As a board member I have worked to get the District to review coarse offering, disciplinary action and process, as well as over-referral of male students to Special Ed.

I have insisted on rigorous assessment and evaluation of our programs to assess that what we are doing is working. For a number of years we have been demanding rigor in our schools. In order to have rigor we need to have high expectations and an academic plan that works for each school population. We need to support programs that have shown success. We need to grow local programs that are being shown to be successful.

I have insisted on accountability and fiscal oversight to assess that what we are doing is given us bang-for-the-buck. We have spent money on programs that have not bore the outcomes that were expected. Elementary math is one example of when the proper assessment and evaluation was not done and math grades were dismal.

Give high school teachers time to talk with the community college professors as to how stu-dents are doing with entrance exams. (Historically a disconnect between WASL math and community college math exam has existed.)

All students need high expectations. Even more difficult with the economy tanking, not pos-sible now to go to college, graduate with the assurance there will be an opportunity to suc-ceed when resources are exceeding limited. How can our students go on to college or post secondary training of their choice without some support and assistance. We want every stu-dent ready for college.

The answer is much the same as the above answers and strategies described in question 3’s answer.

• Drop outs “roots” are formed by 3rd grade. To combat this, pre-school and early childhood development is critical. WE MUST reallocate revenue streams to fund this for all free and reduced lunch populations. And, it is not just about funding, we need neighborhood outreach to bring young parents into our schools before pre-school for education and community building activities. I am the ONLY candidate speaking to this which is why Ruth Kagi, WA. STATE Early Learning and Childhood Services chair has endorsed me.

• Multiple research studies have shown for years that music (learning how to read music and performance in a group for at least one year in middle school) enhances test scores, especially in math. A Chicago study that had full arts regimen in 6 schools and none in 6 others, showed a differentiation of 18% in reading and 22% in math. College entrance test trackers show that student’s with one year of music performance score an average of 100 points higher on the SAT.

• Kids don’t drop out because they are “too challenged.” If we provide the curriculum enhancement I list in detail in answer #3, we show children pathways for their future and give them the support they need to be successful even while demanding the highest level of academic achievement.

Whether the question is “what math textbooks do we need” or “how do we standardize our language arts curriculum” we MUST become a district of BEST PRACTICES. Site based control versus central control should be irrelevant. ALL curriculum content and delivery methods should be constantly evolving to best practices. At a practical level, no one series of textbooks is perfect. We should choose books and curriculum support materials based on the best match or best practice that exists. Our students know this is what we should do better than we do. This is one of the main reasons why the Young Dem’s of King County endorsed me. Our young people know if we look at the most rigorous private schools across the U.S., NONE of them use just one series of books for ALL course offerings in ANY subject, math, language, history, science, etc. Why would we?

• All curriculum decisions should include professors from our State’s universities.

• All proposed academic changes should be presented to the board in a manner that speaks to the current instructional problems and learning deficits and justifies why this text book or curriculum fills those needs.

By training, I derive decisions from critical analysis of the data, which means that I would examine and determine some of the root causes of poor performance. The district has the data, and questions can be asked, e.g. poor performance tied to literacy for math?; teacher experience tied to poor student results? ; materials funding connected to lack of results? Unified curriculum adoption is one way of simplifying expectations for students and staff and allowing a better accounting of performance. School leadership is critical to improving graduation rates and improving staff professionalism. Student Intervention Teams (SIT) are also another means of addressing individual student challenges.

The plans I would like to bring to the board is to provide alternative ways to measure the academic performance of students. If we want students to engage, retain and apply rigorous curriculum and see expected results, we must observe the different learning styles of each child by allowing the teachers to be creative with lesson plans that will develop and challenge each students ability to adapt. For example, life skills application integrated in all core subjects showing the relevancy of each. For a highly skilled teacher, he/she should know the ability of each student and can enhance the innate knowledge of each child through rigorous instruction. Students are a product of their environment (parents and community) and it must be taken into consideration when we create expectations and outcomes. We need to think outside the box and change with the times. We need to update the outdated information we are using to deal with a new generation of students who are technologically savvy and have abstract thinking. The School Board should also keep the Principals and Teachers accountable for the effectiveness of their leadership and quality of teaching in the classrooms.

Each of these measures of achievement as well as expectations and implementation and quality of curricula should be central to the performance evaluation of all academic staff beginning with the Superintendent but also central administration, principals and teachers. The connection between student achievement and compensation, retention and incentives of District leadership is very low. The School Board should not be overly patient with Superintendent performance, nor should low performing principals remain at their posts- the academic leaders of this district must be tackling these key problems and setting the example for all other staff. This does not require a standardized or uniform curricula across subjects, it requires increased rigor and expectations (along with resources) at those schools which are not meeting standard. Math is an area of special concern to me, I am convinced that we must learn from our international peers and change direction in SPS. For a city and region built on technology, we are woefully underperforming in science and math and using an approach-inquiry based, which has increased the achievement gap in Seattle over the past fifteen years. I believe that explicit or direct instruction, used by nations that are top performers in internationally normed testing, is preferable. Instruction which can be easily supplemented and strengthened by individual effort and support in one’s home will be needed to address our present circumstances, especially in mathematics.