Changing the Puerto Rico Public Education System from the Ground Up

First Edition Changing the Puerto Rico Public Education System from the Ground Up

By Dr. Edgar León

 iBooks Author Transforming the Schools in Puerto Rico - A National Emergency

1. The students are the reason for being of the edu- The mediocre cational system and the teacher their main resource. teacher tells. The Constitution of Puerto Rico -OrganicAct of the De- good teacher partment of Education of Puerto Rico” Act No. 149 of explains. The July 15, 1999, as amended) superior teacher http://www2.pr.gov/presupuestos/Budget_2012_2013/Aprobado201 3Ingles/suppdocs/baselegal_ingles/081/081.pdf demonstrates. The If children are all different from each other, why do great teacher we force them to learn the same way, the same mate- inspires. rial, from book far from their culture, all at the same William Arthur Ward time without any motivating or interesting ways of teaching? Dr. Edgar León

The role of teaching is to facilitate learning. Ken Rob- inson 1  iBooks Author The Condition of Public Schools in Puerto Rico

The overall poorer quality of education in Puerto Rico public schools when compared with their private counterparts has become increasingly evident, as more schools have entered an improvement program because a large proportion of their students failed the Puerto Rican tests on academic performance.

Currently, 85% of the 1,473 public schools are in improvement programs. This year, 60% of students failed the Spanish tests in their respective grades, 61% failed the English tests and 75% But the Education Department has had three different secretar- failed the mathematics tests. To be in accordance with the fed- ies over a 22-month period starting in January 2009, and eral No Child Left Behind Act, all students in the Puerto Rico seems most focused on meeting the requirements to qualify for public school system must pass the tests by 2014. The sys- federal funds. Meanwhile, the two main teachers’ unions—The tem’s reported dropout rate, meanwhile, is about 12%. In gen- Teachers Federation of Puerto Rico (FMPR by its Spanish acro- eral, urban schools, especially those located in poorer neighbor- nym) and the Puerto Rico Teachers Association (AMPR by its hoods, tend to do worse than their counterparts located in more Spanish acronym) have either expressed reservations, or op- suburban or middle-class areas or in smaller towns. posed (in the case of the FMPR) the most recent appointee to The Department of Education has a consolidated budget of head the Education Department. $3.8 billion, much more than any other government agency, in- As of August 2010, public schools had 436,741 students from cluding the Health and the Police departments. kindergarten through to the high-school level, roughly twice the number of students attending private schools. In October 2010, more than 200,000 students were enrolled in 1,078 licensed pri-

 iBooks Author vate schools ranging from preschools to those that offer classes what was left of a country focus to improve. Some people be- at the high-school level. lieve that The US Congress will bail out the Island. This is far from the truth because other mainland states like Louisiana and Ref. Caribbean Business Magazine, Sunday, September 21st, California are also hurting for money. In other words, other 2014 states must come first because they have congressmen who We will attempt to present a snapshot at what has been ob- can vote and Puerto Rico does not. served and documented during two years of work and consult- ing with many schools around the Island. Having the inside look at what really goes on in public schools and the day to day environment, the teacher interaction, student and parent reality, the influence of central administration, the lack of data organization and security at all levels was an amazing experience. By inter- acting with teachers, students parents and administrators, we have witnessed some barbaric bureaucratic practices and student abandonment that is definitely criminal. Every problem has a solution if we are all willing to make it happen. Leaders like Ghandi, Luther King and Cesar Chaves had the drive to make these changes during their time. Do people from Puerto Rico have the duty to make things change regardless of political and private interests? We must have all readers answer that ques- North American public schools are not doing that great either. tion. “America’s universities have been taken over by a burgeoning class of administrators and staffers determined to transform col- Puerto Rico is considered the Grece of the Caribbean because leges into top-heavy organizations run by inept bureaucrats,” of its horrible economic status and huge government debt. Multi- wrote Benjamin Ginsberg, professor of political science at John factorial issues have negatively impacted public schools over a Hopkins University and author of the book “The Fall of the Fac- period of more than forty years. Result of the tug of war be- ulty: The Rise of the All-Administrative University and Why It tween the two main political parties have also torn the fiber of 3

 iBooks Author Matters.” is the time to uncover all the real situations and condi- their college entry exam to the teaching programs at the univer- tions of our educational system. Now is the time to recommend sity level. Teachers have a rigid curriculum closely compared positive changes. to the medical students in which their teaching are or content is the most important part of their curriculum. In the US and The author seems to agree that the same destructive approach Puerto Rico those who enter the teacher education programs has been applied to public school systems. Millions of dollars generally are from the bottom 40% that are accepted and usu- have been spent to develop hundreds of plans. These plans ally the profession is chosen because of failing in another de- have been written and submitted but very few implemented at gree. It is also known that the courses are highly geared to edu- the school level. The reason being is that every four years cation courses. there is a change in government administration that puts everything in hold and also shifts the priorities in all agencies. Puerto Rican youth face numerous social and economic barriers and have been concentrated in high schools where stu- There has been an attempt by past government administra- dents have less than a 50/50 chance of graduating on time. tions to build new schools and computer laboratories. But, they These schools also spent less-per-pupil, were more segre- forgot about increasing the per pupil amount for learning serv- gated, and more overcrowded when compared with their afflu- ices to children. They also forgot that students are dropping ent, private school counterparts. out like flies. Now there are new school buildings that are half empty. Just by having new buildings is not a warranty that stu- Kids are disengaged from public education, they don’t enjoy it, dents will start learning. The money had to be placed directly they feel they don’t get any benefit from it and more that 80 per- for quality teaching regardless of the building. cent of those who come to first grade drop out before they graduate from senior year in high school. Finland, the best education system in the world, went over a huge transformation in their educational system. This was Kids that are sitting day after day in a classroom trying to learn more a national effort in which all citizens understood that edu- a very limited curriculum based on limited standards are prone cation was the only way the country could get out of economic to not pay attention. Many of them are being diagnosed atten- depression. They also changed their mentality by recognizing tion deficit disorder. They are suffering from childhood. Kids the teaching profession as one of major importance. In Fin- need to move, need to draw, need to sing, need to perform. All land, the transformation included selecting only the top 10% of these Physical Education, Arts and Music learning activities

 iBooks Author have been taken away. It also creates a discipline problem Economic Factor Promotes Immigration among the most creative children who want to lead learn on their own but are put a straight jacket as soon as the arrive.

Teaching is a creators profession and not a follow a recipe written by others. Students are naturally curious, but if the system comes with boring sets of tasks that are not engaging for the student and also does not make them curious, it is prone to fail as a system.

Teachers are not in the building just to pass information. This is not teaching. Teaching has to have learning as a end result. Learning happens when the teacher mentors, provokes and spark curiosity.

The whole point about education is learning. If there is no learn- Puerto Ricans have left the ﬁnancially troubled island for the ing, there is no education. If kids do not pass the achievement U.S. mainland this decade in their largest numbers since the tests, they have not learned. If they get an F in the class, they Great Migration after World War II, citing job-related reasons have not learned. Maybe the teachers are told to just pass the above all others. information but they were not interested because it was not relevant to them. U.S. Census Bureau data show that 144,000 more people left the island for the mainland than the other way around from mid- Teachers must awake the powers of creativity in all children. 2010 to 2013, a larger gap between emigrants and migrants School must be a place to think, use our imagination and prob- than during the entire decades of the 1970s, 1980s or 1990s. lem solve. This escalated loss of migrants fueled the island’s ﬁrst sus- tained population decline in its history as a U.S. territory, even as the stateside Puerto Rican population grew briskly.

 iBooks Author The search for economic opportunity is the most commonly related reasons (62%), while 25% cited family reasons. given explanation for moving by island-born Puerto Ricans who relocated to the mainland from 2006 to 2013, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data.1 A plurality (42%) gave job-related reasons for moving stateside, compared with 38% who gave family-related reasons. Among all immigrants from foreign countries who migrated over the same time period, a similar share gave job-related reasons (41%), while 29% said they migrated for family reasons. Mexican-b0rn immigrants were even more likely to cite job-

 iBooks Author According to a 2012 report on the Puerto Rican economy by the This must not be the only way schools work. They must just be Federal Reserve Bank of New York, “Puerto Rico’s economic diagnostic tests to help teachers ﬁne tune students learning. progress has stalled: the Island has been operating below its potential for some time and the competitiveness of the economy continues to deteriorate.” The report cited persistently high unemployment and a low labor force participation rate, as well as heavy reliance on transfer payments such as food stamps (Federal Reserve Bank of New York, 2012) http://www.pewhispanic.org/2014/08/11/puerto-rican-population- declines-on-island-grows-on-u-s-mainland/

The state of emergency and urgency is real. The immediate transformation is needed now. Our children need the change now, need the teachers every day starting now, need a new substitute teacher system now, need all the resources shifted to the schools directly for student learning.

Standardized Testing Must Not be the Motive for Schools

Many people talk about teaching but not about learning. Teach- ers teach but they must also be aware if students are learning. If they are not, thats when the teacher uses her skills to use a different way or method to teach those students. Standardized test must support learning and not be the motive for teaching.

 iBooks Author Section 1

Transforming Puerto Rico Close the central ofﬁce and start from Schools scratch! If we look at other countries like South Korea, Singapore, Fin- Eight Steps For Transforming The Schools land, China, Germany, Japan, UK, Canada, Ireland and Poland we may notice that these countries have been making fast radi- cal changes to their educational systems no matter what. 1. Close the central ofﬁce and start from scratch!

2. Rethink the delivery system focusing on the student and clear learning outcomes.

3. Cut all duplication of effort immediately.

4. Eliminate politics from the education system

5. Bullying and Cyber Crime in the schools.

6. Secure High Quality Teachers

7. Improve College Education

8. Establish Lifelong Education Programs

The more government bureaucrats get involved in education, the worse it gets. Education needs to be left to teachers and learners. They must focus on learning and help children.

 iBooks Author For every educational problem, a committee is assigned, a re- cation regional ofﬁces around the Island that only exist to spend port is written and nothing is done. This approach to problem lots of educational money, delay or prevent the delivery of edu- solving is proven to be a failure. cational services for students. It requires new realistic and cero base budget for all units. Transformation requires a new You cannot have a great system without braking it to pieces teacher contract with an absenteeism clause. You are absent, and transforming it using the future global economy as a focus. you are at risk of losing your job!

There must be a swift change to run education as a business. You have to provide a product that is education. You have to deliver education as a quality product for children. You need highly qualiﬁed managers who make sure that quality is there and if not they have to act quickly. This author observed when stu-

United States is number 14 in its international achievement tests after a whole bunch of countries. All efﬁcient systems require rapid change. According to people the author interviewed over several years, it requires doing away with highly paid politically tied bureaucrats, inept administrators, secretaries with repetitious meaningless jobs, paper pushers, technician, facilita- tors, family of politicians, and family entitlements to the jobs of mom and dad have had in the past are hand me down to their siblings. Transformation requires closing down hundreds of edu-

 iBooks Author dents were promoted with two F’s at the end of the year. The system needs to immediately stop the illegal practice of promot- ing students who do not have the skills for promotion to the next grade.

Most of the countries who have increased their educational system efﬁciency is because they have increased the state alloca- tion of money to the schools and not to the administration of programs and external evaluation programs. Student learning time on task has increased, teachers are only doing academics and not administrative or discipline duties, teachers are constantly trained and coached in the classroom by content experts and teaching methods. Students are having fun with new material and applying blended learning. Teachers are not pushed every year form their jobs position like they do in Puerto Rico. Teach- ers in Finland stay put in their schools for 5 to 10 years.

 iBooks Author This will for sure force conti- The nuity of services and keep students on task. Student and teacher absenteeism must be dealt with swiftly in their new contract. Qualiﬁed substitute teachers are brought in quickly and given the absent teachers pay for that speciﬁc day. Substitute teacher systems are not part of the Department of Education bureaucratic system. They are managed locally and controlled by local school directors.

Puerto Rico needs to quickly change its straight jacket laws and department of education letters to create a new ﬂexible and workable substitute teacher pool to cover up for all absent teachers. Laws in Puerto Rico have to be changed quickly to help our children so that they can change the country! That is what lawmakers are supposed to do. They have to study The Organic Department of Education Law 1990 and change the content which prevent students from learning. The law includes a long bureaucratic process used for teacher approval that must be changed to help students. Ref: Ley Núm. 68 del 28 de agosto de 1990, Efectiva el 28 de agosto de 1990, según en- mendada (3 L.P.R.A. sec. 391 y ss).

 iBooks Author Puerto Rico Secretary of Education in his goodwill effort for making swift changes sometimes writes a letter “Carta Circular” on the attempt of making it similar to a state law. This futile effort just doesn’t have the same punitive effects for non compliance because the law requires approval from both chambers and the governor.

Other states like Michigan have had substitute teacher programs endorsed and managed by their state teachers association. This completely automated system has worked very well in coordination with all school districts. Students have the beneﬁt of teacher continuity and their academic scores are either main- tained or increased. Ref: http://www.inghamisd.org/district-support-services/hr/substitutet eaching

 iBooks Author According to PEARSON - The Learning Curve 2014 - The New with ﬁngers tied to book sales, equipment corporations and Skills The World is Looking For Are The Following: other materials. Ref. (http://english.mest.go.kr/web/1701/site/contents/en/en_0213.js p)

It is suggested that the Department of Education start publish- ing our own electronic books in Puerto Rico so that all material include the cultural aspects that our students are lacking. Uni- versities in Puerto Rico, college professors, and teachers can serve as experts and authors for these new less expensive and more attractive to students books and multimedia. This will reduce the high cost of purchasing books from private companies that are not necessarily updated every year. it will also give electronic books access to every child 24 hours a day 7 days a East Asian nations continue to outperform others. South Korea week in English and Spanish. tops the rankings, followed by Japan (2nd), Singapore (3rd) and STEM - Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics Hong Kong (4th). All these countries' education systems prize skills can be improved quickly by using a new school model effort above inherited 'smartness', have clear learning out- where children are motivated to learn, publicity at all levels (tele- comes and goalposts, and have a strong culture of accountabil- vision, radio, movies, videos) to promote country pride and own- ity and engagement among a broad community of stakeholders. ership in the new countries education focus. We must start changing our way of educating our children. Un- der developed countries have had rapid success in a short pe- Eliminate Politics from the Education riod of time. Puerto Rico needs the change now in order to com- System pete now and in the future. Transformation must happen quickly and without hesitation. In the past, we have listened to teachers For half a Century politics have infected the Department of Edu- unions, private consultants representing different companies cation. This department has been the local employment agency

 iBooks Author for all people who worked on the political campaign regardless of their academic background.

According to several interviews done by the author, the Puerto Rico department of education suffers from political job place- ments. Both parties have their internal representatives that not only ﬁnd jobs for them but also create a thick layer of bureaucracy for the system.

In other countries, real transformation is done by closing the system and looking at student needs before creating a new central system. It also looks for automation of all repetitive menial paper pushing jobs. Most of the time, the only way to increase efﬁciency is to send all services and money to the schools.

 iBooks Author Section 2

Things to do Digitize all student and teacher records All paper must go!!!!

Transformation Steps

1. Digitize all records, get a scanner save a school.

2. Create a new friendly service system.

3. Downsize the district structure to 5 districts.

4. Downsize administration to 10% of the budget.

5. 90% of the budget must go to student academics.

6. Teach online courses, eliminate remedial classes.

7. Use blended learning for content delivery. 8. Write grants to improve schools. One of the factors things are not done 9. Teach how read, speak, write and compute. on time is because of all paperwork that needs to identiﬁed, changed, saved, printed and ﬁled!

 iBooks Author By observing and serving as a consultant for schools for trying learning how a year we are aware that education is a paper producer to use the latest tech- because all education plans, exams, quizzes, papers, re- nology, plugging ports, and general administrative requirements from the their computers, us- Department of Education from all government agents ing the digital projec- such as Department of Social Services, Food Services, tor and preparing Court Systems, Health Department, and many more. All their powerpoint this paper adds up to waste of resources and time for presentations during educating our students. Support services are needed class time. but they must not hinder the time used for educating our According to all teachers interviewed, quality Internet students. These exterior agencies must not hinder the service in Puerto Rico classrooms is not existent. Most educational time needed by the students. That work of the schools do not have internet in the classroom nor must be done after students leave the building. computers in every classroom. The amount of wiﬁ or ca- Principals must responsible for school management and ble internet signal is so low that students can barely paperwork, teacher supervision, school bus drivers, and send an email. The system also has a security system maintaining school facilities; the vice principal may as- that prevents students and teachers from using any exte- sist the principal with these duties. rior online resource. What it does’nt do is prevent hack- ers around the world from stealing all student academic Create a new and friendly data manage- and health information that could later be used for com- ment and service system. mitting fraud.

I have witnessed hundreds of cases in which technology Teachers are forced to save their educational resources hinders education. Teachers spend important class time and ﬁles on DVD’s and sometimes use that as their multi- 16

 iBooks Author media option. They are also forced to take their com- tially in manpower and administration but also rent, elec- puter equipment home because it could be stolen or trical bills, water, equipment, utilities and maintenance damaged in school during night time or weekends. becomes a huge and increasing expense that takes from academic moneys for students. There must be a Downsize the 100 plus school districts streamline low cost unique transformed computer man- to 5 districts agement system to take back the control of orders, contracts, other expenditures. For the federal government, Puerto Rico is just one school district. Locally, the Department of Education cre- ated over 100 school districts. The Puerto Rico school system has over a hundred school districts and regional offices around the Island. They practically have administration offices in each of the 78 cities. Some cities may have five centers duplicat- ing the work and increasing State Dept. paperwork flow to the central office.

It could be compared as a giant octopus with tentacles all over the island. This old model of hundreds of Cen- tral, Regional and Local Of- ﬁces doing business not only increases costs substan- 17

 iBooks Author Every year these expensive old convoluted over 100 school district systems increase while the per student al- location decreases. Schools do not have updated and uniform computer software, operational systems or network protection.

By transforming the model to just ﬁve (5) school districts - one district in San Juan, Mayaguez, Arecibo, Caguas, Ponce and will substantially reduce administrative costs, increase speed of service delivery, eliminate duplication

tance. TODAYS MODEL IS TOP HEAVY, GROWING of effort, extra slow decision making and confusion. EVERY YEAR AND VERY EXPENSIVE TO MAINTAIN.

Redistribution of staff is possible by moving people to If the decision is made to close, downsize and transform school buildings to help our students with tutoring, spe- the San Juan Central Department of Education Ofﬁces, cial programs, social services, food, and parent assis- all schools and the 40,887 teachers and 437,807 stu- 18

 iBooks Author dents will not even notice it or be affected directly. By about ten percent (10%) of the budget or less for admini- making this simple change, hundreds of millions of dol- stration. It is also noticed that efficient school districts lars will be saved and be available for teaching students around the world are highly automated, do not depend the basic skills. The Department of Education flowchart on paper and are fast delivering educational services to may have hundreds of hidden paper pushing job posi- children. tions that drain academic services to children. These pa- It is highly anticipated that Puerto Rico is spending close per pushing politically tied jobs are not directly related to to 45% percent or more in administration and none edu- educating students in the school. Parents have said that cational activities. In other words, funds earmarked for public education must not be a job creation heaven for education and learning are not going directly to schools political parties in the Island. Every dollar must be used around the Island. A hefty chunk is staying in San Juan’s directly for teaching and learning. Central Office. It is also noticed that there are over 100 Downsize administration to 10% of the school districts around the Island where top heavy staff systems, duplication of paperwork and lack of building total budget maintenance is happening right now. We searched close to ten hours on the internet looking The other challenge we have encountered is that Puerto for the amount of money spent on administration of the Rico is not keeping or reporting their per pupil expendi- Puerto Rico State Department of Education Central Of- ture to any sources like the World Bank or the US De- fice. This information was never found. The information partment of Education. When the author checked, the found was broken by bits a pieces in a manner that we per pupil amount spent had not been reported for 2013 could not make any sense out of it. or 2014. Meanwhile, California reported close to $11,755 At the college level, most of the school administration per student while states from the south are close to courses affirm that an efficient school system uses only $9,000 per student. The sad part of all this is that the Is- 19

 iBooks Author land of Puerto Rico is not reporting their per student allo- As an alternative to this method the Schools in Puerto cation statistics. The author suspects that it is a lot lower Rico may quickly provide online courses 24/7 for all stu- than $5,000.00 per student. dents who need to upgrade their skills. They may also use the services of Michigan State University which has Some teachers have recommended that after reporting the best online education program in the nation. the per pupil amount, when it happens, the Inspector http://education.msu.edu/academics/online Generals federal government officials must hire an independent federal contractor to confirm and certify their ex- penditure findings.

Teach online courses, eliminate remedial summer easy ﬁx exams

The author observed that a large group of high school students fail mathematics and science classes during the school year. This may be due to highly absenteeism and lack of student motivation. As a rule, these students who have ﬂunked their classes wait for summer to take high school equivalency exams in one day and they are given their course grades. Most of them get an A after Every state has several sources that are accredited. For they take their easy exams. example, Florida Virtual School offers this service at a very low cost to other states. This could be an extra in-

 iBooks Author come for the state because courses could be sold to ware and software that may make it very difﬁcult to stan- their states or countries around the world. dardize these factors. The local Department of Education must create the New Use blended learning for content Puerto Rico Virtual School K-12 in coordination with the University of Puerto Rico to make sure all standards are delivery met. The platform could be a free source like WizIQ to deliver content and teacher instructions. The state may There are 10 instructional strategies which have been ef- identify the best teachers around the Island and transmit fectively used in the traditional classroom an can like- or record each class to be aired at a speciﬁc time after wise be used in the online classroom environment. class or be available in youtube during the day once it is 1. recorded. The use of cell phones and mobile devices need to be explored also in this effort to help students improve their academic skills.

We have observed that teachers and staff are afraid and also frustrated with school technology devices. Internet availability is also a crucial factor that hinders the use of technology in the classroom. At this moment, schools do not have any or it is very limited and content is blocked by the state. Computers may be available for student and teacher use on a limited basis in those schools with a library o computer center. There is a mixture of hard-

 iBooks Author Learning Contracts they can be exposed to a variety of viewpoints on a given subject. Learning contracts connect educational needs to individ- There are many ual student needs small group formats and are useful that encourage and when there is di- provide opportuni- versity in learner ties for interaction. needs and interests in a class. A 3. Discussion Pro- learning contract ject is a formal agree- Discussion is the instructional strategy most favored by ment written by a adult learners because it is interactive and encourages learner which details what will be learned, how the learn- active, participatory learning. The discussion format en- ing will be accomplished, the period of time involved, courages learners to analyze alternative ways of think- and the speciﬁc evaluation criteria to be used in judging ing and acting and assists learners in exploring their the completion of the learning. Learning contracts help own experiences so they can become better critical the educator and learner share the responsibility for thinkers. The discussion is often the heart of an online learning. course 2. Small Group Work 4. Lecture In small groups learners can discuss content, share The lecture is one of the most frequently used instruc- ideas, and solve problems. They present their own ideas tional methods in adult education. It assumes the educa- as well as consider ideas put forth by others. In this way, tor to be the expert and is an efﬁcient way of disseminat- 22

 iBooks Author ing information. Most educators agree that the purpose and individualized learning as well as of lectures is to lay foundations as the student works self-instruction.Whatever terminology is used, self- through the subject, and good lecturers know their stu- directed learning places the responsibility for learning di- dents and develop their lectures according to the stu- rectly on the learner. Learners who take the initiative in dents' needs. Most importantly, lectures are most effec- learning and are proactive learners learn more and bet- tive when used in combination with other instructional ter than passive learners (reactive learners). Proactive strategies. learners enter into learning more purposefully and with greater motivation. They also tend to retain and make use of what they learn better and longer than reactive 5. Collaborative Learning learners. The independent learner is one who is Collaborative Learning is the process of getting two or more involved and active more students to work together to learn. Students often within the learning proc- work in small groups composed of participants with differ- ess ing ability levels and using a variety of learning activities to master material initially developed by an instructor, or 7. Case Study construct knowledge on substantive issues. Each mem- The case study is a ber of the team is responsible for learning what is taught teaching strategy which requires learners to draw upon and for helping teammates learn. their past experiences, is participatory and has action 6. Self-Directed Learning components which are links to future experience. The key to a successful case study is the selection of an ap- Self-directed learning is learning initiated and directed propriate problem situation which is relevant both to the by the learner and can include self-paced, independent, interests and experience level of learners and to the con- 23

 iBooks Author cepts being taught. The case report should include facts The forum is an open regarding the problem, the environmental context, and discussion carried on the characters of the people involved in the case. It by one or more re- should be factual, but also contain the opinions and source people and an views of the people involved. Learners should have ac- entire group. The cess to the problem solution, but not until they have moderator guides the reached their own conclusions and can then compare discussion and the their results with the actual decision taken to resolve the audience raises and problem. discusses issues, make comments, offers information, or asks questions of the resource person(s) and each 8. Mentorship other. There are two variations of the forum: the panel The aim of mentorship is to promote learner develop- and the symposium. ment drawing out and giving form to what the student already knows. A mentor serves as a guide rather than a 10. Write grants to improve schools provider of knowledge and serves the function of intro- Every teacher must have the skills to write small or large ducing students to the new world, interpreting it for educational grants. Colleges and universities must teach them, and helping them to learn what they need to know this skill to their teachers. This must be paired up with to function in it. Mentors in education teach by interpret- school research projects. ing the environment and modeling expected behaviors. They also support, challenge, and provide vision for their There are local clubs, agencies, foundations, and private students businesses that provide funding for the community development. school districts must have regular staff develop- 9. Forum ment workshops to identify resources and grant RFP’s

 iBooks Author for teachers to request extra funds. Some of the grant The United States Department of Education gave Puerto sources are http://www.gatesfoundation.org/es Rico $153.6 million dollars to turn around its persistently Lowest-Achieving Schools. This was on top of the bil- http://www.neafoundation.org/pages/grants-to-educators lions received each year. The schools are listed as at http://www.publicschoolfoundation.org/grantsandscholar risk schools in the following address. ships http://www2.ed.gov/programs/sif/summary2010/prapp10 http://prfaa.pr.gov/pr_e_grantsnd2.asp .pdf http://www.fundsnetservices.com/searchresult/6/Educati State exams reflect that public school students are not on-&-Literacy-Grants.html proficient on all basics skills. We must go back to teaching the basic skills from K to 12th grade. For years, teachers are passing students from grade to grade without having the skills. This not only hinders the school system but also the entire country. Inflating grades and passing students is the comfortable way to get rid of the prob- 11.Teach lem child who does not behave in class. how to read, It is also a compounding effect the inclusion of special write, speak education students in the regular classroom. For decades, The Puerto Rico Department of Education has and com- been under investigation for several non compliance is- pute sues and also for misidentification of students into the special education program. Close to 40% of Puerto Rico

 iBooks Author public school students have been identified to receive Local politics has poisoned the mammoth educational some sort of special education services. This not only system and it keeps losing ground. By firing staff and ad- hinders the funds available for those who really need the ministrative personnel and putting someone new every 4 staff, transportation and equipment. years only damages the continuity and quality of all programs. The best solution with immediate results will be to identify a reputable university like Michigan State University, Teachers need to be kept in the same school for at least Berkeley, MIT, Harvard, Penn State and others in the US 10 years so that the educational program will have conti- mainland and privatize all administrative and educational nuity. Every year there is a game of musical chairs staff monitoring duties. School directors must deal with where thousands of teachers move from one school to academic implementation of the program and not 100 another. This is due to a lottery system and hundreds of percent with discipline and central office reports issues. itinerant teachers in the system. For more than 50 years, Puerto Rico has failed its own Once again, technology can help students learn and people by not providing quality educating and administra- practice the basic skills, read, write, speak and compute. tive services.

It is time to help all children and families of the poor families so that they can have a fair chance to succeed. It s time to stop passing students who do not have the skills to be promoted, stop the drug selling in front of secondary schools without any positive results, overloading school directors with administrative meaningless paperwork and wasting millions of dollars in private companies for one day workshops. 26

 iBooks Author 27

 iBooks Author Centralized Systems Don’t Work

2  iBooks Author Section 1

teachers.7 Deliberate decentralization of education in Finland PR Must has produced one of the foremost systems in the world. Decentralize Ref: http://www.hslda.org/commoncore/topic6.aspx Countries that are doing better are doing away with models of the past. They are thinking about moving children forward fast Education! to help the country. Funding is placed in schools and given di- Sir Ken Robinson addresses the fundamental economic, cul- rectly to children services and learning. Schools are also requir- tural, social and personal purposes of education. He argues ing more from teachers but also paying more once the class- that education should be personalized to every student's talent, room improves. passion, and learning styles, and that creativity should be em- bedded in the culture of every single school. Centralizing education belongs to the past industrial model. Now it is very different and it must change. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEsZOnyQzxQ

Finland’s students topped the PISA charts in 2000 and 2006, and ranked in the top echelon in 2003 and 2009.6 Finland has rejected heavy standardized testing since the national assessment movement swept through the world in the 1990s. It re- fuses to rank its teachers according to the test results of their students; its National Board of Education even closed its inspec- torate in 1991. Finnish teachers design their own courses and spend about 80% more time teaching classes than American

 iBooks Author The success of homeschooling in America offers further domes- Ref:http://www.unescobkk.org/education/news/article/decentrali tic proof of the benefits of decentralized education. In 2013, zation-as-an-education-system-reform Robert Kunzman of Indiana University and Milton Gaither of Some citizens and politicians believe that by changing the state Messiah College evaluated multiple studies and showed that secretary of education, the system will improve somehow. It is a homeschool students score above average in reading and Eng- fact that one person at the top have never been able to improve lish Arts. They noted that homeschool students transition into student scores in a local school. The work and responsibility is postsecondary life much more successfully than public school by dedicated teachers, motivated students and parents that are students.The evidence of one size fits, centralized system di- involved everyday in school activities and learning. rected by bureaucrats and politicians is not the antidote for Puerto Rico Education. Only the individuality and efficient inno- Department of Education causes Payment to outside vation found in a decentralized approach can help revive our contractors are delayed as a norm. failing system. After studying the issues, the writer has noticed that there has Decentralization approaches taken by countries may indicate been a pattern of paying for services with 3 to 4 months delay. some useful lessons, especially in relation to staff professionali- It is imperative to notice that the electronic transfer for funds zation, authority structures and responsibilities, accountability come from state and federal agencies. These are always paid system, and capacity development. For instance, experiences on time. of Australia, New Zealand and Indonesia point out that school- level recruitment enhances teacher professionalism. The only reason that payments are delayed are multifactorial. The lack of an efficient cloud based comprehensive accounting As part of the education sector reform, decentralization of edu- system, heavy paperwork between multiple office officials be- cation systems has potential to improve education outcomes for fore payment puts a heavy burden on the process. Signatures students if it is designed appropriately for the specific country of bureaucrats, retyping orders, dealing with back orders, heavy context and according to key successful principles. Three key backlog are several we may mention. areas for successful decentralization are (1) ensuring equity, (2) building accountability, and (3) developing local capacity across the system at all levels, especially at lower level.

 iBooks Author Decentralizing Trends For the Future needed, and choose the providers of those services. In Des Moines, school-based management through shared decision- Site-based management has been adopted by many school making is evolving through a plan that establishes school- systems to increase school autonomy and to share decision- based councils empowered to develop a school improvement making with teachers and sometimes parents, students, and plan and make decisions about curriculum, scheduling, and community members. Spurred by a growing body of research staff development. from the private sector on the beneﬁts of participatory decision- making, school leaders believe that SBM is a promising strat- Under site-based management, teachers are asked to as- egy for improving the quality of educational decision-making be- sume leadership roles in staff development, mentoring, and cur- cause it engages those closest to the action (Cohen, 1989). riculum development, and become key partners in school and Site-based management typically involves the formation of a staff supervision and evaluation. Such programs are designed school-based committee or council that, through legislative or to elevate the professionalism of teachers, increase morale, board action, is empowered to make decisions. These deci- add prestige and recognition, and provide ongoing opportunities sions usually fall within three areas: budget, personnel and staff- for professional development. Teacher collaboration is a major ing, and curriculum/programs (Clune & White, 1988). theme in the implementation of site-based management.

The scope of local empowerment varies greatly across school One characteristic that sharply distinguishes one district's imple- districts. For example, in Chicago, all schools are governed by mentation of site-based management from that of another is the Local School Councils (LSCs), each comprising two teachers, extent to which parents and community are involved as true four parents, two community representatives, and a principal. partners in school decision-making. In Rochester, NY, school- The LSCs have broad authority over budgeting, principal selec- based planning committees give teachers a dominant voice in tion, and curriculum and program selection. Detroit's Empow- decision-making. By contrast, in Chicago, decentralization aims ered Schools employ School Empowerment Councils/Teams. In to engage parents and community members, along with teach- these schools, students, parents, administrators, and staff con- ers and principals, as major decision-makers in school change. trol the use of allocated funds, exercise initiative and independ- Building on school restructuring models pioneered in Dade ence in determining and executing instructional improvements, County, FL, and Hammond, IN, school reform in Chicago is the expand student selection, deﬁne the types of support services

 iBooks Author most comprehensive version of community involvement in criti- search and proven practice. Several examples of curriculum in- cal school-based decision-making. novation include mathematics/science academies, Comer schools, foreign language academies, Afrocentric schools, Downsizing central administration seeks to eliminate unnec- Paideia (collaborative) schools, dual-language programs, and essary layers of bureaucracy, untangle chains of command, schools that emphasize home-school partnerships and inte- and link greater percentages of fiscal and human resources di- grated services. rectly with children at the school-site level. In Cincinnati, the su- perintendent, with recommendations from the business commu- In some districts, the emergence of curriculum innovation is nity, has reduced the number of central administrators from 127 linked to magnet schools as part of a district wide desegrega- to 62 (Shanker, 1992). Teachers' union officials hope that some tion and equity plan. In other districts, curriculum innovation is of the money saved will go to school programs designed to ad- linked to a choice plan wherein schools are encouraged to de- dress discipline problems, such as in-school suspension cen- velop a specialized focus and compete for students in an open ters. However, for a scaled-down central administration to be- market system. For example, in Indianapolis, the superinten- come an accountable service center, it must redefine its roles dent has launched the Select Schools Plan. Under this con- and align its functions with the needs of local schools and com- trolled choice plan, each school develops a particular focus; par- munities. Too often, districts adopt the "service center" rhetoric ents then are able to shop around the district and enroll their without building the capacities and creating the structures children in the school most suited to their needs. It is believed needed to transform the central administration into a responsive that the Select Schools Plan will reconnect the community and team that provides timely, appropriate support to local schools the schools and give parents a say in what programs are pro- and communities. vided for their children. Yet another version of curriculum innovation, Charter Schools, is emerging in several cities and states Curriculum innovation responds to the diversity and complex- (e.g., Philadelphia, Minnesota, and California) as an outgrowth ity of urban areas and gives local schools the flexibility to cus- of school choice. (For a discussion of Charter Schools, see the tomize their educational programs to meet the unique needs of Policy Briefs on Charter Schools available from NCREL.) their students. The ultimate goal of curriculum innovation is to promote quality and equality for all students through curriculum, http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/go/go0dcent.ht instruction, and assessment initiatives that are based on re- m

 iBooks Author 33

 iBooks Author Section 2 The Common Core, What for?

The Common Core - College Career Ready Standards We imagine that this move will automatically change anything in our educational system. At least it is putting a focus on why we are teaching the new content.

Puerto Rico is pushing our high school students to go on to a 2 year career instead of offering and expanding their opportunities. Students need to be taught how to manage a business, be The Common Core State Standards call for students to develop thier own boss, think new ideas to improve old products, de- digital media and technology skills. One way to help them reach velop new products to help peole, create new alternatives for that goal: incorporate gadgets they’re already familiar with — the aging population. cell phones, tablets, and smartphones — into their learning environment. Teachers must start integrating these tools in the 2 year college shops are popping up to take student college classroom. fund federal money and leave them with an incomplete college degree with little value. and low paying jobs.

 iBooks Author Special Education Brutal Experience

The crisis echoes the marathon class-action case ﬁled by in 1980 by Rosa Lydia Vélez, the parent of a special needs daughter who ﬁled suit against the commonwealth government in federal court because of the lack of services. But things are even worse now!

3  iBooks Author Section 2

There Are No Special Education Services!! What is IDEA? The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the na- The Need For Fast Quality Service tion’s federal special education law that ensures public schools serve the educational needs of students with disabilities. IDEA 1. The urgent need for quality identification and requires that schools provide special education services to eligi- compliance. ble students as outlined in a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). IDEA also provides very specific requirements 2. Implementing technology for special education. to guarantee a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for 3. Revamping the ordering of equipment process. students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment (LRE). FAPE and LRE are the protected rights of every eligible 4. Transportation needs to be immediately child, in all fifty states and U.S. Territories. privatized from the US mainland. IDEA requires every state to issue regulations that guide the im- 5. The need to transform special education plementation of the federal law within the state. At a minimum, state regulations must provide all of the protections contained in IDEA. Some states may have additional requirements that go beyond the federal law. Many states offer handbooks or guides to help parents understand these state-specific policies and procedures.(ref:http://ncld.org/disability-advocacy/learn-ld-laws/i dea/what-is-idea)

The urgent need for quality identiﬁcation and compliance

Puerto Rico seems to have a special education student mis- identiﬁcation problem. Recently, U.S. District Judge José A. Fusté has lashed out at the Puerto Rico Education Department,

 iBooks Author saying it isn’t a “secret” that the island’s public school system is Public and private college and universities can take a lead on “deficient, incomplete, shameful, negligent, regrettable and dis- this crusade to help parents of special education students get honorable.”. trained periodically and also monitor and deliver special serv- Ref:http://www.caribbeanbusiness.pr/news/fuste-pr-public-scho ices. The law does not force services to be given only in ols-shameful-100873.html schools. Services can be conducted in the least restrictive environment. Puerto Rico is the state champion of special education non compliance. The amount of discrimination, abandonment, abuse, The non compliance and law violations continue due to the lack lack of attention, ignorance, ineptitude, disorganized, top heavy of information, convoluted top heavy administration and the administration, lack of reasonable accommodations, ramps, spe- practically non service delivery to all students. cial equipment and a mile more gives Puerto Rico Department For example, the deaf people in Puerto Rico are supposed to of Education this shameful prize. have by law interpreters available in all government agencies, Recently,the federal agency flagged delays in the delivery of hospitals, banks, parks, and many others. As a result, deaf stu- learning technology such as computers and microphones to as- dents are that last ones to find out whats going on, they usually sist students with special needs. Ref: are late for any services available to them. http://www.caribbeanbusinesspr.com/news/federal-govt-faults-p It is extremely urgent that the US Department of Education stop r-special-education-100197.html funding to the Puerto Rico State Department of Education until The crisis echoes the marathon class-action case filed by in immediate takeover happens. They must reassign on a emer- 1980 by Rosa Lydia Vélez, the parent of a special education re- gency basis all Special Education Services in Puerto Rico. The cipient daughter who filed suit against the commonwealth gov- US Department of Education must hire an outside non political ernment in federal court because of the lack of services. That agency to deliver services without the top heavy central admini- case led to hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines for the Edu- stration and corrupt system it is faced with at this time. It is not cation Department for non-compliance with improvements stipu- believed that the state at this time can run a special education lated in court-brokered accords. program.

 iBooks Author If funds are or have been misused, then the state must be held other beneﬁts. Staff that is involved in the certiﬁcation of spe- accountable in federal court so that they return each dollar to cial education students must be investigated and monitored. the federal government to mitigate these damages to all stu- Psychologists, therapists, social workers and medical profes- dents. sionals must be monitored for a sudden high increase in special

Revamping The Equipment Ordering Process

Since the equipment needs are needed for children to learn in the classroom, it is required by law that such equipment is ordered and delivered quickly directly to the students classroom. Our experience has been that this process usually takes months and sometimes years.

As a result, students cannot learn and are punished because of the extremely slow and inefﬁcient system that is in place.

When a critical problem like this exists and its identiﬁed, usually the central ofﬁce administrators order an internal audit. Then, after several months of investigative paperwork, nothing happens and the same discriminatory practice continues.

Transportation of Special Education Students Needs to be Transformed and Monitored 24/7

The need for recruitment of special education students by a edu- trusted source is imperative. We believe that Special Education cation student identification areas in the Island. students have been mis identified for the sole purpose of the At this moment, this issue is debatable since, the majority of the schools districts to receive more funding. Other are identified so special education student data is on paper and it is just starting that they can get free transportation, payments to parents and 38

 iBooks Author to be included in an electronic form. We invite the federal moni- It is interesting to note that the special education student popula- tors to cross reference the increase in identiﬁcation and study tion shift has decreased overall in the United States mainland. the patterns of this huge sudden funding increase for services This is also a statistic that is at odds with the Puerto Rico De- at the school level but that is not being done. The percentage of partment of Education system. students is more than double of any state of the union. Its was http://www.edexcellencemedia.net/publications/2011/20110525 26.7% of all students in the year 2011 as compared to 13.1% in _ShiftingTrendsinSpecialEducation/ShiftingTrendsinSpecialEdu the rest of the nation . http://febp.newamerica.net/k12/PR cation.pdf

This chart shows which special education disability categories have the largest and smallest percentages of students. The data is from the 2011-2012 school year, and it covers children ages 3-21. The categories deaf-blindness, traumatic brain in- jury, and visual impairments are removed from the chart because they cover less than 1 percent of students. Image from

 iBooks Author the National Center for Education Statistics.The Special Educa- Ref:http://www.edexcellencemedia.net/publications/2011/20110 tion Student Types reported are also interesting factors to be 525_ShiftingTrendsinSpecialEducation/ShiftingTrendsinSpecial seen. The following brake down is also very different from what Education.pdf we see in the Island of Puerto Rico.

We need more accurate accounting 24/7 because of all the medical risks students take by participating in the public Special Education Due Process is Brutal schools system. Accurate accounting of state, district, and local It is incredibly difficult to comprehend why people are not pro- school-level spending on special education simply does not ex- testing and suing in federal court about the lack of fast and fair ist. special education services in the Puerto Rico public school sys- Second, we need more rigorous studies of special-education tem. The author has observed that all the situations and prob- spending and services and their relationship to student achieve- lems have been documented. Then, there is an investigation ment. conducted by the state central office that may take more time to solve the the original problem. Third, we need better understanding of what’s driving the recent decrease in the number of students identified for services in the The request for services are so confusing that many parents US but in Puerto Rico they have increased 100%. are discouraged from requesting them. Many times they decide to move to another school district area or to the US mainland Special education, like general education, needs a makeover trying to find a better and faster system. The lack of urgency is for the twenty-first century. Its service models, instructional- intensified by the lack of information parents receive about their strategies, funding, identification methods, disability definitions, child’s condition and how it could improve. IEP protocols, and so on, no longer serve the needs of truly dis- abled youngsters. But we can’t get there until we peel back the It has been noticed that many special education children are layers of financial and operational opacity that currently shroud placed in the classroom without any assistance or helper for the the field and hinder our efforts to make it more transparent, effi- regular classroom teacher. This leaves the already overworked cient, and effective in the future. teacher with another student who needs individualized attention

 iBooks Author but he most wait in line with other 30 students for the teachers nial jobs for the school director is not going to increase the aca- help. demic capacity of special education children.

If there are students with severe conditions, teachers are forced Assisted technology must be put in place to bring new ideas to provide a day care environment instead of an educational en- and content to the special education classroom. Special educa- vironment. Teachers have testified to the author that equipment tion teachers must be trained not only on what to use in the is not provided on time, training for all special education teach- classroom but how to use technology to provide a rich educa- ers is very scarce and teacher morale is extremely low. tion environment other than a DVD player and a powerpoint presentation. Be aware of spending large amounts for money The special education services in school seem to be more of a on electronic boards that are later used as bulletin boards be- paper and records referral service than a real educational envi- cause nobody knows how to use it. ronment where children go to learn. It appears that the state is receiving the Special Education funding for identification but no Ref: student services are given. http://www.de.gobierno.pr/files/PRDE_FFY_2011_APR-1de2.pd f Special Education Student 2009-2010 dropout rates in high schools reported a 41.59%.This is extremely high as compared To reach the PEI rules manual please follow this address: with the rest of the states of the union. The lack of followup pro- http://tecnovirtualpr.com/educacion/index.php/repositorio/finish/ grams to help reduce this percentage of dropouts and other 102-recursos/666-manual-pei-2-17-2014 services may be the reason why dropout rates continue to increase.

Once again, the need for transforming and monitoring the Spe- cial education budget allocations and expenditures is urgent. A signiﬁcant increase from the same funding received for Special Education must be given directly to help the students and the classroom. Quickly hiring extra help as a caregiver or to be in charge of purchasing materials with a credit card and doing me-

 iBooks Author 42

 iBooks Author Politics - The Virus of Public Education

4  iBooks Author Musical Chairs Game Every 4 Years For decades politics have become the Ebola virus of local public education. It is a fact that some teachers are moved in the Puerto Rico is a very small Island with a very large and ex- middle of a semester because of a political move or influence in tremely slow government. According to some teachers inter- the school. To immunize schools from such virus the author rec- viewed, the state public education central system is the refugee ommends banning any political influence that has to do with camp for inept politicians and their followers. Because, jobs are teacher hiring, placement or promotion. used as a consolation prizes for working during the latest political campaign. As part of the new restructuring, directors and superintendents must immunize the systems from any political virus. This may Puerto Rico state secretaries of public education have changed be done by training staff on how to handle such ingrained situa- over 10 times in six years. This alone has a lot to say about tions. Hiring of school teachers must come from the local continuity of programs and effective policy making. One of the school staff, parents and community. Long term contracts must state secretaries is still in jail because of illegal misuse of funds. be in place to prevent politicians from pushing good teachers Ref: from their jobs and negatively affecting the students. http://www.puertorico.com/forums/politics/11544-lying-estadista- Politics are great if we start using them to help the children. goes-jail.html Many politicians are working hard to crack the marble wall at As a recipient and product of public education the author has their own expense and results. been a witness of the recent changes and debacle of the system. Many blame each other for the service and administrative deficiencies at different levels of this huge dumping ground.

Every four years all central ofﬁce staff changes from top to bottom. Directors, teachers, staff and all employees are affected by the earthquake of changes. Some are even ﬁred for being in the wrong political party.

 iBooks Author Great Teachers with Straight Jackets

5  iBooks Author No Teacher Left Behind days - frequently absent - and 16%, nearly 1 in 6, were gone 18 days or more, called chronically absent in this report. Nine dis- Abraham Lincoln once remarked, The dogmas of the tricts had more than half of their teachers absent for more than quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The oc- two weeks of the school year. casion is piled high with difﬁculty, and we must rise with http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/03/teacher the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think s-attendance-study/9889949 anew and act anew. Indeed more research on the effects of teacher absenteeism is Ref: A. Lincoln, Second annual message to needed. This factor is one that has been given great attention in Congress, December 1, 1862, (retrieved August 16, 'Straight-Jacket' for Teacher Education

2005) Teacher education in Puerto Rico is in dire need of reform, according to a major report released September 29 by Teachers http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/2010028.pdf College, Columbia University.

According to the three-year study, ﬁnanced by the General Teachers are Absent too Many Times! Council of Education in Puerto Rico, the curriculum and teaching strategies of education schools on the Island require major The US is the country were teachers are absent the most of changes. The study blames obsolete and restrictive govern- times. The USA Today reports that and average of 11 times. ment policies towards teacher education for a large share of the problems confronting teacher-education institutions. In many districts, a signiﬁcant percentage of teachers exceeded that number: 28% of teachers overall were absent 11 to 17 According to Francisco L. Rivera-Batiz, director of the study and professor at Teachers College, "the rigid structure of the 46

 iBooks Author teacher certiﬁcation requirements in Puerto Rico constitutes a straightjacket for the teacher education programs."

Certification requirements include long lists of credits, courses and topics that the prospective teacher must fulfill. As a result, Rivera-Batiz said, "schools of education are left with very little flexibility to innovate. A major reform of public policies towards teacher education is required."

In addition to a reform of teacher certiﬁcation requirements, the study also proposes that the Island introduce a system of intern- ships for teachers. "The idea of an internship is to counter the isolation teachers encounter when they start their ﬁrst year in the classroom," said Rivera-Batiz, who was born in Puerto Rico.

"Such isolation is the key force in teacher attrition and burnout during their early years in schools." The number of teacher education programs in Puerto Rico has increased rapidly over the last 20 years. http://www.tc.columbia.edu/news.htm?articleId=2650 http://www.uv.es/unipsico/pdf/CESQT/Externos/2011_Mercado_ y_Noyola.pdf

 iBooks Author Section 1

The Issues Low Expectations Recently, while providing a school teacher training, the author has been a direct witness to the low expectations climate experienced by public school teachers. The systems that keep pushing low performing students from one grade to another grade without having the skills only frustrates and morally destroys teachers ﬁber to continue working. It is amassing that every teacher knows that there is a rule that prohibits students from Urgent Factors That Hinder Transformation passing from one grade to another if they have 2 F’s in their report card. This Department of Education letters or school rule is 1. Low Expectations not being followed according to local school teachers.

2. Standardized Tests and the Misuse of Data For a public school teacher to bring up the issues of student 3. Teacher Involvement abandonment is considered a motive to either transfer the teacher of cancel their contract. So, the only option teachers 4. Teachers Unions have is to stay silent in the system and be part of the sad student rip off center. Teachers have also mentioned that they can write a student behavior report or high absenteeism referral to the school social worker but it only becomes part of the huge packet with 1300 hundred more cases. This is because there may be only one social worker for the entire school district. To expect immediate action and follow up is just not real. To call the state department of social services may be also very slow with very little results.

 iBooks Author In todays Puerto Rico some parents are less involved in their The governor’s of Puerto Rico recently ordered the Education students education because they believe that teachers and Department and Family Department to jointly design and imple- schools have to teach regardless of how the student arrives to ment a protocol aimed at compelling parents to share educa- the classroom. But when the same student is absent for 20 tional responsibilities with their children’s schools. Otherwise, days in a row, is tardy 50 days and also has behavior problems, they will lose or stop their food stamps and free health care as- it makes it almost impossible to have a proper learning environ- sistance all together. ment for all children. Ref: http://www.caribbeanbusinesspr.com/news/order-aims-to-involv e-parents-in-school-87116.html State Standardized Tests - A Waste of Time and Money

To give a State Standardized test to all public schools students has been an extremely high cost burden on all public school personnel. Student negative test taking culture is a great hindering The impact of Puerto Rico local economic conditions may have factor that negatively affects test student standardized test hindered or augmented the desperate condition of poor parents scores. Heavily needed school instructional time and weeks of who may not have completed high school.These are hidden sta- educational motivation are lost in preparing and taking standard- tistics that need to surface and be taken immediate action. ized tests.

Public schools parental participation is at a record low. The data State Standardized Test cost millions of dollars because they showing that just 30 percent of parents of public school stu- are purchased from private corporations from the USA. Year af- dents picked up their children’s grades while just only 10 per- ter year kids keep ﬂunking and doing worse. It is suspected that cent attend school meetings is a horrible statistic with hidden factors such as lack of time to learn, teacher pressure to cover cultural messages. material, student motivation to take and pass the test, student 49

 iBooks Author reading comprehension problems, high numbers of special edu- achievement. Many school systems around the word use this cation children not served and others are factors that directly af- approach and are getting better scores that the schools in the fect and provoke low test scores. United States mainland.

Every year students do worse in the academic subjects of Mathematics, Science, English and Spanish.

Some of the effects that hinder student performance are the following:

1. Large number of school holidays.

2. Teacher absenteeism without substitutes to cover the slack.

3. Lack of student monitoring.

4. Passing students without having the proper skills.

5. Lack of parental involvement.

6. Teacher burnout.

7. Student absenteeism without consequences.

8. A rigid core curriculum without teacher input.

The author recommends that local standardized state tests are developed locally by only working school teachers at a fraction of a cost and the same be aligned with all material covered by state goals and objectives. It is also recommended that multiple ways of assessment be used as a way to measure student 50

 iBooks Author Section 2 New Flexibility Plan

What is the Flexibility Plan for Schools? The Obama administration recently approved the Common- wealth of Puerto Rico for a waiver from No Child Left Behind (NCLB), in exchange for locally-developed plans to prepare all students for college and career, focus aid on the neediest students, and support effective teaching and leadership.

"Forty two states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia can't wait any longer for education reform” said U.S. Education Secre- tary Arne Duncan. "A strong, bipartisan reauthorization of the This means that the government of Puerto Rico has promised Elementary and Secondary Education Act remains the best to have a local plan to serve as a quick and more flexible solu- path forward in education reform, but as these states have dem- tion for students that are being left behind. So far, the state de- onstrated, our kids can't wait any longer for Congress to act." partment of education has prepared a new curriculum, new monthly plans models, new academic unit objectives for Math, In order to obtain the flexibility plan, the Department of Educa- Science, English and Spanish based on a soup of sources that tion of Puerto Rico has committed to institute locally-developed are supposed to help Puerto Rico students improve and learn strategies to prepare students for their academic and profes- the required skills. It is also tailor made with the local state sional careers, help students in need, and support effective tests that will be given in the future. teaching and leadership. Ref:http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/obama-administrati on-approves-nclb-flexibility-request-puerto-rico

 iBooks Author Ref: http://www.de.gobierno.pr/files/ResumenFlexibility.pdf Flexibility does not mean to supplant funding. Flexibility does not mean that all funding will be used to create new administra- How did Puerto Rico get the No Child Left Behind Flexibil- tive positions and leave students with no direct learning serv- ity Waiver? ices. The author worries that all the monitoring for compliance, To get flexibility from NCLB, Puerto Rico must adopt and have a training teachers, directors, and staff for this flexibility plan will plan to implement college and career-ready standards. They consume millions of significant federal and state dollars that are must also create comprehensive systems of teacher and princi- for teaching public school students. pal development, evaluation and support that include factors be- This flexibility plan will only extend the time local school sys- yond test scores, such as principal observation, peer review, tems have to improve student achievement scores and hope- student work, or parent and student feedback. fully close the gap of poor family student performance. Most of The questions are many when it comes to who will be in charge the issues that have been factors that hinder a child's education of monitoring immediately change, and corrective action for do not require extra money. It just requires applying all rules those who take the money simply won’t do anything and regulations that are in place.

States receiving waivers no longer have to meet 2014 targets Just start by keeping back the student and don’t pass the stu- set by NCLB but they must set new performance targets for im- dents who receive an F in their mathematics and science proving student achievement and closing achievement gaps. classes. Teachers have confessed to be afraid of parents and They also must have accountability systems that recognize and directors who will somehow retaliate violently and also complain reward high-performing schools and those that are making sig- to the school administration who will pass the child eventually, nificant gains, while targeting rigorous and comprehensive inter- because they have the authority to change the final grade and- ventions for the lowest-performing schools. Under the state- pass the child. developed plans, all schools will develop and implement plans for improving educational outcomes for underperforming sub- groups of students. State plans will require continued transpar- ency around achievement gaps, but will provide schools and districts greater flexibility in how they spend Title I federal dollars.

 iBooks Author Section 3 Textbooks and Instructional

Start Using Locally Produced Less Expensive Electronic Textbooks Teachers can develop their own electronic books for a fraction of what it costs to purchase outside private corporation produced books. For example, in Finland, some teachers decided to produce Every child gets their own book (free) to keep and write in. something a little sooner: There are extra extension and support pages - there is home- work - and it's so good. Why can't we have something like this? A group of Finnish mathematics researchers, teachers and stu- Oh yes, and Finnish children do FAR better than English chil- dents write an upper secondary mathematics textbook in a dren at maths in international league tables. Oh yes, and booksprint. The event started on Friday 28th September at 9:00 teachers are highly respected and well-paid. Sigh.Countries like (GMT+3) and the book will be (hopefully) ready on Sunday eve- Mexico, Argentina and Finland produce their own locally pro- ning. duced text books. Ref: https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20121003/07482720580/califo rnia-to-commission-50-open-textbooks-2013-ﬁnnish-teachers-w rite-one-weekend.shtml

 iBooks Author Native students rarely ﬁnd local scenes or examples of any kind. The Island has caves, rain forests, native indian parks, plants and wild life, and exotic places that could be integrated in Start Using Cellphones in the Classroom the new teacher developed books. Plus, the content could be Ken Halla knows a thing or two about using technology in the updated quickly without having to purchase new paper books classroom. every year.

All student could have their local teachers electronic text books free of charge and have access to them 24/7. Almost every student has a cellphone making reading materials in- stantly available without being restricted by school building lack of internet signal. http://www.ﬁlmsandphotos.net/galleries/virtual_tour_galleries/po nce_inlet_lighthouse360

It is necessary that Puerto Rico take ownership for its education and start thinking and working out of the box. Public school systems have terriﬁc teachers ready to write more efﬁcient, cultur- ally relevant and motivating books for the public school system. Not only will this change in education produce millions in sav- ings but also will boost teachers morale knowing that books are developed by their colleagues.

 iBooks Author For the past 5 years, the 22-year teaching veteran has worked •as a tool for collecting evidence of student work to transition his ninth-grade World History and AP Government through photographs and video recordings. Polling responses classrooms into a mobile device-friendly environment where stu- were collected at both www.wifﬁti.com and dents can incorporate the latest technology into the learning www.polleverywhere.com. Both these sites allow for the collec- process. Ref: http://www.nea.org/tools/56274.htm tion of anonymous responses from students.

Students and teachers must start using their cellphones for instruction. Since the wiﬁ signal is absent from public schools and those that are available are blocked, students must start using Seven tips for using mobile technology with suc- their own cellphone to access data, readings and educational cess material. It may also be used to send questions to the teacher. Integrating technology into the classroom is a long-term strat- Ref: egy. If it’s to be sustainable, the following points should be con- http://www.ernweb.com/educational-research-articles/high_sch sidered. ool_integrating_cell_phones_in_classroom_math_class 1.As a teacher, you need to engage with mobile technol- One of the key decisions for teachers who want to use cell ogy yourself, before you can start to implement it into class- phones is to select a few roles for the cell phone from the dizzy- room practice. ing array of possibilities, write George Engle, a teacher at Clark- stown High School South in West Nyack, NY, and co-author, 2.To make sure students don’t get distracted by social Tim Green, professor of educational technology at California media, set clear learning objectives. Find creative ways to use State University at Fullerton, CA, in TechTrends. social media within lesson plans. Consider how mobile technology can be used for extension activities. ‘Why don’t you post an In this pilot program, cell phones were used in the classroom in image of your work on your Facebook page?’, is more engaging 3 major ways: than ‘We don’t use Facebook in this class’.

•As an audience response system (polling) 3.If your school does not have a mobile learning policy, you need one for your class before you begin. •as a research tool 55

 iBooks Author 4.Do some research. It takes a lot of time to find rele- be free to connect to this universe of knowledge 24/7. In the vant, suitable apps. There is no moderation process in place, past libraries would close and students could not access knowl- so even with paid apps, it is difficult to know whether or not they edge or complete their assignments. Student and teachers may are suitable. access content using new ways of learning with video, audio, demonstration lessons coming from any country around the 5.Don’t overwhelm your class with technology. Learn- world. This could be shared with other students. For example, ers often fail to recognize the benefits of technology for lan- students can access a virtual tour of an art museum in Europe guage learning. So it helps to introduce apps and mobile learn- thousands of miles away. They could also virtually dissect a ing activities one at a time. Then, as a group, you can reflect on frog and learn biology without having to kill an animal. Many whether they are useful. high schools are now using virtual chemistry labs to learn about 6.If you do not have enough time to use mobile devices the elements and their properties. They can mix substances vir- in class, think how they could be used for informal learning out- tually and see the reaction, change in color and temperature side the classroom. Your students will benefit from the results of without any cost to schools or any danger to the student. this extra practice when they’re back in the formal classroom.

7. Read point number 1 again.

Ref: http://www.karenwalstraconsulting.com/home/index.php?ipkArti cleID=37

Free Access to Educational Material at Any Time

Internet technology provides access to millions of resources that are produced and edited every day. Resources are produced by people around the world and shared for free.School teachers can produce educational video lessons and upload them to youtube for all students to use and learn. Schools must 56

 iBooks Author totally free. Our schools can wake up and do the same if teachers are given the freedom to do so.

The local state government is asking for ﬂexibility from the US government ofﬁcials are getting more conservative and restrictive with the teachers who deliver content. This troglodyte approach to education will be forced to change if it wants to compete in a world market.

Incredible Applications for Mobile Devices

To teach out of just one textbook is to rip off the students and keep them from interesting and exciting ways of learning. Many third world countries are already using the internet to have teachers come in live virtually for free from other countries by using applications such as Ustream or Livestream. Materials and reading coming from mulltiple updated sources content is

 iBooks Author The program Amazing Earth is one of the best for children of all ages. It provides the student with a 3D picture of the earth that can be zoomed in and clicked for speciﬁc information about any place on earth. The potential for programs like these is enor- mous. It is also a great way of motivatiing students to search and participate in class. Ref: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ru.gonorovsky.kv.l ivewall.earthhd http://www.3planesoft.com/mac/earth-3d-amazing-atlas

 iBooks Author Substitute

"We ought to be looking at professionalizing substitute teachers to make sure kids are experiencing high-quality instruction throughout their time in school," said Linda Davin, a senior policy analyst at the National Education Association, which has been studying efforts around the country to professionalize, support, and better compensate substitute teachers for a forthcoming brief.http:// www.edweek.org/ew/articles/ 2012/07/18/36substitutes_ep.h31.ht ml

6  iBooks Author Section 1

http://www2.pr.gov/presupuestos/Budget_2012_2013/Aprobado P. of C.260 Create 2013Ingles/suppdocs/baselegal_ingles/081/081.pdf a Substitute http://www.lexjuris.com/leyorg/lexeduca.htm

The Law is in place Since 2009 it has ben proposed to amend the original Organic Law of Education to allow a pool of substitute teachers with the purpose of mitigating the increase in teacher absenteeism. This behavior not only keeps students from receiving instruction, it also helps the system with the growing number of dropout rates due to lack of attention. http://senado.pr.gov/Proyectos%20del%20Senado/pc0260-ta.p df http://www.google.com.pr/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=w Every day hundreds of students are left without no teacher and eb&cd=2&ved=0CCcQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.oslpr.or without a substitute to keep up with the learning pace they need g%2Fﬁles%2Fdocs%2F%257B6F08FAF1-9127-45EA-AEC5-45 for graduation. 3B604C8111%257D.doc&ei=7B4zVL-pJeOHsQS9p4HYAg&us g=AFQjCNF-_FU57uViu6V6vtWn7tcZj4Jivg&bvm=bv.76802529 A Quick Solution ,d.cWc Develop and pass a new law that favors student learning. This must be done before all students drop out of school.

 iBooks Author Section 2

of how back logged is the group. Students must follow or leave. Teachers are Most of them decide to leave after 5th grade.

Teacher salaries are very low for all the work they have to do Burned during the week and after school. This may include home visits to the students in need of extra attention.

Teachers are Burned After frustration and day to day frustration teachers have become burned. Teachers do not have any autonomy to decide what to teach or provide individualized attention to 30 students who may need extra help.

Teachers are sick, the stress levels are getting worse everyday. Most teachers have said that they have no control over what Teachers in Puerto Rico have to continue teaching regardless happens in school and that politics drive all decision making.

 iBooks Author 62

 iBooks Author Bullying and Sexting

PULLING SOMEONE DOWN WILL NEVER HELP YOU REACH THE TOP. Kushandwizdom

7  iBooks Author School Bullies are not allowed time. Both kids who are bullied and who bully others may have serious, lasting problems.

In order to be considered bullying, the behavior must be aggressive and include:

•An Imbalance of Power: Kids who bully use their power—such as physical strength, access to embarrassing information, or popularity—to control or harm others. Power imbal- ances can change over time and in different situations, even if they involve the same people.

•Repetition: Bullying behaviors happen more than once or have the potential to happen more than once. Introduction Bullying includes actions such as making threats, spreading ru- There has been an increase of events of school violence in mors, attacking someone physically or verbally, and excluding Puerto Rican schools which have generated an interest in un- someone from a group on purpose. derstanding factors contributing to aggressive behaviors. The What is Cyber Bullying? number of threats, minor assaults, and aggravated assaults inci- dents in schools has risen in the last three years as reported by According to the most recent deﬁnitions, Cyber Bullying is using the Puerto Rico Police Department (www.tendenciaspr.com) the Internet, cell phones, video game systems, or other technology to send or post text or images intended to hurt or embar- What is Bullying? rass another person. It is also deﬁned as acts of aggression Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior among school aged through computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices” children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The (Jackson & Cohen, 2012). behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over

 iBooks Author It has been reported that Puerto Rico is on the top of Cyber Bul- states that Morales may be the author of previous hate mes- lying search results according to this source: sages as well. http://www.google.com.eg/trends/explore?q=cyberbullying#q=c Cyber Bullying can happen across several mediums such as yberbullying&cmpt=geo&geo=PR Online Social Networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, For the past year, there were around 240,000 Cyber Bullying re- Youtube, MySpace and various other networks lated searches stemming from Puerto Rico. Meaning, more peo- Instant Messaging (IMs) and Text messaging ple from that region are looking for deﬁnitions and help related to Cyber Bullying. Email

According to StopBullying.gov, Puerto Rico already released a Chat rooms/ forums/blogs law against Bullying and harassment but without mention of cyber bullying. As for school bullying, Schools that receive federal Online Games funding are required by federal law to address discrimination on The spectrum of Cyber Bullying actions is very wide. Famous a number of different personal characteristics. Puerto Rico’s examples related to cyber bullying statistics 2014 are: public schools are contained in a single district that publishes a Student Code of Conduct that doesn’t focus much on Cyber Bul- Harassment lying. Stalking In a more recent piece of news on Cyber Bullying in 2013, a local man was arrested for allegedly sending a threatening tweet Rumor Spreading from Puerto Rico. According to news sites, Joseph Morales was Disclosure/sharing of personal information of others without taken into custody by the FBI on a charge of cyberbullying. He their consent threatened a gay activist through a post on Twitter and made a reference to the Boston Marathon bombing. The man threat- Exclusion/ Ostracism ened, Pedro Julio Serrano, claimed to not know Morales, but Heated Exchanges

 iBooks Author Defaming, Belittling, or Mocking Check the Cyberbullying and bullying statistics 2014 we have gathered for you. Impersonating According to EU Kids Online, a poll conducted in February The New Year has arrived and here at NoBullying.com, that 2013 shows the following: means one essential thing. It is time for Cyberbullying and Bully- ing Statistics 2014. Pornographic content tops the ranking of risks named by children in relation to the internet (22% of risks mentioned first by When gathering bullying statistics 2014, we always look at ma- children). jor polls published worldwide and covering a big number of participants, we always look at the major trends and shifts in cyber- Violent and aggressive content is the second most common bullying and bullying worldwide. concern identified by children (18% of first mentioned risks). Some of the key things we noticed when searching for bullying Also, Ditch the Label, released its annual cyberbullying report statistics 2014 are the following: and here are some of the key bullying statistics 2014 covered. 1.Most Children showed more worry about Pornogra- Note: more than 10,000 youths were surveyed. phy and Violence shared on all social networks as well as pop- up ads and phishing. ▪7 in 10 young people are victims of cyberbullying.

2.More children are showing knowledge and under- ▪37% of them are experiencing cyberbullying on a standing of what cyberbullying and bullying entails, although a highly frequent basis. big percentage still expressed not knowing enough on how to ﬁght it or prevent it. ▪20% of young people are experiencing extreme cyberbullying on a daily basis. 3.Less children are expressing feelings of low self esteem and bigger percentage of them are expressing the desire ▪New research suggests that young males and fe- to remain survivors and winners in the battle against bullying males are equally at risk of cyberbullying. and cyberbullying.

 iBooks Author ▪Young people found to be twice as likely to be cyber ◦Name-calling bullied on Facebook as on any other social network. ◦Inappropriate sexual comments ▪54% of young people using Facebook reported that ◦Taunting they have experienced cyberbullying on the social network. ◦Threatening to cause harm ▪Facebook, Ask.FM and Twitter found to be the most likely sources of cyberbullying, being the highest in trafﬁc of all •Social bullying, sometimes referred to as relational social networks. bullying, involves hurting someone’s reputation or relationships. Social bullying includes: ▪Cyberbullying found to have catastrophic effects upon the self-esteem and social lives of up to 70% of young ◦Leaving someone out on purpose people. ◦Telling other children not to be friends with someone ▪An estimated 5.43 million young people in the UK have experienced cyberbullying, with 1.26 million subjected to ◦Spreading rumors about someone extreme cyberbullying on a daily basis. ◦Embarrassing someone in public Ref: •Physical bullying involves hurting a person’s body or http://nobullying.com/cyberbullying-bullying-statistics-2014-ﬁnall possessions. Physical bullying includes: y ◦Hitting/kicking/pinching Types of Bullying ◦Spitting There are three types of bullying: ◦Tripping/pushing •Verbal bullying is saying or writing mean things. Ver- bal bullying includes: ◦Taking or breaking someone’s things

◦Teasing ◦Making mean or rude hand gestures

 iBooks Author suspect your teen is sexting, you should talk to them about the dangers of sending out pictures.

Sexting is the new thing In most states, teens caught with "sexting pictures" on their phones can actually be charged with possession of child porn - What is sexting? even if they themselves are under 18, and sometimes even if the images are of themselves. The word is a mix of ‘sex and ‘texting’. ‘Sexting’ is sending ‘sexy’ texts. The texts may be words or images. Sexting with pic- It's also a good idea to remind your teen that those images can tures has probably been around as long as mobile phones have be permanent. It may seem fun and risky to send sexy pictures had the ability to take photos and send and receive images. to a current boyfriend, but what happens if the relationship Sexting occurs not only on mobile phones, but on Skype and ends? Can that person really be trusted not to do anything with social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flickr, those images? It's not a chance your teen should take. Tumblr and Snapchat etc. Ref: Some Sexting Slang Terms are the following http://www.kidshelp.com.au/teens/get-info/hot-topics/sexting.ph p 143 I love you

Sexting is deﬁned by www.noslang.com as the act of sending GYPO Get your pants off sexually explicit messages or images between cell phones. It's the modern equivalent of what we older people used to call GNOC Get Naked on Cam phone sex. Sexting is a combination of the words "sex" and "tex- PIR Parent in Room ting" and originated in the early 200's as teens became equipped with camera phones. Unlike phone sex however, sex- The rest are too graphic to mention in this publication. ting leaves very little to the imagination. Sexting Statistics Sexting is a natural progression among teens who are curious about sex and sexuality - but it can have consequences. If you The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, The Pew Internet & American Life Project and the Cox Communications 68

 iBooks Author Teen Online & Wireless Safety Survey have reported some in- tures and explicit messages you send could become grounds teresting statistics. for a criminal record and prison time.

Percent of teens who have sent or posted nude or semi-nude For teens, the consequences of sexting are the same for adults photos or videos of themselves: • 20% of teens overall • 22% of in most states, but could also prevent students from receiving teen girls • 18% of teen boys • 11% of young teen girls between college scholarships, job offers, in addition to the embarrass- the ages 13-16 Percent of teens that sent sexually suggestive ment of having your nude photographs ﬂoating around the Inter- messages via text, email or instant messaging: • 39% of all net. teens • 37% of teen girls • 40% of teen boys • 48% of teens say Know the laws in your state and protect yourself from serious they have received such messages - See more at: prosecution for sexting: http://www.guardchild.com/teenage-sexting-statistics/#sthash.6 bE3WB4A.dpuf Advice for Young People

Think about the consequences of taking, sending, or forwarding a sexual picture of yourself or someone else underage. You could get kicked off of sports teams, face humiliation, lose educational opportunities, and even get in trouble with the law.

Never take images of yourself that you wouldn’t want everyo- ne—your classmates, your teachers, your family, or your em- ployers—to see.

Before hitting send, remember that you cannot control where this image may travel. What you send to a boyfriend or girl- friend easily could end up with their friends, and their friends, and their friends. While sexting might seem like innocent ﬂirtation, the nude pic-

 iBooks Author If you forward a sexual picture of someone underage, you are face harassment because of her inappropriate behavior? Who as responsible for this image as the original sender. You could is harassing her, and are charges warranted against them? The face child pornography charges, go to jail, and have to register answers to these questions can help indicate if the subject of as a sex offender. the image is a true victim in every sense of the word.

Report any nude pictures you receive on your cell phone to an Although, perhaps, not in the image, the youth offender some- adult you trust. Do not delete the message. Instead, get your how took part in the juvenile sexting. His actions could include parents or guardians, teachers, and school counselors involved soliciting the picture or actively participating in creating, pos- immediately. sessing, receiving, or distributing the image. Did he request the picture, or did someone just send it to him? Did he keep it or forward it on? Why? To embarrass or harass the victim? What is Source: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, or was the relationship between the youth offender and victim? Tips to Prevent Sexting; How old are they, and what is the age difference between http://ncmec.vo.llnwd.net/o15/downloads/special/Sexting_Preve them? It may be a mitigating factor where there is little or no dis- ntion.pdf (accessed July 6, 2009). parity in age. However, if the offender is significantly older (e.g., a 15-year-old with pictures of an 8-year-old), authorities have Offenders serious misconduct issues to address. Has the perpetrator par- ticipated in similar misconduct in the past? Consideration of While an adult’s active involvement in juvenile sexting always these factors can help investigators and prosecutors decide the should result in the strong consideration of charges, cases in- proper course of action, such as no charges, diversion, or for- volving only youths may call for a different, more fluid approach. mal charges (sex or nonsex offense). To this end, investigators should analyze the subject of the images, the victim. How old is the victim? Did she know about the Prevention photograph? Did the victim take it herself without the encourage- ment or direct participation of any other person? Did she for- As the first line of defense against this problem, law enforce- ward the picture to anyone? What is the age difference be- ment personnel and educators should provide regular presenta- tween the victim and the recipient of the image? Does she now tions—and numerous excellent information sources exist to draw from—to young people on Internet safety and the reper- 70

 iBooks Author cussions of inappropriate online behavior. Digital images do not deteriorate over time and easily can spread worldwide. Youths need to understand that what they do online may have a very long existence. Such presentations can help minimize or prevent future occurrences of juvenile sexting. They also can be used as a component in developing diversion programs.

For Additional Information

U.S. Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood, http://www.projectsafechildhood.gov/

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, http://www.ncmec.org/

High Technology Crime Investigation Association Internet Safety for Children Campaign, http://www.htcia.org/isfc/

 iBooks Author Drugs and Violence in Schools

“Drugs are a waste of time. They destroy your memory and your self-respect and everything that goes along with your self esteem.” ― Kurt Cobain

8  iBooks Author Section 1

up everyday to the reality of having to maintain an addiction, to Drugs Come in But some of the most dangerous substances.

One of the island’s most common drugs, mainly for being Don’t Go Out cheaper than others and producing a strong high effect, is Xy- lazine, better known as horse tranquilizer. This new medication, introduced in the early 2000 is primarily produced to be used by veterinarians as an anesthetic for dental work or castration in Zombie Island horses. On an island where the economy is manipulated by drugs, and hundreds of thousands of residents have consumed or are currently consuming addictive substances, it might not come as a surprise that Puerto Rico has been described as “the new front door of the war on drugs”, or “the backdoor to America.”

The island's strategic localization, its multiple rich ports, in addition to its commonwealth political status and relationship to the United States, serve drug cartels from South America and the Caribbean, as the perfect trampoline to the mainland. Since the Island is an easy place for boats, planes and other small means of transportation sometimes people and drugs are smuggled from Dominican Republic or Haiti.Ref: http://www.justice.gov/archive/ndic/dmas/PR-VI_DMA-2011(U). pdf

But the drug doesn’t just travel out of the island; it also stays inside affecting residents every year. Thousands of people wake

 iBooks Author On a recent episode of National Geographic Channel's "Drugs Inc." these Xylazine drug addicts were labeled as sleep walking zombies, living on a zombie island. Ref:

http://www.hufﬁngtonpost.com/2013/01/04/puerto-rico-drug-addi ction_n_2411317.html

Elementary, middle and High Schools may be part of the distri- bution chain for all drug lords. Outside parks, bathrooms, cor- ner street cars, and even bike’s are means of transportation for drugs that get in school. School directors have to be on the watch for any suspects selling of coming in school to purchase drugs.

In humans, the powerful substance causes the mind to fade in and out of conscience and the body to bend to the ground even while standing on its feet. The effects last for a little less than six hours, leaving the addict with the need to roam the streets in a search for the next ﬁx, many resorting to theft and panhan- dling in and effort to stay awake, and alive.

 iBooks Author Section 2 Drug Prevalence Among

Drug Prevalence Survey “Student Survey of Risk and Protective Factors and Prevalence of Alcohol, Tobacco & Other Drug” Spanish version question- naire that was adapted and administered to a representative island wide sample during 2010-2012. A total of 10,134 10th- ”In 2013, an estimated 24.6 million Americans aged 12 or older 12the grade students in public and private schools in PR partici- were current (past month) illicit drug users. This represents 9.4 pated. The substance most used by adolescents was alcohol percent of the population aged 12 or older (Table 1). Marijuana (48.6%), followed by tobacco (14.3%). Other drugs used by was the most commonly used illicit drug, with 19.8 million cur- 15.1% of students included marijuana, inhalants, heroin, co- rent users aged 12 or older (7.5 percent). - See more at: caine, crack, design drugs, and non-prescription pills. Of these, http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/Drug_Usage#sthash.uw1yhpE the most commonly reported substances were marijuana w.dpuf (12.4%), non-prescription pills (6.1%), and inhalants (6.1%). This behavior could easily be increased when we see the preva- Ref: lence of drug use and crime experienced due to drug wars https://apha.confex.com/apha/141am/webprogramadapt/Paper among pushers in the Island. 291227.html

 iBooks Author 76

 iBooks Author The Population Aging Factor

Population changes due to aging with force the Island to make immediate changes in the education of children. By the year 2020 the Island will lose over 200 thousand people. http://es.slideshare.net/ etorruella/resultados-del- censo-del-2010-puerto- ricoo-poblacin-total-por- municipio-mapa?related=1

9  iBooks Author Puerto Rico has more than 900 thou- ents have decided to stay home and collect food stamps. This is a sad reality that is seen at many school levels. sand 60 years old and older Some grand parents are going back as tutors and teachers to help in school. many of them are getting a new degree in order to ﬁnd work.

Grandparents in the United States & Puerto Rico

There were 65 million grandparents in 2010, projected to be 80 million by 2020 (MetLife).

75% of those age 65+ reports being a grandparent (Census Bu- reau).

62% of grandparents have provided ﬁnancial support or mone- tary gifts within the past ﬁve years (MetLife).

26% of grandparents use email, Skype and text to communi- cate with their grandchildren (AARP). More grandparents are taking care of school children. Parents We can deduct that the same patterns apply to the Island at this may be working for long hours or may not be at home at all. time. This means that students may not have all the support from parents. This negative factor hinders student learning and increases the at risk levels of all children.

More babyboomers are still active and are going back to teaching, the work force and regular job positions. Teachers have said that, young non educated and drop out from school par-

 iBooks Author Section 1

This age group grew at a faster rate than the total population be- The Baby tween 2000 and 2010, according to a 2010 Census brief.

More people were 65 years and over in 2010 than in Boomers !!!! any previous census. Between 2000 and 2010, the population 65 years and over increased at a faster rate (15.1%) than the total U.S population (9.7%). Services Needed Education Services for the Elderly By 2015, those aged 50 and older will represent 45% of the U.S. population (AARP). Elderly taking Care of School Grand Children Baby Boomers make up 35% of the American adult population (Scarborough). http://www.census.gov/prod/2014pubs/p25-1141.pdf By 2030, the 65-plus population will double to about 71.5 million, and by 2050 will grow to 86.7 million people (U.S. Size of the Boomer and Senior Markets: Census). 77 million people were born between 1946 and 1964, In 2050, the number of Americans aged 65 and older which is deﬁned as the baby boomer era (U.S. Census). is projected to be 88.5 million, more than double its projected The ﬁrst baby boomer turned 65 on January 1, 2011. population of 40.2 million in 2010.

An American turns 50 every 7 seconds—that's more http://www.immersionactive.com/resources/50-plus-facts-and-ﬁ than 12,500 people every day (U.S. Census). ction

The senior age group is now, for the ﬁrst time, the largest in terms of size and percent of the population in the U.S.

 iBooks Author reaching-todays-boomers-and-seniors-online_research- studies1. Google LPSOS

If we could just help our seniors do more school work with their children, we can change the actual situation of students lack of interest in learning and doing better in school.

 iBooks Author The Challenges

What can we do? What questions can we ask ourselves about the condition of the educational system?

10 iBooks Author Challenges for Technology in Educa- “Urgent challenge” that we both understand and know how to solve tion “Despite the widespread agreement on the importance of digital media literacy,” the Horizon report says, “train- 1. Low digital ﬂuency among faculty ing in the supporting skills and techniques is rare in teacher education and non-existent in the preparation of faculty.” Academics are beginning to realize that they are “limit- ing their students” by not helping them to develop and use digital media literacy skills across the curriculum, a problem that is exacerbated by a lack of formal training for teaching staff. Because digital literacy “is less about tools and more about thinking”, the report continues, “skills and standards based on tools and platforms have proven to be somewhat ephemeral”. The report identiﬁes the Developing Digital Literacy Pro- gramme, run by UK higher education technology consor- tium Jisc, as an initiative that promotes the development of “coherent, inclusive, and holistic institutional strategies for developing digital literacies for all staff and students”.

 iBooks Author A Jisc-funded project at Cardiff University, known as Digi- not a priority”, some institutions have made conscious ef- dol, which aimed to “embed digital literacy” across staff forts to improve their teaching methods. at all levels, is also praised in the report. “There is a need for governments to develop strategi- 2. Relative lack of rewards for teaching es…with the ultimate goal of fostering an academic culture that financially rewards the quality of interaction in “Urgent challenge” that we both understand and know its classrooms,” it concludes. how to solve University leaders, meanwhile, could begin by requiring “In the global education marketplace, a university’s doctoral and graduate students to train before getting status is largely determined by the quantity and quality work as teaching assistants. Currently, such training is of its research,” the Horizon report says. “There is an “optional, intermittent, and superficial in nature”, the re- overarching sense in the academic world that research port says. is first, while teaching is an obligation that must be per- “As online learning plays a bigger part in higher educa- formed.” tion, this training will become essential because profes- This way of thinking, the report argues, is stymieing ef- sors will be expected to be familiar with teaching tech- forts to implement effective pedagogies. Because niques that address technology-facilitated learning,” the teaching-only contracts are seen as lower status and un- report says. popular, students are forced to accept “outdated teach- 3. Competition from new models of education ing styles” from researchers, rather than benefiting from more forward-thinking, potentially technologically en- “Difficult challenge” that we understand, but for which so- abled pedagogy. lutions are elusive The report says that although there is a body of work in- New approaches have brought “unprecedented competi- dicating that professors “acknowledge that teaching is tion” for traditional models of higher education, according to the Horizon report.

 iBooks Author Institutions are looking for ways to provide a high quality of service and more technologically-enhanced learning “Difﬁcult challenge” that we understand but for which so- opportunities, with massive open online courses lutions are elusive (Moocs) at the forefront of these discussions, “enabling Universities are not adept at moving teaching innova- students to supplement their education and experiences tions into mainstream practice, and current promotion at brick-and-mortar institutions with increasingly rich, structures rarely reward innovation and improvements in and often free, online offerings”. teaching and learning, the report says. “A pervasive aver- However, simply capitalizing on new technology is not sion to change limits the diffusion of new ideas, and too enough, the report continues. “The new models must often discourages experimentation.” use these tools and services to engage students on a Although universities are being “increasingly pressured deeper level,” it says. to closely examine cutting-edge technological solutions While acknowledging growing skepticism about MOOC and teaching practices”, there are many barriers prevent- completion rates, the report points out that as the cost of ing institutions from implementing new strategies. How- university rises, along with the costs of student housing ever, there is a movement in the US to smooth the path and travel to and from physical campuses, “Moocs pre- to accreditation, the report says, with advocates propos- sent an appealing alternative, especially for graduates ing more opportunities to experiment with new teaching who are already in the workforce and looking for fast- models that lower prices and bolster student learning. track professional development opportunities”. “Supporters of this reform argue that the potential of One of the biggest challenges for institutions is to ﬁnd a technology to improve learning and scale quality instruc- way to design Moocs for academic credit that are “both tion for large audiences has already been realised, yet cost-effective for students and transcend traditional the red tape surrounding the process of accreditation is teaching practices”, the report concludes. an impediment for universities to expand their institu- 4. Scaling teaching innovations tions into unexplored territory.”

 iBooks Author Despite this, some universities “face capacity issues that countries to encourage more and more students to enter limit the depth and speed of integration” of new ap- universities and colleges.” proaches, even when more innovative curricula have However, in some countries, expanding access would been developed. The report quotes Adrianna Kezar, co- mean extending it to students who “may not have the director of the Pullias Center for Higher Education at the academic background to be successful without addi- University of Southern California, who argues that there tional support”, and institutions might struggle to ﬁnd the is “no core of faculty to do the work that is needed for time and resources to assist this particular group. meaningful implementation”, because often the number The construction of more college campuses, bolstering of non-tenure track faculty and part-time adjunct profes- online learning, and removing barriers to learning are sors outnumber those on tenure tracks. “only working the edges of this challenge”, the report “This disparity contributes to the lack of impact part-time continues, and given the current shift “from labor- faculty have in the integration of teaching innovation,” oriented economies towards knowledge-based econo- the report continues. mies”, the pressure to expand is growing. 5. Expanding access “In Africa alone, the continent would need to build four universities with capacities of 30,000 people every week “Wicked challenge” that is too complex to even deﬁne, just to accommodate the students reaching enrollment much less address age by 2025,” the report says, referencing data from the A “global drive” to increase the number of students pro- World bank. gressing to higher education is placing pressure across The challenge is exacerbated by the “digital divide”, with the system, the Horizon report says. access to education increasingly reliant on access to “The relationship between earning potential and educa- technology. tional attainment, the clear impact of an educated soci- “In both the developed and developing world, this gap ety on the growth of the middle class is pushing many continues to widen, and the technology based solutions

 iBooks Author for providing greater access to knowledge, such as Horizon quotes a survey by the Consumer Financial Pro- Moocs, have little effectiveness if the proper infrastruc- tection Bureau, showing that total US student debt is ture or connectivity are not readily available,” the report over $1.2 trillion (£720 million). concludes. “With mounting fears of debt and an unfavourable job 6. Keeping education relevant market ahead, some high school graduates are reconsid- ering the value of a traditional college degree,” it says, “Wicked challenge” that is too complex to even define, adding that university leaders need to rethink what the much less address experience of learning at the institution through a formal “Many pundits worry that if higher education does not education provider is worth. adapt to the times, other models (especially other busi- “Higher education stakeholders are facing a reality that ness models) will take its place,” the report claims in the is difficult to digest; the paradigm that has worked for last of its six challenges. over a century is gradually becoming obsolete, and uni- “While this concern has some merits, it is unlikely that versities must renovate - or in some cases rebuild their universities as we know them will go away. There are foundations - if they want to stay relevant.” parts of the university enterprise, however, that are at Only those institutions that seriously consider take how risk, such as continuing and advanced education in online learning will “redefine the value of a degree, and highly technical, fast-moving fields.” are open to exploring alternative means of proving skill According to the report, the proliferation of online learn- acquisition through certificates, badges, and e-portfolios” ing and free educational content, particularly Moocs, will remain relevant, the report warns. means that universities need to address the question of View the full NMC Horizon Report: 2014 Higher Educa- what they can provide that other approaches cannot, tion Edition and “rethink the value of higher education from a student’s perspective”.

 iBooks Author Section 1 Protect The Valuable Resource

Our Children - Precious Resource

Teach them now using technology

 iBooks Author