MPS Students at Fernwood Keep Green this Winter

Sebastian, Teacher Matt Ray, Aisha & Brennan
Originally uploaded by WUWM 89.7 FM

Milwaukee Public Radio had a great story last week about MPS students working on amazing projects at Fernwood Montessori's very green greenhouse. When I tell people about the greenhouse, I get the response that it sounds like something a university would have let alone an elementary school. I am continually impressed by our students as they prove to be the stewards of this impressive work.

Listen here.

and check out pictures here.

In good company

School communities in MPS are trying hard and in many cases succeeding in the face of significant challenges. Authors and readers of this blog are not alone in trying to draw attention to what's going right in our schools.

Westside Academy principal James Sonnenberg and special education teacher Stephen Paske wrote a great column, "Critics of MPS just won't see for themselves" that was printed in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel a few days ago.

See for yourself:

You've probably heard about the proposals to fix Milwaukee Public Schools. These proposals largely stem from recent news coverage of the fights at various high schools, alleged financial abuses of School Board members and the low high school graduation rate in MPS. The perception of MPS schools, especially inner city schools, is that all students are out of control and little learning takes place.

But amid all the negativity surrounding the district, have you heard of James Ferguson? He's a Milwaukee High School of the Arts graduate who was accepted into Harvard, is a Marquette University student with plans to go to law school and is on track to graduate early.

Have you heard of Latasha Carter? She is a former MPS student who recently graduated from Ripon College, which she attended on a full academic scholarship. Or how about Tierra Terrell? She is on track to graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Like Ferguson, she, too, has plans to attend law school.

How do we know of these successes? It is because these students attended our school, Westside Academy, for much of their K-8 education. And they are not alone.

The pictures of more than 50 other students who have walked through our doors and gone on to college hang on the wall of our school's main hallway. Despite coming from a neighborhood known for poverty and violence, they received an excellent education in a Milwaukee public school. Perhaps most encouraging is that stories like these are being replicated in many schools throughout MPS.

Despite their successes, you probably haven't heard of any of these students. We believe this to be a direct result of the negative image of MPS that has been perpetuated by the media and the rants of individuals who want to break up the district. Nobody writes a news article about a plane that lands safely, and seldom, if ever, does anybody write an article about the successes of MPS.

As it stands, we believe there needs to be a fairer balance in reporting, so parents receive a truly accurate portrayal of the district before deciding what educational system best fits their children. For too long, MPS has sat on its hands as individuals with no firsthand knowledge of our schools take us to task for our performance. We
believe it's time to fight back.

It's funny how when talking about MPS, nobody mentions schools like Westside Academy, which has been very successful in educating urban students. Our students come from an area of the city where the average family income is less than $20,000 annually. Yet as recently as two years ago, students who attended our school for more than one academic year matched the state average on eighth-grade standardized tests.

People love to criticize the lowest-performing schools in our district. However, have you heard that the MPS schools identified for improvement by the state Department of Public Instruction in 2005-'06 have shown a significant overall increase in their Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examination scores in reading and mathematics over the past two years?

The fact is, despite innumerable challenges, many MPS schools, even schools in the predominantly African-American central city, produce a large number of children who do end up graduating, going on to college and becoming highly productive members of society.

As a result, we, the staff at Westside, have wondered how many of the people who are suggesting a radical breakup of the district have taken the opportunity to visit an MPS school to get a firsthand look at the climate. Figuring many of them haven't, we recently sent out a letter to more than 30 prominent members of Milwaukee's media and governmental bodies, inviting them to come in unannounced to see how a typical MPS school educates Milwaukee's youth. Some names on the list included Mayor Tom Barrett, members of the Common Council, various radio talk show hosts and other prominent Milwaukeeans who will be part of the process of helping in the improvement of MPS.

Our staff sent out the letters because we are tired of people taking shots at MPS and telling everybody how it should be run when many of them have never set foot in a school to see what actually is happening. These people feel qualified to suggest how the system should be changed, yet their attitudes are solely based on what they've read or heard, not what they have witnessed. Interestingly, more than a month after the letter was sent out, only Barrett and Journal Sentinel education reporter Alan J. Borsuk have stopped in for a look.

Which leads to the question, if most of the prominent and influential members of our community who are speaking out against our schools are unwilling to take the time to visit even one MPS school to see how it functions, have they really spent the necessary time on the homework to know what changes most effectively would improve our public school system?

Or are they more interested in sticking to particular political talking points that have served their careers well over the years and are too busy to do any true investigative work that might alter their current opinion?

This is not to say MPS is without faults and that people don't have a right to criticize when criticism is just. With falling enrollment, MPS does need to more efficiently downsize. In a stagnant economy, upper-level administrative costs do need to be cut. In certain schools that are underperforming, more proactive measures need to be taken to improve the climate.

However, we feel if more people took the opportunity to visit MPS schools like Westside or any other school, there would be a far greater confidence in the district. Every day, countless teachers, administrators and schools do remarkable things despite very difficult circumstances.

Until the people who make a living bashing MPS take the initiative to come out and visit the schools, they aren't credible sources for the public to rely upon when making judgments about our city's public schools.

We implore you readers to come out and see for yourselves. We believe you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Testing, testing, testing

Last week, our 8th grade students at Audubon were involved in NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress).  This occurred just one week after we completed the district-mandated Benchmark Assessments in reading and math.  As the school assessment coordinator, I was intimately involved with the scheduling of this assessment.

For those who are not familiar with NAEP, basically they randomly select schools and students from every public school district throughout the nation to administer an assessment each year.  They then publish "The Nation's Report Card" that uses the data they collect from the ONE 90 minute test they administered to students in either reading, math or science.  (Why we continue to place so much stock in standardized test scores, I'll never know!)

Well, this year, Audubon was randomly chosen (AGAIN) and about 180 of our 8th grade students were selected to participate.  This year, the majority of  our students tested in the cafeteria with the NAEP test administrators.  We also needed 8 small group testing environments for those students (English Language Learners and Special Education) who needed testing accommodations.  

So, where's the positive, you say??  The Audubon staff and students, that's where!  The over 150 students in the cafeteria were so well behaved that the NAEP staff told me several times how impressed they were with the level of cooperation and effort during the assessment.  (Try to remember back to taking timed, multiple choice tests for over an hour and then try to remember being an 8th grader, and then you'll understand how impressive this really is!)  

And the 8th grade teachers???  I am so lucky to work with them.  They all pitched in to either staff a holding room for the 48 students who were NOT tested or to administer the test for the students who needed accommodations.  All without ever issuing one word of protest or complaint.  

Our students and teachers gave up an entire morning of instruction to take yet another test and did so with a positive attitude and a spirit of cooperation.  I'm so proud of them and I hope they know how much I appreciate coming to Audubon every day and working with such quality people!

Where is the Good News?

I seldom look at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel because they simply DON'T seek out the hundreds of positive stories that can be found in MPS. The other day, however, I saw a paper nearby, and I picked it up to see the latest on President Obama's stimulus plan. Of course, my eyes were immediately drawn to the MPS related headline, which read something like "MPS High on Spending, Low on Results." I confess that I didn't read it. I instantly felt sick to my stomach and angry-very, very angry.

I can't speak to the spending that happens at Central Services. I know it's not perfect, and if I were in charge, there would be some changes. And again, I didn't read the article, so I don't know who or what they (he is) are picking on this time. But I do know that what you get from the JS is usually less than half the story. I'd love to talk about the "high spending," but I think I will do a better job of looking at the "low results."

Again, I can only speak to my personal experience and the stories I get from other people. But here are some "low results."

I have the pleasure of working at Milwaukee School of Languages. Many of the students who come to our middle school come from one of the three immersion schools in the district. I work with children who fluently speak French, Spanish, or German by grade 6. Other students are learning Spanish, Japanese, or Chinese. Do you know how incredible it is to speak two languages in this country? What an amazing skill. Until I got used to it, my eyes would tear up when I heard students speak French (the language I attempted in high school and college).

Furthermore, one of the teachers at MSL made it possible for students to join her (and some other staff members) on a candle-light walk last weekend at Harrington State Park along Lake Michigan (if you haven't done that sort of thing, let me recommend it). I think the students were as amazed at the whole thing as I was: the almost-full moon, the stars, the waves, the ice-all brought to them by an MPS teacher.

Prior to MSL, I worked at another middle school where students were producing amazing iMovies and multimedia projects on a regular basis. Students at that school (Audubon) take classes that have on-line components. Considering the possible future of post-secondary education, this is a valuable skill that is best learned young.

I have friends who teach in all kinds of settings, and I want to point out the incredible amount of choice and challenge in a public school system.
We have several Montessori schools, and all of them have teachers who are trained beyond a state licence; they also have several hours of Montessori training.
I have a kindergarten teacher friend in a school where the children are truely coming to her without knowledge of the ABCs. She is responsible for helping them to read their first words.
I know of a first grade teacher who has been hit by her students. She goes back to work everyday.
I know of class sizes of 40. Enough said about that.
I have friends who spend hundreds of dollars of their own money for classroom supplies because the schools can't afford the basics.
I know that Golda Mier sends students abroad every year. They are 4th grade students, I believe.
I've been involved in camping trips for students, and I know they still happen at several MPS schools.

Are there ways teachers could improve what we do? Sure, and I believe many of us are working all the time to be better teachers. Should we as a community demand more of the students and parents? Yes, I think that would help. But it's also important that we share with you a little good news. Since you can't or won't find it in the local paper, please check here for more to come!