SAGE Parent Meeting

SAGE Parent Meeting:

Harvest Elementary

March 31, 2014

There were 10 parents in attendance as well as Karl Bowman who did the presentation.  Mark Pew and Paula Hill (she came in late) were there as well, but left 15 minutes into the presentation to go to Hidden Hollow for their SAGE presentation.

Mr. Bowman presented a PowerPoint about SAGE testing.  Mr. Bowman stated that about 12 different states were looking at creating a test together, but Utah decided to develop their own.  Students who opt out of testing will automatically be assigned a 1 (non-proficient) as per the State School Board requirements.  Students who have opted out will still be counted toward the 95% participation requirement.  SAGE is a computer adaptive test, which means that when a student answers a question correctly, they are given a harder question.  When they answer a question incorrectly, they will be given an easier question.  There is a belief that this will more accurately evaluate a child’s abilities more than a multiple choice test.  This is the pilot year and test scores are expected to drop about 20%.  (This was not discussed in this meeting, but at the ASD school board work session a few weeks ago where SAGE was discussed, the district will not be loading the non-proficient scores for those who opt out into Skyward.  They will not be a part of your child’s educational history.)

These are some of the questions that were asked:

Can students use a paper and pencil for the test?

Yes, the test is done on the computer, but students are given paper and pencil for the writing as well as the math sections.

Who decides how often to administer the SAGE?

The district wants it administered in the fall as well as the spring.  It can also be administered in the winter and Mr. Bowman indicated that he would leave that up to grade level teams.

Why was this meeting scheduled after SAGE had already started?

Mr. Bowman said he considered it just another end-of-year test that they administer every year and did not schedule it in advance.  There is also a window of time for the test to be administered and they had to look at getting all of the students into the computer lab to take the test during that window.

How much time have students spent practicing?

There has not been a lot of time set aside at Harvest for this and it is something they hope to improve on next year.  Also, there was some concern expressed about 3^rd graders and their typing abilities as far as speed.  Mr. Bowman said that he is aware of that issue and there has been discussion about having more keyboarding in second grade so that when kids start taking the SAGE in 3^rd grade, they will be more proficient on the keyboard.  The school has also been making sure there are enough headphones as well as computer mouses (or mice?).

Can teachers help with computer issues with the test?

There was some concern from parents that the test was counter intuitive in sections, like grabbing a star and repeatedly dragging it into various boxes.  Instead of typing the number answer, students grab the number from a vertical number line.  Mr. Bowman said that teachers would be able to assist in questions regarding the computer, but not content.

What Do You Think About Common Core?

I had a friend contact me today and say that someone had told her I was pro-Common Core.  I want to respond to that and let you know where I stand.

So, here is what it really comes down to.  No, I do not support Common Core.  I have had kids in schools for 10 years-8 schools during that period in 2 different states.  During that time, I have noticed a pattern in education.  Every 2-3 years, the new shiny thing comes along which will save education.  What we actually end up doing is spending millions of dollars, pulling teachers out of classrooms to train them on how to implement the new shiny program, and in the end, my children and your children lose out.  For me, the solution is simple.  We put phenomenal teachers in the classroom and then get out of their way.
I want local control for my children. I want a voice in their education and that is a large part of why I am running for school board.  I want to hear your voices.  How do you want to improve our schools in Alpine School District?

Letter To Board Members Regarding the Self-Administered Medications Policy

The following is a letter I sent to ASD board members on March 18, 2014 regarding the updated policy they were presented for self-administering medications:

Dear Board Members-                                                                                                                               

I appreciate your willingness to examine and update your policy regarding Epi-pens and other life-saving medications.  I do have some concerns that I would like to share with you before the board makes a final decision on the updated policy that has been presented.  I understand that you consulted your attorneys as well as the Utah County Health Department in updating this policy.  I do believe that not including parents was a mistake.  While I appreciate and value the input of these professionals, parents of children who are living with life-threatening conditions have important and essential insight as to how to treat these conditions.

My first concern is with 1.1.6 that states that “a district employee may not administer hypodermic syringe injections or “shots” without express written permission of the Director of Student Services.”  I am concerned that this policy would prevent teachers and other ASD employees from administering life-saving epinephrine should my daughter go into anaphylactic shock and be unable to self-administer her medication. 

I also see potential problems with 2.4, 3.4, and 4.4.  The new policy eliminates parents from having a say in how and where their child’s life-saving medication is stored.  While I appreciate the valuable work that administrators and nurses provide, placing this decision solely in their hands can lead to major problems.  A high school principal may have 2,500 students and school nurses in Utah are one for every 4, 952 students.  To assume that these individuals will fully comprehend the needs of students with life-threatening conditions is incorrect.  I believe that the decision about where and how life-saving medication can be stored should be done “in consultation with parents.” 

I know my child best.  I know what it looks like when she goes into anaphylaxis.  Every time my daughter has ingested a tree nut, she has gone into anaphylactic shock.  I have a friend whose daughter has a peanut allergy.  Her allergy has been treated successfully with Benadryl.  But an administrator or school nurse may not understand the ways our two daughters should be treated differently.  The other issue associated with this is that as a parent, whenever I have signed a field trip permission form for my daughter, I have always written at the bottom, “Please remember to bring her Epi-pen.” An administrator or school nurse may not remember this, but I always do.  Storing these medications in the nurse’s office may seem like a simple solution, but the situation is more complicated than that.

We have actually encountered problems more than once when we have turned in Epi-pens to schools.  Twice when I have gone to retrieve the Epi-pen on the last day of school, the medication has been missing.  One was found at the beginning of the following school year, but the other was never recovered.  While a missing Epi-pen has been an annoyance since they are so expensive, it could have been the difference between life and death if my daughter had gone into anaphylaxis.  We have always provided elementary school teachers with an Epi-pen to be kept in the classroom as well.  I have never had a teacher misplace my daughter’s life-saving medication.  Humans err.  I feel it is better for a teacher to keep this medication in her classroom than in a nurse’s office.  Time is of the essence in treating medical emergencies and precious moments can be lost figuring out who has the key to the medication box in the nurse’s office.  A teacher who has one or 2 children in an elementary class with life-threatening issues will be more likely to keep track of these medications than a nurse who may not know the child.

The other policy I see as having potential problems is 3.6 where it states that “no student is permitted to sell, share, or otherwise give to others any medication, prescription or non prescription.”  Epinephrine does not give you a “high,” it is simply adrenaline.  But it can mean the difference between life and death.  The way I read the policy is that if my daughter has a friend having an anaphylactic reaction and her friend does not have her Epi-pen, my daughter is violating the district’s drug policy if she chooses to give her Epi-pen to her friend and save her life.  Epi-pens only come in 2 doses-Jr. and Adult.  While this may seem like an unlikely situation, with 1 in 13 children being diagnosed with food allergies, it is all too possible that during my daughter’s school career, she may witness another student having an anaphylactic reaction and be in a position to assist.  Epi-pens actually come in a twinpack because if the anaphylaxis symptoms have not started subsiding within 15 minutes, another Epi-pen must be administered.  It is very possible that a child would have an Epi-pen and need another Epi-pen injection, but not have a second pen.  In my experience, children with life-threatening conditions generally have a higher level of maturity than their peers.  They are all too aware of their own mortality.  I am not suggesting that students should be given a free-for-all to trade out and share medications, but I also think there is a basic common sense that in life-threatening situations, there should be exceptions.

My last concern is about policy 3.2 which states that the parent “authorizes the student to have and use the epinephrine auto-injector while acknowledging that the student is responsible for and capable of self-administering the medication.”  I want to clarify that while my student is fully capable of self-administering her Epi-pen, anaphylaxis means that her airway shuts down and she can pass out, rendering her unable to self-administer her Epi-pen.  With her being “responsible” for self-administering, I want to make sure that if she becomes unable to administer her medication, that it does not relieve the school of the responsibility of injecting her.

I appreciate your time and your willingness to hear my concerns so that we can all work together to keep the children of ASD safe.

Julie King