I am pretty knowledgeable about the teacher contracts. What I learned was that teachers do have rights and capabilities within the law, such as freedom of speech and due process. I have always wondered how administrators decide when to dismiss, when to just comment on an issue and when it needs to be documented in the permanent file. I was in a situation once when I felt that I was really being mistreated and discriminated against. After reading about school expression and evaluating different case holdings, I was able to differentiate appropriate freedom of speech from inappropriate employee expression. Teachers are held as role models, but we are still human.
Teacher evaluations are very important and have a way of showing how the school is managed. Teacher evaluations allow the administrator to see if he is providing his teachers with all the support that they need. Since NCLB requires high qualified teachers, an administrator must make sure that they stay highly qualified. Due to the fact that evaluation systems are always changing, it ensures that the teachers are also evolving with what and how they teach. Evaluations also give an idea of what staff developments administrators can hold or suggest. Many see staff development as a way to take up time, but an effective administrator understands how to use staff development and evaluations to enhance student learning. I really need to familiarize myself with district policy. I would like to get better acquainted with the evaluation system and learn more about PDAS from an administrator's stand point by attending some professional development courses with my administrator or possible when I register for my IDL courses.
A legal topic that I really found interesting was the McKinney-Vento Law. During my course of being a data clerk, I have had my share of registering homeless families. In reading the McKinney-Vento Law I searched my own districts policy so that I could know where to find it. I learned that districts had to provide transportation or districts had to formulate a plan for transportation for a student. I was not aware of this. I also spoke to the counselor about the law and had to inform her about posting visible registration criteria for homeless students. It is imperative to know the law concerning homeless families, as an administrator, my campus has to be the advocate for the student. We are in the position to give that student the stability they need while their family is trying to get on their feet. I passed along the information to my counselor, so that she could be better informed. Our counselor is great about helping families. We have so many programs that assist our students. I believe that teachers have a passion and when it comes to their students, they are protective about the environment they show to students.
Another legal topic that was of great interest was the issues generated with cyber law. Now that we are moving quickly into a society that is based on technology, educators are being pushed to use technology every day. Technology is used in class room to broaden the limits that textbooks have imposed, but at the same time, technology can inflict damage also. Educators worry about how to integrate technology into the classroom and then they are prohibited from using it. The case law on the "Facebook Law" opened up many questions. Not only do teachers use Facebook in the classroom, they use blogs and other social media to enhance student learning or make material and information more accessible to students. Districts are being held accountable by deeming e-rate accounts a requirement to be able to use internet technology. It's funny how we never think to bother to ask about what the districts use to block content. I really think this subject enlightened a lot of educators in this class.
The student-management issue that I think will be most relevant to me as an administrator will be to become familiar and understand the law when it comes to students in the special education program. I have been in education for almost ten years. I have been an aide, and I have worked as a data clerk, so I am familiar with many laws that pertain to attendance and student records. Now that I am a teacher I have learned about the Bilingual education laws. Due process and many of the example ARDS that were given in the discussion and assignments were all new to me. I feel that I have learned valuable material that will give me the knowledge to lead my campus. I really thought that the case scenario was interesting because I have special education students and I am always asking questions about their IEP's. One thing that my campus has is collaboration. Planning and collaboration with the teachers and the parents are valuable aspects in making sure those goals and objectives are being met in class and in the school. Even though I am not on the IEP team, we can always come together to talk about what is working and what needs to be changed. I feel that I know how to handle situations about how the IEP needs to be implemented and how to go about the due process procedures when a special education student is involved. I really found the information on the manifestation meeting to determine if behaviors are a cause of the disability. This changes perspective on how to deal with each situation. I think that all new teachers should be given staff development on IDEA and 504 eligibility. Veteran teachers should have an update staff development every so often. I don't think that teachers are given that much information on special education law unless you your certification is in that area.
