kt ablatest use thismar - kentuckycommissioner gene wilhoit in-vites comments on this topic. phone...

MARCH 2001

Kentucky TeacherKentucky Teacher

B ackstreet Road is a smallcountry — 37 inhabitants —located in Pike County. It’s a

minisociety in the primary classroomof husband and wife teaching team Royand Karen Adkins.

While most students get involvedin classroom economics projects likeBackstreet Road in 4th grade or later,these Millard Elementary primarystudents already work hard to earn“greens” (the class currency), becomeentrepreneurs and make decisionsabout how their classroom operates,with little thought to the age barrier.

The Adkins ensure that theirstudents know no barriers — tolearning or to life. About half of their31 students, ages 5-11, are childrenwith special needs: visual or hearingimpairments, behavior problems,Tourette’s Syndrome, cerebral palsyand other challenges. The remainderof the class is composed of regular andgifted students. All students learn signlanguage and use it daily inconversations with one another andtheir teachers.

Educators throughout the state andcountry recognize the Adkins’classroom as a model of inclusion.Students are constantly workingtogether, despite differing ages andabilities, to reach a common goal:challenging each other with love andcaring to work beyond expectations.Students succeed because theirindividual needs are being met andthey are active participants in theireducation, the Adkins say.

“Mr. Roy” and “Ms. Adkins” findtopics for their students to explore.They guide them in planning, butultimately the students decide whatthey want to learn about a topic, how

they will find information and howthey will demonstrate their knowledge.

Nearly every student has anindividual education plan, and lessonsare created accordingly. Students workon content in small groups based onability, but ages and learning styles canvary within each group.

“We put them in a group wherethey will excel, not where they will befrustrated,” said Mr. Roy. “Students goas fast as they want or as slow as theyneed to master the skills.”

The Adkins have four aides in theclassroom. Though the aides areassigned to help certain students withinstruction and setting up assistivedevices, they also work with others inthe groups.

“At the very beginning, I thought

adding a lot of children with disabilitieswould take away from the (primary)program … that we’d be doing a lot ofthings from the side to help them learnthat would take away from the others,”Karen told a reporter for theAppalachian News Express earlier thisschool year. “But it does not. It makesus address the multiple intelligences.We have to teach everything in everyway.”

The diverse instructional methodsare obvious during the class’ two-and-a-half-hour language arts session.Students work in six groups spendingabout 20 minutes at each learningcenter activity: reading, handwriting,spelling, activities related to the currenttheme or content, and assignedlanguage arts tasks on the computers.

Each group works on the same content,just in different ways. The studentsmove smoothly from one activity toanother. Everyone knows where to goand what to do.

At the spelling table, studentsalphabetize the week’s spelling words.The next group stamps missing letterson worksheets to form the spellingwords and practice the letter “e.” Linesacross the page guide a visuallyimpaired student’s eyes during theassignment. Another student practicesan additional letter she has yet tomaster.

At the reading table, Mr. Roy readsto some students, discusses the storyand has them answer questions. Inanother group, the work is moreindividualized as some students readone book while Mr. Roy works withthe rest of the students in a differentbook.

Students at another table usedifferent approaches to counting candyhearts and graphing the results.Students in one group sort the candyby color and count as they place pieceson a sheet of paper with predrawnboxes. Students in another group workin pairs, with one student sorting andcounting the colored candies while thepartner makes “tick” marks for eachpiece. By the end of the lesson, everychild completes a titled, color-codedgraph of candy pieces.

“It’s interesting to watch newstudents — especially those cominginto our class from other schools,” saidMs. Adkins. “They’re so used tocompetition, to looking around to seewhat others are doing, what they cando to get by. Here the child next tothem may have three scribbles on apaper and I’ll be crowing and makingover him. And then I’ll demand moreof the new student because she’s able.”

Does this model of inclusiveness

Teacher Karen Adkins breaks from a lesson to tend to Courtney Coleman’s untiedshoe while Roy Adkins guides students at another learning center. In their primaryclassroom at Millard Elementary School, the husband and wife teaching team usediverse instructional methods to meet the individual and sometimes special learningneeds of 31 students who range in age from 5 to 11.

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No barriers

Students in this primary class work beyond expectations

Continued on Page 4

By Faun S. FishbackKentucky Department of Education

2 Kentucky Teacher • MARCH 2001 www.kde.state.ky.us

Commissioner’s CommentsCommissioner’s Comments

Proficiency depends on persistence —keeping students in school

By Gene WilhoitEducation Commissioner

After focusing two columns onliteracy and closing theachievement gap between ma-

jority and minority student popula-tions, I’m tempted to just say “ditto”this month. Our third priority, reduc-ing dropout rates, could almost takecare of itself as we make progress inthe first two.

However, our specific attention todropout prevention is important formany reasons — at least 9,318 reasonsin 1998-99. That’s how many Kentuckystudents left school without gettingdiplomas. Like other dropouts, mostare likely to stay close to their home-towns. Most are unqualified for careerswith promising futures.

How do we keep our students inschool? First, we must recognize thatdropping out is not an isolated actionbut a symptom. At the Department ofEducation, we are digging deep to getat the root causes. We are focusing onfour factors:

1. Early Identification — Researchtells us which students are more likelythan others to leave school before theygraduate:

• students who fall behind aca-demically by two or more grade lev-els, especially in reading;

• students who are consistentlyabsent or truant;

• students whose families do notvalue or participate in their education.

With or without the research, mostteachers can spot potential dropoutsas early as elementary school. Thechallenge is to combine what we knowfrom research and experience to actearly on behalf of at-risk students. Wemust use proven strategies that excitethem about learning, keep them work-ing at or above grade level, and guidethem to academic and social success.

2. Literacy — Students who can’t

read at grade level struggle with coursecontent. Some cover by becoming theclass clowns, the loners, the bullies.Others drop out, either by leavingschool or by staying but giving up onlearning. Either way, they stop grow-ing academically.

3. School Culture and Climate —A student who feels unaccepted, un-supported or unsafe at school consid-ers quitting. A school that creates aculture of mutual respect and inclusionfor all, regardless of race, gender, eth-nic origin, ability or any other factor,has taken a giant step toward keepingevery student in school and engagedin learning.

4. Prevention and InterventionServices — At school, at home andthroughout the community, studentsexperience academic, personal, health,family and social problems. Schoolsand communities working together candevelop a variety of strategies and ser-vices that address those problems,break barriers and increase eachstudent’s chance of success.

Shifting the FocusWe’ve traditionally looked to high

schools to fix the dropout problem.Now we must shift our focus fromintervention at the high school levelto prevention throughout all grade lev-els. The Department of Education sup-ports early prevention strategies in anumber of ways. Last August, for ex-ample, the department awarded grantstotaling $940,000 to 23 school districtsfor the development of model dropoutprevention programs. The two-yeargrants fund a range of activities, mostof them in elementary and middleschools. We will be visiting grant sitesto offer support and evaluate strategies.

The statewide dropout rate for the1998-99 school year was 4.97 percent.Our legislators demand that we cut therate in half by 2006. This is a challeng-ing but important goal. Teachers, you

are vital in our efforts to meet it. Youknow your students. You know howeach one learns. You see behaviors andattitudes that could signal problems.Your timely intervention through iden-tification, referral and multiple teach-ing strategies can make a tremendousdifference to many students.

But teachers, you are already over-whelmed by demands unknown toteachers a generation ago. You cannotdo this alone. Everyone in your schooland in the community has a stake inthe success of your students. Families,school counselors and social workers,family resource and youth servicescenter staffs, tutors, mentors and oth-ers must be partners.

Community leaders must be in-volved. Dropout prevention is a social,economic and cultural issue. Early re-search shows that community pro-grams providing outside-of-school aca-demic support, recreation, culturalenrichment and service learning oppor-tunities have positive effects on theacademic success and social behaviorof students.

For our students, for our commu-nities and for our state, we must en-sure that every student counts. Wemust ensure that every student staysin school and continues to learn untilgraduation.

�Commissioner Gene Wilhoit in-

vites comments on this topic. Phonehim at (502) 564-3141, send him e-mailto [email protected], or mailcorrespondence to 500 Mero St., Frank-fort, KY 40601.

To learn more about thedepartment’s dropout prevention ef-forts, go to www.kde.state.ky.us/odss/family/dropout.asp. For direct assis-tance, contact Angela Wilkins or SteveKimberling in the Division of Student,Family and Community Support at(502) 564-3678; [email protected] or [email protected]. For the community perspective,contact Karen Schmalzbauer at (502)564-3678 or [email protected].

Why do students drop out?Students leaving school before graduation during the 1999-2000

school year cited these reasons:

Reasons Students Failure 4,594 Boredom 1,447 Employment 1,078 Conflict Pregnancy Illness Marriage Coursework

Total

557 290 373 229 153

8,721

3MARCH 2001 • Kentucky Teacherwww.kde.state.ky.us

Dear Readers,A few educators have written to

me regarding my response to a letterpublished last month in KentuckyTeacher. In the letter, a teacher askedme to be more realistic in my expecta-tion that all students can achieve athigh levels, regardless of parentage,economics or background.

Because universal understandingof academic expectations and account-ability is so important to success ineducation, I want to clarify the pointsI made in my response.

First, some readers inferred frommy use of the word “parentage” that Iconsider teachers more important thanparents in the development of a child.That is not what I believe. What I in-tended to communicate was that wecan never presume that a child is in-nately less capable than others simplybecause of where he or she is born, or

that each one of them can succeed.”In Kentucky, we can no longer ac-

cept the excuse that a child from any“disadvantaged” environment is notteachable. I am firmly convinced thatparents have a vital role in education,both before their children start schooland throughout their school years.However, I am also convinced that ex-cellent teaching can guide students tomeet high expectations, even whenstudents come from backgrounds that,statistically speaking, put them at riskof academic failure.

The important conversation takingplace in Kentucky has to do with howto help all children achieve at high lev-els. We already know they can, be-cause data and experience throughoutthe state prove they can.

Wilhoit responds to teachers’ comments about expectations and accountabilityto whom.

Poverty and difficult family back-grounds do create barriers to learning— nobody questions that — but thosebarriers can be overcome. That is thework.

I have toured the state visitingschools three times this school year,and I am about to embark on a fourthtour. During these school visits, I sitdown with groups of teachers for twohours or more to have substantive con-versations about teaching and learn-ing and to hear their issues and con-cerns. I want to hear from classroomteachers, because they are the oneswho do the real work.

In next month’s Kentucky Teacher,I plan to outline some observationsfrom my visits to high- and low-per-forming schools. In the meantime, letme share this: At the high-performing

schools I have visited, even those withvery high poverty rates, I don’t hearteachers telling me that students fromcertain demographic groups or withcertain backgrounds can’t be expectedto learn as much as other children. Idon’t hear teachers telling me thatsome years the students are “good”and some years they are “bad.”

Instead, I hear statements like thisone, from a teacher at a high-perform-ing school where 87 percent of the stu-dents qualify for free- or reduced-pricelunch: “Everybody comes in early andstays late, because this is absolutelyhard work, but it is contagious at thisschool. We’ve got to build the self-per-ception of a can-do kid.” I hear state-ments like this one, from a teacher ata high-performing school with an 81percent poverty rate: “We don’t short-change our children. It is in our hearts

Department launches new ‘Parent Page’ on the WebOne-stop shopping! That’s the best

way to describe a new Web site forparents who want information aboutKentucky’s educationsystem.

The new site is onthe Kentucky Depart-ment of Education’s Website at www.kde.state.ky.us/parents. While thesite is specifically for par-ents, it is likely to ben-efit teachers as well, es-pecially when they’rehelping parents find an-swers to questions about public edu-cation.

“This Web site lets parents directquestions to education leaders at thedepartment,” said Armando Arrastia,the department’s Webmaster. “We en-courage parents to go first to the localschool with questions about theirchildren’s education, but we offer thisWeb site as another avenue for infor-mation.”

Parents also can use the site tosubscribe to periodic e-mailed mes-sages from the department. These

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“ParentInfo” updates will include de-partment news releases, informationabout testing activities, and informa-

tion about the state’seducation policies andprocedures. The mes-sages will also periodi-cally respond to fre-quently asked ques-tions and timely top-ics.

The site’s links in-clude “Parent Involve-ment in School,”“What You Should

Know About Kentucky’s EducationSystem,” “Tips for Parents,” “Fre-quently Asked Questions,” “Help! forParents” and others.

For example, an “About YourSchool” link leads to annual schoolreport cards, test scores (both on theKentucky Core Content Tests and stan-dardized tests) and demographic infor-mation about any school in the state.

“We brought parents in very earlyin the development process to ensurethat we would meet their needs withthis site,” said Arrastia. “We believe

the site is off to a good start in thatrespect.”

For more information about thesite, contact Armando Arrastia at (502)

564-3421 or at [email protected](or through the KETS global e-maillist).

A RISING STAR — Chris Baxter works on a writing assignment at Jefferson County’sKennedy Middle School. Chris participated in last summer’s Rising Stars program,which brought students together for activities that prepared them for transitionfrom elementary to middle school. The program will begin its third year thissummer. Check the April issue of Kentucky Teacher for more about Rising Stars.


really cause high student achievement?You be the judge. The first timestudents completed four years in theAdkins’ program and participated instate assessments, five of thosestudents received eight of the school’snine distinguished scores.

The students exiting the Adkins’primary class scored above the nationalaverage on the CTBS for 1999-2000.

There also are individualsuccesses. An early primary student isreading at a 4th-grade level, and it’s

ExpectationsContinued from Page 1

Karen Adkins helps Emily Mitchell with a graphing assignment in her primaryclassroom at Millard Elementary School in Pike County. Adkins and her husbandRoy work together to break barriers to learning for every student.

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They’ve walked the walkTo understand why students achieve at high levels in Roy and

Karen Adkins’ primary classes at Millard Elementary in PikeCounty, you first have to know a little about this husband and wifeteaching team. They’ve overcome a few adversities of their own tobecome successful.

Karen, an “A” student, dropped out of school to marry Roy.When she decided to go back, the local high school wouldn’tadmit her because she was married and pregnant. She got herGED.

Education was never a big thing to Roy’s family when he wasgrowing up in Pike County. “Men can always find work in themines,” he was told. He graduated from high school by the skin ofhis teeth.

The Adkins spent much of their married life holding downminimum-wage jobs to support their son. By their mid-30s, theygot tired of working for nothing. They realized, Roy said, that theonly way to improve life is through education. They went back toschool on scholarships and with financial aid to become teachers.

In 1990, Karen started teaching at Millard Elementary as aprimary teacher. A year later, Roy finished his degree work inspecial education and joined the Millard faculty. At first, heworked with special-needs students in a pullout program, teachingthem separately from the rest of the students. The second year, heprovided special education services to students in regularclassrooms.

By the third year, he and Karen decided they wanted tocombine their classes into a true primary: multiage andmultiability. Though they were really following examples of theFoxfire teaching methods, they quickly found out they were on thecutting edge of education reform’s requirement for primaryclassrooms in Kentucky schools.

That was 1993. Today, Mr. Roy and Ms. Adkins, as thechildren call them, feel they have found the secret for academicsuccess for all their students. Assisted by four aides, the Adkinsprovide a safe, nurturing environment in which their 31 studentswork at their own pace to achieve. Each student is focused on hisor her own work, yet they share a sense of community and takecare of each other. Together they earn the education that willimprove their lives. They all succeed together.

About PrimaryKentucky’s Primary Program is an

ungraded program that serves childrenfrom the time they enter the elemen-tary school program until they enter4th grade. “Ungraded” does not meanthat students’ work and progress arenot evaluated; it means that studentsmove academically at their own pacewithout the usual divisions of kinder-garten and 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade.While in primary, usually for four

not unusual for students from the classto enter upper elementary with 6th-grade mathematics skills. The Adkinsalso learned that a student from oneof their first classes scored 25 on herACT in preparation for college. She wasa freshman in high school when sheposted the score.

For more information about theAdkins’ classroom, contact them at(606) 432-5802 or by e-mail [email protected].

years, students learn in environmentsthat are appropriate for the develop-mental level and learning styles ofyoung children. The program’s cur-riculum and instructional design pro-vide a framework for teachers to iden-tify the skills and abilities of each child.In addition, primary teachers establishclassroom environments that supportindividual and group instruction thatmeet the needs of all children.

[email protected]

(502) 564-3421 or (800) 533-5372 (toll free in Kentucky)

(502) 564-6470

Kentucky Teacher1914 Capital Plaza Tower500 Mero St.Frankfort, KY 40601

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Teachers: Kentucky Teacher wants to know what you think, what you need from the Department of Education, what you want to see in future issues.

Talk to us!


By Faun S. FishbackKentucky Department of Education

When shouts of Toma! andOlé! erupted from the SouthOldham Middle School gym

in early February, not many studentsthought it odd to hear Spanish andstomping feet coming from the class.That’s because it was the third sessionin which 8th-graders learned compo-nents of Latin dance from MaraMaldonado, artistic director of the Bal-let Español in Louisville.

For one week of their nine-weekphysical education class, the 8th-grad-ers learned about salsa and Latinrhythms. They performed flamencoand merengue dance steps. They heardabout the cultures that spawned theseart forms and watched video clips ofauthentic dances from operas andmovies.

Maldonado, who has studied andperformed in this country and Spain,got the students moving and gave themideas about how to express their feel-ings through movement. By the thirdday, students lost their inhibitions andbegan working in small groups to cho-reograph their own dances.

Once Maldonado completed theweek of instruction, physical educationteacher Josh Cravens spent severalmore days with the students review-ing what they learned before they cre-ated their own 32-step dance. Studentsanswered an open-response questionin which they described their danceand the feelings they tried to conveythrough movement. A rubric createdfor the assignment guided students inthe culminating task.

The marriage of physical educa-tion, Spanish, dance and culture is thecollaborative work of South OldhamMiddle’s Spanish and drama teacher,Amanda Blanton, and David X.Thurmond, arts and humanities in-structional coordinator for OldhamCounty teachers. Together they wrotea successful Teacher Incentive Program(TIP) grant, offered each year by theKentucky Arts Council.

TIP supplies matching funds tohelp teachers bring professionals intoKentucky schools to demonstrate theirart forms for students and faculty. Inthis case, $550 in matching funds al-lowed Blanton to give South OldhamMiddle 8th-graders this experience

8th-graders discover Latin culture through its music and dance

with the artistic expression of anotherculture, as well as prepare them forpossible arts and humanities questionson this spring’s Kentucky Core Con-tent Tests. Every 8th-grader will havethe class before April 23, when testingbegins.

Initially, Blanton, who has taughtfor 11 years, focused on her Spanishstudents. “But not everyone takesSpanish,” she said. “Since all 8th-grad-ers must take physical education, thisseemed like the place for the instruc-tion to reach more students.”

Blanton and Thurmond workedwith Cravens and Maldonado to ad-dress multiple goals in Kentucky’s CoreContent for Assessment. They devel-oped lesson plans and a students’ toolkit that provides the essential question,guiding questions, activities and theBallet Español’s study guide on fla-menco dancing.

Cravens, a first-year teacher, saidhe welcomed the support in teachingdance because he had only one danceclass during college. He participated ineach session alongside his students,following and learning fromMaldonado’s instruction. “It has reallyhelped me feel more comfortableteaching dance,” he said.

During one session, Blanton andher Spanish students participated inthe dance class. She was able to intro-duce more Spanish vocabulary to allthe students and extend discussions ofthe Latin culture with her foreign lan-guage students.

Students seem to enjoy the unit.“I have students dropping by my class-room to tell me how much they likedthe dance class,” Blanton said. “Ilearned more about Latin dance, too.”

Blanton participated in the sum-mer 2000 Foreign Language Teacher

South Oldham Middle School students learn components of flamenco from MaraMaldonado, artistic director with Ballet Español. In a cross-curricular unit, the 8th-graders learned about Latin dance and culture, created their own 32-step dance and

Academy and learned more about in-tegrating language learning with otherdisciplines. The academy also showedteachers how to use the Total PhysicalResponse method, a kinesthetic ap-proach to language learning that usesmovement, gestures and other ele-ments to increase learning and cogni-tive development. Having witnessedthe value of integrating language learn-ing with other disciplines through thisunit, Blanton is looking for ways torepeat the study for 8th-graders nextschool year.

“This has really grown beyondwhat we first envisioned,” she added.“It just shows that there is a lot to begained from collaboration!”

Want to know more?• South Oldham Middle’s

Latin dance and culture study —Amanda Blanton at (502) 241-0320or [email protected];David Thurmond at (502) 222-8880or [email protected].

• Foreign LanguageTeacher Academies

For French, German and Latinteachers, June 25-29, University ofKentucky. Focus: integrating thearts and humanities core contentinto foreign language.

For Spanish teachers, June 25-29 at Western Kentucky Univer-sity. Focus: Spanish language inagriculture, business, health careand the justice system.

Register online at www.dl.ket.org/staff/tsauer/academy/index.htmor contact Jacque Van Houten at(502) 564-2106 or [email protected].

• Ballet Español — MaraMaldonado, (502) 245-0682;[email protected].

• Kentucky Arts Council’sTeacher Incentive Program —John S. Benjamin, (888) 833-2787,ext. 4813; [email protected]; Web site www.kyarts.org/guide/prog6/tip_guid.htm.

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STATUS Report

You’re a teacher in a rural Ken-tucky school. One of your students hasspecial needs, and you think there maybe some kind of technology out thereto help this student become a confi-dent and capable learner.

But which one of the dozens ofassistive technology devices wouldmeet this student’s needs?

If an innovative pilot project con-tinues to show promising results,you’ll have expert help with thesedecisions. Specialists will evaluateyour students’ assistive technologyneeds without you, the students ortheir parents leaving your school orcommunity.

Dr. Debra Bauder from the Uni-versity of Louisville’s Department ofSpecial Education and Preston Lewisfrom the Kentucky Department ofEducation’s Division of ExceptionalChildren are co-directors of ProjectSTATUS (Student Technology Assess-ment Through Unique Strategies).The federally funded project is mea-suring the feasibility of usingvideoconferencing to provide directservices to rural areas. One such ser-vice evaluates students with specialneeds and recommends assistive tech-nology that would help them learn.

STATUS Phase I usedvideoconferencing to connect assistivetechnology specialists in urban areaswith students in their classrooms. Theproject evaluated 28 students withoutrequiring that they travel to the cities.

Lewis described the process: “Weused either satellite compressed videotechnology (the Kentucky TelelinkingNetwork), Web-based camera connec-tions or videophone connections tolink directly to rural classrooms. Ateam of professionals at one of threeregional, nonprofit assistive technol-ogy centers observed and conductedlive, individualized assessments.Teachers were involved in the entireprocess, and parents were part of the

March isDevelopmentDisabilities AwarenessMonth

For a preview into howassistive technology can be usedto help students with disabilitiesaccess the general curriculum,check out the concept of Univer-sal Design for Learning (UDL) atthe Center for Applied SpecialTechnology (www.cast.org).

On Page 7 in this issue, “Newto the ’Net” guides teachers toresources for using the WorldWide Web to meet the needs ofstudents with disabilities.

Watch future issues for anupdate on a pilot project that isexploring the uses of assistivetechnology for teaching andtesting students with disabilities.

Kentucky may be first in the nation to deliver student evaluationand consultation services to rural schools electronically

team during 90 percent of the assess-ments.”

STATUS Phase II is examining theproject’s quality of service, impact onstudents and cost effectiveness. Oncethat step is completed and an imple-mentation manual is developed andfield tested, materials and proceduresfor providing assistive technology as-

sessment via videoconference will beavailable to any agency anywhere.Project STATUS findings and productswill be available by October of 2002.

Lewis considers STATUS a first inthe state and possibly in the nation.“For some time, Kentucky has usedtechnology to deliver training or tech-nical assistance from one location to

another, but not for delivering directservices such as this,” he said. “I thinkKentucky is first in the nation to de-liver assistive technology assessmentservices to rural areas usingvideoconferencing. The success of thiseffort means that the technology couldbe used to deliver a host of services torural areas.”

For more information, contactLewis at (502) 564-4970 [email protected] or Debra K.Bauder at (502) 852-0564 [email protected]. On the Web, goto www.louisville.edu/edu/edsp/projects/status.html.

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SELF-PORTRAITS — Students present their self-perceptions in artworkat Hager Preschool Center in Owensboro. March is National Youth ArtMonth. For information about art education in Kentucky, contact PhilipShepherd at (502) 564-2106 or [email protected], or contactJimmie Dee Kelley at [email protected].

�


By Fran SalyersKentucky Department of Education

Welcome back to New to the’Net. In this lesson . . .

• Learn how to use the Webto find software and hardware to meetspecific learning needs.

• Learn how to link those productswith the needs of students in yourclassroom.

• Find funding for putting thoseproducts in your classroom or school.

• Find Web sites that can be greatresources for students with disabilities.

To locate Lesson 7 online, selectthe New to the ’Net main page in youronline bookmarks list, or go to theKentucky Department of Education’shome page (www.kde.state.ky.us) andclick on the mascot “Newt,” then clickon the Lesson 7 link.

What are ‘special needs?’If you think of “special needs” as

a category for students withdisabilities, consider broadening yourdefinition. In addition to thinking ofthe student who is deaf, consider thehearing student who doesn’t payattention to a word you say butunderstands concepts when she workswith her hands. As you think aboutthe student whose poor vision preventshim from reading a book, think aboutthe non-reader who learns best whenfollowing the text while a person or acomputer reads aloud the portion ofthe text the student cannot readindependently.

Think about all of the studentswho “learn differently.” Those are thestudents who can benefit fromtechnology designed to meet theirneeds. The Web is your gateway toinformation about special-needstechnology (usually called assistivetechnology or AT), how it can help,where you can get it and how you canfind money to pay for it. The Web canhelp you use technology to open theworld to students with any type ofdisability or those with differentlearning needs and styles. Technologycan help you make all studentsconfident and capable learners.

Getting StartedOnce you get to the Lesson 7 page,

click on the Department of Education’s“Assistive Technology Resources inKentucky” (www.kde.state.ky.us/oet/customer/at/).

This site leads to informationabout available services and devices— from the simple to the complex —to help students learn and live moreindependently. Click on the page’smain menu items:

◆ Assistive Technology Centers:Who, What and Where — anintroduction to four independent,nonprofit resources within theKentucky Assistive Technology ServiceNetwork.

◆ Assistive Technology Matrix —an aid for determining which ofthousands of products will meet yourstudents’ needs and be compatiblewith the KETS workstations in yourschool. The matrix, one of the onlyresources of its type in the nation, letsyou browse the entire database orsearch in multiple ways to find devicesto meet specific needs. This can helpan Individual Educational Plan teamidentify assistive technology needed toimplement an IEP. Take advantage ofthe AbleData and Closing the Gaplinks, too.

◆ Assistive Technology FundingBook — a guide to national and statefunding sources for buying assistivetechnology.

◆ Other Assistive TechnologyResources

Also visit another Department ofEducation Web resource, the AssistiveTechnology Guidelines for KentuckySchools. This document helps withidentifying and meeting student needsfor assistive technology as required bythe Individuals with DisabilitiesEducation Act (IDEA), with specificexamples for classroomimplementation.

Another KentuckyResource

The Kentucky AssistiveTechnology Service Network isa statewide collaboration of

organizations and individuals thatmakes assistive technologyinformation, devices and serviceseasily obtainable for people of any ageor disability. Click on “KATS”(www.katsnet.org/) to tap thisresource.

AT andAssessmentDid you know that

students who needassistive technology tolearn can use some ofthose same learning toolswhen taking state corecontent tests? This optionapplies to students in thesecategories:

◆ students withdisabilities (i.e., those withIEPs or 504 Plans);

◆ students who havetemporary medical condi-tions that necessitate ac-commodations or modi-fications or both.

To learn more aboutusing technology duringstate assessments, click on“AT and Assessment” on theLesson 7 page.

Next StepWant to venture be-

yond Kentucky sites tofind some of the bestassistive technology re-sources on the Web?On the Lesson 7 page,click on “AT Links.”You’ll think you’ve struckgold!

Coming in AprilLesson 8: More of

Newt’s favorite websites for teaching andlearning.

New to the ’Net Lesson 7:

How can I use the Web to meet special needs?�

New to the ’Net started in theAugust 2000 issue of KentuckyTeacher. If you have questions aboutthe series or need copies of Lessons1-6, go to www.kde.state.ky.us onthe Internet and click on Newt, thecourse mascot, or send a requestto Kentucky Teacher, 1914 Capital

Plaza Tower, 500 Mero St.,Frankfort, KY 40601; [email protected].


By Sharon Crouch FarmerKentucky Department of Education

Critical shortage of information technology professionalsspurs Kentucky to establish a new career clusterCourse sequences link with Kentucky Community and Technical College Systemmajors and offer college credit to high school students

Information technology, known in thisabbreviation-prone world as “IT,”may be the fastest growing employ-

ment opportunity in the nation and thepremium fuel for the nation’s economy.IT workers help ensure that computerswork. Fifty percent of all jobs are in twopositions that exist in almost every or-ganization: technical support and net-work administration. So reports the In-formation Technology Association ofAmerica. According to Kentucky Works!(formerly known as the Workforce In-vestment Board), Louisville alone has ashortage of 3,200 IT professionals.

To address the critical shortage ofworkers in this field, the Kentucky De-partment of Education’s Division of Ca-reer and Technical Education has addedinformation technology as a new careercluster. The division is completing animplementation guide to help schools getstarted. Course sequences link with ma-jors in the Kentucky Community andTechnical College System and offer col-lege credit to high school students.

Some schools are already ahead ofthe game.

Eastern High SchoolThis Jefferson County school is ad-

dressing the local demand for informa-tion technology professionals head-on.Eastern High requires all students to takea minimum of two IT courses to gradu-ate.

“We view every student as a tech-nology student,” said Scott Horan,Eastern’s school technology coordinator.“Everyone has the opportunity to incor-porate technology into their careerplans.”

How does the school do it?Eastern used local resources to build

a 10-member IT department. Donationsand student-built machines fill 14 com-puter labs to accommodate 1,400 stu-dents in at least one full-time class per

Student Jason Eisenmenger does last-minute studying as teacher Scott Horan sets up atest that will measure Jason’s progress in an information technology course at EasternHigh School. Eastern is one of a growing number of schools preparing students to meeta high demand for IT professionals in Kentucky and nationwide.

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day. As sophomores, students chooseone of seven IT majors toward whichthey will commit at least one periodper day in the remaining two years ofhigh school. Students who completefour years of computer courses receivea certificate of mastery on their diplo-mas and transcripts. They can alsobecome Microsoft Certified SystemsEngineers, thanks to the help of a lo-cal IT corporation, Kizan, and JeffersonCounty’s School-to-Careers program.They provided formal MCSE trainingand helped Eastern become a testingcenter for the MCSE certification andfor the A+/Network+ certificationoffered by the Computing TechnologyIndustry Association.

“The A+ certification validates anindividual’s technical skills withoutbeing tied to a particular vendor,”Horan said. “Passing it is one of mystudents’ biggest ‘rushes.’” The schoolrecently turned out its 35th successfulcertification (four NT4 Server, four NT4Workstation, two Network+ and 25A+ certifications) and its 58th IT in-tern (with 29 companies).

Eastern’s IT program entails class-room training for freshmen and sopho-mores, followed by summer intern-ships with local businesses that paystudents $8 an hour. The internshipsgive students a platform to use whatthey’ve learned and test their interestin pursuing a technology career. Theyalso give students valuable experiencein a business environment, while em-ployers get good prospects for futureemployees.

Like this one . . .“He looked like a budding rock

star, his record of attendance was me-diocre, but he was persistent,” saysHoran of a student (we’ll call himJesse) who kept asking until Horansigned him on for a certification class.

Jesse struggled at first but workedhis way through the texts and excelledin fixing computer hardware. “He wasone of our first interns, but he had toturn the opportunity down because hehad no transportation to and from thejob site,” said Horan. “He joined a rockband instead.”

Jesse continued the coursework,though, and was eventually hired by alarge insurance company closer tohome. The company’s chief informa-tion officer took him under his wing,and Jesse has been with the same com-

pany for a year and a half.“Jesse now pulls new interns un-

der his wing,” said Horan. He leavesschool for work at 11 a.m. and spendsthe day preparing for a college careerthat the company will be paying for.Jesse is going to work, going to classand making the grades.

“The budding rock star turnedinto a real IT professional with a greatfuture,” Horan said.

Pulaski CountyEntering the arena of IT education

in public schools was a communitydecision in Pulaski County. After fol-lowing a standard model for a modu-lar technology education program forabout a year, the district redesignedthe program to meet local needs.

“A community survey by theSomerset/Pulaski County Chamber ofCommerce and other organizationsindicated that computer skills lead thelist of training needs,” said MikeCrowhurst, an instructor in the Com-puter Technology Academy at PulaskiCounty High School. Industry neededworkers with skills in computer graph-ics and networking, computer-aideddrafting and desktop publishing aswell as basic applications such as wordprocessing, spreadsheets and data-bases.

Pulaski County signed on with theNovell Education Academic Partner-ship Program. Novell offers participat-ing schools the same instructional kitsit sells to the corporate world, but at areduced price. Software and instruc-tor training are also part of the pack-age.

Instructor training requires teach-ers to meet higher standards than in-dustry professionals. “I studied sideby side with industry professionalsand had to pass the same tests, but Ihad to get a higher score,” saidCrowhurst.

Pulaski County’s Computer Tech-nology Academy is the heart of thedistrict’s information technology pro-gram. This career major has an aca-demic core. It requires six to eight com-puter technology classes, membershipin the Student Technology LeadershipProgram and two professional certifi-cations. Students may earn the rankof Certified Novell Administrator, Cer-tified Novell Engineer and CertifiedNovell Internet Business Strategist, aswell as Computing Technology Indus-

try Association certifications in Net-work+ and I-Net+.

Students recently opened a helpdesk at the high school, offering ev-erything from Web development tobasic computer repair and technicalsupport for teachers. They also are tak-ing those skills out into the commu-nity.

“A recent graduate spent his senioryear working as the Webmaster for agroup of five radio stations,” Crowhurstsaid. “Another did technical work forthe Center for Rural Development inSomerset.”

The school’s IT program deliber-ately addresses the issue of gender eq-uity. “When the information technol-ogy program started, we had 89 malestudents and 11 female students,” saidCrowhurst. A two-year gender equitygrant from the Division of Career andTechnical Education helped turnPulaski’s program into a full depart-ment with gender-balanced class-rooms. Enrollments in the two yearsfollowing the study were 52 and 51 per-cent female, respectively. “Since then,we have maintained an enrollmentwith no less than 40 percent femalestudents every year but one,” he said.

A student entrepreneurAt this point, one of the biggest

problems Aaron Denney is trying tosolve is how to structure his company,Access Extreme. He knows about therevenue stream, he knows the costs ofequipment and services, but whatabout taxes and social security? These

are unusual issues for a 16-year-old,but the junior at Pulaski County HighSchool Computer Technology Acad-emy has learned his lessons well andbelieves the time for opportunity isnow.

“I began working with Web pagesand found a few companies thatwanted me to do that kind of work,”Denney said. “More recently I havefound companies that are looking fornetwork wiring and other kinds ofsetup. We’ve done these kinds ofthings at school, and I have built anetwork at home, so it seemed simpleenough to do for a business.”

Denney’s business now includescomputer repair and consulting, net-work design and installation, and set-ting up e-commerce Web sites. Hehopes to offer dial-up ISP servicessoon.

“My goal is to benefit the publicby offering low-cost services to bothbusinesses and consumers,” saidDenney. “I also hope to one day setup a 20- to 30-computer lab whichcould be used for educational and en-tertainment purposes.”

Wonder what this guy will do fora senior project?

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Students Laura Jenks and Derrick Smith move a computer’s central processingunit as they organize equipment used in Eastern High School’s informationtechnology program. The school requires all students to take a minimum of twocourses in the high-demand IT field.

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For More Information . . .• Scott Horan, Eastern High School,(502) 485-8243, [email protected]• Mike Crowhurst, Pulaski County,(606) 679-1574, [email protected]• Novell Web site, www.novell.com/edu-cation/neapinfo


A Decade of Difference

focus. Every teacher in every class —mathematics, science, social studies —emphasizes reading. At monthly fac-ulty meetings, a reading specialist pre-sents short lessons on reinforcing read-ing skills in all classes.

At departmental meetings, the fo-cus has shifted to who is teaching whatin the state core content. The idea isto make sure everything is covered.

On a snowy day in January 2000,students in Foose’s senior English classwere preparing to write a research pa-per based on the book “Frankenstein.”In writing the book, author MaryShelley was imagining the potentialconsequences of early-1800s scientificdiscoveries. The assignment in Foose’sclass was to write about the potentialconsequences of today’s scientific find-ings. The vocabulary list for the assign-ment included “cloning,” “eugenics”and “cryogenic freezing.” The assign-ment spanned literature, social stud-ies and science.

On the same day, Robyn Reid’sfreshman social studies class was the“Senate” in the Lafayette High SchoolMock Congress. Students played all theroles of the real Congress and abidedby the rules of congressional debate,including being civil and not speakinguntil recognized. The “Senate” wasconsidering bills passed by the“House,” portrayed by another fresh-man social studies class. The bills con-cerned smoking in restaurants, wear-ing motorcycle helmets and same-sexmarriages. The discussion was livelybut, for the most part, decorous. Onlya couple of times did all of the stu-dents try to speak at once.

Then a student called a proposal“stupid.” Reid advised him to express

his thoughts in terms such as “ill-ad-vised” or “misinformed.” The nexttime a “stupid” bill came up, the stu-dent rose to speak again. “This bill is,”he said, pausing to look at his teacher,“what was one of those words youused?”

Principal McKenzie sees these ac-tivities as examples of a shift in teach-ing, a lot more active learning, a lotless “sit and get.”

The results are solid. In 2000,Lafayette students scored in the 70s or80s in four of the seven core contentareas, giving the school an overall scorejust short of 75.

“And we are just getting started,”McKenzie said.

�

Careful but unmistakable changesbring solid results at Lafayette High

By Jim ParksKentucky Department of Education

Fayette County’s Lafayette HighSchool has a 60-year tradition of ex-cellence in academics and athletics.Championship trophies grace its dis-play cases, and history teacher MichaelFogos decorates his classroom withpennants his former students sendfrom the colleges they attend. Literallyand figuratively, Fogos is danglinghigher education in front of his highschool students.

Tradition discourages change, andFayette County had a strong traditionof central office decision making. Butas part of statewide reform, change ishappening at Lafayette. To RoxanneFoose, a 17-year teacher at the school,the most significant change is school-based decision making. During her firstdecade of teaching there, the districtoffice decided everything from who thenext principal would be to how manyaides the cafeteria would have.

Five years ago, when Foose was amember of the school council, she hadthe opportunity to help choose a newprincipal. After surveying parents andthe faculty, the council hired MikeMcKenzie. McKenzie and the council,working with the community, startedmaking changes at Lafayette. Theyconverted two cafeteria aide positionsinto a teacher position. To help fill thegap, McKenzie does lunchroom dutyhimself, mingling daily with theschool’s 1,600 students.

Teachers work together to selecttextbooks, and they have a role in rec-ommending new faculty members.

The school, which in the earlydays of reform focused on writing inall classes, has added reading to its

For more information aboutLafayette High’s success, contact theprincipal, Mike McKenzie, by phone at(859) 381-3474 or by e-mail [email protected] orthrough the KETS global list.

The print edition of “Results Mat-ter: A Decade of Difference inKentucky’s Public Schools” is availablefor $15 per copy. To order, phoneWindy Newton at (502) 564-3421; sende-mail to [email protected]; orwrite to the Department of EducationBookstore, 19th Floor, Capital PlazaTower, 500 Mero St., Frankfort, KY40601. To order online, go towww.kde.state.ky.us/comm/pubinfo/bookstore/ (click “Browse and OrderOnline,” then “Education Reform”).

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This urban school with traditions spanning more than a half-century ischanging the way it does things. Teachers now offer students more activelearning and less “sit and get.” The results are solid. In 2000, Lafayettestudents scored in the 70s or 80s in four of the seven core content areas.

Anne Rebuck (left) and Jenny Hamilton work with frozen cultures in a chemistrylab at Lafayette High School. Shea Douglas (top of page) ponders a concept during aprecalculus class.


By Glenda J. ConnerResource TeacherGrant County Middle School

Ancient cartographers labeledmaps of uncharted areas with the omi-nous words, “There be dragons be-yond.” If they had been describingJamey Dalzell’s 7th-grade social stud-ies classroom at Grant County MiddleSchool, they would have been correct.

As part of a unit on China, Dalzellwas looking for a way to make Chi-nese culture come alive in an imagi-native, hands-on approach to learning.He decided to incorporate art into thelesson. After guiding students to infor-mation about the symbolic significanceof dragons in Chinese culture, he gavethem chicken wire, papier-mâché ma-terials, paint and a time limit of six daysto create their own Chinese dragons.

Instead of merely memorizingfacts about China, students learnedabout the nation’s history and tradi-tions and used their new knowledgeto design and build dragons. By work-ing in groups of four or five to createtheir symbols of Chinese culture, thestudents gained insight into the differ-ences and similarities between Chinaand the United States.

They paraded their dragonsthrough the school on Chinese NewYear’s Day, Jan. 24, while other stu-dents, teachers and administratorslined the hallways to admire the handi-work.

“Involving others at the school asspectators provided an authentic au-dience and added significance to theassignment,” Dalzell said.

The focus of the project allowedstudents to evaluate how the Westerncelebration of the New Year varies fromits Eastern counterpart and examinethe reasons for the differences in howthe two cultures view the same event.

Dalzell reports that the amount oflearning was “tremendous” in thisunconventional lesson, which relied

more on active learning than on pen-cil-and-paper activities. He tied the les-son to several Kentucky learning goalsand expectations, including SocialStudies Goal 2.19: “Students under-stand, analyze and interpret historicalevents, conditions, trends and issuesto develop historical perspective.”

Just as important, he said, was theopportunity for students to “demon-strate positive growth in self-conceptthrough appropriate tasks or projects”(Goal 3.1) and learn to work coopera-tively with others. In addition, special-education students and other studentswho do not process information in aconventional manner were able toshine artistically and participate on aneven footing with others.

The unit on China was very muchan example of collaborative instructionand integrated curriculum. With guid-ance from science teacher Anna RayMartin, students learned about Chineseinventors. With mathematics teacherKristy Moore, students did activitiesinvolving Chinese currency. In DeniseSmith’s and Patty Kurz’s language artsclasses, students wrote oriental poetryand displayed their work on Chinesebox kites. Art teacher Carol Guffey di-rected the design of hallway muralsthat included Chinese writing andpaintings.

A writing assignment concludedthe project. Students composed essayscomparing and contrasting Chineseand American ideas of celebrating NewYear’s and explaining the use of sym-bolism in Chinese culture.

Dalzell offers thisadvice to any teacherwho would like to in-corporate dragonmaking into their les-sons on China: “Planeverything in advance, and considerthe costs involved,” he said. “Also,be prepared for an untidy classroomfor the duration of the project. Gar-bage bags taped to the floor at each

“There be dragons … ”

Middle-schoolers learn history and moreby creating symbols of Chinese culture

work station helped somewhat to re-duce the mess that was a necessarypart of the creative process.”

This was the first year Dalzell useddragon making in his lesson plan. Heconsiders it so successful that he plansto make it an annual tradition.

To request a free copy of the les-son plan or to ask questions or makecomments, send an e-mail message toDalzell through the KETS global list orto [email protected].

A student-created, student-powered dragon parades through the halls of Grant CountyMiddle School to an appreciative audience. Seventh-graders created several dragonsduring a study of China that crossed multiple core content areas.

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by Emilia Simoes-McArtorAshland Independent Schools

Editor’s Note: Emilia Simoes-McArtor is direc-tor of technology and English as a Second Lan-guage coordinator for the Ashland district.

The integration of curriculum withtechnology is the primary focus of ajoint venture under way between twoAshland Independent schools.

Educators at Verity Middle Schooland Blazer High School launchedProject Venture based on national re-search findings validating that technol-ogy activities must be an integral partof instruction. The research showedthat the use of technology in isolationfrom meaningful classroom curriculumdoes not have a positive impact on stu-dent achievement.

In Project Venture, Verity andBlazer have set out to train acadre of master teachersin grades 7and 8who will model ef-fective practices fortechnology integration.The project uses com-prehensive professionaldevelopment to helpteachers become pioneersin the use of technology.

Project Venture has threemain goals:

• to increase the number ofteachers trained to use technologyeffectively for teaching and learn-ing;

• to develop and implement cur-riculum materials that use technologyintegration and are aligned with stateand national standards;

• to implement a continuing evalu-ation protocol that assists with projectrefinement and implementation andensures sustainability and replicationby the end of the project.

Teachers had several incentives toapply, including a classroom computerand access to a shared laptop and mul-timedia projector purchased with stateand local technology funds. Thirty

teachers applied.“Teachers are hungry for the new-

est technology,” said Blazer PrincipalJanice Ledford. “When they learnedthey would receive laptops and multi-media projectors if chosen for theproject, we had more applications thanwe needed. The teachers in this pro-gram are excited about their trainingand the possibilities for their individualclassrooms.”

Of the 30 applicants, 17 teachersfrom various content areas in grades7-12 were chosen to participate. Theymay receive professional developmentcredit or extra earnings for the timethey devote to two-hour collaborativeworkshops conducted each month by

district tech-

nology coordinator Emilia Simoes-McArtor and Blazer High technologycoordinator Cary Williams. The work-shops address new strategies for tech-nology integration. Technology men-tors Jeff Carroll from Blazer and VickiHanshaw from Verity follow up withteachers between monthly workshops,working with them during planningperiods or outside of school hours.

One participant, Blazer High busi-ness teacher Sue Chaffin, said she ap-plied because of the incentives but hasfound other benefits to the project.“I’ve discovered that although equip-ment is a terrific addition to my class-room, learning specific applications iseven bet-ter,” shesa id .

Ashland’s commitment to integrationintroduces teachers to technology

She passes her new technology skillson to her students. “It’s wonderful,”she said, “to watch them catch theexcitement of creating PowerPoint pre-sentations and Web pages to supporttheir learning.”

Donna Cox, a language artsteacher at Verity, said the project hasbroadened her technology skills. “Priorto Project Venture, the extent of mycomputer experience was in word pro-cessing only,” she said. “I feel muchmore familiar now with the myriadcomputer applications for my class-room.”

Another participant, Blazer En-glish teacher Kevin Stepp, has used

PowerPoint toillustrate the

parts and com-position of the se-

nior portfolio tostudents in Practical

English classes. Aftershowing them the pre-

sentation and measur-ing how much it helped

increase their under-standing of the portfolio

requirements and process,he asked the students to sug-

gest ways he could make thepresentation more effective for

other senior classes. “Their sug-gestions were candid, clear and

helpful,” Stepp said.From this cadre of 17 inten-

sively trained teachers, the districthopes to reap additional technology

mentors for middle and high schools.A similar professional develop-

ment project may also be initiated atelementary schools next year.

For more information aboutProject Venture or technology inAshland Independent Schools, contactEmilia Simoes-McArtor at (606)327-2706, ext. 2733, or send e-mail [email protected] orthrough the KETS global list. TheAshland Independent district technol-ogy plan is available on the Web atwww.ashland.k12.ky.us.


KDE wins national awardsfor products about reform

A documentary video and a photoexhibit about education reform in Ken-tucky have won first-place awards fromthe National Association of Govern-ment Communicators (NAGC).

“Education Reform: A Decade ofDifference,” a video produced by theDepartment of Education’s Division ofMedia Services, won a first-place GoldScreen Award. The half-hour programtracks the history of public educationin Kentucky and the events leading upto the passage of House Bill 940 — theKentucky Education Reform Act — in1990. The narrator is Kentucky nativeBob Edwards, host of National PublicRadio’s “Morning Edition.”

“Faces of Reform 1990-2000,” anexhibit of 22 photographs by Depart-ment of Education photographer RickMcComb, won a first-place Blue Pen-cil Award. McComb selected the colorand black-and-white photos from thosehe took during the first 10 years of re-form. The freestanding, four-panel dis-play has been on exhibition at the state

fair, state parks and other locationsthroughout the state.

NAGC conducts the annual BluePencil/Gold Screen Awards Competi-tion to recognize excellence in writing,photography, publication design, videoand broadcasting. Local, state and fed-eral government agencies throughoutthe nation compete for the awards,which this year were presented onMarch 8 in Denver at the association’snational conference.

“Education Reform: A Decade ofDifference” is available in VHS formatfor $15 per tape. To order, contactWindy Newton at (502) 564-3421 [email protected], or visit theDepartment of Education Bookstore atwww.kde.state.ky.us/comm/pubinfo/bookstore/.

“Faces of Reform 1990-2000” isavailable for display by school districts,community groups and others. To re-serve the exhibit for local use, contactJoanna Crim at (502) 564-3421 [email protected].

FABULOUS FIFTIES? — Annie Denny and Greg Hardison travel back to the 1950sin a 15-minute play, “Red, White and Black.” Part of the “Front Page Fifties”exhibition at the Kentucky History Center in Frankfort, the play explores multipleviewpoints of a racially motivated bombing that occurred in a Louisville suburbin 1954. The exhibition and the play continue through August. The KentuckyHistorical Society recommends the play to middle and high school groupsstudying the civil rights movement and the Red scare. To schedule a visit thatincludes a performance, contact Carol McGurk at (502) 564-1792, ext. 4461, [email protected].

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Virtual High School announcesnew address, phone numbers

The staff of the Kentucky VirtualHigh School has relocated. Send cor-respondence to KVHS, Kentucky De-partment of Education, 19th FloorCapital Plaza Tower, 500 Mero St.,Frankfort, KY 40601.

To reach a specific staff member,phone (502) 564-4772 and use the fol-

EKU Natural Areas Web pagelinks to environmental sites

lowing extensionnumbers, or sende-mail through theKETS global list orto these direct ad-dresses:

• DirectorLinda Pittenger,extension 4532;l p i t t e n g @ k d e.state.ky.us

•Terri DeYong,e x t e n s i o n4516; tdeyong@

kde.state.ky.us• Robert Hackworth, extension

4552; [email protected]• Bob Fortney, extension 4527;

[email protected] phone toll free, call (866) 432-

0008. The fax number is (502) 564-6470.

Eastern Kentucky University’s Di-vision of Natural Areas now offers linkson its Web site to a variety of environ-mental education resources for stu-dents and teachers. The links provideinformation on biodiversity, conserva-tion organizations, and state and fed-eral natural resources agencies.

Topics range from wildlife conser-vation, environmental health and cul-tural issues in the Southern Appala-chians to mining, watershed manage-ment and agriculture. A link toNatureServe, an online encyclopedia,supplies a source for conservation in-formation on plants, animals and eco-

logical communities in the U.S. andCanada.

The Web site also contains photo-graphs and information about the threenatural areas managed and protectedby the university: Lilley Cornett Woodsin Letcher County, Maywoods Environ-mental and Educational Laboratory inGarrard County, and Pilot Knob StatePreserve in Powell County.

The Web address is www.naturalareas.eku.edu. For more infor-mation about the links and theuniversity’s natural areas, call the Di-vision of Natural Areas office at (859)622-1476.


Honk if you love art!

With the exterior decorations complete, a decommissioned school bus awaits installation of work stations,shelves and other features that will transform it into a mobile art classroom serving all nine OwensboroIndependent schools. The art bus will be ready to roll later this spring.

A decommissioned school bus hasa new and colorful career in theOwensboro school district. Fine andperforming arts specialist Julie Whiteand art education facilitator BrianMurphy, with assistance from autobody painters, transformed the bus intoa mobile art classroom and gallery.

All nine of Owensboro’s schools

graphics. The artinterprets fa-mous master-pieces that arepart of thedistrict’s visualart skills con-tinuum.

The interiorof the bus is astudy of colortheory using pri-mary and sec-ondary colors.Shelves hold artsupplies, andp e r m a n e n tframes displaystudent workand reproduc-tions of master-

pieces. Individual workstations providea variety of materials such as clay,paint, crayons, markers, scissors,brushes, glue and paper. The art busis a self-contained mobile art class-room. Once it starts rolling later thisspring, it will pull up to each schoolsite and give students a new and cre-

ative workspace.The art bus will also be an out-

reach tool as it travels to the mall, theperforming arts center and area busi-nesses. Student artwork produced onthe bus will be on display in thedistrict’s board office.

The bus, which is accessible tostudents with disabilities, has newheating and cooling units plus a sink.AC plug-ins permit the use of overheadand slide projectors.

“Exposing all of our students tovaried styles of visual art and identify-ing students who show talent in thismode of expression is important,” saidarts specialist White. “We know thatwhen we teach using the multiple-in-telligence theory, more of our studentswill be successful.”

The Owensboro Board of Educa-tion and Superintendent CarolynMcGaughey donated the bus to thedistrict’s fine arts program.

For more information, contact JulieWhite at (270) 686-1000 [email protected] orthrough the KETS global e-mail list.

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have art facilities, but the new mobilefacility will offer art opportunities thatindividual schools cannot provide.Murphy says the possibilities for us-ing the bus to expand art educationare “limitless.”

The exterior artwork features avisual art time line from cavemandrawings through computer generated

Timely Resources for TeachersAgencies invite educators to take advantage

of tools and opportunities• The Kentucky Arts Council offers a wealth of arts education resources to

teachers, schools and districts. For details, see www.kyarts.org on theInternet; phone John Benjamin, the council’s arts education director, tollfree at (888) 833-2787, extension 4813; or send e-mail [email protected].

• Kentucky Educational Television is helping teachers and students reachproficiency with Classroom e-News, a free electronic newsletter for Ken-tucky educators. The newsletter includes regular updates on new videoprograms, online resources, seminars and other KET services for class-room use and professional development. Subscribe by visiting www.ket.org/education/newsletters/. For more information, send e-mail to [email protected].

• Extended School Services Summer Institute 2001, set for June 18 and19 at the Galt House East in Louisville, will include a nationally knownkeynote speaker plus sessions on promising practices for regular ESS andinnovative grant programs. Participants can receive professional develop-ment or leadership credit. The event can accommodate the first 500 regis-trants. For details, check with district ESS coordinators; visit the Depart-ment of Education’s Web site at www.kde.state.ky.us; or contact KarenWhitehouse ([email protected]) or Mary Niswonger([email protected]). To inquire by phone, call (502) 564-3678.


Bulletin BoardBy Lisa York GrossKentucky Department of Education

THE Bulletin Board

Murray State accepting nominationsfor Outstanding Teacher award

Murray State University is accepting nominations for the sixth annual KentuckyOutstanding Teacher Award, which will present $1,000 to one full-time teacher ateach of the general grade levels: primary/elementary, middle grades and high school.A letter of nomination must include one section on each of three criteria:demonstrated excellence in teaching, contributions to parental involvement inlearning and commitment to school excellence. The letter must be no more thanthree double-spaced typed pages in length. Include the nominator’s name, title,address, telephone number and relationship to the nominee, plus a letter of supportfrom an administrator in the nominee’s district.The deadline for nominations is April 13. The winner will be announced inMay. Mail nominations to Dean’s Office/Education, Murray State University, POBox 9, Murray, KY 42071-0009.CONTACTS: Terry Waltman, (270) 762-3832; Susan Marinoff, (270) 762-3817

Social studies mini-conference setfor July 16 and 17“A Kentucky Journey” mini-conference forteachers of intermediate-grades social studies isscheduled for July 16 and 17 at the Kentucky HistoryCenter in Frankfort. Co-sponsored by the KentuckyCouncil for the Social Studies, the Kentucky HistoricalSociety and the Kentucky Geographic Alliance, theconference will feature sessions on these topics:• using museums and primary source materialto teach Kentucky history;

• using photos to teach the five themes ofgeography;• curriculum materials for teaching about thestate’s economy, environment, Native Americans andthe government;• using literature to teach about Kentucky;• teaching about the culture of Kentucky.The conference will begin at 12:30 p.m. on July16 and conclude by early afternoon the next day.The fee is $50.CONTACT: Robin Chandler or Marcia Lile, (502)564-2106; [email protected] or [email protected]

KYSPRA Spring Retreat set for April 24 and 25

This year’s Kentucky School Public Relations Association (KYSPRA) spring

retreat will be April 24 and 25 at Shaker Village-Pleasant Hill in Harrodsburg.

The deadline for registration and room reservations is April 5. Fees of $42 for

KYSPRA members and $47 for non-members cover breakfast and lunch on

the first day and breakfast on the second day. Dress is casual.

To register or request details, go to www.livingweb.com/kyspra on the

Web or contact Linda Salyer, Daviess County Public Schools, (270) 685-3161;

[email protected]

Summer Technology Institute

planned for LexingtonForward in the Fifth will sponsor its second

annual Technology Institute July 11-13 at Paul

Laurence Dunbar High School in Fayette County.

Participants will learn how to develop a Web page;

how to incorporate the Internet into instruction

and research; how to use several software

programs for instructional purposes; and how to

use multimedia software and hardware for

multiple purposes. One series of sessions is

designed for school technology coordinators.

Registration is $400 for individuals and $1,000

for teams of three from the same school, district

or organization. The registration fee includes

breakfast and lunch each day. The deadline for

registration is May 29. Register online at

www.fif.org/calendar_of_events.htm.

CONTACT: Shawnta Davis, Forward in the

Fifth, (859) 986-3696; [email protected]

KAPT helps with tuition

Kentucky’s Affordable Prepaid Tuition (KAPT) provides a saving plan

for parents or others who wish to prepare early for a child’s higher education.

KAPT guarantees tuition at any accredited Kentucky college, university or

technical school in exchange for early tuition purchase, either by lump sum

or monthly payments. The prepayment caps tuition costs at today’s rates.

KAPT offers three plans to guarantee tuition prices at community

colleges, public universities and private institutions. While the guarantee

does not apply to students who choose colleges out of state, participants are

able to apply the full Kentucky tuition amount toward those schools.

Taxes on earnings of KAPT accounts are deferred until the tuition credits

are used, when it is taxed at the student’s tax rate. For details, visit

www.kytreasury.com/html/kyt_prepaid.html.

CONTACT: Rachel Burg Belin, State Treasurer’s Office, Suite 183, Capitol

Annex, Frankfort, KY 40601; (866) 333-KAPT (333-5278); RachelBurg.Belin

@mail.state.ky.us

Kentucky TeacherKentucky TeacherMARCH 2001

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In this issue...

Kentucky Teacher is published by the Kentucky Department of Education for teach-ers, school administrators, counselors, support staff, parents, students, legislators,community leaders and others with a stake in public education. Please addresscorrespondence to Kentucky Teacher, 1914 Capital Plaza Tower, 500 Mero St., Frank-fort, KY 40601; e-mail [email protected].

The Kentucky Department of Education does not discriminate on the basis of race,color, national origin, sex, religion, age or disability in employment or the provi-sion of services. Alternate formats of this publication are available upon request.

Printed with state funds by the Winchester Sun, Winchester, Ky., on recycled paper

ISSN 1526-3584

Commissioner of Education

Associate Commissionerfor Communications

DirectorDivision of Public Information

Editor

Copy Writers

Photographer

Graphics and Design

Gene Wilhoit

Hunt Helm

Armando Arrastia

Fran Salyers

Sharon Crouch FarmerFaun S. Fishback

Lisa York Gross

Rick McComb

Susie Morrow, ManagerBill Davis

Michael GrayBrett Hurst

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Kentucky TeacherMARCH 2001

Kentucky TeacherNews for the Nation’s Most Innovative Educators

Kentucky Department of Education Gene Wilhoit, CommissionerVisit the Kentucky Department of Education’s Web site: www.kde.state.ky.us

ACCESS TO LEARNING — Thanks to technology designed to aid people with visualimpairments, Millard Elementary School student Michael Hill can use computers toget information, just as his classmates do. For more about Michael’s “no barriers”primary class, see Page 1. For information about using assistive technology to meetspecial learning needs, see Pages 6 and 7.

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAID Permit No. 7

Winchester, Kentucky

“ A student who feels unaccepted, unsupported or unsafe at school

considers quitting. A school that creates a culture of mutual respectand inclusion for all ... has taken a giant step toward keeping everystudent in school and engaged in learning. ... We must shift our focus fromintervention at the high school level to prevention throughout all gradelevels.”

Education Commissioner Gene Wilhoit, on making school culture and dropoutprevention statewide priorities in the quest for proficiency. See Page 2.

Primary students flourish in no-barriers primary ........ 1Proficiency depends on keeping students in school .... 2Wilhoit responds to comments about expectations .. 3“Parent Page” comes to the Web .................................... 38th-graders discover Latin culture .................................. 5Project delivers services to rural districts ..................... 6New to the ’Net Lesson 7: How can I use the Web to meet special needs? .... 7IT demand leads to new career cluster .......................... 8A Decade of Difference: Careful changes get results at Lafayette High ......10“There be dragons” at Grant County Middle .............11Ashland PD integrates technology and content .........12More News and Opportunities for Teachers ....... 13-15

kt ablatest use thismar - kentuckycommissioner gene wilhoit in-vites comments on this topic. phone...

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