You may also like WakeWatch | Eastern Wake Buzz | Crosstown Traffic | Campus Notes
News
Web Search powered by YAHOO!
WakeEd
The WakeEd blog is devoted to discussing and answering questions about the major issues facing the Wake County school system as it prepares to undergo historic changes. Will the new school board scrap the diversity policy in favor of neighborhood schools? Will year-round schools be converted back to a traditional calendar? How will the new board respond to growth and the school construction program?
WakeEd is maintained by The News & Observer's Wake schools reporter, T. Keung Hui. While Keung posts information and analysis on the issues, keep us posted on your suggestions, questions, tips and what you're doing to cope with the changes in Wake's schools.
Not bringing in the Grade Doctor
Submitted by KeungHui on 07/05/2009 - 05:00
The "Grade Doctor" won't be making any house calls to Wake County.
As noted in today's article, school administrators have broken off contract negotiations with education consultant Ken O'Connor, who calls himself "The Grade Doctor." Administrators had been hoping to hire him to speak with teachers as part of the district's review of middle school and high school grading practices.
At a cost of as much as $6,000 a day for up to eight days, the contract negotiations had become controversial.
"We're not contracting Ken O'Connor to come to Wake County," said Ken Branch, Wake's senior director for middle school programs.
Branch declined to elaborate any further. Whether it was O'Connor's price tag, especially during this era of budget cuts, or his recommendations, is debatable.
O'Connor thinks the deal was dropped because of the budget situation.
Kevin Hill, chairman of the school board, said he hadn't know that administrators had decided not to go ahead with the contract. But he said he agreed with the decision in light of the budget.
Even without O'Connor's presence, the grading practice review will still go on.
Want to post a comment?
In order to join the conversation, you must be a member of newsobserver.com. To register or to log in using your existing account, click here.Advertisements
Comments
OT-alert
Mon, 07/06/2009 - 14:38 — AngelaWWake Readies 300 Buses For Year-Round School Start
http://wake.mync.com/site/wake/news/story/37795/wake-readies-300-buses-for-year-round-school-start
Read the Book and not impressed
Mon, 07/06/2009 - 13:09 — jodi37As I have said before, ditch this guys ideals of "no deadlines" and "no opinionated grades". It will be the ruination of the school system. It will bring us young adults who don't think they need to get worked completed by a certain date and take no pride in that wormanship. I have no problem with the "10 point scale" that works fine and is easy for a teacher to grade. It also takes the final grade down to a "60" before it becomes and "F". The teacher's have very little time to actually teach now when they have to think of each child's learning curve in a classroom. When you boost a classroom to 35-40 students, they will have no time. It is time that people understand that teachers are entitled to their own "family" time in the evening as well.
Have you really read the book?
Tue, 07/07/2009 - 15:50 — kirtlWe must have read different books. I don't see how you can come to your conclusions if you read the same book that I did.
Thank Goodness!
Sun, 07/05/2009 - 23:08 — momof2goodboysThis may be the only benefit from the money crunch! If common sense can not prevail, at least money, or the lack of, can! That way of grading would not be a good thing for anyone!!!
HS Grading
Sun, 07/05/2009 - 20:47 — Bob_SconceI suspect that most of us here on the blog (at least those who weren't educated in Wake County) had a 10-point grade scale in high school: 90 and up is an A, 80 and up is a B, etc.... For some reason, Wake has a 7-point scale: 93+ is an A, 86+ is a B, etc.... This puts Wake students at a significant disadvantage in college admissions when compared with peers with the more typical grading scale.
I'm not paid $6000K to say this, but an obvious change is to ditch this 7-point grading and move to the more standard 10-point.
I have read the book.....
Sun, 07/05/2009 - 08:50 — kirtl.....and it does include some good information as well as food for thought, but we don't need this man to come and talk here. Buy a book per school and make it a topic for some of the Wednesday afterschool meetings.