Page A3
September 27, 2000
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Education
Revolutionary Math Finds Winning Combination Again
O nce again, a group o f Portland
inner-city kids participated in a sum
m er m ath study program and scored
notable gains. T he 15 students in
this year’s program scored an aver
age o f 2.6 years gain in m ath skills
in 5 weeks.
T he students w ere participants
in R evolutionary M ath, a m ath/
study skills program designed es
pecially for kids in Portland inner-
city m iddle schools - kids w ho do
not achieve their full potential in
the Portland Public School system .
T hese kids identified as being “at
risk”, and they are. H aving basic
m ath skills and know ing that they
are sm art, capable learners is vital
to their current and future perfor
m ance and w ell-being. These are
kids that could easily get lost or
ignored by the system . T hey could
easily rem ain “ under-achievers” ,
and even w orse, they could see
them selves as such. Instead, they
are picked up by Revolutionary Math.
T he program is unique in its ap
proach. Students m eet five days a
w eek for five w eeks. High expecta
tions, an em phasis on study skills,
and parental involvem ent are the
hallm arks o f this program . R evolu
tionary M ath uses video to help kids
learn, and to docum ent their learn
ing process. T he kids participate in
the video-m aking process, and walk
aw ay w ith a kid-friendly video that
they are proud to share with their
friends. T hus, these “at risk” kids
score gains for them selves, and they
becom e ca ta ly sts for other k id s’
learning as w ell. This is the third
sum m er this program has run, with
consistently positive results.
R evolutionary M ath helps insure
that the m ath gains kids make during
the school year are not lost during
the sum m er m onths w hen they are
not in school. Rather than losing
ground during the summ er, the Revo-
Aris Brooks and Emnet H. are part of a group of inner-city kids who
increased their math skills over the summer vacation.
Good Survey for City Schools
Portland’s teachers, adm inistra
tors, and s ta ff received a strong vote
o f confidence from a satisfaction
survey conducted w ith students, par
ents and school s ta ff in Spring 2000.
The satisfaction survey was given
to students in grades four through
tw elve, school sta ff and parents.
M ost o f the 34,314 parents, staff
and students w ho took part in the
survey believe that Portland Public
Schools are doing a good jo b (92
percent), and that children are team
ing w hat they need to know (87 per
cent). The survey results found that
parents are w ell satisfied w ith the
local sch o o l th e ir child attends.
G enerally, parents, school staff and
students agree that m any practices
assessed on the survey are evident in
their school.
W h e n c o m p a re d to la st y e a r ’s
r e s u lts , p a re n t s a tis fa c tio n
sh o w e d s ig n ific a n t im p ro v e m e n t
in fo u r a re a s: c h ild re n a re le a r n
in g w h a t th e y n e e d to k n o w on
s u b je c ts o th e r th a n b a sic s k ills ;
s tu d e n ts d is c ip lin e is g iv in g a ll
s tu d e n ts th e c h a n c e to le a rn ;
c h ild r e n k n o w w h at is n e e d e d to
m e e t S ta te sta n d a rd s a n d s c h o o ls
a re v ie w e d as sa fe .
P a re n ts g av e h ig h ra tin g s to
school staffs ’ availability to talk with
fam ilies about their concerns. In
terestingly enough, parent satisfac
tion declined sharply when asked if
teachers often talked w ith fam ilies
lutionary M ath kids are taking no
table leaps forward. The program
also gives kids the m essage that they
are sm a rt an d cap ab le learn ers.
H ence, the title for this y ear’s video.
R evolutionary M ath: I Can Think!
E very year, kids in this program
prove that, indeed, they can think.
This was the third sum m er R evo
lutionary M ath has been available
for inner-city Portland kids. In 1998,
eight kids participated and scored an
average o f 2.5 years gain in 6 w eeks,
as m e a su re d b y th e C a lif o r n ia
A chievem ent Test. In 1999, 13 kids
participated and scored an average
o f 23 points gain in 5 w eeks, as
m easured by the C arat testing sy s
te m ( u s e d b y P o rtla n d P u b lic
Schools). In 2000, 15 kids p artici
pated and scored an average o f 2.6
years gain in 5 w eeks, as m easured
by the Stanford D iagnostic Test.
LaN ita Duke, program coordinator,
is beginning fundraising for next
about im portant m atters, such as
te a c h in g p la n s o r h o m e w o rk .
“Clearly, we need to look at this data,
particularly trends over time, continue
to do well where we are doing well, and
focus on improving where we are not,"
stated Benjamin Canada, Ph D., Super
intendent o f Portland Public Schools.
The issue o f school communication
continues to be o f particular concern to
parents.
C om m ents from som e individu
als recorded as part o f the survey
show that w hile m ost are very satis
fied w ith their school, som e w orry
about a lack o f funding, large class
sizes, school com m unications, stu
dent safety, and discipline problem s
that detract from learning.
Schools Gear
Up for Mock
Election
O v e r 3 0 0 M o c k E le c tio n
“ toolkits” are on their w ay to
schools that have registered to
p articip ate in O reg o n S tudent
M ock Election program this fall.
“ T h is p re sid e n tia l elec tio n
year, w e have an enorm ous op
portunity to teach young people
about the electoral process and
to engage them in that process,”
sa id S e c re ta ry o f S ta te B ill
Bradbury, w hose office coordi
nates the M ock Election program.
“ Seizing this opportunity will re
quire parents, candidates, and the
m edia to jo in the hundreds o f
schools that are co m m itted to
helping students understand the
electoral process, w hat is at stake,
and w hy voting m atters.”
The O regon T eacher’s G uide
to the m ock Election provides an
overview o f O regon election in
form ation including sections on
voter registration, the initiative,
re fe rra l an d re fe re n d u m p ro
cesses, cam paign finance, voting
by m ail, and the elected offices
and m easures on the m ock elec
tion ballot.
The mock vote will take place
O ct 26-31. The results o f the state
wide student mock election will be
announced at a student-led press con
ference at the Capital on Nov. 2.
su m m er’s group; she hopes to be
able to offer Revolutionary M ath to
25 students in sum m er 2001.
P rior y ear’s program s w ere open
only to girls. This year, the girls
voted and agreed to allow boys into
their group. Three o f the fifteen kids
in this y ear’s program were boys.
Each year there is a prem ier party to
release the video and honor pro
gram participants This year’s party
will be held the evening o f S eptem
ber 28. Call 297-9074 for m ore
inform ation.
Summer 2000 Revolunonary Math
was sponsored by the PGE f oundation
Youth Involvement Network, as well as
Metro, North Portland Enhancement
Committee, Caring community o f north
Portland, GIFT Multnomah County D e
partment of Community & Family Ser
vices, Portland Parks & Recreation
Youth Trust Fund, and the Multnomah
County Department ofCommunity Cor
rections.
Students of Color
Welcomed at OSU
M ore than 250 people are ex
p e c te d
fo r
O re g o n
S ta te
U niversity’s student o f Color W el
com e and Orientation Barbecue on
Friday, Sept. 29.
Developed by the OSU M inority
Education Office, the barbecue is
designed to reinforce the m essage
that OSU values and honors diver
sity and offers equal opportunity
for all students. People can leant
w ays to be involved, and discuss
issues o f diversity in a relaxed at
m osphere.
The event, whichis by invitation only,
is set from 5 to 10 p.m., starting in the
Marketplace West Patio. The gathering
will later move to the campus’ Memo
rial Union Recreation Center.
T o b e tte r serve a g ro w in g p o p u la tio n an d its increased
reliance o n m o d e m s, w ireless p h o n es, fax m ach in es, an d
Westport
p ag ers, th e p h o n e c o m p a n ie s o f O re g o n have ad d e d a
Jewell
new 971 area c o d e to th e 5 0 3 area.
Forest
Grove
T h is k in d o f c h a n g e is n o t just o c c u rrin g in
Vancouver
O re g o n , b u t th ro u g h o u t th e co u n try . A n d because th e n ew codes differ in fo rm a t from
Portland
previous codes th a t c o n ta in e d e ith e r a ‘ I ’ o r a ‘0 ’ in th e seco n d d ig it, you sh o u ld check
all specialized C e n tra l O ffice-b ased system s fo r co m p atib ility .
S o m e o f th ese system s
m ay require re p ro g ra m m in g o r u p g rad in g . C e llu lar p h o n e s m u st b e rep ro g ra m m e d by
• Grande Ronde
y o u r cellular service provider.
* Salem
To test y o u r e q u ip m e n t, call th e new O re g o n area co d e test lin e at
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I f y o u h av e an y d iffic u lty d ia lin g th e n ew area
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