By: Lisa Wilcox
Staff Writer
CARIBOU — With the 2013-14 budget approval now in the hands of voters and no public comments regarding school spending, it was back to placing full attention on educational issues at the RSU 39 School Board meeting held at the Superintendent’s Office in Caribou on June 5.
Caribou High School math teacher Kim Perreault offered
the board some insight from a teacher’s perspective on the new learner-centered proficiency-based education system that she and fellow teachers have been working toward implementing.
Perreault provided a slide presentation demonstrating the types of standards students would be expected to meet in order to be considered proficient in one area and advance to the next. She showed examples of the online tools students will have available to them, including access to components of the day’s lesson plan and videos that can be accessed via sites such as YouTube and the like to help tutor them with certain subjects.
In order to get herself and her students used to the new goals-oriented learning, Perreault explained that she has been establishing daily lesson goals and posting them in the classroom so that students know what they need to focus on for that day.
The faculty will continue researching and working on the learner-centered system over the summer in order to build a further understanding of the concept and be better prepared for its eventual complete implementation.
Mark Pinette of the Dropout Prevention Committee then addressed the board regarding what is being done to help lower the dropout rate in RSU 39 schools. According to Pinette, currently the dropout rate for the district is 3 percent, which is just about average for the state.
Pinette listed reasons why the students drop out, such as skill deficit, age and economic issues. He explained that the committee has created a list of recommendations to lower the dropout rate such as increasing collaboration between eighth-grade and ninth-grade teachers to ease the students’ transition into high school, providing more summer school options and adding a high school credit for the completion of 200 hours of paid work experience. Pinette justified the credit by stating that a lot of learning can take place out of the classroom to prepare the student for life after high school.
According to Pinette, the dropout committee has some concern over the new standards-based education producing a higher dropout rate due to the higher expectations put into place and they hope to address that as the program advances.
The board then approved recommendations to add Financial Literacy and Freshman Seminar courses at Limestone Community School, job descriptions for class adviser, senior class adviser and marching practice adviser, and a list of recommendations from the Caribou High School Scholarship Finance Committee to make changes in funds appropriations for various scholarships.
Superintendent Frank McElwain announced the resignation of Nicole Spencer, an ed tech at Hilltop Elementary School, and the transfer of Cindy Albert from Title I literacy specialist to a pre-K teacher at Hilltop and Jen Rand from half-time English language arts high school teacher and half-time Pre-K teacher at LCS to Caribou Middle School grade 6 teacher.
McElwain then advised the board that he been approached by a Houlton radio station to videotape and stream live online the Caribou High School graduation ceremony. This would be done at no expense to the RSU as WHOU produces videos to provide to the seniors and seeks their own sponsors. The board concluded it was a great idea for those who are unable to attend the ceremony.
The meeting concluded with administrators from Teague Park School, Limestone Community School, Caribou Middle School and Hilltop Elementary School updating the board on recent activities at the schools.
The next RSU 39 School Board meeting will be held Wednesday, June 26 at 7 p.m. at the Superintendent’s Office.
