May 7, 2009 Consultation Agenda

HOUSTON FEDERATION OF TEACHERS

Please include the following to the May 7, 2009 Instructional Consultation agenda:

1. School staffing

The Swine Flu has laid bare the ill-conceived budgetary decisions that allow a school to go without a full-time school nurse. We will continue to emphasize the necessity of developing a budgetary philosophy that will require all schools to have a basic staff. The staff of each school must include a school nurse, librarian, physical education, and fine arts teachers. These positions must be funded by the district as part of a basic allotment for each school. No principal should be forced to sacrifice the health or well being of a student for budgetary reasons.

2. Grading Standards

It is our understanding that a twenty-six-member committee was organized in March to develop grading and promotion standards. After viewing a draft document of the committee’s work it is evident that they have developed a highly centralized grading system that removes the flexibility for individual teachers and schools to develop grading guidelines that meet the needs of their students in individual courses, grade levels, subjects, and programs. As an organization HFT was excluded from the steering committee and so we must once again react to work already completed.

· In order to maintain consistency in grades, grading policies should be developed in the school at the grade or department level. Questions such as weighting and mean or median are best made at the school level.
· The district already has a minimum grade of 50% for an individual reporting period. While there may be an argument of a minimum grade for 50% on individual assignments, this decision can only be made by the teacher. Any mandate that forces a teacher to assign grades that don’t reflect the actual grade is illegal coercion. Most teachers feel very strongly that a zero should be given if a student does not turn in an assignment. A student who does not do the work should never receive the same grade as a student who does the work. A mandate to assign any grade where no grade is evident is an illegal mandate to falsify records. Late work policies should be school-based.
· Homework should be assigned only to cover or practice specific curriculum items. How much homework to give should be a decision made at the grade or department level. There should never be a minimum number of assignments per grading period.

3. Workers Compensation Injuries (previous issue)

Last month we requested a written statement from the district informing employees they may use a doctor of their choice for workers compensation injuries. Has there been any progress on such a statement?

4. End of year packing (previous issue)

May we have a written statement from the administration that gives guidelines for end of the year packing?

5. Consultation minutes (previous issue)

This is getting really old. Why have we gone an entire year without minutes?