District/School Administration Administration
Board in Brief

April 1, 1999

This is Board in Brief, issued at the request of Commissioner David P.Driscoll, to keep you informed on acitivities of the Massachusetts Board of Education. This is summary of the meeting held on March 30, 1999, at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education in Malden.

Comments from the Chairman

This was the first Board of Education meeting as Chairman for James Peyser, who has been a member of the Board since 1996. He addressed the Board on several issues, including three priorities: accountability for results (relating to staff, schools and districts as well as students); school restructuring, to shift more authority from the school district to individual schools; and leadership for education, which he said "is the glue that creates community and is in short supply." Chairman Peyser stated, "We need to support the development of many more school leaders."

Chairman Peyser announced the appointment of several members to serve on Board of Education committees. The standing committee on budget and school finance will be chaired by Charles Baker and include members Roberta Schaefer, Stanley Koplik and James Peyser. Board members Edwin Delattre and Roberta Schaefer, along with Sheldon Stern, Historian at the Kennedy Library and Leominster Superintendent of Schools Joseph Rappa, will serve as members of the Joint Board of Education/Board of Higher Education Commission on Teacher Preparation, to develop and review proposals to strengthen teacher preparation programs. Member Patricia Crutchfield will represent the Board on the Governor's Design Team for Professional Development.

Comments from the Commissioner

This was the first Board of Education meeting for Commissioner David Driscoll, who served as Interim Commissioner since July 1998. He updated the Board on several issues, including progress on activities related to Educator Quality Enhancement. Regarding the Teacher Signing Bonus Program, he reported that more than 700 candidates submitted applications, and 120 were selected as finalists. Of these, about 50, including mid-career professionals entering public school teaching for the first time, will be selected in April to receive the $20,000 signing bonuses (over four years) to teach in Massachusetts public schools. Additionally in April, $5,000 annual bonuses will be awarded for the first time to 19 master teachers, veteran Massachusetts public school teachers who have obtained National Board of Professional Teaching Standards certification and who have agreed to mentor other teachers. The master teachers are eligible to receive the annual bonus for up to ten years.

On State House activity, Commissioner Driscoll reported that the Governor has recently proposed legislation on school truancy, uniforms and school safety, and that the Joint Committee on Education, Arts and Humanities is holding hearings on education-related bills through April. Additionally, the Commissioner is working with the Governor on his Executive Order to create regional professional development centers for educators.

The Commissioner announced a new initiative, a collaboration with the Embassy of Spain, which will support ten teachers of Spanish language or bilingual education from Spain to teach in the public schools of Boston and Lawrence. The program is modeled on similar, successful programs in Texas, California, Illinois and Connecticut. An agreement with the Education and Science Office of the Embassy of Spain is being finalized, and the selected teachers are expected to begin in September. Finally, the Commissioner reported that the first charters awarded to establish charter schools are due to be renewed. By law, charters are granted for five years. The Board will act on charter renewals at several meetings this year, starting in April.

Proposed Changes to Special Education Regulations - Initial Review Prior to Public Comment

The Board discussed Commissioner Driscoll's proposed changes to the twenty-five year old "Chapter 766" Regulations on Special Education. The changes include deleting redundant and outdated language, requiring the IEP Teams to identify the type of disability of the student before making eligibility decisions, providing greater flexibility and a wider range of special education options for school districts, and aligning special education with the priorities of Education Reform. Commissioner Driscoll said, "In the future, the Legislature may act on changing the special education law, but this Board can act now by updating the Regulations. These changes will not withhold services from students with disabilities who need special education, but will provide relief from cumbersome and unnecessarily prescriptive requirements."

Board members Stanley Koplik and Abigail Thernstrom noted that this proposal is an excellent start, and suggested further revisions in some definitions to clarify eligibility. Chairman Peyser urged that the final regulations incorporate federal standards as much as possible. He added that the Board believes all students should get the help they need in order to succeed in school; the issue here is to clarify which students fall within the mandate of the special education law.

The Board voted unanimously to seek public comment on the proposed revisions, and will hold three public hearings throughout the Commonwealth. The dates of the hearings are April 27 at Kasparian Hall in Springfield, April 28 at Quinsigamond School in Worcester, and May 13 at West Roxbury High School in Boston. All hearings will be held between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.. Written comments are encouraged, and may be submitted directly to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education by May 14. The Board thanked Marcia Mittnacht, State Director for Special Education, for her work in preparing the proposed revisions. The Board will take final action on the regulations at the June 29 meeting.

Mathematics Curriculum Framework --Progress Report on Revision Process

The Board received a progress report from Mathematics curriculum framework revision committee representatives Dr. Carole Greenes of Boston University, who chairs the panel, Ms. Maureen Chapman-Fahey, director of mathematics for the Medford Public Schools and Ms. Barbara Haig, a grade 4 teacher in Northborough. They reported that the revised framework will make the math learning standards much clearer, and will specify learning standards for pairs of grades (for example, grades 1-2). The framework will focus on content rather than pedagogy, and will give concrete examples of mathematical concepts. Chairman Peyser said he is encouraged by the direction of this revision. The Board is expected to release a preview of the revised learning standards for Mathematics and also for Science & Technology after its May meeting.

Foreign Languages Curriculum Framework--Approval

On Commissioner Driscoll's recommendation, the Board unanimously approved the revised Foreign Languages curriculum framework. Member Abigail Thernstrom commented that the standards in this revised document are impressively high, and she questioned how and when schools and students will be able to meet them, particularly while seeking to improve performance in English language arts and the other core academic subjects. Chairman Peyser noted that many issues still need to be addressed regarding the implementation of a Foreign Languages assessment program, stating, "We are a long way from including a foreign languages proficiency requirement as a condition for graduation." The revised framework will be distributed to all schools in the near future.

Arts Curriculum Framework -- Initial Review Prior to Public Comment

On the Commissioner's recommendation, the Board voted unanimously to seek public comment on the revised Arts curriculum framework. In June, the Board is expected to review and approve the final Arts framework. Chairman Peyser thanked the revision committee and Susan Wheltle of the Department for their work to improve the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks.

Update on Lawrence Public Schools

Board member Roberta Schaefer, who chairs the Board's Lawrence Oversight Committee, reported on progress in the Lawrence Public Schools. She, member Bill Irwin, Commissioner Driscoll and State Director for Accountability Juliane Dow recently met with Lawrence school officials. Dr. Schaefer said significant progress has been made on a number of fronts. The Oversight Committee has asked Superintendent Gaskins to establish more specific goals and benchmarks for each of seven major areas. The Board will focus on results when it reviews the school district's next quarterly report, which is due in June. Commissioner Driscoll noted, "This oversight plan has the potential to be a national model, but we clearly need to move to the next level of accountability. There is much work to be done."

Proposed MCAS Testing Schedule for FY 2001 and Beyond

The Board discussed several options relating to the MCAS testing schedule, proposed by the Commissioner to improve the efficiency and accountability of the statewide student assessment program. Options include cutting down on testing at grade 4, adding certain assessments at grades 5, 6 and 7, and improving reading assessment at the early grades. Any changes would not be implemented until the 2000-2001 school year. Several Board members stressed the importance of helping teachers and schools to identify and address reading problems in the early grades. Chairman Peyser added that given the state's significant financial investment in education reform, careful assessment of student and school performance is a high priority. The Board will continue its discussion of the proposed changes at the April meeting.

Approval of Grants

Other Business

Chairman Peyser tabled until April the planned discussion of Teacher Quality Legislation filed by Joint Committee on Education Chairman Harold M. Lane, Jr.

The next regular meeting of the Board will be held on Tuesday, April 27, at the Amherst-Pelham Regional High School in Amherst, at 9:00 a.m.