Kentucky Teacher

From now until May 31, tell KET what you think about KET EncycloMedia by taking a brief survey.

Participants will be entered in drawings to win an iPad, Kindle Fire or one of several other fun prizes.

On the final Education Matters of the 2011-2012 school year, “Inside the Teaching Profession,” guests take a look at the job of educators in Kentucky and across the nation. The program airs Monday, April 23 at 9/8 p.m. CT on KET.

Host Bill Goodman and panelists – including practicing teachers – discuss a variety of topics, including the challenges and successes of teaching in the United States, evaluating classroom performance, compensation, and attracting and retaining teachers.

“Inside the Teaching Profession” is a follow-up to the recent statewide screenings of the documentary American Teacher, sponsored by the coalition of Kentucky education organizations. Narrated by Matt Damon, the film was based on the 2005 bestseller Teachers Have It Easy: The Big Sacrifices and Small Salaries of America’s Teachers by Daniel Moulthrop.

Program guests will include: Stu Silberman, executive director, Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence; Elizabeth Ann Fuller, 2012 Kentucky Elementary Teacher of the Year and reading/writing teacher at Atkinson Elementary School, Jefferson County; Stephanie Winkler, science teacher, Mayfield Elementary School, Madison County; and Jonathan Rogers, science teacher, Bryan Station High School, Fayette County.

Education Matters is a KET production, produced by Nancy Carpenter. More information about KET programming and education services, as well as how to support KET, can be found at www.ket.org.

Hands-on physics demonstrations for kids and a free professional development (PD) workshop for middle and high school physical science teachers are scheduled  are for Nov. 19 at the KET Network Center in Lexington.

KET’s physics teacher, Chuck Duncan, will conduct professional development workshops on integrating KET’s Virtual Physics Labs into classroom instruction. Duncan will give out copies of all lab activities currently used in his online courses. Seating is limited. Those interested should contact Darlene Carl.

In addition, families can bring children to the rest of the science and physics activities and meet Sid the Science Kid.

Click here to explore and learn more about Chuck Duncan’s physics labs.

KET will air a segment on children’s health May 22 at 2 p.m. ET, and on KET2 May 24-25 at 8:30 p.m. Bill Goodman will discuss Baby Health Services with volunteer Dr. Tom Young. Baby Health Services, located in Lexington, is an organization dedicated to providing free medical care to children without insurance from birth through 12 years of age. Goodman also welcomes guest John Rhodes, author of Wit4Life, as they discuss anger management in children.

In August 2010, the Kentucky Board of Education adopted the new Kentucky Core Academic Standards, which include the national Common Core State Standards for mathematics and English/language arts. The next Education Matters, airing Tuesday, March 22 at 9/8 pm CDT on KET, explores how innovative statewide networks of teachers and administrators are deconstructing, disseminating and implementing these new standards. Read the full story

Teachers in grades 5-8 can use Scale City’s Using Scale City to Teach Proportional Reasoning, a professional development resource for 5th- through 8th-grade mathematics teachers. It is located on the KET Teacher’s Domain. This collection features three self-paced modules, a resource list with frequently asked questions and a guide to the media found in each of the modules.

By Matthew Tungate
matthew.tungate@education.ky.gov

The General Assembly’s 2009 Senate Bill 1 (SB 1) overhauled education in Kentucky, ending the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System (CATS) and requiring the state Department of Education to establish new, clearer curriculum standards that are better aligned for college readiness and global competition, among other things.

However, even superintendents had trouble digesting all the changes – and they had more information than most people, according to Sandra Johnson, superintendent of the Hazard Independent school district.

So she was one of the first people to take advantage when Kentucky Educational Television (KET) released online training modules about SB 1 in August. She came away impressed. Read the full story

KET and the Kentucky Department of Education, through their joint e-Learning Kentucky grant, have launched Transforming Education in Kentucky: A free, media-rich introduction to Senate Bill 1. Seven informational interactive modules are designed for educators, students and parents who want to understand the educational effects of 2009’s Senate Bill 1 (SB 1) (KRS 158.6453 and others). Each module includes readings, videos and interactive exercises. Read the full story

KET, in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Education, has launched Transforming Education in Kentucky: A free, media rich introduction to Senate Bill 1. Seven informational interactive modules are designed for educators, students and parents who want to understand the educational effects of 2009’s Senate Bill 1 (KRS 158.6453). Each module includes readings, videos and interactive exercises. The modules are: Read the full story