1. Contemporary Trends and Issues in Education
Chapter 6
Group Winter:
Cortney Williams
Serina Thompson
Logan Altman
Nicole Wilson
Diana Wilson
Brooke Williams

2. What we will cover in this Chapter
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
Special Education
Project-based learning and Problem-based learning
Charter School
Safe School Climate
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
Gifted Students
No Child Left Behind Act
Middle School Concept
Due Process

3. Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is defined in So You Want to Be a Teacher? as, “A learning environment that, to the maximum extent possible, matches the environment experienced by nondisabled students” (Koch, 156).
The difference between inconclusion and mainstreaming, is inconclusion is where a student with disabilities is placed in a general education class all day. But mainstreaming is where a student with disabilities is placed in a general education class for half the day. Then the other half of the day, they are placed in a self-contained classroom with other students who have disabilities. (Koch)

4. By: Serina Thompson 
My personal feelings about inconclusion is, that it is failing the children. For example a student that is diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, I think should be mainstreamed instead of being inclusion. Some symptoms of ADD are impulsive and poor concentration. If these students are mainstreamed, they will get the socialization they need from peers with all types of personalities. They will also get introduced to class work that the state is requiring students to learn. But then when they go and spend the rest of the day in a self-contained class room they can receive the extra help they need on the class work. A student with ADD might find it hard to concentrate, so then they will not fully comprehend the lesson.

5. Special Education
Special Education is defined in SO You Want to Be a Teacher? as, “ the branch of education the deals with services for students with disabilities or other special need that cannot be met through traditional means” (Koch, 156). 
The purpose of individual’s education programs is so every child that is covered by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, can be provided services that best will help the students complete their short and long term goals.  A general education teacher usually prepares the IEP.    

6. Project and problem- Based Learning
Project-based Learning – A teaching method that engages students in extended inquiry into complex, realistic questions as they work in teams and create presentations to share what they have learned. These presentations may take various forms: an oral or written report, a computer technology-based presentation, a video, the design of a product, and much more.
Problem-based Learning- Focused experiential learning (minds-on, hands-on) organized around the investigation and resolution of messy, real-world problems. 
Characteristics with project based and problem based strategies emphasize connections to real life.

7. Charter school
A charter school is a public school that specifically follows a written charter from the school district. Families specifically choose these schools for their children to attend.
Pros:
 They develop creative and new teaching styles.
These innovations will thrive in a system that is not constrained by the usual rules and regulations of the school district.
Cons:
 There is no clear evidence that charter schools are more successful or significant than regular public schools.
 The text also states that because there are “many different groups of concerned citizens that can start a charter school, often without any training in education” is bothersome.

8. Safe school Climate
School climate safety is when adults and students respect each other and when students have a positive connection to at least one adult in authority.(side note, not in the question- per the book) When climate of safety is created, you can sense it in a school; there is a feeling of emotional wellness.
Guidelines the U.S. Department of Education use to establish a safe school climate:
Assessing the School’s Emotional Climate
Creating Connections Between Adults and Students
Breaking the Code of Silence
Involving Parents

9. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
The right to inspect and review education records
The right to request amendment of educational records
The right to exercise some control over the disclosure of information from educational records.
The right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education if a school or other educational agency fails to comply with the act.
Another name for this act would be the Buckley Amendment.

10. Gifted Students
In terms of educational settings, the National Association for Gifted Children defines “gifted” as “someone who shows , or has the potential for showing, an exceptional level of performance in one or more areas of expression.”
 Five Characteristics that distinguish gifted students from their classmates:
They learn new material in much less time.
They tend to remember what they have learned, making reviews of previously mastered concepts a painful experience.
They perceive ideas and concepts at more abstract and complex levels than do their peers.
They become passionately interested in specific topics and have trouble moving on to other learning tasks.
They are able to operate on many levels of concentration simultaneously, so they can monitor classroom activities without paying direct or visual attention to them.
Gifted and talented students are identified by the pace at which they learn and the depth of their understanding.
Services that might be offered to gifted students include ones that provide enrichment or acceleration.

11. No Child Left Behind
No Child Left Behind Act is different from the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education because it emphasized increased funding for less wealthy school districts and higher achievement for financially poor and minority students’ progress.
4 Major Provisions of NCLB
Stronger Accountability for Results – States work hard to close the achievement gap and make sure each student achieves academic proficiency.
More Freedom for States and Communities- States and school districts have flexibility in how their educational funds are used.
Proven Education Methods – NCLB puts emphasis on determining which educational programs and practices have been proven effective; federal funding is spent to support these programs and teaching methods.
More Choices for Parents – Parents of children in low-performing schools have the option to transfer their student to a better performing or safer school.
The NCLB has not met in goals due to powerful social and family characteristics that affect children long before they start school. The NCLB’s goals can’t be achieved by enforcing a standardized testing program that few low-income students can become invested in. 

12. Middle school Concept
The middle school concept evolved in the early 1900 as junior high, since there was no in between elementary and secondary school. So the concept was to have a school for young adolescents, which was 7-9 grade. By the 1980’s many school reformers endorsed a new “middle school” concept intended to create an educational experience more appropriate for young adolescents.  The goal was to make the old junior high school more developmentally responsive by changing grade configuration from grades 7-9 to 6-8.  This was so the grades levels where taught more in a team like setting having the same teachers for their community of closeness. (Koch 180)

13. Six specific problems with middle school structure:
National school-safety statistics suggest that physical conflict is especially problematic in middle schools.
Social norms in middle school may foster antisocial behavior
Academic progress for middle schools is uneven and lackluster.
Adequate state and federal supports to meet the new standards set by the NCLB legislation are unavailable for middle schools.
Middle schools do not do enough to foster parental involvement
Many middle school teachers do not have certification in the subject areas they teach  or specific  training in the development of young adolescents.
(Koch 181)
Eight characteristics of effective middle school cultures:
Educators who value working with young adolescents
Courageous, collaborative leadership
A shared vision
An inviting, supportive, and safe environment
High expectations for all
Active learning by both students and teachers
An adult advocate for every student
Family and community partnerships (Koch 183)

14. Due Process
Due Process: A formal process, such as a legal or administrative proceeding, that follows established rules designed to protect the rights of the people involved.
Teachers rights and responsibilities:
The right to physical, emotional, social, intellectual, creative and sexual safety
The right to respect from students, colleagues, leaders and parents
The right to teach in an atmosphere of order and attention
The right to demand social structures within the school that guarantee respect for my rights.
The right to ask for help when needed.
The right to fair, just and effective leadership on the part of the school principal and vice-principal.
(Koch 192)

15. What we can take away from this chapter
One size does not fit all in the classroom and we as educators have to be ready to teach everyone that comes through our classroom. In public school there is 10% of all students that have a disability. We have a lot of things to consider and there is no wrong or right way we just have to make sure that is what we want. Teaching is both rewarding and challenging.

16. References
Koch, Janice. So You Want to Be a Teacher?:Teaching And Learning In The 21st Century. Belmont: Wadsworth, Print.

17. References