David Hecker
President

Lois Lofton Doniver Secretary-Treasurer

Louise Somalski
Legislative Coordinator

October, 2006

Links to current Advocacy Campaigns
may be found in the Legislative Action Center

Higher Education "Measured Up"

The Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, a California-based research group, has released their fourth biennial report card. "Measuring Up 2006: The State Report Card on Higher Education evaluates states on their performance in higher education because it is the states that are primarily responsible for educational access and quality in the United States."

In this report card, "higher education" refers to all education and training beyond high school, including all public and private, two- and four-year for-profit and nonprofit institutions. In Measuring Up 2006, Michigan was graded in six different categories including college preparation, participation, affordability, completion, benefits and learning. The report lists the following as Michigan's education strengths and weaknesses.

MICHIGAN'S STRENGTHS

Preparation

• Eighth graders perform well on national assessments in science.

• A large percentage of working-age adults are enrolled part-time in college-level education or training. However, this percentage has decreased by 18% over the past decade, compared with a nation-wide decline of 12%.
• Among 18 - to 24-year-olds, a gap remains between whites and non-whites in college participation, even though Michigan has narrowed this gap over the past 12 years.

• A very large percentage of first-year students in community colleges return for their second year. Over the past 15 years, Michigan has shown some of the greatest improvement among the states on this measure.
• Similarly, a large percentage of freshmen at public and private four-year colleges and universities return for their sophomore year. However, Michigan has declined substantially on this measure over the past 15 years.
• A substantial gap remains between whites and blacks in the proportion of students completing certificates and degrees relative to the number enrolled, despite improvement on this measure over the past decade.

MICHIGAN'S WEAKNESSES

Preparation

• A very small proportion of 8th graders take algebra. Similarly, very small proportions of high school students enroll in upper-level math and science courses.
• The state's 8th graders perform very poorly on national assessments in writing.
• Low-income 8th graders perform very poorly on national assessments in math.
• Very small proportions of 11th and 12th graders take and perform well on Advanced Placement tests.

• The chance that a high school student will enroll in college by age 19 is fairly low. Over the past decade, Michigan has declined by 7% on this measure, compared with a national decline of 2%. The percentage of 9th graders graduating from high school in four years and the percentage of high school graduates going on to college have both dropped.
• Young adults (ages 18-14) from high-income families are almost twice as likely to attend college as those from low-income families.

• Net college costs for low- and middle-income students to attend community colleges represent 37% of their annual family income. (Net college costs equal tuition, room, and board after financial aid.) For those students at public four-year colleges and universities, net college costs represent approximately one-half of their annual family income. These two sectors enroll 82% of college students in the state.
• The state makes a very low investment in need-based financial aid compared with leading states, and Michigan offers no low-tuition college opportunities.

• Michigan performs poorly on international comparisons of enrolled students who complete certificate and degree programs.

• Only a fair portion of residents have a bachelor's degree, but this proportion has increased substantially over the past 12 years.

According to the report, Michigan's under-performance in preparing its young people for college could limit the state's access to a competitive workforce and weaken its economy over time.

To learn more, visit http://measuringup. highereducation.org/_ docs/2006/statereports/MI06.pdf.

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Guidelines Approved For On-Line Graduation Requirement

The Michigan Board of Education has approved guidelines for the new first-in-the-nation on-line experience high school graduation requirement that calls for a structured learning activity that utilizes technology with Intranet-or Internet-based resources.

The on-line learning guidelines allow students to meet the graduation requirement with either an approved not-for-credit program, or take a for-credit on-line course that can satisfy other requirements of Michigan's new high school graduation standards.

The standard requires every high school student to have a 20-hour online experience that falls within the guidelines set by the Department. The program would only count for course credit if it is teacher-led.

Department officials are also working out language that would require students not only to be able to conduct research online, but to be able to discern which sources are credible. The Board also required that the Department come back and review the requirements within the next three years.

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Board Approves Science Content Standards

At their October meeting, the State Board of Education approved content expectations for the new high school graduation requirements in Science that will set a standard for what is taught throughout the state.

The approved content expectations cover Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science. These content expectations will help school districts in Michigan begin designing their curriculums to align with the rigorous state high school graduation requirements signed into law in April.

In approving the Science content expectations, the State Board also solidified its strong support for Evolution. After the State Board heard public testimony from a number of state and national science educators who explained that the use of the word "may" in two specific content expectations would cast doubt on the validity of Theory of Evolution, the Board unanimously approved a motion to strike the word "may" from those two instances.

State law allows the Legislature to review the content expectations and make recommendations to the State Board. After considering a number of recommendations from the state Legislature, the Board concurred with two of the three recommendations offered by the Education Committee of the House of Representatives. These included language that encourages critical thinking by students; and to affirm that the Science content expectations are aligned with national standards.

A more detailed explanation of the Science content expectations can be viewed on the Michigan Department of Education website at www.michigan.gov/edu.

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Board Debates Seclusion, Restraint Guidelines

At their October meeting, the State Board of Education presented revised guidelines on the use of emergency seclusion and restraint in dealing with difficult students in the classroom. How to protect both abusive students from injury or death and staff and other students from injury by abusive students was at the center of a debate. Board discussion began several years ago after two children died as a result of being restrained.

At its September meeting, the State Board of Education adopted a policy that encourages the use of a proactive, positive, skill-building approach for the teaching and learning of successful student behavior rather than punishment.

The Board is expected to approve a final policy on restraint and seclusion, expanding the policy to apply to all students, not just special education, November 14. The draft policy prohibits some restraints - such as chemical, mechanical, and prone restraint - and prohibits seclusion. Rather, students can be given a "time out" or removed from a classroom to another location as long as they have a comfortable place to go.

The proposed guidelines set off strenuous opposition from education groups that contend seclusion under proper supervision is needed to protect staff and other students from possible harm. However, some parents of special education students believe that under properly trained supervision, seclusion provides an opportunity for a student to cool down and regroup.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Mike Flanagan noted that the proposed policy does not prevent removing disruptive and unruly students from the educational environment temporarily, it would only prohibit placing them, alone, in a locked room.

Board members and education groups were also concerned that, should the policy banning seclusion be adopted, staff would need to be quickly and adequately trained in other techniques for managing student behavior.

School officials and board members were also concerned that the draft policy did not sufficiently define a time out, which would still be allowed. Board members wanted to be sure it did not morph into seclusion and school officials wanted to be sure they would not inadvertently violate the policy because they were not clear on its meaning.

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2006 - 2007 Michigan Department of Education Federal Grants

The AFT Michigan website has been updated to include 2006 - 2007 Homeless Assistance Act Grants, 2006 - 2007 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program Grants, and 2006 - 2007 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B Formula Grants. Download a .pdf copy of the grants report to see if your school qualified for these federally-funded grants. [requires the free Adobe Acrobat Player]
Download MDE Federal Grants Report >>

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One Vote How important is one vote? YOUR VOTE? A wise man once said, "Liberty means responsibility-this is why most people dread it." DO YOU DREAD IT? Or do you consider liberty your responsibility, to be preserved where it counts the most, IN THE BALLOT BOX? CONSIDER THIS: In 1645, one vote gave Oliver Cromwell control of England. In 1649, one vote caused Charles I of England to be executed. In 1776, one vote gave American the English language instead of German. In 1789, one vote elected Marcus Morton governor of Massachusetts. In 1845, one vote brought Texas into the union. In 1868, one vote saved President Andrew Johnson from impeachment. In 1875, one vote changed France from a monarchy into a republic. In 1876, one vote gave Rutherford B. Hayes the U.S. Presidency. In 1923, one vote gave Adolph Hitler leadership of the Nazi Party. In 1941, one vote saved the selective service system just 12 weeks before Pearl Harbor. In 1960, when votes were averaged out, John F. Kennedy won by one vote in each precinct. In 1994, one vote passed Clinton's budget plan. Known as the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, the bill called for shrinking the deficit using spending cuts and higher taxes on corporations and upper-income individuals. This bill was the prime mover in turning the country around and getting the U.S. economy back on its feet. VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE CAST THE DECIDING VOTE.

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