2016 Texas Superintendent of the Year Mary Ann Whiteker of Hudson ISD was invited to address the State Board of Education at its meeting January 29, 2016.
Whiteker spoke of the Creating a New Vision for Public Education in Texas document created by the Public Education Visioning Institute with the support of TASA and how it has inspired transformation in her district and across the state. She called for a reduction on the emphasis on standardized testing in favor of multiple, diagnostic assessments and spoke in support of digital learning and local accountability. Click on the play button to the left or watch Mary Ann Whiteker’s speech on Vimeo.
2016 Texas Elementary Teacher (and Texas nominee for National Teacher of the Year) Revathi Balakrishnan of Round Rock ISD and 2016 Texas Secondary Teacher of the Year Martha Saucedo of Brady ISD were also invited to address the SBOE.
Balakrishnan, a TAG specialist, also spoke of standardized testing, saying that it takes time away from teachers being able to truly teach their students. See Revathi Balakrishnan’s speech.
Saucedo, a family consumer science teacher, talked about the importance of elective courses and how they connect students to the real world. She called on the board to support those opportunities for students. See Martha Saucedo’s speech.
See the February 16 blog post on Whiteker’s speech by Diane Ravitch.
