Great things are happening in Texas Public Schools -- Friends of Texas Public Schools
This month...
  • TAKS passing rates up at most grades

     

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    A few facts about teaching

     

  • Aldine ISD earns prestigious TAPE honor

     

  • Rebuttal to Slanted New York Times Article

     

  • So is TAKS REALLY that hard?
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    This month's featured sponsors
    Stay Involved...Stay Active May 2006 -- Part Two
    Mesquite Firefighters Association

    Mesquite Firefighters Join Friends Network

    The Mesquite Firefighters Association has joined the Friends of Texas Public Schools Network!

    “Firefighters across this great state recognize how important our public schools are to the future of Texas, and through their partnerships with their local schools have a clear understanding of their many great stories of success,” said Scott Milder, President and CEO, Friends of Texas Public Schools. “We are thrilled to welcome the Mesquite Firefighters Association and to our campaign to restore the public’s confidence in our public schools.”

    Friends hopes this partnership will further its mission to balance the overwhelmingly negative public school debate with optimistic, factual accounts of success in our schools.


     
    TAKS passing rates up at most grades

     

    The percentage of students passing all tests taken on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) increased this spring at grades 4, 6, 7, 9 and 10; remained stable at 8th grade and declined slightly at 11th grade.

    Passing rates were up on all subject-area tests at fifth grade, while reading and math scores held steady on the first administration of the English language version of the TAKS at third grade.

    The highest performance levels statewide were seen on these tests:

     

    Read more...
    Our Schools Our Stars

     

     

    A few facts about teaching

     

    What you DIDN'T know...

    Today's teachers...

     

    • Spend an average of $443 per year of their own money to meet the needs of their students. Elementary teachers spend about $498 per year. Secondary teachers spend about $386.
    • Make an average starting salary of $31,704 per year, not including supplemental pay for extra duties.
    • Nationwide, more than 3.9 million teachers will be needed by 2014 because of teacher attrition, retirement and increased student enrollment.
    • Close to 50 percent of newcomers leave the profession during the first five years of teaching.
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    Read more interesting facts...
    Aldine ISD earns prestigious TAPE honor

     

    Aldine ISD was named the winner of the prestigious Texas Award for Performance Excellence (TAPE).

    TAPE is an annual recognition of Texas organizations that excel in performance and the application of quality and customer satisfaction principles. The TAPE award is heralded by the Foundation as the state’s highest honor for quality and organizational performance. Public or private businesses, government agencies, public and private educational organizations, and non-profit organizations located in Texas are eligible to apply for the award.

    A group of TAPE examiners visited the district April 10-12 and conducted extensive interviews with Superintendent Nadine Kujawa and her administrative team, as well as site visits to various campuses in the district. Aldine ISD qualified for an official site visit after the Quality Texas Foundation judged its application worthy of a site visit.

    Read more...
    Rebuttal to Slanted New York Times Article

     

    To Mr. Sam Dillon, reporter for the New York Times,

    Regarding the recent New York Times article titled, “Test Shows Drop in Science Achievement for 12th Graders,”please consider the following:

    Your article, while thorough, contains a misleading headline and lead paragraph. Test scores are up across the board over the past five years, or are maintaining in the face of ever-more difficult standards. If you have to go back 10 years to find a one percent, or three percent decline (which is rather insignificant, wouldn’t you say, considering standards and measuring have become so much tougher in a decade), that indicates to me that you're really having to reach to find something negative to say about our schools.

    Read more...

    Read original NY Times article...
    "Education is the point at which we decide whether we love our children enough not to expel them from our world and leave them to their own devices, not to strike from their hands their chance of undertaking something new—but to prepare them in advance for the task of renewing a common world."

    Hannah Arendt, German American political theorist (1906—75)
    So is TAKS REALLY that hard?

    We hear all the hoopla about the TAKS test. Can it really be that hard?

    Find out.

    Take the Exit Level TAKS tests for yourself and see how well you fare. We know high school has been a while for most of us (do we even want to count back?), but see for yourself what is expected of 11th graders now.

    Here are a few samples...

    What are the coordinates of the x-intercept of the equation −3y = 8 − 2x?

    A. (−2, 0)

    B. (0, − 8/3)

    C. ( 2/3, 0)

    D. (4, 0)


     



    How many 2-inch cubes can be placed completely inside a box that is 8 inches long, 2 inches wide, and 6 inches tall?

    A. 8

    B. 12

    C. 24

    D. 48


     

    Which of the following best describes the graph of the equations below? 2y = 3x + 2 4y = 6x + 1

    F. The lines have the same y-intercept.

    G. The lines have the same x-intercept.

    H. The lines are perpendicular.

    J. The lines are parallel.

     Released TAKS tests...
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    Friends of Texas Public Schools
    Scott Milder, President & Chief Executive
    4000 McEwen Road North
    Dallas, Texas 75244-5083

     

    Phone: 972-701-0700