Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/916449
Winter 2017 | wyoea.org 24 Professional Issues Affect You PTSB Rules changes could affect several areas of licensing: Proposed Rules & Regulations changes from Wyoming's Professional Teaching Standards Board (PTSB) are in the process of promulgation. Major policy changes include: Integrating Dual Language Immersion, Computing Technology as a subset of Computer Science, and eliminating School Nurse Licensure. Public comment recently closed on the proposed rules; I will update you as the process moves forward. Computer Science and Computational Thinking: There has recently been a lot of discussion about the need to add Computer Science and/or Computational Thinking to Wyoming's "Basket of Goods" (Common Core of Knowledge and Common Core of Skills, both delineated in state statute) and to include one or both in the Success Curriculum. That requires thought about several complicating factors: the need for qualified teachers; the need to develop state standards; the dilemma of adding on "one more thing" when it's hard enough to fit in everything that is already required to be taught; the possibility of embedding this in other courses; and the fact that districts don't receive sufficient technology funding even now. The Joint Education Interim Committee (JEIC) recently passed a draft bill on this subject, which will be taken to the full legislature in February. It would: add Computer Science to the Common Core of Knowledge; substitute Computational Thinking in place of Keyboarding in the Common Core of Skills; allow one year of computer science courses to satisfy one of the three years of science required for high school graduation; and allow computer science courses to satisfy certain Hathaway scholarship requirements. Be sure to follow the WEA Legislative Updates during the session to see the progress of this proposal. Accountability, both for traditional schools and for alternative schools: Work continues on refining the Wyoming Accountability in Education Act (WAEA). School Performance Ratings were released this fall for all schools. Alternative schools were provided progress reports based on the new Alternative School Accountability System pilot, but not an overall rating. For the past three years, the accountability model and the assessments stayed pretty much the same, which allows us to begin to look at trends in student performance. We are seeing improvement each year. For example, on the Achievement Indicator, the percentage of elementary and middle schools who were below expectations dropped from 40% to 29%. There were no clear trends for high schools; one problem area is the participation rate. WDE says the overall reports are useful for looking at the health of education in our state; the specific school information is key for use in the State System of Support. JEIC has passed a proposed bill that provides further definition to the Alternative School Accountability model that is responsive to the special circumstances of schools dealing with a challenging population. Those schools would have their own State System of Support, developed specific to their needs. The model would also require performance targets specific to those schools. Starting in 2018-19, the performance indicators in the alternative school model would be: 1. Academic achievement and growth 2. Readiness for college and careers 3. Measures of school quality, including climate 4. Measures of engagement, including Student Success Plans. If you would like more in-depth information about professional issues in education, please contact me at kscheurman@wyoea.org. Kathy Scheurman, Professional Issues Director, kscheurman@wyoea.org