4 hours and 59 minutes of stopped time, 39.8 miles per hour moving average, 11.9 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 84.64 miles per hour.  Day 24---146.4 miles traveled, 4 hours and 10 minutes of moving time, 4 hours and 3 minutes of stopped time, 35.1 miles per hour moving average, 20.2 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 84.1 miles per hour.

Posted at 2:28 PM (permalink) 5 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_23, Day_24, Integration

Monday, January 30, 2012

Education Ride 365: Learn Locally, Learn Globally!

Day 21 sped me right back past the Daytona International Speedway and up the beautiful coastal highway 1A, which hugs the eastern Florida beachfront.  It was not the most direct nor efficient route to Palm Coast FL…but it is the most scenic! 

 

After a day of pleasant riding, punctuated by chatting about education with some really interesting folks at Starbucks (while squatting for free wifi...that my $6 coffee actually more than paid for), I pulled into Chuck and Debbie’s driveway.  They had a most tasty sausage pasta dinner waiting.  Yum!

 

Only a month into Education Ride 365 I have met so many interesting people and seen so many interesting places.  It matches my experience in life----> travel is perhaps the best education.  Authentic travel, beyond the bounds of the resort experience, exposes one to life lessons nearly impossible to appreciate by any other means.  Getting out of your element, relatively immersed in the places and culture others know like you know your own, reminds you…if only subconsciously…how little any one person can ever truly know and how stimulating it is to learn new things through direct experience. 

 

This is a necessarily incomplete attempt at an answer to a recent comment posted by a reader of this blog:

 

It seems that you find a lot of educators who travel. And a lot of people talk about the educational value of travel. You might think of travel as education without a curriculum. So why is it such an important source of learning? Is curriculum overrated?

 

I believe most educators love to travel because they are…at heart…lifelong learners.  They value all learning, every day.  They have inquisitive minds and tend to have introspective characters.   They are not content with what they know.  They want to know ever more, to experience more, to understand more.  There is no doubt that we learn from everyday experiences.  We learn from books.  We learn from others…including those we interact with daily.  We even learn from television.  I genuinely believe, though, that we learn most from the novel.  Not the literary product we call a novel…rather the authentic, original experiences that are so commonly encountered when we travel. 

 

Curriculum offers a structure for our learning.  It puts some bounds on the boundless nature of what there is to learn in life.  It is an attempt to delineate what is most important to understand in order to be properly equipped for the life path we are likely to follow.  In a sense, it is necessarily limiting…or at least finite.

 

Travel is unpredictable and eye opening.  It offers opportunities to explore beyond our bounds.  It can help one begin to understand what before seemed incomprehensible and foreign enough to be inaccessible in any truly meaningful way.  It can expand ones’ sense of what is important in life and what is important to understand about the lives of others.  It is an educational experience of infinite possibilities.

 

Yet, curriculum is as indispensable to a well-rounded education as travel is…though travel may be more profoundly enriching.  In my opinion, both are essential to a quality education.  Unfortunately, some young people never really experience travel.  Even more unfortunately---since it truly is foundational---many young people are never really exposed to quality curriculum.   It is my strong belief that a good measure of each, in quality form, produces students best prepared for the global nature of our 21st century world!

---

Riding stats--- Day 21: 112.1 miles traveled, 3 hours and 56 minutes of moving time, 7 hours and 18 minutes of stopped time, 28.4 miles per hour average moving time, 10 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 82.3 miles per hour.   Day 22: 85.5 miles traveled, 1 hours and 55 minutes of moving time, 1 hour and 29 minutes of stopped time, 44.2 miles per hour average moving time, 24.9 miles per hour overall average, and a max speed of 85.5 miles per hour.

Posted at 9:32 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Education Ride 365, EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_21, Day_22, Travel, Curriculum

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Education Ride 365: Attacking The Very Foundation Of Successful Education

When I arrived at their home, the three of us discussed the state of schools today.  They voiced a sentiment I've heard so many times over the years...including during most every stop on this trip.  There is now a widespread perception that young people no longer respect their teachers...and this is at the heart of many of our problems in schools today.  More troubling is the widespread perception that they get this disrespect, in part, from their parents.  I recently came across this representation on Facebook of the trend I witnessed too many times during my years in the trenches:

Art shared how, when he was a child, his dad told him: 'If you have a problem with a teacher, I'll go up there to the school and address it.  However, if I find out that you are part of the problem, you'll be sorry I ever went up there.'  Consequently, said Art, he tended to tow the line at school and sure didn't go home whining about the teacher.  He was much more afraid of his dad than he was of any adult up at the school.

CNN recently reported on this sea change with an article by the fantastic Ron Clark that you can access by clicking here.  It encourages parents to:

• Please quit with all the excuses
• Be a partner instead of a prosecutor

He decries the fact that teachers are always "walking on eggshells."  He is dead on.  In fact, all school personnel are walking on eggshells.  Parents are not---too often---full partners.  While there are many exceptions, clearly deference and respect for one of the most difficult occupations that exists (making young people do what they typically don't want to do for 180 days per year) is at an all-time low.  Too many parents now work harder at being best friends with their child than being parents fostering the growth of undeveloped minds, manners, and bodies.

I will explore this theme much more in future posts.  What can be more foundational to a young person's growth than the role of the parent in setting boundaries and expectations that support the village helping to raise their child?

I spent Day 20 talking to folks around Orlando FL about this topic---among others central to continuous improvement in education---before returning to Art and Marla's home for a second night stay.  My day of discussions in Orlando only further confirmed in my mind that we have trended toward unhealthy disrespect of educators...and Americans know it. 

The morning of Day 21 I pulled out heading back to the eastern coast of Florida.  Thanks so much to Art and Marla for a pleasant and productive stay in St. Cloud!

---

Riding stats--- Day 19: 327 miles traveled, 6 hours and 1 minute of moving time, 5 hours and 17 minutes of stopped time, 54.3 miles per hour moving average, 28.9 overall average, and a max speed of 84.7 miles per hour.  Day 20: 63.78 miles traveled, 2 hours and 24 minutes of moving time, 6 hours and 31 minutes of stopped time, 26.4 miles per hour average moving time, 7.1 overall average, and a max speed of 77.1 miles per hour.

Posted at 1:51 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_19, Day_20

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Education Ride 365: Speed Variations Hasten Speed Of Road Weariness

Day 17 started out ambitiously enough.  I intended to ride from the Thomas house in Ormond Beach to the SW Florida city of Bonita Springs.  It was a fairly long ride, but plenty do-able.  Per my desire to stay off the interstate system as much as possible on this yearlong journey...in favor of the less traveled highways and back-roads...I rolled through quite a few small towns with quite a bunch of changes in speed limits.  I grew road weary earlier than normal!  Soon I found myself calling Linda and Denis in Bonita Springs to let them know I would not arrive at their home until the following day.  After the call, I located a wifi hotspot and pulled up hotwire.com to find a hotel room for the night.

I then spent part of my evening looking at pictures I shot around the Ormond Beach area.  I was already nostalgic for the area, but knew I'd return to basically the same destination within a week.  The pictures below are a few more I shot while touring the area around the Ormond and Flagler Beach area.

---

Riding stats: Day 17: 146.9 miles traveled, 4 hours and 6 minutes moving time, 3 hours and 22 minutes of stopped time, 35.7 miles per hour moving average, 19.6 overall miles per hour average, and a max speed of 78.9 miles per hour.

Posted at 6:50 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_17

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Education Ride 365: Flying Pace Of Innovation For Maximization

The evening of Day 15, I pulled the Cycle of Education into the Atlantic Ocean coast home of John and Dian Thomas in the city of Ormond Beach FL.  After unpacking my things we sat down and discussed my mission---> Education Ride 365.  When I explained that I am interested in national perceptions of continuous improvement in schools and how I believe data management opportunities enabled by 21st century technologies will further professionalize our efforts, introduce efficiencies, provide for more consistent follow through, and better target individual student needs...at first they seemed a bit dubious.  Paraphrasing: how many homes really have internet and email access?  Is technology accessible enough for all students, parents, and schools to take advantage of these new capabilities?  How does all of this really work and are we ready for this?  Might it be better for us to go back to 'old school' approaches and eschew the 'new school' wave of change that may be balanced on a proverbial house of cards?

I am probably condensing a number of conversations in the paraphrase above that I've had with others who seemed to have a similar initial skepticism like I sensed in my conversation with the Thomas'.  Folks with these reservations are not Luddites...they are just cautious in their assessment of the value of the flavor of the day to solve long-standing problems.  This is a reasonable stance.

After we discussed it further, they seemed to more fully embrace the vision.  It is a vision that successful businesses adopted a decade or more ago.  Schools perennially tend to be a decade or two behind successful businesses in terms of adopting progressive technologies and philosophies.  Were many 21st century businesses run like a good portion of schools still are...they'd be bankrupt.  Thriving businesses tend to be more responsive to advances in capabilities and efficiencies.  Schools are often painfully status quo, slow adopters.

For instance, it is true that many schools, if not most, now use technology to collect data on individual students, sub-population groups, and of course the whole school population.  Some are using newer computer technologies to do so, while others are still collecting this data in Word, Excel, and other such relatively static programs.  How many of these schools, however, are using this data in meaningful ways?  How many are able to work with the data in a timely enough manner to, for instance, make near real-time instructional decisions...or to truly tailor each individual child's instruction to that individual child's unique needs?

I visited Daytona International Speedway on Day 16.  Auto mechanics, crew chiefs, drivers, and others in this industry were once more reliant on a traditional knowledge base, seemingly ageless tools, and a more measured pace of innovation.  Now---to be successful---they must be constantly innovating, adjusting in real-time, and high tech in their approach.  They must push the limits of their abilities by employing every tool at their disposal to become more deliberate and exacting sooner rather than later.  Complacency and reliance on tradition have no place in a race for excellence.

Is the pace of the continuous improvement process in schools suitable to the high stakes race to improve the performance of each individual student?  Are educators using all the tools at their disposal to help students take wing and fly into a bright future?!

I took this pic at Flagler Beach...a most beautiful, wonderful destination!

---

Riding stats: Day 15: 83.36 miles traveled, 2 hours and 12 minutes moving time, 3 hours and 12 minutes stopped time, and a max speed of 83.36 miles per hour.  Day 16: 73.55 miles traveled, 2 hours and 15 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 51 minutes of stopped time, 32.5 miles per hour moving average, 12 miles per hour stopped average, and a max speed of 73.55 miles per hour.

Posted at 1:18 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_15, Day_16

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Education Ride 365: Darwin, Protection---Public, Private---Agendas, Goals

After arriving at Joe and Diane's home in Leesburg FL, I was ready for a day of rest and catching up.  As you might imagine, the logistics alone of traveling on a motorcycle for 365 days in a year...staying with about 150 different friends---new and old---while attempting to cover 49 states, part of another country, and projecting about 48,000 miles...well, it is an effort!  A pleasant effort, no doubt, but an effort all the same.  The friends and family I've stayed with thus far have been wonderful hosts, without exception.  Joe and Diane certainly are perfect examples!

Diane's Scottish husband passed away just a few years ago.  He was an avid sailor and evidence of his passion still adorns the home.  Diane was no doubt a perfect first mate.  She and Joe made me feel so at home.  They met on Match.com, live in a very active retirement community, ride their Gold Wing together, share a passion for bird watching, and Joe has helped Diane develop a love for participating in a regular schedule of neighborhood sporting competitions.  By her telling, she always wanted to be a motorcycle co-pilot.  She has found her pilot in Joe...and it is clear that they have developed a very loving relationship!

Joe's daughter Kristen lives near Indianapolis IN.  He invited me to have a chat with her on the phone about the education of her two daughters, one an eighth grader and the other a sixth grader.  We spoke for thirty minutes or so about the International School of Indiana.

In the words of their Head of Schools, David Garner:

We are educating students today for jobs that do not exist yet, to use technologies that have not been invented yet, to address problems that we are not aware of yet. (Karl Fisch)

The 21st Century demands a more sophisticated range of skills from our students than ever before.  Our world has become globalized and interconnected.  The urgent challenges facing our planet cannot be solved by one country acting alone.  In this interconnected world, critical-thinking, creativity, communication, risk taking, collaboration, intercultural awareness, international-mindedness and life-long learning are all essential skills and attitudes.  

At the International School of Indiana, we share your wish to prepare your children for the future that we cannot imagine, and to give them the foundation and attitude to thrive in a changing world.  An education that combines internationally respected academic standards with a truly international outlook.

ISI provides an outstanding education that empowers children to:

• Fulfill their true academic potential across the full range of school subjects
• Match the achievement of good students globally
• Become critical thinkers, able to understand concepts in depth
• Develop the personal skills and habits to become independent, lifelong learners
• Study science and mathematics for a changing world
• Communicate fluently and confidently in other languages
• Benefit from opportunities in athletics, performing arts and other extracurricular activities
• Participate in overseas exchanges
• Develop positive values and sound principles as global citizens
• Gain admission to the world's best universities

ISI is the only school in the Midwest where all of its high school students participate in the full International Baccalaureate Diploma program. As a candidate school for the Primary Years and Middle Years programs of the IB, ISI will provide a seamless continuum of IB programs for all of our students in Pre-K - 12.

Kristen and I had an interesting conversation about the school.  The IB (International Baccalaureate) curriculum they offer will be the subject of a post in the near future.  Kristen shared that it costs about $30,000 a year for her two daughters to attend this special school, where students are taught all subjects exclusively in a second language (Spanish, French, or Chinese) through third grade, then are taught 50/50 (English and the second language) during their fourth and fifth grade years, and are expected to be fluent in their second language by sixth grade when they start their third language!  A commendable goal in my book.

Back to the cost.  Kristen currently receives the majority of her girls' tuition in grants.  She still must pay $1500 a month to keep them in this enriching environment.  The grant money will not be available to them next year, so Kristen is in a real quandary about what to do.  This got me thinking about trends and barely hidden agendas in education across our great country.

I've heard it suggested more than once that a major underlying motivation for the accountability movement across America, perhaps most closely identified by the standardized assessments decried by most every adult and child I've discussed this with or heard speak about it---save politicians and major education industry players---is an effort to shift money out of the public sector and into the private sector. 

By this assessment, NCLB (No Child Left Behind) and other federal/state regulations placed on public schools, which are designed to have students meet relatively arbitrary and standardized (for all children regardless of individual ability/background) bars of achievement, are at their roots an attempt to de-legitimize our public schooling system in America so this money can ultimately be redirected to private interests.  An example often cited is the provision in NCLB that by 2014 ALL students---regardless of any handicapping condition, intellectual capacity, or other consideration---must meet the standardized pass rate without accommodations or modifications.  This is not a "growth model" recognizing that all individuals have different learning styles, different ways of demonstrating mastery, and different abilities to learn.  It is more like the political cartoon in my earlier post asking a monkey, an elephant, a fish, and other varied creatures to all prove their abilities by climbing a tree!

I have barely scratched the surface in exploring this controversial topic and intend to look at it in further depth, and from other angles, in future posts on this blog.  I must hasten to say that I do favor options---public and private---for educating young people across America.  While I hate the idea of an eroded public school system, a system that has done so much for the development of our great country throughout its history, I very much recognize the need for both public and private options even beyond what we offer today.  More discussion and consideration to come!

My conversation with Kristen was a very pleasant one...and she even invited me for a stay at her home when I make it up to the Indianapolis area later this year.  I wish her the best in finding the extra funds for next school year to keep her daughters in what seems to be a most excellent, progressive school.

The picture above is of Sandhill Cranes, which are a protected species in Florida.  They roam neighborhoods (the picture here is across the street from Joe and Diane's place) and I have passed within feet of them while traveling over sixty miles an hour on Florida's highways.  Many appreciate their beauty and the importance of protecting them.  Others see them as a nuisance and wish for a more Darwinian approach.  To what degree should our public school system be a protected species?  Should it be at all?

---

Riding stats:  Day 14---Day of rest and catching up!

Posted at 9:52 AM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_14, International School Of Indiana

Monday, January 23, 2012

Education Ride 365: Old Time Florida, Old Time Information Sharing, New Century Solution!!

I have been extremely anxious to catch the blog up.  Doing so has been on the top of my priority list.  What I have found, though, is something I sensed before pulling out of DFW---> Americans are concerned about education and they want to talk about it!  So do I.  In fact, when someone shows an interest in the subject and we get to talking, time to update the blog is compromised!  I will get better at striking the balance.

On Day 13, I woke up at Bev and Steve's place prepared for a morning ride with Bev and then a short ride up the road from Ocala FL to Leesburg FL.  Steve has a most excellent 2012 BMW1600...the kind only those with money and foresight to pre-order are riding the roads on now.  Unfortunately he had to work the morning Bev and I took our ride to and through two traditional Florida towns, Macintosh and Micanopy.  These are towns right out of a movie scene.  We stopped in a little neighborhood in Macintosh dominated by huge Mosswood trees, quaint homes, and one-room neighborhood churches of several different denominations sandwiched between the beautiful homes.  The pictures below are of Bev riding her red Can Am around a massive tree that splits a drive into this neighborhood.

From Macintosh Bev and I headed out to Micanopy FL.  It is home to around 700 people and was the "first distinct U.S. town in Florida, with settlement beginning after Spain ceded the Florida territory in 1821."  The area was the setting for native Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings novel The Yearling.  We ate a lunch of homemade bread with hummus at the Mosswood Farm Organic Store & Bake House.  The kitchen is literally a small home kitchen you walk past to eat on the shaded backyard patio.  Nothing formal here!  The food and treats are phenomenal none the less!

Bev is a near lifelong diabetic.  She must test her levels several times a day and recalled how this medical condition was largely misunderstood and overlooked when she was in school.  As a student, she had to practically fend for herself to monitor and correct her levels.  Her mom even stitched sugar packets into the waistline of her pants in case she needed to ingest some in an emergency.  Bev noted that food was not allowed in school, but she almost always had some hidden away anyway out of medical necessity.  Her story got me thinking.

I explained to her how eating and drinking in class is still an issue in our more 'enlightened' (?) 21st century schools.  Despite an overwhelming body of research that concludes young people need water and nutrients throughout the day to maximize the development of their growing bodies, most classrooms are food and drink free zones.  It is reasoned that they should drink water from fountains in the hallway during their 4-5 minute passing periods.  More often than not, they don't.  In fact, many of us adults would not want to drink out of these fountains ourselves.  Untrained lips sometimes cup the spouts, spit often adorns the sink surface, and discarded gum is a regular occupant of various parts of the fountain.  If every young person drank as much as they should, the lines would be long and tardies would increase.  Besides, the water is often hot and tastes like something other than water!

Given all of this, why are snacks and water not allowed in the majority of classrooms in American schools?  One reason is that young people are messy.  Crumbs attract bugs, water destroys textbooks and technology, food allergies can kill... and, besides, wrappers are noisy!  The whole question lends itself to a legitimate cost-benefit analysis.

At least we now do better about taking care of the needs of diabetics and students with other special dietary needs in our schools.  At least now, students who---due to medical conditions---must use the bathroom more frequently than others are allowed to do so.  Educators are more informed about these special needs (when they have access to the information in a timely manner) and they tend to be more flexible in meeting them.  There are, however, still MANY exceptions.

One very preventable exception is when teachers are unaware of the special need.  In some schools, even when the information is shared by the school nurse or special education staff, the information is delayed in getting to the classroom teacher.  Often it is in a little red folder (or the equivalent paper communication) that is distributed at the beginning of school, but is often delayed by the start-up curve and frenzied pace of a new school year.  There is no reason for this delay and inefficiency!  Modern data management using online systems, like those EdClick offers, allow for immediate dissemination of this information, as well as easy access for review and reference as needed.  The information can be readily updated anytime throughout the year, as warranted.  It is all there, paperless and linked to the student profile for all educators with a need to know to see by clicking a couple of links.  Organized, readily-accessible, and timely.

This can be especially important when students are off-campus at school-sponsored activities or are in common areas being supervised by educators other than their regular classroom teachers.  What happens when a student gets injured during an extracurricular activity, field trip, or other such event and her/his records are not available to the supervising educators?  Modern day technologies, again...like those EdClick offers, allow for that information to be accessed quickly in times of need.  Information on allergies, medical conditions, and contacts in case of emergency should be available whenever school personnel are supervising young people...even off-campus.  Using a smart phone, laptop, iPad, or whatever other modern device, the supervising adult should have access to all critical information on each child.  EdClick's data management solutions make this possible for any school or district, at a very reasonable cost.

Bev's teachers did not have ready access to this technology...to this vital information.  They were 20th century teachers, bound by the limits of paper and hand-delivery.  Unfortunately, too many of our 21st century schools are still operated under constraints of the 20th century.  They are not taking advantage of progress made through technological information sharing and access.  EdClick is helping schools with their continuous improvement imperatives.  Ready access to medical and other special dietary information is one of these imperatives. 

Bev and I rode back from Micanopy with a sense of purpose.  She was meeting Steve for an out of town excursion to south Florida, while I needed to make my way to Leesburg FL before 'deadly darkness' set in.  I really enjoyed my time with Bev and Steve!

This home in Micanopy was built in 1845

---

Riding Stats--- Day 13: 126.6 miles, 3 hours 49 minutes moving time, 4 hours 29 minutes stopped time, 33.1 miles per hour moving average, 15.2 overall average, and 67.1 maximum speed.

Posted at 3:06 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle Of Education, EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_13

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Education Ride 365: Too Much Talk, Too Many Miles, Too Dark, And Too Close

Over a most excellent fried filet of flounder, I struck up a conversation with the owners---Angel and Carlton Boutwell---about the education of their 10 and 13-year old daughters...as well as their views on education in general.  Angel and Carlton were 16 when they married.  Excepting a brief move to and stay in Georgia, she has worked at this establishment since she was ten years old....from doing the basics to now owning the place.  They have some strong views on schooling.

When they married at 16, she was not pregnant but was ostracized at school none the less.  She reports one teacher telling her outright, "you do not belong here."  She felt so unwanted that she decided to drop out.  He, on the other hand, graduated from the local high school.  They are both intelligent, thoughtful, and articulate individuals.  They both value education.  They both have high expectations for the education of their daughters, as well as for a niece who lives with them.

Angel and Carlton feel---as do MANY folks I have met over the first three weeks of this journey---that our schools are lacking in discipline and structure.  They feel that their school is too "touchy feely."  Respect for educators, by both children and adults, is too low to maximize effectiveness in their opinion.  They decried the practice in their local schools of the students calling their teacher by Mr. or Mrs. (insert) 'first name.'  So I would be called "Mr. Dan" rather than "Mr. Martin" there.  They felt that the principal should not be high-fiving the students and otherwise engaging them in a manner that is below the status and dignity of the office.  There should be a distance between the students and their principal.  Students should know that being in the principal's presence means something greater than a casual interaction.  I had to gulp and tug on my shirt collar, as I am one of those principals who engages the students in ways they decried.

They celebrated the structure of the schools their daughters briefly attended in Georgia.  They appreciated the ability grouping those schools employed.  They feel---like MANY---that the obsession with standardized assessments and accountability measures is actually hampering our schools.  One example Angel shared is how teachers are being stressed to the point of exhaustion and, as a result, a negative energy trickles down to the students in many ways.  We are human after all, Angel asserted, so how can we expect the exhausted and stressed teachers she knows to consistently overcome that during interactions with students? 

Beyond that, she asks, what are we teaching these students?  How to take tests?  I hear that a bunch.  All educators do.  She noted that when testing time approaches, the schools totally change their character in a last ditch effort to remediate and otherwise focus exclusively on pass rates.  Students are pulled from classes.  Special schedules are instituted.  Etc, etc.  I can attest to that tendency.  As an administrator, I have been part of that practice.

Is this what we are doing with our standardized assessments and accountability systems in American schools?

BTW, I enjoyed my conversation with Angel and Carlton.  Their food is really, really good.  I respect them.  If you find yourself around Hosford FL on Highway 20, two-miles east of 267, I recommend you eat at "Angel's Seafood By The Dam" ...just south of the dam!

I had several such lengthy conversations about education along my ride from Destin to Ocala on Day 12.  So much so that I rode in 'deadly darkness' through rural lands into the night.  A couple of hours after dodging a possum on a lonely rural road---which was the closest I've ever come to hitting a live ground animal on the cycle---I wearily pulled into the driveway of Bev and Steve McCarthy in Ocala, Florida.

---

Riding stats: Day 12---325.9 miles, 5 hours and 50 minutes of moving time, 5 hours and 55 minutes of stopped time, 55.9 moving average miles per hour, 27.7 overall average miles per hour, and 81.2 maximum speed.

Posted at 9:46 AM (permalink) 2 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365, Day_12, Accountability, Standardized Assessments, Continuous Improvement

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Education Ride 365: Through Mississippi, U.S.S. Alabama Stop, Destin Destination

I originally intended to leave Mandeville LA the morning of Day 10, but the weather was forbidding on my route along the coast to Florida, so I decided to spend one more evening at Skip Harrison's place.  I'm glad I did because Day 10 turned out to be a fun day of riding around with Skip (he on his Goldwing, me on his BMW cycle) and talking about his experiences as an educator.  We also watched a classic motorcycle movie from 1971 called On Any Sunday.

The morning of Day 11 the Cycle of Education pulled out en route to Destin, Florida.  The weather was perfect and I planned to make good time on this relatively long leg of the trip.  The little restaurant pictured above was a yummy pit stop with classic blues music and an interesting decor.  It is in Ocean Springs, Mississippi and is called "The Shed BBQ & Blues Joint."  I recommend it.

While in Mobile, AL (which has a really cool underground tunnel as part of I-10), I received the first call ever on my new Bluetooth system that allows me to listen to music and receive phone calls in my helmet through an iPhone using the cycle's electronic system.  It was my brother Seth.  I was surprised how well the system worked, even in the deep tunnel I mentioned above.

While Seth and I were talking I passed the U.S.S. Alabama, moored in the Gulf just south of Mobile.  When I mentioned the site to my brother he insisted that I'd be a fool to pass it without stopping.  Since there are enough existing reasons I could be designated a fool, I decided not to add another to the list.  I exited the interstate and turned back for what I expected to be a quick visit.  It wasn't so quick.

After paying $2.00 to get in the gate (it costs more to go inside the museum) I rode around looking at the military equipment parked outside.  Among these were some planes grouped together behind a rope right in the parking lot by the airplane hanger.  It is worth noting that the Battleship Memorial includes all sorts of U.S. military machinery, including: a submarine, planes, helicopters, tanks, and artillery pieces.  I took an interest in the planes grouped together outside the hanger because I didn't have enough cash to go inside the museum itself and there was something mysterious about the planes parked behind these ropes.

The mystery boiled down to: what the heck happened to these planes?  Two are pictured above...and another below.  I walked around behind the yellow rope and snapped some pictures before a man approached me and let me know I was in a restricted, dangerous area.  He explained that there are many torn, sharp pieces of metal in this area.  I apologized and proceeded to strike up a conversation with this man--->Mr. Mike Thompson.  As it turned out, he is a fascinating guy!

I learned from him that these planes are in line for restoration.  They were damaged when---during Hurricane Katrina---16 feet of water filled the hanger pictured behind the damaged plane above.  The water wreaked havoc, smashing aircraft into one another and submersing them in salt water for days on end.  Within that "Aircraft Pavilion" was (and now is again) a collection of rich U.S. military aircraft history.  Mike Thompson---I learned---is the man restoring all of these storm damaged aircraft one by one...all by himself. 

He took me into his shop and showed me a plane he is currently restoring.  It typically takes about six months each.  For several years after the storm he worked day and night...seven days a week.  Though he now takes a day off most weeks, restoring these historic birds is clearly his passion.  There is still so much work to be done.

Mike asked me if I planned to go inside the hanger to see his handiwork.  When I sheepishly said no and explained that I was behind schedule, he invited me to join him anyway!  He pulled out his keys and we entered a back door into the Aircraft Pavilion.  Mike walked me around to each aircraft explaining the significance of each and taking me behind the ropes for an up and close inspection.  It was fascinating.  Among the aircraft: The helicopter President Reagan was in during the Libyan bombing of 1986 (which the Pope was also flown in on another occasion), the first F-18 that saw combat, an important aircraft flown by the Tuskegee Airmen (Cleon's or Leon's...they were twin brothers), a CIA aircraft---> the A-12 Blackbird...that was classified for over 40 years...details of which were first released in 2007...as well as many other historic aircraft.

Mike asked me if I knew why it is so important for him to do this work---> Why it is so important for him to teach about the history---> Why he spends so much time sharing it with school children, particularly special needs children.  I had a sense, but allowed him to explain that each one of these types of aircraft (save one) carried at least one American who lost his/her life in service of our country.  We must honor them...and never forget their sacrifice.

Mike Thompson demurred when I asked if I could photograph him.

The museum is privately funded and funds are always short.  Mike Thompson and other dedicated Americans work extremely hard to preserve our history.  They need funds. To learn more information on the site and fundraising efforts, click here!

Riding stats: Day 10--casual riding of Skip's BMW R1200GS.  Day 11--247.6 miles, 4 hours and 31 minutes of moving time, 3 hours and 37 minutes of stopped time, 54.6 moving average miles per hour, 30.3 overall average miles per hour, and a max speed of 82.1 miles per hour.

Posted at 7:23 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365, Day_10, Day_11, U.S.S. Alabama Battleship Memorial Park

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Education Ride 365: Time Well Spent Just North Of NOLA!

On Day 8 I loaded up the Cycle of Education and rolled out towards the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, north of New Orleans.  The ride was a good one, with the exception of the torrential ten-minute downpour I endured near the end.  On I-10, before passing Baton Rogue, I always enjoy riding the 23 mile-long raised bridge across the Atchafalya Basin of the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area/Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refuge/Bayou Des Ourses Area.

To get out of the downpour, I stopped in Hammond, LA and ate at perhaps the dirtiest, nastiest restaurant I have ever had the displeasure of eating in.  "Ryan's" is a grease-trap of an American food buffet, with bathrooms most any (even) undomesticated animal would shy away from! 

Mandeville, quite to the contrary, is wonderful.  The North Shore was hard hit by Hurricane Katrina, but it is largely rebuilt today.  New construction along the water shore is raised up on stilts at least 13 feet high.  Most of the homes are majestic, with beautiful wide stairways leading to the front doors.  A peaceful but lively park fronts the water for several miles across the street from the homes and less frequent businesses established in old homes.

I stayed right next to the water in the home of Skip and Karen.  This home had three feet of water in it during Katrina.  It is now fully restored...as are most of the homes along the shoreline.  Skip and Karen are a great couple who are best friends with their neighbors, Leigh and Gene.  Skip and Karen once lived on a boat for years and sailed the high seas.  Skip was a pioneer in the wind-surfing industry and also worked in a local boat yard for eight years.  His son David made the best gumbo (which I enjoyed for several meals) and his other son Stoffer once worked at the White House for the Secret Service.

Skip currently has two motorcycles, a Goldwing and a BMW R1200GS.  He let me ride the BMW dual-sport bike around town, which I enjoyed very much!  Skip is a motorcycle safety instructor and an all-around great guy.  He was also an English teacher in Slidell, LA for 15 years, so we had some interesting conversations about his views on public education in Louisiana and beyond.

Speaking of Slidell, another favorite part of my visit to this area around New Orleans was lunch at Cracker Barrel with Rae Stansbury---my grandmother introduced in my last post. She is 88 and lives in Slidell taking care of her 93 year-old sister, Tyne. 

Another highlight was supposed to be the national championship game between LSU and Alabama.  I felt so lucky to be in the NOLA area during this huge game.  Skip, Karen, and (most of all by a bunch) Leigh were pulling for Alabama.  Gene and I were pulling for LSU.  It was so lopsided in Alabama's favor that the joke after the game was: "Did you know the LSU football team was stuck in their bus in New Orleans after the game? ....Yea, someone painted a 50-yard line in front of it and it never could get past that line!"

From the front of a N.O. store the following day---> The LSU "Aint's??"

The joke was on LSU!

Riding stats: Day 8---132 miles, 3 hours and 36 minutes moving time, 1 hour and 11 minutes stopped time, 40.4 moving average.  Day 9---50.46 miles, 67 minutes moving time, 95 minutes stopped time, 45.2 moving average, 81.6 max speed. 

Posted at 9:07 AM (permalink) 2 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Education Ride 365, Day_8, Day_9, Cycle Of Education, Mandeville, Slidell, North Shore, Lake Pontchartrain, Skip Harrison

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Education Ride 365: My Childhood, My Family...A Visit To Abbeville LA And Antigua

I spent the nights of Days 5, 6, and 7 at my aunt's house in Lafayette.  We ate GREAT food and had nice conversations.  Day 6 I took a break from riding.  On Day 7 the Cycle rolled out to Abbeville, a small town I spent a good amount of time in as a child.  When I texted my mom to let her know I had just passed Lafayette General Hospital---where I was born in 1968---she texted back that I have just about as much hair now as I did then!  Ha, ha...on to Abbeville!

Many of my deceased family members are buried in St. Mary's Cemetery in Abbeville.  You can see a glimpse of the beautiful St. Mary's Catholic Church through the drawbridge above.  I wanted to take pictures there, but a funeral procession was in place and I didn't want to disturb the scene.  After passing over the classic drawbridge I remember well from my youth, I stopped to ask some police officers eating lunch where exactly the cemetery was located.  Despite getting directions from my aunt before leaving Lafayette for this day trip, I had not been to the cemetery since the day thirty years ago that I shed so many tears for my wonderful grandpa. 

It took me some walking around before I found my Papa's burial site.  The Stansbury's are buried close to my other family names, the Babin and Noel families.  After locating Dalton "Gus" Stansbury, my Papa, I took a break to rest and appreciate the peaceful environment before exploring the cemetery thoroughly for over two hours in search of other Stansbury, Babin, and Noel sites.  There were quite a few.

Papa is buried in the same plot as his mother and brother.  His dad "James", however, was buried in a Methodist cemetery down the road.  He was not Catholic.  My Mama's name---"Rae"---is engraved under Papa's on the tombstone, though she is still very much alive.  Interestingly enough, Papa's sister (Jeanette "Net" Babin) is buried in the plot next to him with my Mama's brother, "Uncle" Gerard Babin.  Yes, Papa's sister was married to Mama's brother...and vice versa!!!  Mama Rae is still taking care of her sister Tyne in Slidell LA and I visited her a few days later.  A post on that visit will follow.  Several family members were shocked when she put her name on the tombstone with Papa's back in 1982! 

After my visit to the cemetery I ate 'candied oysters' at a local establishment called "Shucks" before riding back to Lafayette to see the Stansbury home at 134 Antigua, a street located off of the insanely busy Johnson Street...the home my mom grew up in until she graduated from Lafayette High School.  It has been refurbished (sadly, the huge picture window I loved seeing Papa wave to me from had been converted to  three-part window).  Both my mom's room and Darlene's room can be seen on the left side of the home just as they were.  It seemed that the dogs who aggressively barked across the street as I snapped a few pictures were the same dogs who barked aggressively each time I visited as a kid.  This was a moving day down memory lane!

Riding stats: Day 6---off.  Day 7---48.04 miles, 75.3 max speed, 1 hour 44 minutes moving time, 4 hours 17 minutes stopped time, 27.6 miles per hour average moving speed.

Posted at 12:00 PM (permalink) 5 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_6, Day_7, Lafayette, Abbeville

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Education Ride 365: A Bumpy Ride South Of Bunkie!

Posted at 6:00 PM (permalink) 4 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_5, Bunkie High School, Lafayette, US71S

Monday, January 9, 2012

Education Ride 365: England Air Base To Alexandria International

On Day 5, after leaving Liz and Larry's, I traveled a few miles to the former England Air Base. 

According to Wikipedia:

The base was opened on 21 October 1942 and during World War II performed Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress aircrew training. It was placed on inactive status on September 23, 1946, although a small cadre of Army and Air Force personnel (331 Comps Squadron) remained assigned to Alexandria Municipal Airport throughout the late 1940s.

On 10 October 1950, the United States Air Force reopened Alexandria Air Force Base during the Korean War. The station's primary mission was tactical fighter operations for Tactical Air Command.

In October 1990, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission decided that England Air Force Base would be closed by September 1992. A drawdown of equipment and personnel began almost immediately. The 23d Fighter Wing's A-10 aircraft were sent to Air National Guard units, and EAFB was closed 1 June 1992.

During the period of its military use, Air Force units from England Air Force Base served in combat in World War II, the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm.

It is now used as an international airport, Alexandria International.  From what I could tell...there is very, very little commercial air traffic happening here.  It is a beautiful facility nonetheless!

Posted at 3:07 PM (permalink) 2 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Day_5, Alexandria, England Air Base, Alexandria International Airport

Monday, January 9, 2012

Education Ride 365: My Visit To Holy Savior Menard Central Catholic High School

The students at Holy Savior Menard Central Catholic High School enjoyed the Cycle of Education.  I enjoyed chatting with them!

I enjoyed visiting with the adults too!  Pictured below (left to right) are Principal Joel Desselle, Dean of Students David Perkins, and Teacher Larry Knight.

Posted at 9:13 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 3, Education Ride 365, Day_5, Alexandria, Holy Savior Menard Central Catholic High School

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Education Ride 365: Larry & Liz In Alexandria, LA---> A Plan With An Actual Plan!

In Alexandria I stayed a couple of nights (Days 3 & 4) at the house of Larry and Liz.  Larry is a history teacher at a parochial school outside of what was once England Air Base---> Holy Savior Menard Central Catholic High School.  Liz is a dietician for the VA.  In fact, they met when Larry, as a patient, announced to her his "plan" to lose 20 pounds.  By his telling, she very assertively challenged his "plan" as no such thing.  She wanted to know what the actual plan was...not merely the goal.  It reminded me how we tend to "plan" things for our school without actually having a true PLAN for how to get it done!

For instance, schools often "plan" to engage in continuous improvement without a viable plan for achieving that goal.  They want to be better, but they really only have the intent and a general idea of what it will take.  One school I worked at as an assistant principal improved from basically the lowest school rating in Texas to nearly the highest in a mere three years.  It went from an unacceptable school to the Intel School of Distinction (for middle schools) for 2009.  We accomplished this monumental task with a challenging demographic (80% low socio-economic states, 78% Hispanic) ...and we did so not merely by chance.  We turned this school around both because we planned to AND because we had a thorough plan.

EdClick is a solutions-based company specializing in continuous school improvement.  It was an instrumental part of the turnaround I mentioned above.  It enabled the re-institution of a climate of accountability in student discipline that was foundational to the overall dramatic improvement in school performance we achieved.  EdClick's Discipline Manager made conditions right for the many other components of our remarkably successful story!

The year-long journey I am now on---Education Ride 365---is an effort to promote the idea of continuous improvement in education and gather thoughts from citizens around the country on how that can best be done.  EdClick has tools to foster continuous improvement and the company is, in part, relying on me to make sure we stay in touch with what Americans (educators and non-educators) are thinking regarding the need to continuously improve our schools across this great country!

Posted at 9:31 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 3, Education Ride 365, Day_4, Alexandria

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Education Ride 365: Natchitoches And Alexandria, Louisiana

In Natchitoches I ate a fantastic grilled salmon lunch at the Trail Boss Steakhouse!  Really, really yummy!

I then jumped on Highway 1--that parallels Interstate 49--back south to Alexandria.  Along the way I visited Northwood High School...

...before finishing Day 4 traveling 121 to 496, pulling back into Liz and Larry's place on Pecan Row Lane.  There are plenty of pecans around here!

Day 4 stats: 157.7 miles traveled, 3 hours and 30 minutes of moving time, 1 hour and 3 minutes of stopped time, 45 miles per hour average moving speed, and a max speed of 78.7 miles per hour!

Posted at 9:15 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 3, Nacogdoches, Natchitoches, Education Ride 365_Day 4, Alexandria, Northwood High School

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Education Ride 365: Pat And Keith In Nacogdoches, Texas

At 7:30pm on the evening of day 2---January 2nd---I arrived at Pat and Keith's house in Nacogdoches.  They are fellow Goldwing riders who have now triked their ride.  Goldwing motorcycles weigh close to 900 pounds, so some folks choose to add a third wheel to prevent spills and to be able to take in more scenery while still feeling the thrill of traveling outside of an enclosed cabin.  Keith also has a second bike to enjoy two wheel travel when not riding with Pat.

Pat and I discussed recent events in Nacogdoches ISD and her overall impressions of the district.  She also shared quite a bit about neighboring districts, including a very positive assessment of Douglass ISD...with its Exemplary high school that celebrates academics above athletics.  In fact, it is one of the rare Texas school districts that does not have a football program.

Another individual I spoke with said students will sometimes transfer out of Douglass and other more academically rigorous districts in the area to enroll in Nacogdoches ISD for their senior year in an effort to bolster their GPA and class rank for college admissions.  Are you familiar with schools in your area where this occurs?  Can anyone support or refute this assertion regarding Nacogdoches?

One of Pat and Keith's dogs is a French Bulldog.  French Bulldogs are half English Bulldog and half Pug.  A neat mix!  I had never met one, but I loved that little guy.  His name was originally Putter (when he belonged to a different owner who liked to golf).  He was then named Renee, until Pat heard one too many times that this name should be reserved for girls (though she notes it is common for French men to go by Renee)!  Now, he is known as Beret.  I should have taken a picture of him! 

I was only able to stay with Pat and Keith for one night before heading out the morning of day 3 for the sister city of Nacogdoches, TX...Natchitoches, Louisiana...and on to neighboring Alexandria, LA.

Posted at 10:19 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 2, Nacogdoches, Nacogdoches ISD, Douglass ISD

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Education Ride 365: Yamaha Riding Suzuki From Kawasaki Admiring My Honda!

Shortly after entering Louisiana yesterday, January 3rd, I met Mr. Suzuki and his lovely wife.  They visit the U.S. each year, driving around 2000 miles over a couple of weeks.  They are from Kawasaki, Japan.  He loved my Honda Goldwing and photographed it from every angle.  Ironically, he rides a Yamaha!

Posted at 10:24 AM (permalink) 3 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 3

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Education Ride 365 Is Off And Rolling!

Posted at 11:39 AM (permalink) 2 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365_Day 1, Education Ride 365_Day 2

Monday, December 26, 2011

A Principal On A Motorcycle? Why? (Part 2)

Posted at 10:18 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365

Friday, December 9, 2011

Education Ride 365: The Most Ambitious Journey Of Them All

Some might call it a midlife crisis!  I am calling it the journey of a lifetime! 
But more on that later.

Posted at 8:07 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, DanClick, Cycle Of Education, Education Ride 365

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

A Principal On A Motorcycle? Why? (Part 1)

Philosophically speaking:

"You see things vacationing on a motorcycle in a way that is completely different from any other.  In a car you're always in a compartment, and because you're used to it you don't realize that through that car window everything you see is just more TV.  You're a passive observer and it is all moving by you boringly in a frame.

On a cycle the frame is gone.  You're completely in contact with it all.  You're in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming.  That concrete whizzing by five inches below your foot is the real thing, the same stuff you walk on, it's right there, so blurred you can't focus on it, yet you can put your foot down and touch it anytime, and the whole thing, the whole experience, is never removed from immediate consciousness."

Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values
by Robert M. Pirsig

Posted at 9:17 PM (permalink) 2 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: EdClick, Cycle Of Education

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Stop Driving While InTEXTicated!

Posted at 11:27 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, DanClick, Travel, Texting

Monday, October 31, 2011

The Cycle Of Education Reports For Duty!

Made it back home Sunday night...after 24-hours of road time in three days.  Great travel.  The toughest day was day three.  I rode eleven-plus hours from Missouri to DFW.  More on the travels in a coming post.

The pictures below are from the morning I picked up the Cycle of Education.  These photos were taken at Fort Meigs (1813) in Perrysburg, Ohio.

The chrome, rims, and other non-painted pieces are not polished up yet...but I bet you'll appreciate the beauty of the artwork!

Posted at 9:35 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, Honda East Toledo, DanClick, Fort Meigs

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Better Than A Hotel

Yesterday I took a rather scenic (read...I got a bit turned around) route to Bloomington IN.  It was flat until I reached Nashville, IN  (not "the" TN Nashville).  Nashville, IN is just under 20 miles from Bloomington.  Though it was dark when I arrived, I can tell this part of Indiana is beautiful.  The glaciers didn't make it to the southern part of the state, so it has a much more interesting topography than the northern part of the state.

I am a member of a motorcycle travel network I'll write about soon.  We all make our homes available to host other riders for a nominal fee of $15 a night.  Pretty cool and a great way to meet neat people.

Barry and Bonnie Martin (not related to me) are two such people.  Really good folks.  I pulled into their garage about 9:00pm last night, had good conversation, got some sleep, and am about to take off for St. Louis, MO.  Five hours closer to Dallas..home.

Posted at 10:15 AM (permalink) 3 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, DanClick, Travel, Motorcycle Travel Network

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Cycle of Education Partially Reassembled!

I saw the Cycle of Education today for the first time.  It is getting reassembled at Honda East Toledo.  It should be done tonight, so I am planning on hitting the road tomorrow.  I will ride five hours tomorrow to Bloomington, Indiana after finishing a photo shoot here in Toledo.

Here are a few views of the bike partially reassembled.  They were taken inside the Honda shop, so there are some florescent light streaks in several of these photos.

Posted at 6:50 PM (permalink) 4 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, Honda East Toledo, DanClick

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Dis-SPIRITed By Bad Business Practices

I made it to Ohio.  Two unpleasant surprises today dealing with business ethics. 

1) Don't fly SPIRIT AIRLINES without heeding the following.  They charge $40 for a carry on without readily advertising such.  So, when I looked at Hotwire.com, it showed Spirit with a fare of $51 and American Eagle with a fare of $63.  Seems like an easy choice EXCEPT you must read the fine print at Spirit Air that will clue you into the fact that the actual cost to get what you are getting from American Eagle for $63 is a cool $91 on Spirit.  Deceptive in my book. 

When I return to DFW I am going to call the Southwest Airlines corporate offices and suggest they do a funny commercial about Spirits' business model.  They love attacking the other airlines on baggage fees...for checked bags.  They would no doubt have a field day with fees for a carry-on bag!

I asked the airline rep behind the counter and it sounds like the policy is just as unpopular with her and her colleagues.  They probably have some pretty unpleasant confrontations with unhappy customers over this matter.  I bet I heard one out of three passengers on that flight complaining about this matter.  The lady representing Spirit simply told me when I asked if any other airlines had this policy...and she said, "no, it is our business model." 

Come On Man.

2) I am going to think more before I write this one.  This business matter capped off a string of disappointments and--clearly--it is terrible business.  On principle I want to write about it, though I'm trying not to and won't at this time.

Posted at 7:25 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Spirit Air, Travel, Cycle of Education

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Getting The Cycle: A Note About My Airfare From Dallas To Toledo

Tomorrow I fly to Chicago...then on to Toledo OH to pick up The Cycle of Education on Thursday!  I will arrive in time Wednesday evening for the World Series game...though the weather does not look good for getting it in.  Incidentally, the Texas Rangers are up three games to two. 

When I booked my flight for this trip I used Hotwire.  I entered Dallas to Toledo, OH and my date.  Many options were presented.  The low price was $230 one-way, with a stop in a hub city. 

I then decided to search for cheaper tickets for each leg of the trip independent of the other.  Same date and time.  I noticed that many flights into Toledo originated in Chicago.  So, I searched for DFW to Chicago and found a flight for $51 on Spirit Air.  Then I searched for a flight from Chicago to Toledo and found one on American Eagle for $63.  My layover is a mere two hours.

Research saved me about 50%.......$116 plus extra taxes.

Moral: if you are flying to a small city and must fly through a hub to get there, you may save money by pricing the trip like I did above!  Of course, you may need to switch airlines.  No problem for me.  I got a kick out of saving the money!

Posted at 8:29 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Travel, Cycle of Education, Airfare

Friday, October 21, 2011

Behind But Not Forgotten

Earlier I posted a picture of the trailer's top.  Below are pictures (pre-clear coat) of the trailer cooler and two sides.  The cooler represents Fine Arts...with a decidedly Mardi Gras feel!  A theme appropriate for the cooler section, though I'll probably store more H2O in there than anything else!

The trailer represents a few portrayals of the extracurricular side of schooling.  I suppose the next photos I'll be showing you of the Cycle of Education will be next Thursday the 27th, when I pick it up from Honda East Toledo!  Then it will be reassembled with new parts and a paint job for the ages by Pam Shanteau!

Posted at 3:10 PM (permalink) 3 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, Honda East Toledo, DanClick

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Trunkin' ...All The Airbrushin' Done

The trunk from each side-- pre-clear coat

Posted at 10:59 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

The Cycle Of Education Is Getting Saddled Up!

Left and Right Side Saddlebags. 
In that order, pre-clear coat.

Posted at 3:47 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Expanding Mind...Expanding Horizons...Finding A Voice

Posted at 1:54 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Friday, October 14, 2011

A Region Of The Right Brain Of The Cycle Of Education!

The right front section of the bike...pre-clear coat.

Posted at 5:58 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Thursday, October 13, 2011

We The People...In Order To Form A More Perfect Education!

Posted at 10:04 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Pickup Date Determined!

I will be flying to Toledo, Ohio to pick the bike up on October 26, 2011.

 

Drop me a line if you live between Toledo and Dallas!

Posted at 8:52 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

The Cycle Of Education Getting Colored In Ohio!

Posted at 7:55 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Monday, October 10, 2011

Behind, On-Top, In-Process!

Trailer top....Pre-Clear Coat.

Posted at 8:45 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Something The Cycle Of Education Will Not Be Used For!

Posted at 7:06 PM (permalink) 4 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, Motorcycle Humor, Liberally Lean From The Land Of Dairy Queen

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Wet Paint!

The Cycle of Education is coming to your state!

Posted at 8:43 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, EdClick, Pamela Shanteau, DanClick

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Five Hours Through Hope

The trailer is airbrushed and off for clear-coating.  The cycle parts are now being airbrushed.  Within a few weeks I will be flying up to Toledo, Ohio to pick up the Cycle of Education!

Tuesday evening I returned from the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators' Leadership Conference in Little Rock.  The two-day conference was held at the Peabody Convention Center in the River Market area of downtown.  The area has character and feels safe, but I was 0-3 on food purchases!  Yuck.  The rest of the restaurants in L.R. are probably great  (;   ....My luck!

According to the AAEA website:

"The AAEA Leadership Conference was a huge success with approximately 850 attendees representing 129 school districts in Arkansas and two additional states.  Those attending were able to develop an action plan to assist their school/district with implementation of the Common Core State Standards."

I was at the conference listening to teachers and administrators share their pain points.  As appropriate, I shared how 21st Century web-based technology can be used to improve the operations of their school, with the goal of continuous improvement of all systems and decisions based on more holistic data sets.  I helped develop, have used, and now support implementation of these tools.  They are automation solutions that help schools run better, more easily.

More on several of these pain points in blog posts over the next several days.

Posted at 9:15 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Cycle of Education, Arkansas Association Of Educational Administrators, EdClick, Educator Pain Points

Friday, September 9, 2011

Artists Are Amazing! So Too Shall Be The Cycle Of Education!

   
 
 

I took the photo below of Donn Shanteau
working on one of his passions: photography
Toledo, Ohio  July 13, 2011

Posted at 12:36 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Principal Rider, Honda, Gold Wing, Cycle of Education, EdClick.com, Pam Shanteau, Airbrush Art

Friday, September 2, 2011

Wing Ding To Make That Cycle Sing

Posted at 4:57 PM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Principal Rider, Honda, Gold Wing, Cycle of Education, EdClick.com

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Passion To Ride To A Photo Finish Promoting Education

Educators encourage young people daily to follow their dreams.  We all have special talents, skills, experiences, and so much more that are uniquely ours.   We often tell young people that the best “job” or career is one that takes advantage of those unique qualifiers and couples them with a long-held passion for what one enjoys doing most. 

I feel like I took this advice to heart.  All of my life I have been a go-getter.  I have applied myself passionately to quite a few work experiences…from an early age.  I have been a car waxer, lawn mower, newspaper thrower, table busser, sandwich maker, pizza maker, store stocker, counter minder, bird feeder, note taker, concert security staffer, phone service operator, landscaper, camp counselor, and so much more!  One may ask, what passion was I satisfying with that selection of work?  Perhaps I was satisfying only my passion to excel, achieve, be independent, and experience life.

None of those occupations, however, really targeted my passion the way two others profoundly have.  Namely, my thirteen years as an educator in public schools and my time as a professional photographer in the 1980s.  These were the two experiences in my life when the advice of adults who told me to follow my passions were best heeded.

I will expand on these two seminal occupational experiences in posts to come.  For now I’ll note that promoting education has been my passion for fifteen–plus years and education will always be a central theme of my mission. 

Now, I believe, my third seminal occupational opportunity has presented itself.  Since 2002 I have collaborated with Dr. Harry Tennant in his efforts to build EdClick into a company that provides solutions to help schools run more efficiently and professionally.  For years, my only compensation was the value his resulting products provided to schools I worked for.  Now, however, Dr. Tennant and EdClick have offered me the opportunity of a lifetime.

Dr. Tennant has recently offered me a chance to meld several of my passions into a vision he has for promoting continuous improvement in schools.  He was aware of passions, talents, and experiences I’ve long held, but have only incidentally been able to apply to the goal of promoting progressive education.  Now he is in a position to benefit his company...and the broader objective of continuous improvement in education...by enlisting me to be EdClick’s official Principal Rider!

The Cycle of Education is currently in an airbrush studio in Ohio. 

The Cycle of Education will be passing through your district soon.

My dreams are coming together as several of my passions are converging.  My picture perfect days as an educator are just up the road from where we are now!

More around the bend…in coming posts!

Posted at 11:43 AM (permalink) 0 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Principal Rider, Honda, Gold Wing, Cycle of Education, EdClick.com

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Principal Rider In The Shadow: A Modest First Attempt

Posted at 2:14 AM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Principal Rider, Honda, Gold Wing, Cycle of Education, EdClick.com

Friday, June 17, 2011

Metamorphosis: Principal Rider. Principal Writer. Both.

Arriving Soon: The Cycle of Education!

Posted at 11:57 PM (permalink) 1 Comments View/Leave Comment
Keywords: Principal Rider, EdClick, Cycle of Education