By Nicole DiDonato - bio | email
Posted by Noah Stubbs - email
EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) - Superintendent Vince Bertram announced a new plan for the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation on Friday in an effort to help three underperforming schools.
Dr. Bertram said not all children can be taught with the same methods, so he's giving teachers the power to do things their way.
"To make change, to be nimble and make the change quickly is paramount to school improvement," Dr. Bertram said. "We're not looking for programs we can just place in our schools, but rather looking at concepts."
Barbara Kuykendall has been teaching at for 30 years, but she's never been more excited about her job than now.
"I really feel charged and revived about the possibilities here," Kuykendall said.
Kuykendall teaches at Howard Roosa Elementary School.
Howard Roosa, along with Delaware Elementary and McGary Middle Schools have been identified by the state at district as schools that consistently underperform.
"You could not ask this faculty to work any harder then they already work," Kuykendall said.
As a solution to underperformance, the district created what's called the equity school concept.
The concept will give teachers at these three schools the ability to create a learning program unique to their students.
The new learning concept gives teachers more control, but it means they will also have to go back to school.
They must complete 40 hours of professional development training that is already being done in the district.
Equity teachers will be undergoing more of it.
The school year will also be two weeks longer for these schools.
"To design a program for these kids, not a cookie cutter program that worked someplace else, but designed by the teachers who know these kids, who know their families," Kuykendall said.
Amanda Washington's daughter attends Howard Roosa.
"I think it would help the test scores," Washington said. "It would give more confidence to the kids. I think it will be a real success here."
"The solutions are here, the answers are in our classrooms, people know what to do," Dr. Bertram said.
Teachers can apply as early as today to enroll in the academy. Training starts later this month.
Dr. Bertram said teachers will start implementing some of their new concepts during the Spring and will be using it completely by next school year.
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