We thank Dr. Caylor for taking time out of her busy schedule to speak to us today about the statewide �State� of education in Alabama. Besides her busy life as a state board of education member Dr. Caylor is running for mayor of her hometown of Huntsville in the 2004 election.
Dr. Caylor has nine years on the state board of education and served nine years on the Huntsville city board of education before that. She started teaching 40 years ago at East Clinton Elementary in 1963 at a time when there were no special education programs of any kind. In 1966 she got her Master�s Degree in Special Education at the University of Alabama. As school superintendent and members of two boards of education, Dr. Caylor has taught teachers at Athens State and Alabama A & M. In her own family a niece had reading problems in high school and this niece is now as successful entrepreneur and business owner.
Dr. Caylor said the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND program will set back learning disability despite the fact that public education has always �left children behind�. The reason for this problem is that children aren�t taught to their learning strengths or learning style.
She told parents that students on the Occupation Diploma Track CAN CHANGE to the regular track in 11th grade but have to make up the core courses they have missed in summer school. Parents weren�t aware of that possibility.
How to tackle to public education problem for kids with learning differences: according to Dr. Caylor the problem is the policy makers. For example, each state board of education member represents 450, 000 people per district. On the state board, Dr. Caylor is the only board member with K-12 experience. The other board members are two realtors, one lawyer, on Alabama State worker, one retired U of A professor, one journalist and one architect. State School superintendent Ed Richardson, (know lately for his dramatic pronouncements about public education), is appointed and his contract is up in two years.
The true education power in the state is Paul Hubbert of the Alabama Education Association. His teacher�s union�s goal is taking care of the teachers, not the students, but he holds the power in Montgomery.
Dr. Caylor told us that there are four things parents can do to help their learning different kids:
1. Push for funding for the Alabama Reading Initiative program. Only 8 percent of state schools participate in this program to train teachers to teaching reading. Dr. Caylor told us the state of Massachusetts studied the Alabama Reading Initiative, implemented and have had great success, coming in number one in a ranking of state concerning reading, while Alabama is at the bottom. The reason? Mass legislature fully funded the program.
Dr. Caylor said information about the Alabama Reading Initiative program is available online at the state education department website
www.alsde.edu
2. Work with other parents as a voice for kids�.attend as group local school board meetings and tell the board �children�s needs are not being met in reading� and then hold those elected officials accountable for what they do about the problem. Watch voting records and then vote out board members who don�t address the problems.
3. Be relentless and preserve. Be your child�s best and loudest advocate. Don�t take NO for an answer. Write to state superintendent Richardson and other officials to express your concerns. The two words are persistence and perseverance.
3. Monitor the results in Alabama of the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND legislation.
Dr. Caylor gave us a copy of a Powerpoint presentation put together by the state Education Department with some useful information. See the separately attached
WORD document of the Powerpoint information.
Other notes of interest:
UAH students enrolled can have free tutoring for learning differences. The University will provide a note taker, some will read tests, or videotape lectures, give extra testing time etc. Kathy Cray told us to call the main UAH switchboard and ask for Mrs. Hall or Mrs. Robertson.
Barbara Combs provided free booklets A PARENT�S GUIDE, A Teacher�s Toolkit, and she ordered from the NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND website. Some items can only be ordered in a number of one, as compared to some materials that Barbara could order for us for many copies. Barbara suggests parents check out the website and order everything possible to help them. Go to
www.edpubs.org