More Conference Sights and Sounds

This morning, Martha Bruckner welcomed the conference attendees gathered for the opening general session and read a poem someone from South Africa had sent her. She ended with "God bless the children of South Africa. God bless the children of Orange County, Florida. God bless the children of Millard Public Schools, Nebraska. God bless all our children. They’re the reason we’re here to learn more."

Orange County Schools Superintendent Ronald Blocker spoke next and thanked ASCD, Pearson, and NOVA for the contributions from the Books Bash for the district's Title I students. He noted the importance of literacy and noted that his district has 90-minute reading blocks in every school, with whole or small-group instruction. The district also is tackling high school reform with a program that focuses on rigor, reading, relevance, and relationships. The schools are beginning to offer Saturday and after-school programs, to keep their media centers open until 7 p.m., and get parents more involved in the schools.

Blocker noted though, that with all the emphasis on improving assessment results, he wants to be sure that the schools don’t increase test scores and turn students off to reading.

Photo: Mark Regan