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From Barbara Cable Casey: Parents, your teachers need your help TODAY! The attack on our collective bargaining rights is back. The following is from KNEA’s “Under the Dome”: “You might be wondering what happened to HB 2085, the bill to dismantle collective bargaining and the KSSA proposal to strip teachers of any voice in anything except salary, supplemental pay, sick leave, and personal leave. The House Commerce Committee met today and decided to discuss the collective bargaining proposals but not to work HB 2085. What could this mean? What we learned is that a plan was hatched out...

 SMSD area Sen. MELCHER voted in favor of mandatory 3rd grade retention. Recall he also voted in favor of the constitutional amendment to limit the court’s ability to order school funding. Families from Trailwood, Brookwood, and parts of John Diemer, Indian Woods, SMS and Blue Valley SD, Sen. Melcher needs to hear from you! Thank SMSD Sens. Wolf and Pettey for voting the bill down. http://cjonline.com/news/2013-02-26/committee-rejects-plan-hold-back-third-graders Retention decisions should be made by parents, teachers and principals based upon evaluation of multiple criteria rather than based upon a single test score and mandated by the legislature.  Academic research shows a harmful...

Kansas Senate education committee voted down Governor Brownback’s 4th grade reading plan SB 169 (retains 3rd graders who fail tests) on a 5-6 vote.  This bill was another example of the wrong cure.  Retention decisions should be left to parents, teachers and principals, given research showing a link between retention and drop-out rates and other issues.  ...

http://www.kansas.com/2013/02/26/2690968/letters-to-the-editor-on-public.html...