Science Lesson Plans Should Include Media Resources

Science education is a floundering element of the United States educational system. Educators and science advocates are calling for change in the way this subject is taught to teachers and to students. Science lesson plans are lacking due to the scarce amount of resources available. When media options are made available, these plans can be given new life.

Those educators focused on science have argued that math and reading tests mandated by the federal government are taking valuable class time away from the necessary instruction science students so desperately need. There is hope that the new science testing under the NCLB will renew a healthy focus on this topic in the classroom.

The nation is facing a growing issue in terms of science performance as 82 percent of the nation's senior class performed below the proficient level on the 2000 National Assessment of Educational Progress. These disappointing results indicate this problem is bigger than once thought. There is hope, however, as teachers become more proficient in their creation of science lesson plans and media sources are readily available to enhance the curriculum.

It Starts in the Classroom

UC Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science and West Ed conducted a study in the spring of 2007 which found that 80 percent of teachers in San Francisco elementary schools spend 60 minutes or less on science education each week. One has to wonder how these teachers can expect their students to excel in a subject that is given so little time.

This situation is going on along with the loss in the arts. The Center in Education Policy found in 2007 that some school districts have increased the amount of time they spend on math and reading education by more than two hours per week. This increase is in lieu of time for science, social studies, music and art. Science lesson plans are being cut to make room for other subjects.

Is Change Coming?

More and more educators and policy makers are recognizing the loss in science education and are trying to make a change. The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) announced a $43 million, five-year program to create a national Center for Science Education (CSE).

This initiative is expected to promote science literacy and produce the next generation of standards in science education. The CSE will also create a state-of-the-art facility to allow science educators throughout the country to participate in leadership and content-based learning opportunities.

Programs are popping up all over the country that are designed to improve the science education available to students today. With such programs in place, teachers can hope to create science lesson plans that deliver value, even if time in the classroom is limited.

Teachers can also improve upon these science lesson plans with the use of educational videos designed to introduce students to new concepts and methods for conducting scientific experiments and research. Not every student will find the subject of science engaging, but these videos can go a long way to grab their interest by taking the subject to a whole new level.

The small company I work for is committed to creating quality educational videos for classroom instruction. From the earliest script stages, all subject area content, images, and music are intensely reviewed and selected for meeting appropriate grade level, curriculum objectives and standards for our proprietary productions. The videos we distribute are also screened to meet our high standards.

Teachers in the 21st century classroom will be better educators if they understand how to use multi media in their lessons, if they understand the processes that research has shown to be the most effective for improved student performance, and if they know how to find quality video resources that will enhance their lessons.

http://www.schoolvideos.com

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Orlando Schools Make Plans for the 2006-2007 School Year

Changes for the 2006-2007 School Year

Orlando Schools has made several changes that will go into effect this fall. The first official day of school in the Orlando Schools is August 7th. This school year's students attendance for the Orlando Schools has increased by around 4,000 students to 181,210 total students. This increase in enrollment has prompted Orlando Schools to open nine additional schools. The nine schools added to handle the new students are three middle schools and six elementary schools. In addition to the opening of the new schools, Orlando Schools will divide the South Learning Community into Southwest and Southeast learning communities. This division will allow better management of resources and help address the needs of the students. New legislation that will affect next the 2007-2008 school year was also passed. Starting then, the school year will start no sooner than two weeks before Labor Day which is a change to the usual early August start that allowed the semester to end before Orlando Schools' winter break.

Orlando Schools First Days of School

For the second school year Orlando Schools is holding the First Days of School event. This is an event that is held at every school in the Orlando Schools district. Parents and students need to contact their school because each school will hold events at different times throughout the week leading up to August 7th. So instead of a single day, many schools will have an entire week of events.

Orlando Schools Help Students Get Ready for the 2006-2007 School Year

Orlando Schools has teamed up with the Apopka Chamber of Commerce and A.C.T.I.O.N. to help low-income students in the. They will work together to collect school supplies for students in need. Their aim is to have all students in the Apopka area have the tools they need to begin the new school year. This year's program is called "Fill the Bus - School Supply Drive". An Orlando Schools bus will be parked in area business parking lots throughout the summer; the goal is to fill the school bus with school supplies that students might need. The program will accept monetary donations as well. Participating businesses include Wal-Mart and Porkie's Original BBQ. Apopka Chamber of Commerce and A.C.T.I.O.N. have made contacts with several school supply distributors, in order to use cash donations to their fullest; this allows the program to purchase supplies at lower prices than retail. The school supplies will be distributed to the community at a special back- to-school fair held at the John Bridges Community Center in late July.

Orlando Schools Eccleston Elementary School Gets Cleaned Up

During the summer Eccleston Elementary School received a make over thanks to a group of volunteers. More than 300 student teachers and retired teachers volunteered their time and resources to give Eccleston Elementary School a complete renovation. The teachers were at the annual National Education Association meeting. The teachers painted the insides of classrooms, painted murals on exterior walls, landscaped the grounds, added an automatic sprinkler system to the grounds, and remodeled the Parent Resource Center and the teachers' lounge. The student teachers worked as part of a volunteer program sponsored by the National Education Association. The National Education Association spent months deciding which school in the Orlando Schools district would receive the make over. Eccleston Elementary School was selected because it was an older Title I school that was in need. National Education Association donated $65,000 towards the renovation, not to mention the time and labor of its student teachers.

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Stacy has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. For more on Orlando schools visit http://www.schoolsk-12.com/Florida/Orlando/index.html

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Nashville Schools Release 2005-2006 Data and Makes Plans for the 2006-2007 School Year

Nashville Schools Did Well Academically in 2005-2006

Nashville Schools have made a lot of progress in the 2005-2006 school year. The Nashville Schools this school year has, in several key areas, had a higher percentage of students meet the required levels of proficiency as determined by the No Child Left Behind Act. This school eighty-six percent of kindergarten to eighth grade students are now proficient or advanced in reading as compared to the required target of eighty-three percent set by the No Child Left Behind Act. Among high school students, overall, sixty-nine percent scored proficient or advanced on the Algebra Gateway test on their first try. The No Child Left Behind Act sets a target of seventy-five percent. Even though this is below the target it is higher than the pervious year's results. In mathematics students in kindergarten to eighth grade now ranked as proficient or advanced rose to eighty-one percent. This surpasses the target set by the No Child Left Behind Act of seventy-nine percent.

Nashville Schools Aim to Catch Up with the State Average

Nashville School's scores are slightly below the Tennessee State average, but have made definite improvement in the school district's students' standings. The Tennessee Department of Education has increased the expected performance of students in three or four categories. Low-income students in the Nashville Schools made academic gains. Despite the higher percentage of low-income students in the Nashville Schools, our academic gains are equal to the improvement in more affluent school systems. In an effort to continue the gains made by the urban schools in the Nashville Schools, every Nashville middle school offers high-school-level classes for credit. Students can earn up to five credits before they enter high school. The District's ACT scores have continued to rise over the last five years. Tennessee Department of Education's school district rating system rates this progress as "significantly above average."

The Financial Status of Nashville Schools in 2005-2006

Nashville Schools spent an average of $8,540 per pupil for 70,569 students in grades K-12. This compares well to other school district spending around the country. The National Center of Education Statistics, a service of the U.S. Department of Education allows for comparison of school districts around the country on all manner of factors. The National Center of Education Statistics' "peer search" automatically chooses nine school districts across the country that match Nashville School's demographics. Those districts include: Albuquerque, NM; Alief, TX (near Houston), Austin, TX; Omaha, NE; Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; Tucson, AZ; and Wichita, KS. The spending was inline with these school districts. In 2002-03 school year Nashville Schools spent almost exactly the same per-pupil dollars as our peer school districts -and slightly less than the national average.

The Nashville School District Education Board's plan for the 2006-07 budget will include: A 2% raise for all staff; a more competitive starting salary for teachers; a new call-home phone system to alert parents to unexplained student absences and inclement weather; expansion of the AVID program to all zoned high schools to prepare students to graduate on time with the necessary skills to attend college; opening one new school and moving students at eight sites where renovation is beginning or completed.

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Stacy has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. For more on Nashville schools visit http://www.schoolsk-12.com/Tennessee/Nashville/index.html

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