As of Monday, April 9, 2012
© Copyright 2013
Rockdale Citizen
CONYERS -- More Rockdale County teachers have learned about dealing with poverty-stricken children in their schools.
Rockdale County Public Schools' officials recently brought in Dr. Eric Jensen, author of "Teaching with Poverty in Mind," to meet with hundreds of teachers in a four-day professional learning seminar.
The school system held a two-day seminar in February and March for interested teachers, as well as school administrators and central office staff, who could earn Professional Learning Units by attending.
"Our demographics have changed dramatically over the past 10 years," reported Rich Autry, chief academic officer in the Office of Teaching and Learning at RCPS, to the Rockdale County Board of Education in a recent school board meeting.
Currently, 63 percent of RCPS students are eligible for free and reduced lunch, and 174 students were reported homeless at last count in January.
"We have to understand who we teach," Autry said. "We still have high expectations (for all students)."
He said the professional learning course helped teachers better understand students in poverty. Teachers said it helped reinforce the need for building personal relationships with students and showing students that they cared, according to a video played for the school board.
"It was well received from classroom teachers," Autry said. "We were very pleased."
The seminar was funded through a Title II-A federal grant.
More like this story
- RCPS still serving homeless students ( November 15, 2012 )
- RCPS sets academic priorities for next school year ( March 15, 2012 )
- Schools use academic optimism ( May 30, 2009 )
- Rockdale school officials visit with facilities for improvements ( October 20, 2011 )
- School system sees administrative changes with new school year ( July 24, 2012 )
Comments
TheEx 1 year, 1 month ago
The teachers who take the time to build relationships with their students are viewed as a threat while the teachers that kiss their principal's @$$ are protected no matter what their job performance is in the classroom.
WayBack 1 year, 1 month ago
Somebody sounds bitter.
TheEx 1 year, 1 month ago
Nope. Just telling it like it is. RCPS is the best at going through the motions of giving lip service to the perceived problems, but the worst at actually doing something tangible about them. Doing what is right for the kids of RCPS should always be top priority and should be the only reason why staff show up each day.
heresyafacts 1 year, 1 month ago
The 63% figure, I believe, is far too high. There needs to be better oversight of the free/reduced lunch program, and the list of those receiving benefits needs to be cross-referenced and verified with other agencies.
Freedom1 1 year, 1 month ago
Per Lee Davis, Financial Officer of RCPS, districts are only allowed to verify 3% of the free and reduced lunch applications each year. If they have a good enough response, they only are required to do 1%. Rockdale verifies 3%. This is state law, not local. But the number of free and reduced lunches drives so much, like grants, that it's unbelievable there isn't more scrutiny on the accuracy of this number. If this were a private situation, there would be calls of a rigged setup to allow fraud. We want children to have what they need, but is the Education System eternally responsible for parenting and providing for it's students?
ctownslimm 1 year, 1 month ago
The teachers should definitely be encouraged to build rapport with the students but many administrators are taking it too far. The administrators should be cold and go by the book within reason. Just because a kid is poor does not mean they get to be disrespectful. There should be some understanding but I feel like there is too much understanding and not enough accountability. Students will behave if parents, teachers and administrators are all on the same page. And if the parents aren't, they need to take their kids somewhere else.
VPublicola 1 year, 1 month ago
How does the RCPS deal with unpaid lunch accounts? I am aware of parents who have lunch balances $30 or more in the red and are not servicing this debt. Yet, some of these parents are getting their nails and hair done, their children are wearing new fashionable clothes, and one parent, when made aware of this debt, says she is not paying that debt because it is too much! Are the RCPS administrators enablers or holding parents responsible. This is one aspect of RCPS fiscal management that should be investigated along with the so-called 'free & reduced lunch' program, which seems to have become a program subject to extensive abuse for lack of aggressive oversight and responsible management.
1ayk 1 year, 1 month ago
Management, who needs management under this Country and County current administrative leaderships.It is payback time to those mean old Republicans. Unfortunately it effects anyone who pays taxes.
Freedom1 1 year ago
To get some perspective of this story, and Dr Jensen and his relationship to the $6.3 million contract the State Board of Ed approved last month, go to: http://forum.rockdalenet.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=809&sid=e3d067b233c9394e7c548eaab7ecda00
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