teachers, technology mix it up - InMaricopa.com

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2 NOTEBOOK InMaricopa.com March 2012 Maricopa Notebook Debbie Loroña-Marquez Drop out!!! Sheriff Paul babeu Sharing the thoughts and opinions of Maricopans InMaricopa News asked Facebook followers for their thoughts on the controversy swirling around Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu and an ex-lover who is said to be a Mexican national and who Babeu is accused of threatening to deport if he revealed the relationship. Babeu, long tough on illegal immigration, is running in the District 4 Congressional race. We asked: Do you support him? Could the situation be handled differently? Should he step down from being sheriff? Should he drop out of the District 4 Congressional race? Does it matter if he’s gay? Does it matter if an ex-lover is an illegal immigrant? Did Babeu misuse his office? Is Babeu getting a raw deal? What does this mean for his political future? (This is a sampling of comments. Find us at Facebook.com/InMaricopa) Kimmi Pettrey no it does not matter his sexual orientation! there are more pressing issues in this area such as drugs , and gangs that the tax payer dollars should be going towards. If all the people in office let their skeletons out of the closet there would no goverment! Our own past presidents and politicians had had affairs and prostitutes and there were never asked to step down. If the man is doing his job correctly which alot of people feel he is , leave it alone , what goes on in his private life his own buisness. GrumpyJoe Treadway Public Opinion? Just ask “What’s Changed?” Nothing! If there is any criticism, it will be the bigots that always make noise about the difference in people, not the acceptance of all people being different. Jose Linares I dont think that his personal relationship should have anything to do with his job as sheriff. I fully support him and if it comes out that he did threaten his ex-lover with deportation then he should pay for that and that only. I commend him for being honest about himself and I look forward in continuing my support for Sheriff Babue. I also dont think he should drop out of the race, what politician in this day in age doesnt have skeletons in their closet? No one is perfect. Maryann Spaulding I agree with the three above me, Kimmi, GrumpyJoe and Jose. Who cares about his personal life. There are much more important things to focus on. There is no reason for him to step down or stop pressing forward with his career. Beverly Ernest Freitag I still support him, his sexual orientation should have nothing to do with him being Sheriff or running for Dist. 4 Congressional race. I believe that these people who are making such a big issue out of this are probably illegal and would love to see Sheriff Babeu leave office. He has done nothing wrong and we need someone like him to either stay Facebook readers look at his record and job performance, not his personal life. Sheriff of Pinal County or make changes in Washington. What about a person’s constitutional rights. Oh yea forgot the President doesn’t follow the Constitutional Rights. Vincent Manfredi Response time cut in half, and a budget in good shape, but some people want to talk about his sexual orientation, which is pathetic. Tom Candelaria All I know is that he is a libertarian-leaning sheriff who refused to deploy speed cameras in this county because he believed they were unconstitutional and respresented a safety concern. He’s also one of the only people in government taking the “Fast and Furious” scandal seriously... I support him. Anthony Lopo Some of the questions cannot be answered until all the facts are out. Let’s see what the investigation finds before making any judgments. For now, I still support him. Being he is in law enforcement and in the position of Sheriff, he should have know better then to be involved with a person that is here illegally. Poor judgment on that part. Thomas DeGraphenreed II This society has not gotten to the place where we over look a public servants acts away from his/her job regardless to the time of day.This country was built on the principals from The Bible,and what those who hold office should be held to, after all, he swore on A Bible to uphold his office. Jodi Baldwin Rocha He has proven himself to be a VERY good public servant! Sexual orientation means NOTHING! I fully support him!!!!! Jessica Lynne Richards I just found a picture of him and his gay lover... wow people, leave the poor guy alone. Jan DeHart I think he’s doing a great job, agree with the above, leave him alone! Publisher Scott Bartle associate Editor Christia Gibbons Reporters Wayne Block Christia Gibbons Tom Gibbons Tim Howsare Josh Skalniak Photographers Tom Gibbons Tim Howsare Shannon Williams Designer Carl Bezuidenhout Operations Manager Carolyn Struble Customer Loyalty Coordinator Michelle K. Winegard Classifieds Kathy Debevec VOLuME 4, IssuE 3 COntaCt us: what’s better than one membership... 85239.com, LLC dba InMaricopa News P.O. Box 1018 Maricopa, aZ 85139 (520) 568-0040 tel (520) 568-0050 Fax news@InMaricopa.com sales@InMaricopa.com Published advertisements are not an endorsement of products or advertising claims by InMaricopa News. no part of this newspaper may be reproduced by any means without the prior written permission of InMaricopa News. Copyright 2012. HOW ABOUT 5 for the price of one Call or visit the web to see how you can get a membership to five great courses for one low price! 480.844.1100 • www.thedukegolf.com 42660 West Rancho El Dorado Parkway Maricopa, Arizona 85138
March 2012 3 InMaricopa.com COVER STORY MUSD to blend high-tech learning with traditional teaching methods BY CHRISTIA GIBBONS Ninety sixth-, seventh- and eighth- graders will get a crack at a new kind of classroom in the Maricopa Unified School District this fall. Students from both middle schools — 30 in each grade — will pilot a program at Maricopa Wells Middle School in what educators call blended learning. To the students, it means using the technology with a safety valve: a teacher. While a software-learning program will direct them through lessons at their own pace, a classroom teacher will monitor their progress through computer analytics. At the drop of a hat, that the teacher can pull a student — or group of students — away from the computer and present a lesson a different way. The teacher will supplement learning with more traditional methods such as field trips, group discussions, and projects throughout the school day. “It’s almost a very free, organic education,” said Desert Wind Middle School Principal Joseph Veres, who is shepherding the new program. “Our kids want technology, they want to have control of their education, and they want to go at their own pace.” Veres is working on his Ph.D. and is researching blended learning and teacher effectiveness. Deputy Superintendent Ember Conley called him a “forward thinker. He is the expert.” “I’m never satisfied with the status quo,” she said. “This is the right thing for kids so they can learn, grow and expand using technology as a tool.” Blended learning is still in its early stages of development and has its critics. Opponents say it’s too socially isolating for students, higher achievement isn’t guaranteed, and some software programs don’t meet educational needs. John Huppenthal, Arizona’s superintendent of public instruction, favors blended learning, and the state is working with a math program in the Yuma Elementary School District. “We’re testing the environment ourselves to see the academic gains,” Huppenthal said. The right software is vital in this evolving field, he said. “We would love to work with (MUSD) on the selection of the software … and how they’ll be tracking achievement.” William Lange, social studies and broadcast media teacher at DWMS and a blended-learning proponent, said the new program “is the best of all things from home schooling to online schooling, and the best of brick and mortar blended into one space.” The program also will use the existing Maricopa Online classes, which include 30 languages and agricultural courses. The program will be housed at Maricopa Wells Middle School because the school is under a state mandate to restructure. The blended-learning program is one step. “We’re in a school improvement situation, and we’re in an important mode,” Maricopa Wells Principal Rick Abel said. Some people are concerned the new program will only be for the high achieving students, or, conversely, the behavior-problem kids. A system through which students apply to the program and then are chosen by lottery evens the playing field, Abel said. “This won’t be an alternative school for behavior problems, although that “(Blended learning) is the best of all things from home schooling to online schooling, and the best of brick and mortar blended into one space.” – Desert Wind Middle School teacher William Lange would not keep a kid like that from being included if this could be a better way for them to learn,” he said. “We’re all about the opportunity for kids.” Conley, the deputy superintendent, said: “It’s our hope and goal to add more kids and a grade each year, so we’ll have fifth graders in 2013.” Veres said by having the program part of the bigger campus, all activities from band to athletics to school clubs are available to the blended-learning student. Transportation logistics are being addressed. To market and promote the new program, Veres is working with the Career/Technical Education students at Maricopa High School to come up with a plan to get the word out to the community. The program has been named MUSD20+1 to represent the district moving into the 21 st century. “I met with them and these kids are incredible. They were just spinning ideas and were talking about an iPod application for students, among other things,” Veres said. A model of the fall program may be available to incoming sixth graders in a four-week, tuition-based summer school math program at DWMS, Veres said. The details are being worked out in conjunction through a youth development partnership with the city of Maricopa. As district administrators and faculty continue to ready the program for fall, Veres said, “We want to offer the best to our students, but the best is different. Some will excel with traditional learning, some will grab the technology. We want to have all the options.”
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