Schools Prepare for Curriculum Overhaul

As of Tuesday, June 12, 2012

What one school official calls an “ambitious alignment” will soon affect the county and state’s educational standards, assessments and accountability methods in an effort to meet the future expectations of student achievement.

Kathy Kennedy, the Moore County associate superintendent of instructional design and innovation, presented the basics of the new statewide initiative to the county Board of Education at its monthly meeting Monday.

Called NC Ready, the program will replace the ABCs testing program that has been in place since the 1990s. For more about NC Ready, click here.

“According to the state superintendent, NC Ready is the remodeling of education in North Carolina,” Kennedy said. “The emphasis will be on complexity, not difficulty, and will encourage the students’ capacity for complex thought. We want them to be thinkers, which will help ensure that the students are college and career ready.”

Kennedy said all teachers, administrators and parents “owe every child an education that properly prepares him or her for their next big steps after graduation (to) college, career and adulthood. Beginning in July with our year-round schools, we will see many changes in the content we teach, the expectations we hold for students and the way we measure success.”

Dr. Drew Maerz, director of educational data, assessment and research for the Moore County Schools, was a co-presenter along with Kennedy and Dr. Brian Phillips, assistant superintendent for elementary education.

“One attractive feature of the new program is that it gives the teachers more time to focus on how to teach, and allows them to tailor learning to the students’ needs,” Maerz said. “We want to make sure every student has the opportunity to learn and grow while preparing both career and college bound students to enter the workforce, and this phenomenal program does just that.”

Kennedy said that NC Ready will focus on four “pillars to education:” “Great Teachers and Leaders,” “Quality Standards and Assess-ments,” The New Accountability Model,” and “Data Systems to Improve Instruction.”

Kennedy said that parents will particularly want to know about the standards and assessments portion. They will involve a national program known as Common Core and the statewide Essential Standards program.

“The national Common Core program will focus on English/language arts and math K-12 while the statewide Essential Standards focuses on social studies, art, band, health and physical education and others,” she said. “This marks the first time in at least 30 years that all curriculum standards are being replaced in each subject and each grade at the same time. These new standards will ensure that our students are learning and mastering what they must know in order to succeed in college, in careers, and in life.”

School spokesman Tim Lussier said the program is attractive because it creates “consistency” between other states and school districts.

“Say a child transfers to a Moore County school from another area of Moore County or from another state,” Lussier said. “Under NC Ready, every student is assured of encountering the same set of skills no matter where he or she goes. We want all parents to know that this program marks a new and different way of looking at things in regard to their children’s education.”

Kennedy agreed.

“The new standards will foster a more consistent, equitable learning experience for students across socioeconomic levels, among races and ethnicities and regardless of geography,” she said. “North Carolina students, especially from military families, will be equipped to walk into a classroom anywhere in the country and be on track.

“It is a really exciting time to be a student, and a really exciting time to be an educator. There are many opportunities for both under this new program.”

In other business Monday night, board members welcomed new Deputy School Superintendent Marc Bergin to the system. Currently the director of elementary education for Chesterfield County, Va., Bergin will begin work on July 1.

“I am excited that Mr. Bergin is joining our team,” said School Superintendent Aaron Spence. “He has big shoes to fill, but he has been a highly successful principal and central office leader. He believes as I do that every child deserves our very best every day, and I am confident our community will appreciate his positive but demanding leadership as much as I do.”

Bergin said he was excited to be coming to Moore County. The two have known each for about 10 years and worked together in Virginia.

Also recognized were the new North Moore High School Principal Jonathan Jessup and Dante Poole, who will become an assistant principal at Union Pines High School. Poole was formerly a principal intern at Robbins Elementary School.

The board also unanimously approved a $170,000 remodeling project for the Union Pines High School cafeteria.

Contact John Lentz at (910) 693-2479 or jlentz@the-pilot.com.

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Newton 11 months, 1 week ago

John, What can I say that hasn't already been said? The educational system has driven off the road and now heading into the ditch. Four pillars of learning? If there will be consistency, why the deviation from the state cirriculum.

“The new standards will foster a more consistent, equitable learning experience for students across socioeconomic levels, among races and ethnicities and regardless of geography,” she said. “

This quote perplexes me.... My understanding was that Brown vs. Bd. of Ed was settled law in the 1950's and the classrooms in Moore County have been desegregated for 40-years? Additionally, I am not aware of ant inconsistency in instruction or equity issues in the instructional system at MCS. Me thinks this is more progressive/liberal speak.

I feel very sorry for the students entering MCS now.

citizen 11 months, 1 week ago

Newton,

I realize that with my remarks I'm probably only going to encourage more prattling on from you, but I'll risk it. You seem to be the self-appointed voice of gloom and doom regarding the performance of NC and Moore County Schools. You speak in hasty generalizations and perpetually view the glass as half empty. I understand that you have the right to express your opinions, and to complain, and I appreciate that you are passionate about schooling and learning, but consider doing something constructive instead of endlessly making the-sky-is-falling statements. Perhaps you could channel some of that energy and passion to volunteer in a school, attend school board meetings, join a parent task force, or even run for the school board.

Everything is most assuredly not perfect with public education, but there are a tremendous amount of factors to consider when evaluating its strengths and weaknesses. I don't know if you are thinking back on your own "good old days" or if perhaps you are comparing NC schools to some other state where you once lived, but your indictment of our schools today seems out of proportion to reality. For example, you tend to place the blame on dumbed-down standards and inferior instructional techniques as if those two claims are indisputable facts. Well, I dispute them.

Newton 11 months, 1 week ago

Thanks Citizen,

I most appreciate your description of my posts as prattling and containing generalizations. To address a number of your comments:

My "prattling" and generalizations are observations which came as a result of having a child that attended MCS. You call them generalizations,: I call them real world examples;
I would not describe my comments as "a glass half-full"; quite the contrary. I view public education in the U.S., being in total decline. Data comparing U.S. students against those in other countries is miserable, declining test scores and students moving on to college without basic reading, writing and math skills which requires many universities to teach at a remedial level all point to a broken system. The data backs up my observations;
Your comment about volunteering at our schools is pathetic. We currently put our tax dollars into public education and correct me if I'm wrong; shouldn't I expect results out of those expenditures? My job as a parent is to raise my child, make sure that they complete his homework and demand that he performs at his own maximum level;
My views on public education is also backed up by data indicating that parochial school students (which are educated at half the cost of pubic school students) perform at a higher level than their counterparts. Additionally, data from charter schools also indicate greater performance and lower costs;
Your guess that I came from another state and area is spot on. I lived in a district where there were high demands placed on student., Average composit ACT scores were in excess of 27, 99% of the students move on to college, an average SAT was over 1900 and the H.S. had 40 National Merit Semi-finalists and 35 National Merit Finalists. It was a school system where parents demanded the utmost work ethic and academic performance by students and teachers alike...period. Finally, the local paper printed Ivy League acceptances annually and the H.S. filled its maximum quotal for number of students at each university every year (yes, in some cases, the Ivy's do place quotas on numbers of students that can attend from a single H.S.). The school's paid teachers on merit as opposed to time in seat. There are pockets of good public education but they are few and far between. On a comparative basis, MCS absolutely sucks;
Yes, I am very negative about public education as I've seen both ends of the spectrum. When schools (I'll use your term here) "prattle" around with cirriculum, hire teachers that are unqualified to teach subject matter and expect far less than students are capable, we will continue to suffer as a nation. I've also witnessed outstanding teachers who were experts in their chosen field as opposed to expert so-called educators. They teach classes at a highly demanding level and provide a meaningful student experience. Their job is not to be liked but rather to teach a subject at a high level.

citizen 11 months, 1 week ago

Okay, first I'll apologize for using the word "prattling" to describe your comments; that wasn't nice of me, and really I'm a pretty nice person. But, you were going on and on in the thread to an earlier article bashing most aspects of public education.

The chasm between our viewpoints seems pretty wide, but nevertheless I feel the urge to try to bridge it.

I appreciate some important points you make. First, you accept your responsibilities as a parent, and you hold your child accountable. In my opinion, this is the number one factor that determines whether or not a child will be successful or not. Guess what? Public schools are loaded with students who do not come from homes that hold those same values and ethics. You compare the performance of parochial schools to public schools; how about first comparing the disparate backgrounds of the students and families being served?

Remember last year when the superintendent and board closed Academy Heights Elementary? Of course, AHES wasn't a parochial school, but it was about as private as a public school can be. Much commentary was made about the high levels of achievement by those kids, but AHES's success truly wasn't due to them having an usually bright group of kids or the most outstanding teachers. Their success levels had more to do with them having high levels of parental involvement, hard-working kids, high-quality teachers and a rigorous curriculum. It was a recipe for success.

From some statistics you cited about school performance, I'm guessing that you may hail from the Northeast. Schools in that area have long had strong reputations, dating back to the days of the Puritans, and once again we're talking about a culture that expected and demanded a strong work ethic.

US schools fail miserably when compared to other countries? Before you buy into that headline, consider that all 50 states have compulsory school attendance laws. But can you compel the families to value equally the educational opportunities? Do the countries you compare the US to actually attempt to educate ALL their children?

While you lament the sad state of public education, I lament the declining values within our culture and society. I think our public schools reflect our society's failings, but I don't think they cause them. I also think that schools and teachers are doing a pretty damn admirable job all things considered.

Toda 11 months, 1 week ago

High School Rankings: Pinecrest http://www.psk12.com/rating/USindivphp/SchID_301435_year_2002.html

Union Pines: http://www.psk12.com/rating/USindivphp/SchID_301441_year_2002.html Northmoore: http://www.psk12.com/rating/USindivphp/SchID_301434_year_2002.html

All of Moore County Schools: http://www.ncreportcards.org/src/search.jsp?pYear=2010-2011&pList=1&pListVal=630%3AMoore+County+Schools&GO2=GO

Pinecrest ranks 173 out of 597!

And in the mean time the County Board of Commissioners never question the School Board about where our money went? They just keep the political wheels of "success" spinning. Sad and frustrating.

Toda 11 months, 1 week ago

"The board also unanimously approved a $170,000 remodeling project for the Union Pines High School cafeteria."

Well fed young adults learn better when well fed ... they just don't score well when it comes to state and national rankings. Penny wise and pound foolish.