Eleven Actions You Can Take Now to Help Improve Education in Your ISD
Want to make things better in your school district? Here are some actions you can take.
Understand that you have the right to expect your ISD superintendent and the members of your school board to follow policies and laws for the students’ sake, to put students’ needs first.
Recognize that you have the right to help the superintendent and the school board do their lawful jobs by asking questions about their job responsibilities and how they are doing to meeting them, and that you are entitled to receive clear, complete and documented answers to your questions. And when you don’t, you have the right to say so and to ask for better answers.
When you are at school board meetings or school board candidate campaign events, ask questions of current board members as well as board candidates. Here are some examples of what to ask:
Have you been, or will you be, trained in your job as described in policy and law to fulfill your oath of office?
How will you engage the community, and other public entities, in serving the needs for each students?
How will you address the problems that are leading to low performing schools in our ISD?
What will you do to stop the harm being done to students by high-stakes, “drill and kill” testing?
What will you do to ensure that the education students receive is about much more than passing state-mandated tests?
Do you understand, and if not, will you find out, the TEA’s legal responsibilities in regard to serving the ISD and its schools in planning and decision-making for the students’ sake?
Do you know the district’s policies in regards to planning for and meeting students’ needs and for using tax payers’ money efficiently and effectively?
Encourage school board members as well as candidates for the board to oversee, help and ensure the superintendent is capable of and is performing their job for the success of students in the ISD. Ask them to question the superintendent about what he or she is doing to ensure that district policies are being followed so that every child in your ISD receives a high-quality education and to ensure the superintendent backs up every answer with accurate and timely documents.
Encourage your neighbors, friends and the students you know to attend school board meetings and candidate events and share this action list with them.
Share this action list with teachers too. Urge them to speak up about problems they see and urge them ask the questions in #3 and #4.
Demand that education leaders follow policies for making effective use of your tax dollars.
Vote in school board elections, and vote for candidates who publicly state that they will: Read and learn about ISD policies that relate to serving student needs and making effective use of money; hold the superintendent accountable for implementing those policies; and help the superintendent do his or her job by asking tough questions.
Share this action list with your neighbors and friends.
Tell your neighbors and friends about this website
MORE INFORMATION
FIFTEEN GREAT RESULTS IF EDUCATION LEADERS DID THEIR JOBS
Education leaders would comply with their legal obligations according to the Texas Education Code and school district policies and would no longer violate the rights of students, parents, teachers and taxpayers.
⇩
ELEVEN ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE NOW TO HELP IMPROVE EDUCATION IN YOUR ISD
Recognize that you have the right to expect the superintendent and members of the school board to work on behalf of students and to put their needs first.