Absent: none
1 - Routine business
no citizens commentsno adjustments to agenda
motion to approve minutes from 9/9/14; second, approve 6-0
FHS Representatives
Conor Lemanowicz - things going well; Guidance for application process, excellent help as he is the first of his family going to college and no one to get the inside advice from
Justin Bates - boys soccer won today 9-0
Parent night -open house process to have parents walk through the schedule; how aware are folks of this happening?
maybe something on the website, additional communications coming for 'Curriculum Night"
2 - Guests/Presentations
Gabriela Blood, Haley Frank
went on trip to China
two teachers also went on the trip but were unaware that it was the same exact trip until late in the planning process
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| slide capture of presentation |
XieXie = thank you
more ambitious in trying foods than before
developed appreciation of freedom compared to here
Mr Walsh, Mr McCarthy
the Chinese school day was longer than here; their time is spent as students and not athletesJoyce Edwards, Jane Hogan
(slide show to be added later)joined trip as part of the delegation of educational leaders
a country of tremendous contrasts
urban and rural; Shanghai - the New York City of China
got to do 'tourist stuff' but then also meet with educational leaders
25 school administrators from 4 states
3-4 members of the group also spoke fluent Mandarin which helped with understanding the nuances of the discussions
met with Deputy Prime Minister of Foreign Affairs, he had met with Ambassador Kerry the week before
grades 1-9 compulsory
high school 10-12 is not mandatory
meritocracy based system (driven by test scores)
a communist party member is on each school board
curriculum materials must be approved by the party
public funded but also accept private funding (from families)
1 child/family drives the strong family focus on education
teaching is a revered and professional position in China
60% teaching, 40% spent on development and preparation of the total teaching day in China
the second language is English, there is no other language taught in Chinese schools
farmers are exempt from the 1 child rule to help encourage farming (enough hands for picking crops)
ePals, an electronic form of penpals can provide an opportunity to communicate regularly
a Needham high school student spending the summer abroad in China volunteering there
EF Tours and Primary Source are good collaborators in fostering global education
the beginning
Is it time to teach Chinese at FHS?
the major hurdle is maintaining the funding and the resources; manpower not available to do so currently, the resources are such in high demand we have not been able to recruit and maintain a hire
Classroom to classroom is a rich opportunity, who would take lead?
It is open to anyone, a teach could arrange thru ePals
This is already happening in some areas within Franklin, with folks having returned from these trips, the incentive will increase
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