Thoughts of a Virtual Charter School Superintendent

Policy Maker?

gmeier587 — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:57:42 +0000

I am always grateful for the amazing talent that most boards have when making hard decisions about education. But why as educators do we tolerate decisions made by those who have never stepped foot into a school? Worse yet, what about those who sit on boards who have never had children themselves? Here’s one: School Board members who can never make a decision on their own?

I think that one of the biggest problems that needs to be addressed in education is how boards function as policy makers. Maybe it’s training? Maybe it’s appointments instead of elections? Maybe it’s longer terms? I have some ideas so…stay tuned in.

Stuck in the Mud

gmeier587 — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:57:25 +0000

Stuck in the Mud Education

I am sitting at the Wyoming School Improvement conference in Casper. The keynote this morning is from the Aha group, a supposed leader in good ideas in education helping schools get through accreditation and to be true reformers.

The problem that I have this morning, one that is always at the front of my thought process is the lack of recognition of other learning philosophies and ways of knowing. What they keynote presented today was a Eurocentric approach to teaching and reform..what was talked about this morning did not address the end all for engaging students, shifting trends, thinking inside the MCE philosophies, or anything diverse.

It was a static boring presentation that set the tone for me while attending this conference and that is to keep an eye out for the colony, empire approach to education.

Its almost March….

Going into Education….Really?

gmeier587 — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 21:21:43 +0000

The other day I was talking to students from the University. As usual, I asked what fields they were going into. “Education,” replied the majority. Usually I am quck to reply a “Right On” or some sort of quirky administrative “atta boy.”. But something deep inside of me pulled on my vocal chords. The only thing that escaped was an airy “Really?” They looked at me in astonishment, like I had said a bad word about their mother.

I pondered this event and have played it over and over in my head…The only thing that keeps coming back to me is a worried pit of the stomach feeling for our future educators…which means a worry for the future of our country. I think about the challenges that educators will face withi the next couple of years. Teacher Performance evaluations, tenure laws changing, AYP, high stakes accountability, mean spirited school boards, agenda setting administrators, angry students who demand a change in the way they are being taught, corporate schools, and law makers and policy setting people who haven’t a clue about the classroom.

So what to do? Maybe just smile and say, “wow you are AWESOME!

Why distance education legislation is so slow

gmeier587 — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 21:14:23 +0000

I was at the Joint Education Committee meeting in Casper, WY this week and listened to the Wyoming Department of Education give their annual report on distance learning. It quickly dawned on me that the majority of our legislators were lost and confused about what distance education was, what it meant, and what benefits it provides to countless numbers of students across the state.

“I thought we were talking about virtual education and not distance education,” stated Senator Von Flattern. Words like hybrid, self-contained, resident district, host district, virtual learner, course platform, course shell, switchboard, network, and online pedagogies really seemed to confuse a lot of people. YIKES!

The sheer lack of understanding the basic terminology and basic logic is (what I believe) the root problem with moving D.E. forward. It is the sunset years for many of our representatives and senators and maybe, just maybe, we will start having elected lawmakers who are at least, digital immigrants and perhaps digital natives.

I believe that we should create a formula to predict how quickly this will happen, sort of like Moore’s Law that says, “the number of transistors on a chip will double about every two years.” This was Gordon Moore’s (Intel’s vice CEO) idea essentially says that by the time we get a new computer on our desk, it is already outdated. How about Meier’s law that simply states, “The number of new senators and representatives who are digital immigrants and/or digital natives will double every two years.” But wait, if that is logical, then that would also say that the technology will always be two years ahead of them, right? Hmmmm.

So, in a nutshell, as a virtual school leader, I believe that we should all take a moment and think about how we can promote distance education so that it is not so darn confusing to wrinkled up legislators.

Vision and Leadership

gmeier587 — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 00:34:28 +0000

As an emerging educational leader, I feel that the most important concept that has been taught is the idea of connecting everything I do to a common vision. In the two years I have watched the several superintendents from around the state make the mistake of trying to run their districts without having a clear direction of what the end results should be. A common vision amongst your board leads to a strategic plan and this is where everything you do has to be tied back to. Budgets, policies, meetings, curriculum, and so on should form a clear and well defined path back to the strategy and then to the vision.
I believe that one of the biggest problems with education today is the fact that board members are replaced every two years. This replacement can be devastating to a school when a common vision is not shared. Our most successful companies and private education entities have board members who are usually lifetime proponents of the vision and thus are empowered to work in a cohesive fashion with each other and their managers and/or administrators. Yet, today in our public education system, we see time after time, board members negotiate the vision statement.
Develop a vision, strategize around it, and never step over it or negotiate it.

It’s Election Time

gmeier587 — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 16:26:41 +0000

The primary elections for state superintendent of public instruction happen on Tuesday. The support leans on Mike Massie (D) and Cindy Hill (R). Both support innovation and support charter schools. However in Wyoming, it is difficult to unseat the incumbent. Support from PACE (the political action committee for education) has given their endorsement to Mike Massie and not a word about Dr. Jim McBride (current state supt).

My opinion is this: Build trust amongst your school boards, superintendents, principals, and teachers. If you do this, you will get the vote. I am not sure that folks see the current state superintendent as someone they can trust and support.

Regardless, go out and vote…your voice counts.

Hello Virtual School Educators!

gmeier587 — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 21:18:48 +0000

Welcome to my blog page. Let’s get the discussion going…