tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post4605583384864630734..comments2024-01-08T03:21:35.616-05:00Comments on DeKalb County School Watch: Gifted and Magnet School Data Now AvailableCerebrationhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comBlogger191125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-22839371030356704712011-05-14T22:02:08.594-04:002011-05-14T22:02:08.594-04:00My understanding is that principals get funding fo...My understanding is that principals get funding for gifted students if teachers have the gifted certification. The more gifted certified teachers a school has, the more funding they receive. The entire formula is a mystery to me and makes no sense. <br /><br />Many principals will only hire gifted certified teachers, as this brings more funding into their school. Whether the teachers do things for the gifted students is another matter entirely, as anyone can write anything up to make it look like these kids are receiving something special. <br /><br />I believe that this is what is probably happening in schools where there are no gifted classes and parents are being stonewalled.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-30440107177550889292011-03-20T16:30:39.743-04:002011-03-20T16:30:39.743-04:00Henderson has at least 500 gifted kids so the char...Henderson has at least 500 gifted kids so the chart really isn't right.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-25812423335565167762011-01-29T13:26:19.553-05:002011-01-29T13:26:19.553-05:00It seems as if DCSS has a "unique" way o...It seems as if DCSS has a "unique" way of funding gifted ed ... they take our gifted students and apoply per student to the state -- the state funds them "per student" with some constraints in place on how gifted studens are supposed to be educated, but without IEPs ... The county takes the gifted funding, puts it into a "pot" and redistributes it by convertint the funds into points -- no other systems convert the gifted funds into points. The other systemn seem to leave the state gifted funds as hard dollars that go to the schools where the gifted children are. This is why there may be these gigantic disparties between the numbers of gifted kids being reports by schools on the DCSS charts and the state charts ... the schools are being shorted the gifted funds by the county in the conversion of the dollars into points. It could be because the gifted coordinator is not gifted certified. It could be that this is how DCSS has "found" the extra money to actually fund the extra teachers and points for programs at DSA and KMS and CMS -- if the schools with the gifted kids actaully received all of their gifted money, those schoools could all be strong and have programs just like the magnets but instead schools like HMS and LHS have been receiving schools under AYP and apopear to have been short-changed on their gifted funding by the County.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-77158536918460811372011-01-20T20:58:40.277-05:002011-01-20T20:58:40.277-05:00I beg to differ about the south end of the county ...I beg to differ about the south end of the county not getting it. As with any geographical location, some do, others don't!<br />I am a former employee of DCSS. After realizing that advancement was very limited if you were not a member of the friends and family group, I moved on.Race did not make a difference as it happened with blacks and whites. Do you really think that the ones who do the hiring are going to make all applicants' files available to SACS? Of course not. I have seen so many qualified people not even given interviews and the most incompetent ones get the positions. Totally disgusting! These same departments strangely pass the audits by the Federal government! Hence, these audits should be more than what is on paper because they are going to make themselves look good. Speaking of friends and family, has anyone cross-checked to see how many central office staff who were "let go" had positions created for them in another department? Human Resources with excessive staff should be held more accountable. All applications should go through the highly paid head of Human Resources. , then forwarded to the various department heads. After the person is selected, the department head should put in writing why a lesser qualified person was chosen over the more qualified person. Conferences should be held if questions exist.While this may be a simplistic checks and balances process,it is better than what seems to be in place.It definitely won't work if the head of HR is not objective and is himself part of the friends and family group. There have been questions on this site as to why the head of HR could get this position with minimal experience.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-25460417171508791792011-01-20T20:06:06.856-05:002011-01-20T20:06:06.856-05:00DCSS has lost another great teacher, Ms. Lisa Lee....DCSS has lost another great teacher, Ms. Lisa Lee. It is so sad to know that with her expertise, she was denied positions due to the fact,she didnot belong to the Family and Friends Plan. This is so typical of why great teachers leave the system.<br />Hopefully, SACS and Ms. Tyson will honestly review interview sheets and applicants file and see why so many great teachers are not given positions. But, the south end of the county still just dont get it. Even after reading the article from the teacher at SWD, teachers undercover knows he is speaking the truth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-67220475638366949662011-01-19T18:42:00.239-05:002011-01-19T18:42:00.239-05:00These programs bgin the process of preparing minor...These programs bgin the process of preparing minority students from disadvanted home for an ivy league education in middle school and high school: Prep for Prep and A Better Chance. Has anyone heard of them? Has DCSS ever worked with them? Taken any cues from them? Harvard takes from them....PrepforPre.org: "Once accepted into the program, Prep for Prep students must complete a rigorous 14-month course of study to prepare them for independent school success. Once placed, Prep offers support services and leadership development opportunities that foster our students’ success at whatever they choose to pursue. Prep students pursue their dreams with determination, purpose, and a clear sense of social responsibility."<br />Or abetterchance.org? "Since 1963, A Better Chance has been opening the door to educational opportunities for thousands of young people of color in this nation. Our mission is to increase substantially the number of well-educated young people of color who are capable of assuming positions of responsibility and leadership in American society. We carry out our mission through our signature College Preparatory Schools Program (“CPSP”), which annually recruits, refers and supports about 500 A Better Chance Scholars at more than 300 of the nation’s leading boarding, day and public schools."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-79628838225541708992011-01-18T21:39:16.843-05:002011-01-18T21:39:16.843-05:00No matter where they draw the lines, no matter who...No matter where they draw the lines, no matter who they hire, fire, promote, no matter what canned program, no matter how much technology you throw at the schools<br />the belief public schools can solely and adequately prepare your child to succeed is ridiculous.<br /><br />Leaving the education of your child solely to the public school system is setting your child up for failure regardless of your ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation!!!<br /><br />Education needs to start and end at home! For JHC sakes, just imagine how much easier it would be for a teacher to teach even in kindergarten when the entering class as a whole, is reading ready and not a class of totally blank slates, freshly reformatted and in many cases, absent an operating system that can't even manage directing the child in the simplest of civil behaviors!<br /><br />Jim Bohica Ben DoverAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-43219520480623685762011-01-18T20:52:44.857-05:002011-01-18T20:52:44.857-05:00Chris Vance is a lawyer who sues school systems fo...Chris Vance is a lawyer who sues school systems for failing to meet the special needs of children... anyone not being served properly may want to look into forcing the issue ... the kids are entitled to a proper education. There are other lawyers who have similar practice areas (maybe 4 or 5 of them.. it's a small bar).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-31108079399416250502011-01-18T20:23:43.704-05:002011-01-18T20:23:43.704-05:00@ Dunwoody Mom, Why do you hate Chamblee HS so muc...@ Dunwoody Mom, Why do you hate Chamblee HS so much. Dunwoody has a new ES, MS & HS. Why can't Chamblee have a new school. To the person talked about us in the north having $400,000 homes not very many homes in Chamblee are worth $400,000. I bought mine for $150,000. There are lots of inexpensive appartments and condos around the area to. Right next door to Chamblee is one. We are not all rich and spoiled up here. I am against consolidation. Why to people keep wanting to punish us in the north. I would not want hardship on any one. We are hard working parents just like every one else. I have 4 kids at 3 diffrent schools. I have magnet and non magnet, special ed. I work full time. I volunteer as much as I can. I dont know why these schools are failing in the south but I do know why my kids schools do well, parents. We work hard to make them what they are. <br /><br />Why does any one think that consolidation of the magnets will work any way. Why do we want 1 super school. We need to have more schools with magnet tracks. What makes the magnet schools work so well? Parents & teachers dedicated to make it work. I dont belive it will be the same if we move and consolidate the magnets. In all honisty the magnet program will loose a lot of teachers and families and will take years to recover.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-75423642899455163352011-01-18T16:05:09.117-05:002011-01-18T16:05:09.117-05:00Perhaps if the Gifted Coordinator was certified in...Perhaps if the Gifted Coordinator was certified in Gifted or had ever taught a Gifted class, she would be more sympathetic. Only in DeKalb.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-7900439406725896452011-01-18T14:46:57.195-05:002011-01-18T14:46:57.195-05:00sorry for the typossorry for the typosAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-88980495356381676082011-01-18T14:46:12.142-05:002011-01-18T14:46:12.142-05:00DCSS is clearly not following up with the schools....DCSS is clearly not following up with the schools. The Gifted coordinator for the county has no idea if or how local schools are meeting state law requirements. I have said this repeatedly. I do not think that principals understand that this a state requirement. And the county is doing nothing to education them and/or ensure that appropriate programming is occurring.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-63375974374480707172011-01-18T12:47:35.021-05:002011-01-18T12:47:35.021-05:00This website: http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/~MuenchP...This website: http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/~MuenchP/information.gifted.delivery.asp<br /><br />describes the various delivery models. Cluster grouping is supposed to be used at my child's school, at least that is what the principal says. When I question the classroom teacher, she laughs and asks me if I have ever tried to differentiate a class of 26 kids from "can't read" to "gifted" and then document the gifted offering. I can't blame the teacher 100% since the principal obviously doesn't care, either. Oh, and the county coordinator doesn't care, either.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-84604282231783176162011-01-17T23:20:18.936-05:002011-01-17T23:20:18.936-05:00Excellent info, Anon 11:09.
Everyone interested...Excellent info, Anon 11:09. <br /><br />Everyone interested, please go to the website above and download the 2 presentations in the box over the Gifted logo at the bottom right of the state DOE webpage.<br /><br />Interesting tidbit from the first one -<br /><br />State Law:OCGA 120-2-152 SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES(http://www.legis.state.ga.us/cgi-bin/gl_codes_detail.pl?code=20-2-152)<br />Relevant excerpts include:(a) All children and youth who are eligible for general and career education program under Code Section 20-2-151 and who have special educational needs shall also be eligible for special education services…..Special education shall include children who are classified as intellectually gifted …..Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-12107645081246913082011-01-17T23:09:58.659-05:002011-01-17T23:09:58.659-05:00Just FYI: There's an interesting couple of pr...Just FYI: There's an interesting couple of presentations, including funding formulas and required strategies, found in the lower right hand corner of the state's webpage for gifted education.<br /><br />http://public.doe.k12.ga.us/ci_iap_gifted.aspxAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-46651687269057645952011-01-17T22:42:47.623-05:002011-01-17T22:42:47.623-05:00To you all. Thank you. Thank you so much.To you all. Thank you. Thank you so much.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-64706674330268720412011-01-17T22:42:21.069-05:002011-01-17T22:42:21.069-05:00Annette Eger
Program Specialist for Gifted Educati...Annette Eger<br />Program Specialist for Gifted Education<br />1766 Twin Towers East<br />205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive SE<br />Atlanta, GA 30334<br /> (404) 657-0182<br /> (404) 651-8582<br />aeger@doe.k12.ga.us<br /><br />Great information about what should be happening at this site:<br /><br /><br /><br />For those who think that it is not important to address these kids needs, particularly if there are just a few of them at a school, consider that the state codes classify these kids as special needs. The county MUST provide services to them and oversight to ensure that services are provided and adequate.<br /><br />Furthermore, local districts are required to review and revise the curricula for gifted students annually. Anyone know where to find the county's report about such a review?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-66338521848434605272011-01-17T22:03:07.128-05:002011-01-17T22:03:07.128-05:00can whoever had the info on the state coordinator ...can whoever had the info on the state coordinator for gifted ed, please re-post that info so that maybe DM and the person tallying figures for Elementary school can maybe contact the state person to verify numbers and figures if they are up to doing so for more complete information? Thanks!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-1726232848639866912011-01-17T21:49:30.126-05:002011-01-17T21:49:30.126-05:00Not sure what the values on the DCSS sheets mean. ...Not sure what the values on the DCSS sheets mean. They don't make sense. I know I've talked to the gifted office about the distribution of students at my local school and the number that they noted is not what is included in the budget.<br /><br />Either the value means something different than the # of students in that category, or someone has misreported these values. Either way, it equates to a lack of funding for services, and for the most part, these services are least likely to be provided where they are most needed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-81747999051155935312011-01-17T20:53:09.494-05:002011-01-17T20:53:09.494-05:00Well, we're still digging. We'll bring mo...Well, we're still digging. We'll bring more to a special post when we have gathered all the info we can.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-85716424596737232192011-01-17T19:59:51.858-05:002011-01-17T19:59:51.858-05:00well we always knew that it was a drain, but surel...well we always knew that it was a drain, but surely not like this! Thanks DM and Cerebration for digging - I just have to knowAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-65480334391199479642011-01-17T19:48:31.648-05:002011-01-17T19:48:31.648-05:00The thought has to cross your mind - could it be t...The thought has to cross your mind - could it be that some of the points for the gifted earned in regular schools are being used to fund the locally funded boost in FTE for the magnets? I certainly hope not.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-39069184236113393662011-01-17T19:47:11.933-05:002011-01-17T19:47:11.933-05:00No - I think the gifted allotments are the same - ...No - I think the gifted allotments are the same - they are in the top box and go left to right. The magnets get a boost of (locally funded) points simply because they are magnets. It's doesn't have anything to do with gifted points. Although, the mantra to defend the costs of the magnets has always been that they get more funding due to the fact that they serve a larger percentage of gifted in one building... But really, the additional funding is for "magnet" status - not gifted.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-72934032735973982722011-01-17T19:34:06.232-05:002011-01-17T19:34:06.232-05:00Looking at the allotment sheets, the only ones get...Looking at the allotment sheets, the only ones getting local points for gifted are the magnets. For all others the gifted points are part of the normal allotment. Does that sound right?Paula Caldarellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05515215184962897541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-151096942903989101.post-79703760845713422102011-01-17T19:30:01.832-05:002011-01-17T19:30:01.832-05:00Thanks DM - that sounds great.Thanks DM - that sounds great.Cerebrationhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11161868015604029471noreply@blogger.com