Posts filed under ‘Curriculum’
APS Parents, Teachers & Community Invited to Participate in K-12 Textbook Review
Each year, the state reviews learning resources that relate to a particular subject or group of subjects in order to create a recommended list.
Beginning June 24, 2013 educators and the public will have a chance to review textbooks and other learning resources for instruction in K-12 English Language Arts/Reading.
The 2013 Learning Resources Evaluation Sites will be open for approximately three weeks. The sites will allow the public, including parents and educators, to review and evaluate learning resources that may be used in the classroom over the coming years.
There are 14 sites around the state with one in each of Georgia’s Congressional Districts. The sites will be open Monday-Thursday, generally during the school business hours. All sites are closed on Fridays and holidays. This year, the state is compiling a list of learning resources and instructional materials for Grades K-12 English Language Arts/Reading courses.
The recommendation process is based on a six-year cycle. Each year, the state reviews learning resources that relate to a particular subject or group of subjects in order to create a recommended list. Please visit http://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Curriculum-and-Instruction/Pages/Learning-Resources.aspx for more information and Frequency Asked Questions (FAQs) about the adoption process.
After the summer review, the Learning Resources Advisory Committee will meet in late July to compile a recommended list of learning resources for approval by the State Board of Education. Each local school system will determine which learning resources best meet the system’s particular instructional needs.
Atlanta Public Schools parents, teachers and community members can participate June 24 – July 11 at Kennedy Middle School, 225 James P. Brawley Drive, NW, Atlanta, GA 30314, room S102. Assistance will be available Monday thru Thursday, 8:30am – 3:30pm. The site will be closed on July 4th.
Other Information: Textbook Page Link Listed Below
Questions concerning the Georgia Textbook Recommendation Program should be addressed to:
Issac Sparks, Literacy Coordinator, Atlanta Public Schools
(404) 802-2307
or
Georgia Department of Education
1754 Twin Towers East
205 Jesse Hill Jr. Drive SE
Atlanta, GA 30334
(404) 656-6865
APS 1st 2012 French Spelling Bee winner Price 8th grader Troytoria Wade
Mrs. Shamita Johnson – Price French teacher, Troytoria Wade, Principal Sterling Christy, Jr. – Price Middle School
Troytoria Wade, an eighth grade student at Price Middle School, was the winner of the Premier Concours d’Orthographe Française pour Les Collégiens which was held on Saturday, December 8, 2012 at Frederick Douglass High School. Miss Wade received a trophy and prizes including one hundred dollars ($100.00) that was funded by Kroger Corporation.
Troytoria’s teacher, Mrs. Shamita Johnson is to be congratulated for her dedication and sacrifice in helping her students prepare for the Spelling Bee. Mrs. Rose Johnson, a French teacher at Douglass High School, was a judge for the event.
The French Spelling Bee was created to promote and highlight academic achievement in world language study. A strong global economy is dependent upon people who can effectively communicate in a second language. The middle school students who competed in the event could possibly become the next generation of Americans who will represent our country around the world.
The Atlanta Public Schools is preparing its students for the increasing number of international business and service opportunities occurring in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. This event, and the others that follow, will celebrate our students’ success as they matriculate throughout high school.
written by Mme Corendis C. Hardy, World Language Educator
The French Consulate General of Atlanta and The Carter Center visit Price Middle School
On November 1st, Ms. Shandal Sullivan from the Carter Center presented information on the topic “Making a Difference for Kids” which highlighted the efforts of the Carter Center in African countries. Ms. Sullivan’s presentation covered health and social issues that are affecting people of French speaking African countries and what the Carter Center has done to make life better for the people of these countries. She discussed the Guinea Worms and Traeoma (blindness) health problems and the efforts being taken to reduce the spread of these diseases. The students saw pictures of how the people of these countries lived and were surprised that simple things were being done to prevent the spread of the diseases such as providing soap and water to wash hands, building latrines for people to use and to filtering the water people drink.
After the presentation, Ms. Sullivan answered questions about what she had seen in her work with the Peace Corp. Students asked questions about her time in Africa, where she has traveled because of her knowledge of the French language and why she chose to work with the Carter Center.
Price Middle School students are participating in France – Atlanta 2012 programs through our French classes. Students for this school year are partnering with a school in Nancy-Metz France. Our French students are interacting via email, Skype and other formats with students in our French sister school.
written by Tammy Rosado, Media Specialist, Price Middle School
South Atlanta’s Christina Wilkerson on NBC’s Education Nation
School of Computer Animation and Design at South Atlanta student Christina Wilkerson’s video entry on education innovations and reforms recently aired on a segment of MSNBC’s Education Nation 2012 Student Town Hall Meeting with Melissa Harris Perry.
Christina’s video was chosen from among hundreds of entries from high school students across the country. Her chosen video featured her recounting her scholastic learning experiences as a student.
She also voiced her recommendations for making school curriculum more engaging to today’s multi tasking students and how interactive learning can make classroom lessons fun.
APS and the CEP providing cultural, artistic experiences and learning to Atlanta Public School students
The City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs created the Cultural Experience Project to give every Atlanta Public School student, from Pre-Kindergarten through the 12th Grade, the opportunity to experience the city’s premier arts and cultural venues. The vision is for every student in Atlanta Public Schools to have at least one on site experience at an arts and cultural venue each year. The goal is for the students to have an education enhancing encounter that directly ties to the Georgia Learning Performance Standards and curriculum goals.
The CEP provides field trips to APS students that are entirely funded by private donations from Turner Broadcasting, The Zeist Foundation, Loridans Foundation, Keneda Fund, The National Endowment for the Arts Shakespeare in American Communities program and other local businesses and partners. CEP was started under the administration of Mayor Shirley Franklin and has continued under Mayor Kasim Reed. Events are offered free of charge to all APS students and are administered by the APS Fine Arts Department.
“The Cultural Experience Project model ensures that all APS students can access Atlanta’s cultural assets regardless of family finances, where they live, or what school they attend,: said City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs Director Camille Russell Love. “We want every child to have opportunities at no cost to them. Even transportation is funded through a generous grant from Turner Broadcasting.”
“The Cultural Experience Project provides powerful educational experiences for all Atlanta Public School students and provides real-world connections for classroom learning while opening students’ hearts and minds to new intellectual and aesthetic horizons. Many students would never otherwise experience the rich cultural life of the city, and because of this program, new generations of citizens will grow up knowing how to take full advantage of the cultural, civic and artistic wealth here in Atlanta, ” said Raymond Veon, Interim Director, Fine and Performing Arts Department, Teaching and Learning for Atlanta Public Schools.
In its first seven years, the Cultural Experience Project has provided over 233,000 cultural experiences that have enhanced classroom learning to the district’s elementary, middle and high school students. The City of Atlanta envisions the opportunity for 100% of its students to experience the wealth of Atlanta’s cultural venues as a part of a “best in class” education through the Atlanta Public Schools.
NBC Learn as a teaching tool at APS
The Atlanta Public School System is considering the purchase of NBC Learn as a content – rich and innovative tool for teaching. The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) with NBC Learn, the educational arm of NBC News, has digitized thousands of stories from the NBC News Archives. More than eight decades of news archives from NBC programs such as The Today Show, Dateline NBC, NBC Nightly News, Meet the Press, and the networks of CNBC, Telemundo and MSNBC are now available on demand to APS through NBC Learn.
NBC Learn’s original videos and archival news stories are aligned with state standards and Common Core Standards. The NBC Learn videos average less than six minutes in length. This is valuable in that it gives a short digest of the instructional subject which then allows teachers and students to engage and go further in depth on the instructional subject without taking up much class time. These videos are full stories and are reported by some of the most famous journalists in television news history.
NBC Learn uses a Cue Card media player. The Cue Card player supports videos, photographs, newspaper articles, primary source documents, and other media. It also provides bibliographic information, clickable keywords, transcripts, closed caption and a citation generator.
The media assets within NBC Learn are available through internet streaming, download, stand alone resource and works with Blackboard, which allows NBC Learn users to embed videos directly into Blackboard learning systems.
Common Core Georgia Performance Standards
Atlanta Public Schools has implemented Common Core Georgia Performance Standards to provide students with rigorous instructional programs that foster student success in school and life. Today’s and tomorrow’s jobs value postsecondary and training more than ever. Americans without the requisite knowledge and skills will struggle to access good jobs in the increasingly competitive global economy.
The Common Core Standards are K – 12 academic standards in mathematics and English language arts/literacy. They are aligned to the expectations of two – and four – year colleges and have been internationally benchmarked.
The Common Core will ensure that teachers teach students and students learn the knowledge and skills to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow, including communication skills, perseverance in problem solving, technical reading and writing, literacy across disciplines, and the most important mathematical skills.
For more information, visit: www.atlantapublicschools.us/commoncore
APS will transform small high schools into small learning communities
Students at schools such as Carver Early College will now attend Small Learning Community Academies. The SLC model is not only a win-win for the students, but for teachers and faculty, allowing for more collaborative opportunities.
When Atlanta Public Schools (APS) opens its doors for the 2012-13 school year, all of its high schools will be operating under one principal per campus. In August, APS plans to restructure all of its small high schools by transforming them to Small Learning Communities (SLC), a model that includes small, themed academies led by academy leaders who report to one principal.
APS currently operates five high schools under the SLC model: Douglass, Grady, Jackson, Mays, and North Atlanta. The following schools will be transformed into high schools with one principal and academy leaders for each discipline: Carver (School of Arts; Early College, Health Sciences and Research, Technology); Therrell (STEMS, Health Science, Law & Govt.); Washington (Banking-Finance-Investment, Early College, Health Science Nutrition, Senior Academy); South Atlanta (Computer Animation & Design, Health and Medical Science, Law & Govt.).
While APS is eliminating small schools, the disciplines (Arts, STEMS, Technology, Early College, etc.) will remain in the restructured school, operating as academies. Although students will continue in their selected disciplines, they will have access to broader course offerings and will be allowed to take courses in other academies on campus. In addition, each school restructured as an SLC will operate on a single schedule which will allow for better school building management.
The SLC model is not only a win-win for the students, but for teachers and faculty because it allows for more collaborative opportunities among all teachers on campus, better coordination of class schedules and common planning times. The restructuring also supports APS’ implementation of the K-12 school clusters and is anticipated to save the district $700,000.
APS would like to hear from you. Please take a moment to fill out our survey and post comments about this transition. Feedback forms are available online: http://www.atlantapublicschools.us/hsfeedback .
