THE CARGILL CONNECTION, April 2007
 

Dear friends and supporters,

Spring is here and I hope you have been able to enjoy some of the beautiful weather. This is a busy and joyful time for me—working in education through the Science Camp that I direct. We are blessed to have over 1,000 children coming to camp this summer, so there is much to do! The State Board is not meeting again until July, but I did want to touch base with you about a few things. Children and their needs continue to be of utmost importance whether we have a State Board meeting or not! So, here is an update on important education issues.

ACTION ITEMS: YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR KIDS!

Needed: Science Teachers and Professionals with Science Backgrounds!

I am in the process of nominating people to three different committees that will greatly influence the teaching of science in Texas. I have provided a brief description of each committee. TEA says the committees will meet in mid-September for a Thursday to Saturday meeting. There is always the possibility of follow-up meetings for this very important work.

The deadline to turn in nominations is May 15 but please let me know ASAP if you are interested by e-mail sboecargill@sbcglobal.net or call 281-465-8095. Also please send me the names and contact information for fantastic science teachers you know!

1. Science TEKS Review Committee: This committee will revise and/or rewrite the K-12 science curriculum standards as needed. What an opportunity to strengthen the science TEKS (our state curriculum standards) and to better prepare our students for college or the workforce. I am hearing from a lot of secondary teachers and need elementary teachers to also participate---our schoolchildren need you!

I am looking for teachers who support academic rigor in our schools and who know that our students need clear, concise, measurable, grade-level appropriate curriculum standards. Sound familiar? (By the way, our dedicated English teacher teams are still hard at work revising the ELAR TEKS, and we thank them profusely.)

2. Engineering TEKS committee: The SBOE is also seeking nominations for committee members to write the TEKS for the new Engineering course that will be offered in Texas. Come on all you engineer types--we need you in order to make this a great class for Texas students!

3. Earth and Space Science TEKS committee: Finally, the SBOE is making nominations for a committee to write the TEKS for another new science course that will be taught in our high schools: Earth and Space Science. This can be a great course, and I hope to hear from many teachers or other professionals who have a background in this subject area.

Needed: Phone calls and e-mails to your state legislators about key bills!

Read below under “Other Happenings” to decide which bills you are concerned about and make a difference by contacting your representative or senator. Their contact information is listed below.

OTHER HAPPENINGS:

It was a great honor for me to be appointed by Governor Perry to serve on The Commission for College Ready Texas. This Commission is a 21-member policy advisory board appointed by the Governor to inform the work of the Vertical Teams (subject-specific vertical teams made up of representatives from public education and higher education to define college-readiness, align standards, and to make recommendations for creating professional development and instructional resources) as established in House Bill One.

In a press release, Governor Perry said, “Education has always been, and will always be, the cornerstone to success.” “Every student deserves to receive the necessary groundwork to be academically equipped for college. With the guidance of the Commission for a College Ready Texas, students will have access to improved college preparation tools.”

The commission will hold public meetings starting on April 23rd through fall 2007. The second meeting is May 8. The commission will consider the public testimony from these meetings to make recommendations to the State Board of Education, which has the authority to adopt, align and define college-readiness standards for Texas.

· The Furello Achieves materials are a wonderful resource for teachers. This book series is captivating---my own boys loved the books about Furello the unicorn and his many adventures! The resources are online for teachers WITHOUT CHARGE. Teachers can go to www.wildflowerusa.com and click on the Teacher Registration Form. Texas authors Harriett Fabrick and her daughter Amie have provided an invaluable book series for children and teachers alike with themes that are free of violence and that contain valuable life lessons. Thank you Harriett and Amie!

· As you know, the Legislature is busy at work in Austin. There are several key bills that are of special interest to me. Did you know that as of March 9, the last day to file a bill this session, 3,977 bills had been filed in the House of Representatives and 1,933 in the Senate? Here is an update on a few of the bills that affect education. For more information on other bills, you can go to www.capitol.state.tx.us.
After some of the bill updates,, my thoughts follow in blue.
HB 2236 (Eissler) – This bill would replace state exit-level assessments with end-of-course assessments. Students would be allowed to meet requirements through completion of end-of-course or other exit-level assessment administered by another state. School districts would be required to provide accelerated instruction to students who fail to meet required levels on end-of-course assessments. The bill would also specify specific courses for which end-of-course examinations would be required. The end-of-course exam would count fifteen percent towards a student’s final core course grade. This bill would also require schools to, at their cost; administer to students in the eighth grade a college preparation exam which would identify student strengths and weaknesses before high school. For students in grade 10, schools would be required to provide, at their cost, a PSAT or National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. For students in grade 11 and 12, schools would provide, at their cost, one exam used by colleges and universities as part of the admission process selected by the student. This bill was voted favorably out of committee on 4-17. (I am pleased that the TAKS tests may become a thing of the past for secondary students. However, it is essential that our state curriculum standards, the TEKS, are revised and strengthened before the end-of-course exams are implemented. The TEKS must form the foundation for textbooks and for assessments. They also form the foundation for the lesson plans that teachers develop for use with our schoolchildren. Therefore, the TEKS must be rewritten first, and then the EOC's must be built upon the rewritten TEKS. Here is an example to prove my point: the present English Language Arts/Reading TEKS were passed in 1997. Could this be why the graduating class of 2006 did very poorly on the SAT writing section--43 states did better on the essay part; 36 states did better on the 49 multiple-choice grammar/usage questions. I think the answer is very obvious. Weak, confusing state standards are a huge detriment to our teachers and students! We need to develop quality TEKS for our teachers starting with the ELAR TEKS which are being worked on right now. The science TEKS will be worked on starting this fall! Based on a strong TEKS foundation, we can develop excellent EOC exams. Many thanks go to our hard-working legislators for striving to improve our state testing system!)

SB 136 (Nelson) – This bill would require the Texas School Safety Center to develop an Internet safety curriculum on the potential dangers of allowing personal information to appear on a website, how to report an inappropriate online solicitation, and information on the prevention, detection, and reporting of bullying or threats over the Internet. This curriculum must be available to public schools as soon as practicable. This bill was voted favorably from committee.

HB 3419 (Eissler) –This bill relates to public school instructional materials which would now include textbooks, computer software, DVDs, on-line services and more. It eliminates conforming and non-conforming lists and creates a single list of adopted materials. Materials are approved or rejected by the SBOE based on TEKS alignment and whether materials are free of factual errors. The SBOE will continue to identify the TEKS covered and the degree to which they are covered. It changes to an allotment of $75 per student per year for instructional materials that are adopted by the state. The bill was left pending in committee on 3-27 but may be voted out of committee this week. (I am still studying this bill but am pleased that the SBOE would continue to be in charge of the adoption process. That is vital to ensure our students receive quality materials to ensure academic success.)

HB 1287 (Chisum) – This bill would require a school district to offer public high school students 0.5 credit elective courses in both the history and literature of the Old and New Testaments as part of the district's enrichment curriculum. A school board could monitor the content and teaching of such courses. This bill was initially brought up for passage during the hearing, but it was left pending after several issues arose regarding aspects of the bill. (The National Council on Bible Curriculum in Public Schools offers “Bible in History and Literature”. This is a curriculum that uses the Bible as its textbook. It has teacher lesson plans and refers to the Bible as Old and New Testament. It honors BC and AD and teaches both the history and literature of the bible. It is endorsed by Dr. D. James Kennedy, David Barton, Dr. Charles Stanley, Ruth Graham Bell, Joyce Meyer, Rabbi Daniel Lain, and Darrell Scott who lost his daughter at Columbine. It has been voted into at least 316 school districts--1100 high schools. If your school chooses to offer a bible course, be diligent in learning about it; not all bible curriculums are the same.)

Remember your voice matters! If you have comments or questions, call or e-mail your state rep or senator using the information below.

Email your Senator by replacing first and last with his/her name: first.last@senate.state.tx.us
Email your State Representative by replacing first and last with his/her name: first.last@house.state.tx.us
Find your Senator or State Representative: http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/
Capitol switchboard: 512-463-4630
Governor’s opinion line: 800-252-9600

FAMILY CORNER:

If you have ever wondered whether or not a child is a good reader, here is an informal tool for you to use. Jimmy Kilpatrick of LDAdvocates.com has posted what is called the Red Flag Reading Screening. The instrument is free-for-the-taking and simply involves printing off the instructions and passages from the LDAdvocates.com website. The directions for giving the test are simple to understand, and the scoring is very straight forward. The test takes only a few minutes to give and to score. Jimmy has provided a very helpful service to parents, grandparents, and teachers alike. Thank you Jimmy!

Red Flag Reading Screening: http://ldadvocates.com/what-the-red-flag-reading-screening.htm

A very patriotic Boy Scout in my hometown of The Woodlands is doing a unique project for his Eagle Scout requirement. Having two Scouts of my own, I am in full support of helping these fine young men! Please read below and help this Scout if you can:

Dear Friends & Family,

The American flag is by far the greatest and most passionate symbols of modern and past USA. Without this emblem our great nation would be lifeless. Many organizations support attempts to keep our flag alive, such as the VFW or the Boy Scouts.

I am a Life Scout. For my project I plan to educate our community on the correct way to retire worn American flags. In order to do this I will retire flags during the 4th of July “Market Street Red, White & Blue Celebration”. I will need you or your organization’s help with this goal. My flag goal is 500 flags.

Flags are being collected at the First National Bank located in the Sterling Ridge shopping center or can be mailed to the following address:

First National Bank

10767 Kuykendahl Rd

The Woodlands, TX 77382

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This is a verse that I read recently and I want to share it with you, especially in light of the tragedy that occurred at Virginia Tech. This has hit close to home since my nephew and his wife graduated from that college only two years ago. Many of their friends are still there and are struggling. So let us remember God’s power to do more than we can ever imagine, no matter what the situation is.

Ephesians 3-20: "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine...to Him be the glory for ever and ever".

With warm regards,
Barbara Cargill
State Board of Education, District 8
281-465-8095
sboecargill@sbcglobal.net, www.barbaracargill.com

Please forward this e-mail to other people who have an interest in education.

Pol. Adv. Paid for by Barbara Cargill for SBOE, 61 W. Wedgemere, The Woodlands, TX 77381

"He only asks thee to yield thyself to Him, that He may work in thee to will and to do by His own mighty power. Thy part is to yield thyself and His part is to work; and never, never will He give thee any command which is not accompanied by ample power to obey it." - Hannah W. Smith