Rigged?: Del. Mary-Dulany James’ Curiously-Worded Constituent Survey on School Board Elections
Why won’t Delegate Mary-Dulany James just admit she opposes school board elections? If it’s because the Delegate from District 34A shares school board member Mark Wolkow’s dim view of democracy, she’s wise to keep her opinions to herself.
Clearly, Wolkow is working with someone in the State Legislature to craft an alternative to elections. Most likely it’s James – they’ve worked together on this issue in the past. But if Wolkow and James are planning a battle against the tide of public support for elections, they’ll need new ammunition.
Continue reading Rigged?: Del. Mary-Dulany James’ Curiously-Worded Constituent Survey on School Board Elections
Wolkow Tells Edgewood - Harford Voters Would Not Elect Diverse Board of Education
School board member Mark Wolkow has led the charge to ensure Harford County Board of Education members are appointed by the Governor, rather than elected by the voters. Now we know why.
In the following letter to The Dagger, Edgewood Community Council President Jansen Robinson shares an e-mail Wolkow sent to leaders in the Edgewood community, warning them of the dangers of elections and drumming up support for a dressed-up version of the broken-down Permanent Nominating Caucus.
Along the way, Wolkow makes plenty of strange and erroneous arguments. But one in particular stands out.
Continue reading Wolkow Tells Edgewood - Harford Voters Would Not Elect Diverse Board of Education
Homework in Harford County Public Schools May Soon Be History
Back in June, the Board of Education’s Ad Hoc Reporting and Grading Committee issued a report outlining a new policy affecting students in grades 3 - 12 that would make homework worth between zero and 10% of a student’s grade.
The report received little notice; perhaps it was lost in the brouhaha over school uniforms. But homework deserves at least as much attention as polo shirts and khakis.
How will cutting or eliminating homework improve education? The Committee’s report doesn’t say. Fortunately, the policy is still in the draft stage, so there’s time for the Board to raise questions and hone the policy. Implementation is not expected until at least 2010.
Continue reading Homework in Harford County Public Schools May Soon Be History
High School Assessment Score Data For Harford County Public Schools
| School Name | Number meeting requirements | Class of 2009 | Percent meeting requirements |
| Aberdeen High | 263 | 313 | 84.0% |
| Bel Air High | 378 | 385 | 98.2% |
| C. Milton Wright High | 389 | 404 | 96.3% |
| Center for Educational Opportunity - Alternative C | 18 | 30 | 60.0% |
| Edgewood High | 179 | 207 | 86.5% |
| Fallston High | 380 | 394 | 96.4% |
| Harford Technical High | 239 | 250 | 95.6% |
| Havre de Grace High | 143 | 160 | 89.4% |
| Joppatowne High | 174 | 200 | 87.0% |
| North Harford High | 306 | 316 | 96.8% |
Thoughts?
October 21, 2008 at 4:36 pmHarford Board Members Split on School Board Elections
Board of Education Vice President Lee Merrell introduced a motion at last night’s meeting to remove the position on school board elections from a proposed Legislative Platform for the 2009 Maryland General Assembly session.
Merrell said the Board was split on the issue and while he personally favored elections, he wanted to “leave each board member free to take a position” by taking no official stance as a board. The proposed Legislative Platform included language opposing elections in favor of having board members appointed by the Governor.
Continue reading Harford Board Members Split on School Board Elections
Sleight Of Hand And Misdirection In Measuring Advanced Placement Exam Performance
Executive Director of Secondary Education David A. Volrath gave an update on high school reform at a recent Board of Education meeting and it was a whopper in more ways than one. The sixty-page, chart-laden report was handed to the Board just prior to the meeting rather than the Friday before as is standard practice. Unusual, especially given the size, the import and the level of public interest in the reforms also known as CSSRP.
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Patterson Mill Middle High School parents concerned about effects of CSSRP, rising enrollment
Sometimes you CAN judge a book by its cover, or at least a building. Parents at the new Patterson Mill Middle High School in Bel Air have plenty of concerns about the walkways, fields and facilities on school grounds. Meetings with school officials are ongoing. But now that the building has been open for a year, it turns out there are problems on the inside too.
The school might have some of the latest technology, but something as simple as lockers are scarce. Patterson Mill was planned to handle 1,600 students and 1,672 lockers were installed.
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School Uniforms Planned for Harford County Public Schools?
Do school uniforms improve discipline, stamp out gang influence and quash the fashion wars? Or are uniforms a soul-crushing, Orwellian attack on free expression?
The Harford County Board of Education will soon decide one way or the other. Take a stab at the questions they plan to ask at upcoming public meetings or just tell us what you think in your own words:
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Fuzzy Math From Board of Education On Its “No Pass, No Play” Eligibility Policy
No Pass, No Play. That’s the idea behind a Harford County Board of Education policy directed at the high school students who are failing one or more classes. At some schools, they make up more than half the population; on average, it’s closer to 37%.
Officially known as the Eligibility Policy, the idea was to motivate students to pass each class, every quarter, by making students ineligible for extra-curricular activities if they failed even one class. The policy gives Freshmen a free pass for the first quarter and all students the chance to pull up their grades each quarter, so one-time ineligibility doesn’t necessarily trash the whole year.
Continue reading Fuzzy Math From Board of Education On Its “No Pass, No Play” Eligibility Policy
Student Voice: Living In A Contemporary World…85 Minutes At A Time
By Grace (a sophomore at Patterson Mill High School in Bel Air).
A new class is being offered to, or should I say imposed on, 9th grade students in Harford County Public Schools. Living in a Contemporary World (LICW) is meant to ease the transition from middle to high school as well as prepare students for adult life. One would think that the latter would be a more appropriate topic for a class taken senior year as 12th graders are closer to entering the adult world. One would be right. However, the two subjects have been smashed together to create one utterly useless class.
Continue reading Student Voice: Living In A Contemporary World…85 Minutes At A Time
