By Jolene Farley
At a Jan. 20 in-service, Hills-Beaver Creek High School teachers discussed a transition to an eight-period day, for the 2003-04 school year. Students currently attend seven 48-minute periods.
Although the school board hasn’t approved a schedule change, teachers and administrators brainstormed to determine the best system for the district.
Under the current system, students can earn seven credits a semester. The goal of a schedule change is to offer students more flexibility in scheduling.
A change to block scheduling was considered in the past. Students would have attended four 85-minute periods or four 83-minute periods under that schedule, with classes lasting a quarter of the school year instead of a semester.
At the in-service, teachers discussed ideas for adding a class to the curriculum that would be good for learning and teaching.
The teachers decided to concentrate on students who are falling behind. Advanced students could possibly take courses via internet for a cost of $300 per student.
These students would have the opportunity to earn college credit through these courses.
In other board business:
Future teacher evaluations at Hills-Beaver Creek Schools will be performed using a new method, the Madeline Hunter approach, the School Board decided at a Jan. 27 meeting.
"It provides a better system for feedback through the observation process," said Superintendent Dave Deragisch. "Everyone knows exactly what we are expecting," he said.
Previously, teachers where evaluated using the Lead Teacher Minnesota Method.
The district will hire an outside firm to place a value on and update the district’s asset list, a new accounting requirement by the state.
For example, the old elementary school is still on the books as an asset even though it was torn down several years ago.
The auditor encouraged the board to get a handle on all student activity accounts, according to Deragisch. The board approved a rule that no H-BC class can have an open account on school ledgers after June 30 of the year they graduate. The class must choose a representative to manage their money or spend their money.
"My recommendation to the classes is going to be to spend their money," said Deragisch.
