Positive changes at VUSD: Vodicka and the iPad

My wife just finished entering grades for her third grade class with the district issued iPad. She was thrilled with how fast and easy it was this time compared to the last year when the only option for entering grades was a computer. This year instead of having to laboriously type everything in, she was able with the iPad to enter using quick touch screen movements. Using the stylist is even faster. She recommends every teacher give it a try.

Besides the iPad another thing that is less stressful for teachers this year is the leadership of the new school superintendent. Dr. Devin Vodicka has changed the tenor at the district office. Teachers are no longer despised as impediments. He is not letting Matt Doyle run rough shod over the teachers the way that Joyce Bales adversarial approach apparently encouraged. Jeanie Luckey's attitude has changed as well. She seems to be quite capable of being a good chameleon. Under Joyce Bales she was dismissive in her contacts with classroom teachers. Now she seems to like teaches again. She has taken in Vodicka's "new view" of teachers as collegues to be trusted and helped instead of the former district office view of teachers as enemies to be crushed.

Congrats to all who had a hand in bringing in Dr. Vodicka and his technological innovations like the iPad to our district. He seems to be an examplary superintendent in the mold of Dr. David Cowles and Dr. Rene Townsend. I am so glad to see Vista Unified with a good, strong and fair leader again.

Voting Recommendations for Vista School Board and beyond

I recommend Elizabeth Jaka who has done a superb job on the board. She always puts the needs of our students and district first. This school district owes her a great debt of gratitude for her work in getting the school bond passed and especially her work on getting the new high school built. She kept pushing and pushing against the impediments that Jim Gibson put in the way of our third high school. She got that high school built despite Jim's best (worst) efforts. She deserves to be re-elected.

For Vista City Council I recommend:

Garry Garretson and Cody Campbell. The Vista Firefighters have endorsed Garry which is good enough for me. Cody was a voice of sanity who was willing to speak up and correct the excess of Stephen Guffanti and Jim Gibson when he served on the VUSD school board as a student representative. He is fearless.

Let's talk teacher evaluations and test scores

I found the link to a great article about the inherent unfairness of evaluating teachers by looking at student tests scores at the Diane Ravitch. The link was under a short posting entitled "Do we all love teachers?"

http://dianeravitch.net/

The article itself is found here:
http://www.policymic.com/articles/17490/romney-loves-teachers-what-teacher-evaluations-and-tests-mean-for-american-teachers

Below is a small excerpt from that article:

Now, I don't know a single educator who outright opposes the idea of fair evaluations and/or some level of teacher accountability. But as I sat quietly in that little red plastic chair, a voice in me cried:

"You want to evaluate me? Great. No problem.

"But let's also evaluate the misaligned (or nonexistent) curriculum I was given to plan for my classes."

"Let’s evaluate the number of chairs huddled around single desks, because there are more students in the room than there were last year, and the copy machine, the one that never works.

"Let’s evaluate the number of students with IEPs that aren't being adequately serviced, and the number of English Language Learner students sitting voiceless in the back of the room, because they have yet to be admitted into nonexistent ELL classes.

"Let’s evaluate the employers who are smugly underpaying/underemploying my students’ parents or guardians, forcing them to work multiple jobs, likely without ever securing benefits for themselves or for their families. Or the number of students who have lost parents or loved ones due to gang violence, substance abuse, or the labyrinth that is our failing criminal justice system. Or the number of my students who didn't eat dinner last night.

"Let's evaluate how many hours of sleep I got last night, because I was not afforded adequate prep time during my 10 or 11 hour day in the building, or how many times I've skipped out on doctor's appointments and family events to be here for my students.

"And, finally, let's evaluate my motivations for being here — because it sure as hell isn't for the money."