archives

Here's stuff from earlier postings.

11/11 Debbie--special to Patrick! Will you archive this page like you did before with other classes and just leave 5381 on here? Really slow right now!!

11/11 Debbie Angelia--I wrote paragraphs. I also only got one incorrect answer because I was very thorough. I used the instructor authored reading (which I had done lots of notation on) and did not use APA. There are correct answers--it is not opinion--but it is interpretation, and I used information from the reading to support. Not essay questions. Short answer. I did it live, not cut and paste. Wear football pads and a hockey mask to work! Seriously! 11/11 Valerie Angelia~I do not want your job! Most of my answers for the PM were words & phrases. For a couple items, I wrote a few sentences, but definitely did NOT use any sort of formatting.

11/11/10 Angelia Happy Veteran's Day! Thanks for the advice everyone. I just needed to know if I had to read all of the non- "stuff" carefully or not. I've had to prepare finals....have had 4 ARD preps, a new/returning student over which I am arguing with diag on placement...infuriating red tape.....and since I am "Lead"....one of my para's was hurt (the intensive autism class) so I have been down in the class with the really, really, (did I say REALLY?) aggressive student.....15 restraints in a day not uncommon......55 minute "hard" bucking/fighting raging restraint just last week (thank you very much).....so I am pretty much getting my butt kicked all the way around. Oh, on top of my normal teaching duties with two preps..... I will finish up on the reading you guys think will suffice for the "quiz" by tonight to hopefully take that. Thanks for the moral support guys!! Debbie: Are these short essay answers and did you use APA within answers to quote?? Also did you do this live (as in typing in question answer fields, or did you type in Word and paste in?

11/10 Debbie Just took the PM. I took an hour, but I was very careful and thorough. I definitely hope there are not more than 24 questions on the real exam! I liked that the questions were not just all regurgitation--you actually have to apply your understanding. Just go get it over with, Angelia--you will feel less freaked out. I'm pretty sure I got them all right. Like I said, I was careful.

11/10 Valerie Angelia~There were NO questions on the PM over any of the specific cases. The questions ALL came from the instructor-authored reading...terms and application of concepts. HTH! :)

11/10 Angelia I have had a lot of obligations and am struggling to get through the chapters in the book. Do we need to read ALL of the information or just the cases that are highlighted by Dr. W in order to complete the Progress Monitor. I just need to know how closely to read the non-emphasized stuff.....Valerie??? 11/10 Valerie I took the progress monitor tonight. It wasn't too bad. I used the instructor-authored reading, and it took me about 45 minutes. I got my feedback already. I get to be assistant principal tomorrow and Friday! It's my first time, so I'm excited!

11/10 Debbie I spoke with Dr. Johnson regarding the progress monitor and how you DO NOT get immediate grades or feedback. According to Dr. J, Dr. Wasserman intended for the progress monitor to score and indicate the correct answers immediately upon submission. It does not currently do this. Dr. J says that the academic coaches actually have to grade/score the progress monitors and then respond to students. Evidently the plan is to correct this grading system and replace it with the intended one. Work in progress. However, we are all getting points for completing the progress monitors, not for getting the correct answers.

I did advocate for us all and mentioned that especially since there were no discussion boards for each module, we all really wanted feedback.

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In the meantime, I strongly suggest we continue the discussion board philosophy here like we always have, except for the lack of suck-up stupidity. It will get long and cumbersome, but we can actually share and help each other here. Hang in there, everyone! =====

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To answer Kevin and everyone else: from the Internship Forum for 5381, Sarah Hall: "I finished last night (24 short answer questions) and submitted. The page said immediate feedback but also said I was waiting on the server to grade. I emailed Amy Horn (who is WONDERFUL) and she said that she is the server and would get them back to us within 48 hours! I am so happy I went ahead and took it so I can use the information and feedback. =====

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I relied heavily on the instructor authorized readings and was actually very happy that I had printed it out. It took about an hour but I found the answer even if I felt pretty certain I knew it." =====

Also, Patricia Demaree posted on the board and attached the first 34 rules in alphabetical order in case it would help people. I haven't looked, but..... And finally, sadly, one of our cohort members named Eva Triplitt lost her husband last week. She is dropping out of the program, understandably. I don't know her--not in cohort 2. And now that I have taken my big healthy dose of perspective, I think I will not complain for a while.

11/10 Kevin: Has anyone tried this progress monitor? The first one is always hard. Trying to figure what the prof like to ask, details, etc.

11/10 Stacie OK, I'm all good. Yowsers, this is a lot of information! Did anyone else get an email to meet with Harold Smith? I've had so much online interaction that I'm nervous to meet these guys in person!

11/9 Debbie Hang in there, Stacie!!

From Dr. Ivory:

Greetings Class: Many of you have contacted me regarding assessments. You should now be able to access your work.

Dr. Tontaleya Ivory

11/9 Stacie OK, I've been enrolled back in and was able to pay for the course, but I can't see it yet on EPIC. Luckily I have a friend in my building going through the program so I can keep up with the class. I feel better, but still on edge until I SEE the actual course for myself. Lesson learned!

11/9 Stacie So....I completely forgot to pay for the course! I have no idea what I was thinking!!! Anyway, I've been dropped. :( I called UTA and the woman on the phone said she sent a message to get me back enrolled, but I'm completely freaking out that it won't be able to happen! I know Dr. Johnson has said many times that it's an absolute deadline. AARRRGGHH!

11/8 Angelia (Cohort 1) Well in the past, what is being called the "pre-test" was called "Progress Monitor" so I am hoping that remains the same.

11/8 Emily (Cohort 2) Ok y'all, I admit I haven't even looked at they syllabus yet for the law course, but have kept up with the announcements. So question for those of you who have gotten started persuing this course, are the practice tests the same as what's called "progress monitors?" Just want to make sure I have full access. Have a great week everyone.

11/7 Angelia Thanks for doing this for us, Debbie.

11/7 Debbie I'm in section 1015 with Tontaleya Ivory. Where is everyone else? Here are the questions from Dr. Wasserman's first video. I believe that these should probably be answered before I attempt the tests! So I cut and pasted for all of you too. This is fascinating stuff, people!!! Way more interesting than interviewing mid-level managers. ====**Week 1: EDAD 5381 UNIT 1 has two content areas.** Part I-A covers //Introduction to Law// and related subjects, while Part I-B examines United States Supreme Court cases involving //school attendance// and //instruction and curriculum//. By first reading the instructor-prepared material over a few times, you will be prepared to read the textbook assignments and better able to answer the questions which appear in the practice tests //and// unit examinations**. Remember, you must complete the practice tests and submit them to your coach, even though they will not be formally graded.** **Just by finishing the practice test you will get credit toward your final grade. The content in Part I-A includes:** ==== The rights that undocumented alien children have to receive a free public education.
 * Core legal terminology with definitions and explanations
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">The Structure of the Federal Government
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">The structure and operation of the Federal Courts
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">The relationship between State Law and School Districts Aspects of the United States Constitution
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">The Legal Citation System Principles followed by both State and Federal courts State Courts and their operation
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">Constitutional Doctrine
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif;">This introductory material is essential to your understanding of what will follow in the course and will segue into actual cases in your textbook.
 * In Part I-B you will learn about federal constitutional issues concerning:**
 * 1) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What the role of residency is in determining the right to a free education within the states?
 * 2) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What limitations the United States Constitution places on states to require children of compulsory education age to attend public instead of private schools?
 * 3) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What limitations does the United States Constitution place upon states to limit the content of what children may be taught at home or in private schools?
 * 4) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What rights school boards have under the United States Constitution to remove books from their own libraries when the content of those books are controversial?
 * 5) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What limits exist under the United States Constitution on state legislatures to prevent the teaching of evolutionary science?
 * 6) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What rules exist under the United States Constitution concerning a requirement that creation theory receive equal treatment to evolutionary science in public instruction?
 * 7) <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">What special rules exist concerning the education of bi-lingual children under Title VII, a federal law which addresses such concerns?

===<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">**Finally, keep in mind that all of the <span style="font: normal normal normal 11px/normal Helvetica;">**unit examinations** are based on the content of each Unit. When taking the unit exams you should feel free to consult with your notes, the textbook, the instructor-prepared materials and the practice tests with answers.You may not, however, during the administration of the unit exam, consult with any other person. Violations of this rule will be treated as academic dishonesty. Remember, your performance on the unit exam must be based solely on your own individual efforts. No exceptions!** ===

11/5 Stephanie yes, Patrick- really slow. Thought it was just me.

11/4/10 Angelia Oh, joy. I despise timed tests because my life is one big interruption....that's one of my peeves with Berning's Technology class is the blasted timed test.....such pressure.

Anyone else sign up to take the 068 Principal's test? I am going 12/20 to ProMetrics in Bedford. First day off from school....hopefully will knock this out and then not worry about this test hanging over my head for the entire winter break. Hey, Debbie--you are a talented writer and I am confident that you were well prepared for that last class! As you said, thinking on the fly is so important when you're the person in charge. You will be an excellent administrator simply because you have excellent communication and writing skills.

11/4 Valerie: Patrick~Dr. Johnson posted this in regards to the unit exams: There is a practice exam and then the real exam. It is a one-time shot - and timed. The instructor and I visited about how much time to allow for the exams and decided to extend the time to hopefully allow enough time yet have you responsible for learning..... Is this page running slowly for anyone else?

11/4 Steph**__A__**nie: Hey everyone! This next class is the last on for the semester! I kinda wish we could work through the break so I can finish a little earlier. I'm ready to be finished with this program. By the way, our Law course is up and running. Looks like it's just read, pretest and then unit test all 5 weeks...no discussion boards or papers (that I noticed). This should be interesting.

<span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">11/3 Patrick New course is here, syllabus up. Looks like a lot of reading of dense material, but the entire grade is based on open-notes tests each week. Prof seems a bit hesitant in reading off the teleprompter for the videos, but his course design doesn't seem too bad. I generally prefer papers to tests, but if I can read over and think about things and then do scavenger-hunt searches for answers on tests to reinforce particular ideas, I think I might be able to come away with something. I plan to not look more at this new course till Monday. See if I can do it. My only wondering is whether the exams are timed, once you begin them.

11/3 Debbie You are right, Angelia; I had forgotten about the "post by Tuesday, respond by Sunday, read three different things and jump through three different hoops...." It was definitely less busy work. It's just that if you have been in education at all, you could really do this class with your eyes closed. I ad libbed a LOT and it all came out just fine. I don't think it's my brilliance, either. So that's a little disconcerting. Although, technically, I think most of being a principal is shooting from the hip, so perhaps this was more preparation than I credit it with.

11/3 Angelia My grade was just posted. Diane Bunker wrote a pretty nice response with mine with specific detail mentioned for the half point that was deducted. Overall I thought the class allowed for a bit of a breather compared to the other course that had way too many assignments per week. This had a lot of reading if you bought the books. I didn't really learn much that was new, but the topic(s) were at least interesting and I felt beneficial in preparation for the role of principal. Debbie, I hope you didn't get down to the tread.....

11/3 Debbie I'm happy the class is over. It wasn't bad, but I felt like I was spinning my wheels.

11/2 Valerie Debbie~My grade is posted, too. No feedback, though, which I think is crap. Oh, well, I'm happy with my grade.

11/2 Stacie No grade for me yet... I guess I'll do the computer test. I really think I'll do better on paper, but 3 weeks vs. 2 days is a definite deal breaker. I'd still like to know for sure if we can skip questions and then come back to them at the end. Too bad there's no option to use the paper test and then type answers into a computer at the end. I'm definitely nervous to take the test before January though. I might shoot for sometime during our month off.

11/2 Debbie Grades are posted for the final paper....it was clearly a matter of ticking off boxes on the rubric.

11/1 Patrick: Just signed up to take the test next Tuesday. Also put up a page on the Wiki for test prep/tips, if anyone is interested.

11/1 Angelia My friend Ryan who is finishing up with Lamar's program took the October paper test. It took 3 weeks to get the grade. Lindsay took the computerized test and got results in 2 days. Let's ask her if it's timed.....

11/1 Angelia I ordered several books XAMonline.com TExES Principal 068 ISBN 9781581975802 This has a good general overview followed by a sample test over each of the subsections.

Passing the Principal TExAS Exam: Keys to Certification & School Leadership by Elaine L. Wilmore (UTA prof.) Corwin Press, ISBN 9780761939863 This book has test taking strategies and how to conceptualize the various domains and competencies covered by the test. Has only a few sample questions at the very end.

10/31 Michael The last certification test I took by computer was the ESL test - you have the same amount of time as you do the paper based test and I could mark questions I wanted to go back to. I am guessing the Principal test would be the same way. Whenever I decide to take it I will probably go with the computer test since I don't like waiting for weeks to get the results. Has anyone found any really good study materials other than the guide offered by ETS?

10/31 Stacie Well, I just tried mymav again and all is well. I don't know what the heck was up with my account earlier... We are back from another successful trick or treat. With all of the school, church, daycare parties, this ended up being the 4th night of candy for my kids. There going to be pretty bummed when they wake up tomorrow and realize the parties are over! Jaylon was Bumblebee (the transformer) and Kalysa was a cheerleader. My husband was DJ Lance from Yo Gabba Gabba so the kids were pretty pumped to come to our house. :) I finally submitted my request for approval to take the exam. I'm undecided on which test to take. I do OK with computer tests as long as they aren't timed. If the test is timed, I'll go with paper. (I've found that on computer tests, you can't skip the ones you don't know and then come back to them at the end. Thus, the timed tests do me in because I spend so much time on the harder questions that I end up not finishing.) Does anyone know if the test is timed?

10/31 Angelia Okay. I logged in to the site at about 3:30 and OMGoodness...... the site had changed and said that the paper had to be submitted by 4:00 p.m. ......yes, 4:00 p.m...........after I had just looked at it this morning and it said 5:00 p.m. Anyone have anything screwy happen like that? I submitted my paper without my final editing to reduce the length. I almost freaked out with the loss of an hour......TGIO......Happy Halloween, everyone! Go Rangers!!!! The password thing happened to me as well, Stephenie & Valerie. The one time I couldn't get it to reset, the help desk person was ever so "helpful" and got me fixed right up. I ended up rewriting the thesis sentence to include all the things mentioned......but I just couldn't submit a paper with such a poorly written thesis statement......what was up with that? Debbie, I didn't use first person......but I bet whatever is submitted will suffice. My Olivia was a fantastic pirate tonight replete with a parrot on her shoulder and a sword at her hip. Jon was a dragon. Hope everyone has/had a fun time with your family. We attended our church's Trunk or Treat. Cotton candy, hotdogs, and lots of candy. Pretty fun booths...jump houses and a rock climbing wall. Cute costumes and kids seemed to have a great time. Saw Waldo & Wanda, Darth Vader (2 ft tall version) and Baby Princess Leaha (sp?)....a cute homemade Lego costume, two wedges of pizza and Sponge Bob. All quite fun!

10/31 Debbie I am using first person, although sparingly. I am also heavily repeating myself. It is not a pretty sight. Happy Halloween!

10/31 Valerie: I used first person in the introductory paragraph only, since the thesis statement we were given was in first person. The rest of my paper was in third person. I am tired of staring at the computer, so I'm going to watch sports now.** GO RANGERS!!!! **

10/31 Stephenie: Stacie you probably need to reset your pw. This has happen to me twice now. They send notice that it was time to change my pw to my uta email and I don't check it much. Find the email and it tells you what to do. Or call the help desk and they can help you. I just went through this with mymav last week so I bet you are getting the same thing. I used first person sparingly since the thesis statement and rubric kinda implied the need. I hope we are all going to graduation. I want to meet everyone.

10/31 Stacie: Can someone see if mymav is working for them? I'm trying to register for the next class and I keep getting an error message.

10/31 Angelia: Who is asking please?? APA format requires use of 3rd person. I did not use first person. Some of the professors have said that since these reflection-oriented papers are quite personal in nature, that use of 1st person is acceptable. McClellan in the past has been a "rules" follower. Did you email your grader to check with them? Some of the coaches have not counted off for use of 1st person. I don't think Amy or Curtis counted off for that in the past.

Is anyone using first person for this final paper? I havent all the way through because I thought formal works required 3rd person.

10/31 Angelia; Of course you should go to graduation, Debbie!! Though you will be missed at school, you would be missing a great milestone celebration for your hard work and achievement. Take the time and start making plans now. Don't miss that 2/15 deadline, either.

10/30 Debbie Just bought the next book for the January class: Howard, T.C. (2010). Why race and culture matter in schools: Closing the achievement gap in America's classrooms. Teachers College Press. ISBN 9780807750711. Got it from bookdepository.com for $25.99 plus free shipping. Just thought I'd share....

Thanks for the graduation information! Now I have the "how to get to graduation and back to Colorado for the last two weeks of school" dilemma. Someone needs to say, "Hey, of COURSE you should go to graduation; so what if you miss a couple of days of school! You have earned this!"

Debbie, you should go! I am definately missing school to go and I am flying (I live about 12 hrs away)! ~Elizabeth

10/29 Elizabeth:

Graduation ceremonies are on Saturday, May 14, 2011! We must apply though by Feb. 15, 2011. <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">[]

10/29 Kevin Is this 5-10 pages including the cover page? Because Im having a hard time not repeating myself and Im only on page 3...with the cover page!

10/26 Debbie Yea for you Lindsay!!!

For cohort 2 people, I asked Dr. Johnson how our schedule is going to play out. I posted it on the calendar on the wiki, but here it is for you: FOR COHORT 2:

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0px;">EDAD 5381 – Legal and Policy Studies - November 8 - December 10th EDAD 5380 – Diversity in Educational Settings - January 3- Feb 6 th **2011**
 * EDAD 5302 - <span class="yshortcuts" style="background-attachment: scroll; background-color: transparent; background-image: none; background-position: 0% 0%; cursor: pointer;">Educational Technology and Planning- Feb 14th-March 18 **
 * EDAD 5399 – Capstone Internship **

And yes, Angelia and all the rest, we can all participate in graduation ceremonies. Not sure what the date is on that, but wouldn't it be fun to meet each other face to face?

Good plan on the paper, Angelia.

10/26 Angelia: Because we are to take information from every media source, I think that is a plausible plan. I was going to first make a check list from the rubric. Then make a general framework/outline. Then as I write I was going to use the rubric check sheet to document where I put what to assure that I didn't overlook one of the many points or medias since we have specific numbers of items listed. I intend to go back to each of my discussions and pull what I can from those first then go back to the primary sources and complement to round out my paper.

10/25 Stephenie: Is anyone else piecing together DB posting and adding to for the final paper? Want to hear from others that I am on target.

10/24 Stephenie: WAY TO GO LINDSAY!!! So happy for you. I have not have time to do anything more than what I already have on my schedule. I am very impressed with you. Any advice for studying?

10/24 Angelia: Congrats to Lindsay for passing!! Great news. One down and forty odd of us to go...... Debbie I emailed you the site info.

10-24 Debbie I am still alive! I've been busily trying to catch up, and haven't found time for wikiing. But hello!! I too got permission to take the test. But have NO IDEA how to go about it here in Colorado. __//**Could someone give me some information on how to register for the online Texas test?**//__ It is my plan to take both the Texas test and the Colorado test (yes, I AM a belt and suspenders kind of girl...how did you know?) just so that I have all the bases covered. I have been assured by Dr. Johnson that we have accreditation for this program in Colorado, but I did not verify with the CDE to find out (since I always had this plan).

I can't believe we can't access the final paper yet....maybe tomorrow. This class has been pretty easy...I imagine we will be happy for the respite since Ed. law is BOUND to be harder. Quite honestly, I am looking forward to it.

10-23- Patrick: Angelia, your study partner appears to have gotten eager and taken it early- Lindsay took it Wednesday and passed. She posted on our Internship Forum for cohort 1 that she found out Friday that she was now admin-worthy in Texas.

I think that as far as studying, I plan on downloading a sample test and using that as prep. I got approval to take it, just figuring out when...

10/22 Angelia: So ready for Thanksgiving week off. Lindsey Cadenhead wants to get together and study because she is taking the test Thanksgiving week. Anyone else taking the computer based test early or waiting on the Jan 29 paper test? I have purchased several different prep books. Anyone else studying?

10/20 Valerie: Angelia~The link I posted below works for me. Let me know if it doesn't work for you. I'll email it, and maybe that would work better. I ordered all three books. Of course the one for last week's module didn't come until yesterday, but I've had this week's for a while. Is anyone else desperately ready for the long break after the next class???

10/19 Angelia: I had ordered the book. Is the link working??

10/19 Valerie: Stephenie~Here's a link to google books for Advancing... <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">[] I checked it, and it worked for me.

10/18 Stephenie: Anyone have a link to the book Advancing the three minute walkthrough? I have tried them all and none are working. Any help would be very much appreciated. THANKS!

10/18 Angelia: Address for viewing the 30 minute video "Performance Management: Assessing Excellent Teachers www.teachers.tv/video/21476

10/17 Patrick: Thanks, guys. I'm all signed up now, ordered a book. Funny I never knew that announcements were searchable that way. Never read the instructions or explored enough, I guess.

As for the internship hours, it's gonna cut it close. Angelia, feel empowered to add hours to your totals for:

- lesson plans with a new eye toward administration (what would I be looking for as an administrator if I was asking for plans... and using this to craft them). - The tremendous amount of informal dialog with staff that goes on day in and day out on campus, thinking of it as building campus cohesiveness, imagining what it would be like if you didn't take the time as an administrator to connect with faculty -outside reading of current events or other nonfiction you might read on your own time, and in your report note how it might apply to administrators' staying current with culture and how it might apply to schools - documentaries about education like waiting for superman, etc...

Just some ideas to help you get there.

P

10/17 Angelia: Thanks for clarifying, Valerie. I thought Patrick had checked there and thus his saying that the message was no longer there......I had just looked at "it" last week, but you know how things are subject to change...... So is anyone going to have problems documenting the newly applied "500 intern hours" that we just learned about from Dr. Smith?? I purposely wasn't keeping up with the hour by hour stats because my husband already thinks that I give the school district too much.....he thinks we are all nuts for working for free.....when other industries #1 don't take work home and #2 have rules that you don't work beyond your scheduled work day without approval because after hours means overtime payment..... So right now the "just let us know about every 2 to 3 months all that you've been doing" has been changed to "accumulating 500 hours and submitting a report every 5th week"..... I realize that we are the first group to go through.....but to find out when you are three classes from being done.....well that isn't very nice.

10/17 Valerie: Hey, y'all. I hope you're all doing well. It's been crazy at my house, so I've had all I can do to keep up. About the announcements--if you click on the icon that looks like an unfurled scroll, you should be able to access some older announcements. I have some going back to June. Congratulations to all of you who are able to sit for the certification exam in January! I still have a ways to go.
 * Patrick**--I just rented the book for the next class from campusbookrentals.com for just over $45 after taxes. It's due back Dec. 20.

10/16/10 Angelia: I had to locate the original print out of the email I sent to my husband with the "next three classes" (per Dr. Johnson's posting two classes ago). The listing you've posted is the correct one for the class, Patrick. The class starts 11/8. We must have been told about the book in a separate advisement (the one that you said is now gone). I didn't print that out, but I ordered the book from the info....and I have the book. So I trust that what I told you below about the book is accurate.

10/16/10 Patrick:

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: normal;">Class number: 86383 <span style="color: #4a598c; font-family: Verdana,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">**EDAD 5381 - 011 POLITICAL AND LEGAL ASPECTS OF EDUCATION**

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: normal;">Lewis Wasserman


 * Does this seem like the right class? I just want to make sure I'm on. The announcement info goes away after one week, and I don't see it around anymore.

10/15 Angelia: Yes, we can sign up for the next class already.You can find the info in the announcements in our last class. It was still available about a week ago when I checked. I ordered my book during the last class Patrick. You may look at renting it if you can't find a good deal on the book. I ended up paying $106.66 through textbooks.com for my copy....and that was a steal.....I planned on adding it to my library since I likely will be continuing school for a bit longer. American Public School Law, 7th Edition, (maroon cover) by Kern Alexander and M. David Alexander, 2009, Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, ISBN-13: 978-0-495-50619-5

I also purchased Gilbert Law summaries Law Dictionary. It was suggested through another source of mine that this would help with the Latin--especially as we read case law.

I had the 11th ed of Texas Public School Organization and administration: 2008 by James Vornberg, Editor. This was also suggested as a good reference to me in the past, and I am hoping it will assist me with this class. It has particularly good summaries and explanations of pivotal cases in educational law.

10/15- patrick: Just requested approval, too. I think it will be fun to take the test and see if I'm prepared for it. Hey- are we to have signed up for the next class yet? Anyone order the book? I may be ahead of myself, here, but I definitely don't want to miss a course in the sequence and have to wait a year to graduate.

Also, I just posted on the internship forum for "Cohort One Only" tab. It's funny, I think when I first asked the salesperson regarding the "UTA Academic Partnership" they said that cohorts would be around 30 or so in size, and that we'd stick with them for each class, so class sizes would be around 30. Guess that was a bit off...

10/13 Angelia: This note accompanied one of my intern reports. I went to Dr. Smith's site and followed the link to sign up for approval.

I have information on my website that will help you prepare for the principal exam.__ <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">__www.uta.edu/faculty/hsmith__ __Harold L. Smith, Ed. D.<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">hsmith@uta.edu 10/12 Steph__**A**__nie: For real, y'all. How do I get approval???

10/12 Stephenie: I am also approved but I am waiting and taking a computer based exam. More choices on time. Any study books?

10/11 Stephanie: Hey, Angelia, how'd you get that approval? Did I miss something??? I want approval, too! :-)

10/11 Angelia; I got a response from UTA saying that I was approved to take the certification exam. Anyone else planning on taking the paper test January 29??

10/8 Angelia: Hey, Stacie. Yes, I have a similar situation with my interview. I think the best idea I've come up with is to pull directly from the Glatthorn book to pad my response with most of the writing interpretation of what was said and not said, instead of what was actually provided in the responses. This one will be harder than the last. Phantom: Thanks for pointing out the syllabus thesis. For some reason I had focused alone on the online assignment page, rather than carefully reading the syllabus that I had actually printed!!! Dumb me. I find it interesting that a window of entry has been placed on that assignment. Curious.

10/8 Stacie: Hey, I think Bunker (my AC) is actually reading my papers! She's given feedback for both assignments, and though they are short sentences, they do include actual references to my papers. What a pleasant change. Angelia, thanks for your responses to my posts. You know how much I value your thoughts on my writing. :) I'm not too excited for this week's post though. My interview with my AP was about 4 minutes long and very jargon-y. I don't know how many "strategies" I'm going to be able to get out of this one.

10/6 Phantom: Angelia, I am not sure why but each module is set so we cannot work ahead. The final paper prompt is in the syllabus so I don't think there is any concerns. Here is the prompt from the syllabus: In a five-to-ten page paper, please answer the following prompt (should be thesis): As the campus leader responsible for the planning, use, and supervision of curriculum and instruction, I, based upon the assignments in this course, would address the full range of responsibilities I would have and would be able to offer teachers a multitude of strategies to ensure that the curricula is challenging, relevant, taught, and tested.

10/6 Angelia: Okay. Plain and simple. Is anyone else waiting for the shoe to drop? I was going through the Patrick Dixon "FUTURE of Education" video....and he said that "life is too short to recreate" work done by other people....and the whole diatribe over how we should be teaching students to create unique synthesis of information based on other people's research and reports. Has anyone thought it suspect that the final paper prompt isn't there? and won't be there until I think October 25? So this is what I think McClellan has in mind. We'll probably be given a writing prompt that has us utilize all of the sources to expound upon our future role as curriculum leader..... Anyone have any thoughts on this??

10/3 Debbie Don't know if any of you watch NBC news, but they are doing a big continuing story on education. Finland has an amazing system, apparently. See this: <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">[]

10/1 Debbie I asked my assistant supt. for curriculum and instruction if she had the Understanding by Design book; she brought me the multi-volume set: a workbook, a sequel of some kind, and the book. I asked my librarian to order it through interlibrary loan; it arrived, too. Moral for today: ask and ye shall receive. Just a suggestion. Now I have to read the stuff!

9/30 Angelia; Hey, Ladies. Well the deadlines would make me crazy. I noticed the 11 p.m. deadlines for some of mine as well. Just don't want to miss any of those.....eeek. Happy Thursday to all of you, by the way.

9/30 Debbie Yeah, Stephenie, so that particular little freakish detail got me a couple of classes ago when I posted "late" even though I was aiming at central time. I do not understand...perhaps it has something to do with where the AC is? I believe it was Amy Horn...but wait: she was in Illinois. So I have no idea. I would email Dr. Johnson and ask him. I notice the next assignments are due at 10:00 p.m. for me...so is that because I am on mountain time (an hour earlier than Texas?) I can't remember what the time for D1 was...

9/30 Stephenie: So my AC posts a conversion table on when assignments are due based on the time zones. She is claiming that epic is in eastern time and all deadlines are too, So explain why after all the other courses have been in central time where UTA is located and now for this course and for this coach the deadlines have changed? Moving targets are sure hard to hit! An if that wasn't enough. I looked at the deadline tonight and watched DB 1 turn off at midnight central time and then clicked over to DB 2 and DB 3 and they show the deadlines as 11:00 pm central time. So the deadlines are not even the same withing the modules. GO FIGURE....

9/28 Debbie Got an email from my AC, Dr. Baxter. Here it is:

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> It is vital that you read the announcements and emails that both Dr. McClellan and I post and send. Those are the most effective and efficient ways for us to provide the important information all of our students need. If you are ever unclear about any of the information contained within the announcements or emails, feel free to contact me with your questions; I’ll do my best to clarify the points further for you. Lots of students have had lots of questions about the readings at this point. The syllabus, my emails, and the course announcements are the best places to get accurate information regarding access to the readings as well as the expectations for the readings. I’ve included even more clarification for you below: <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Now…here are some important reminders in regards to Module 1: <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> I think that is it for now. I know that the beginning of every course can always create some anxiety for students, and it takes some time to wrap your brains around everything. However, I am confident that you will find that Dr. McClellan has designed a very valuable course for you, one that asks you to engage in meaningful discussions and assignments as opposed to completing busy work. Again, let me know if you have questions or concerns along the way. I’m here to help. Relax, take a deep breath, and get ready for a great course! Take care, DR. "B"
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Because the library can only release a certain amount of the reading materials at one time, Dr. McClellan has asked that students get in and get out as quickly as possible so others can have their turn.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Dr. McClellan has also explained that although the books are EXCELLENT, students should go to the reading with the discussion assignment in mind—reading to address the discussion post questions. We will not be assessing to determine if you’ve read all of the material in the sources but rather to determine if you found any useful/meaningful material in the sources.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"> You may want to check out this link: __ <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">__http://www.d.umn.edu/~hrallis/courses/3204sp05/assignments/ubd_template.htm__ __ . You should have no problem accessing pieces of the text or sources that inform your work with the book/concept. Don’t forget-it's not so important that you read every page of the book, but that you read enough of the text and ideas to find meaningful application.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Don’t forget that you can utilize the library’s tutorials on how to locate sources. Also, the reference librarian is available to help if you still have problems. The library is open until midnight most nights, and the library staff is familiar with the readings/requirements for our course.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">In Module 1, Dr. McClellan is asking that you make a preliminary post,-a diagnostic post,-that will be a touchstone for the final assignment. There is no right or wrong answer. THE PRELIMINARY POST IS DUE BY WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 at 11:59 PM CST. The interview post and the reading/video post are due by Sunday, October 3 at 11:59 PM CST. Please note in the rubrics (located in the syllabus as well as in EPIC) that the grades for discussion posts are based solely on what you post in response to the prompt and NOT on your replies to peers.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 20px; list-style-type: disc; margin-bottom: 1.35em; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">For the posts and for all assignments, Dr. McClellan is looking for students to demonstrate that they are thinking and applying the ideas and communicating in a clear manner. When that is done, then full credit will be awarded.

9/28 Angelia (apowell821@aol.com) I have the Understanding By Design book in my library (remember I wrote curriculum for the past 5 years). I also have the Integrating book (special ed differentiation was my area) but I can't lay my hands on it.....looking for it. Think I let someone at school borrow it....tracking it down. I also had ordered the Advancing the 3-minute..." book since I figured something would be awry with the UTA library sources. I can help anyone with info from books. I can fax from my house if you have a fax. Or if you are looking for a quote to support a specific point....

9/28 Patrick.

I am not buying the book. I believe that all the books have SOME sort of preview of at least a chapter via googlebooks or amazon. For purposes of this course, It appears that it will be sufficient to read those and use them for textual quotes and references.

As for responding to posts, I emailed my academic coach yesterday with that question. I don't think she would object to my reposting it here:

<span style="display: block; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-style: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Good Morning Patrick! Thank you...I honestly enjoy my role as "coach" because I remember too well the online courses I took and the "unknowns" there seem to always be out there! Dr. McClellan is not requring that students respond to other postings for credit. As you said, if you read something insightful and you want to respond, that would be great. Otherwise your points come only from the discussion question(s). Have a great day and I look forward to working with you! Diane  <span style="direction: ltr; display: block; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-style: none; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">

||  ||

9/28 Debbie Okay, so can anyone tell if we need the book for this class or not? Dr. McC's "valuable text" plug doesn't inspire me to purchase if it's not really necessary. Thanks Michael for the articles! Way to jump in and help out, Mr. Longtime Wiki Reader No Poster since Cohort 2!!! I'm in Cohort 2!! You should have been hanging with us for the past 6 classes...just saying....

Angelia...what problems are you solving this week? I am coming to rely on your skills, girl. Stacie...I am with you 100% on the no BS responses...wouldn't that be great? Valerie--I emailed Dr. Baxter and told him it wasn't a complete link and he suggested buying the book.

Does anyone HAVE the book?

9/28 Stacie: Hi all! Is anyone seeing directions on whether or not we need to respond to other people's discussion posts? I don't see anything! I assume we have to give some sort of response, but then again, maybe McCellan figures all that "I agree with what you've said..." mumbo jumbo is for the birds and isn't requiring it. That'd be nice. :)

9/27 Michael: I added the two journal articles to the curriculum course resources page.

9/27 Emily:

Anyone have any luck with finding the two journal articles? The UTA library website has not been helpful at all. Please, please, if someone has been able to download them, can you add them to the curriculum course resources page? Thank you very much!

9/27 Valerie: Debbie~Have you tried that link yet? Because when I tried it, I was NOT able to access the entire text. It's a preview in which pp. 28-213 are unavailable.

9/27 Debbie OMG....I go out of town for a wedding weekend, and all hell breaks loose! Curtis Baxter emailed me a link to the entire Downing text //Advancing the three-minute walk through// online (Module 4) <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">[|http://books.google.com/books?id=OkuGPd4tzdYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=advancing+the+three-minute+walk+through&source=bl&ots=GAy8a322_9&sig=n1AdfCtqKpMMs6Ow9wQw-rr30J8&hl=en&ei=M3idTP_2GMKblgexx5DvAg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false]

So...this won't help anyone this week, but maybe it will later...

StephAnie: Phantom, hadn't thought about asking my school librarian for help. Thanks for the suggestion. Oh, and HECK yeah I DO think this is a bit much!! I feel like I'm on a scavenger hunt. I mean, really...

Phantom: Hey guys. I found almost everything we need (I am missing the ASQ article). I found it all in our district data base. Go to your school librarian and ask if the district has an electronic data base for books and articles. There is access to ASCD books along with many other items. I was so excited that I found most of what I need. I asked Dr McClellan (why did I even try?) for some help finding the missing article and she asked if I tried the UTA library. REALLY!!!??? Of course I tried that. I also asked her for a reading assignment since all I could find is the book but no actual assignment. I was told to just read what I needed for the discussion post. So let me get this straight: We need to search for the materials to read and then search for the areas that will help us on the discussion board. The course has not even started (officially) and I am frustrated. Anyone else think this is a little much?

Angelia 9-26 I was thinking how great it would be if McClellan were a minimalist. I feel like I am chasing my tail a bit trying to complete all the various items on the "TO DO" list and not being that successful at that. I can't get the articles either Emily. I think that I am going to try to go to the magazine websites and see if they are archived. Patrick--here's a website that might interest you.... <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; url(http: //www.wikispaces.com/i/a.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 100% 50%; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; padding-right: 10px;">[]

Emily 9-26 With beginning yet another course with our favorite McClellan, I am even more appreciative of this website. Thanks Patrick for keeping it running and how awesome that you created a resources page for the curriculum course. So, with that said, if any of you come across the two articles for this class would you please post them? I can't seem to find them on the UTA library. Aaarg!

Patrick 9-24-10: Here's the new thread for the new course. Note that if you'd like to add resources/PDFs or any other text to helpful, I've added a page for that: "Curriculum Course Resources. Maybe give a shout on this page if you posted something for us there. I don't know if we're going to use it, but thought it might be handy this time around. Thanks!

Also, for simplicity, I just archived invisibly the other rants pages.

<span style="display: block; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">9/24 Michael: Hello, everyone. I am a member of Cohort 2 and have been a reader of this wiki for many months but haven't felt the need to post until now (though reading this site has provided much sanity along the way). I still don't have access to the class and was hoping I could get some details so I don't find myself too far behind with all this "text sharing" business. I have a copy of the syllabus that was posted on the Internship Forum, but don't know any specifics since the syllabus lists general activities but no instructions. It seems like there is a lot to do each week and I don't have time to get behind.9/24 Emily: I'm with you Stephanie. I don't get it. I would think we all we could download the articles. We have to share them? This is ridiculous. Why can't professors follow the course format as Johnson had in our first course that all we had to do was click the link and bam, we got the articles. Aaarg!9/24 Steph**__A__**nie: Am I the ONLY one who has a problem with this:Announcement from Dr. McClellan I'm afraid my good intentions have backfired. I thought having you locate the reading sources electronically would make it cheaper and easier on you. But several of you have contacted me about difficulties locating the sources. RATS!! I'm writing to offer a couple of suggestions: first, even though the I've listed a couple of books (incredibly valuable sources), I'm hoping that you will get a general sense of what the books are about and target the questions you'll have to address in the discussion area. Once you have this information and have spent some time with the text, please release the electronic version //__so that others can have their turn.__// Second, the books and articles are electronic sources so much of their material is found on the web. If you do a Google search, //__you could get really **lucky** in locating key material from the texts__//. (Try typing in "Understanding by Design" and check out the valuable hits.) The articles should be accessible from the library without problem, but you might have difficulty with Ebooks. Third, since you know the sources in advance, you might want to //__read ahead while you're waiting on the other to become available__//. Fourth, the books are extremely easy reads and have been used by several districts as professional development pieces. You might want to locate hard copies either through your campus or through local libraries. They are definitely worth your time (and money).I mean, this class starts in a few DAYS- not a week from now!!!!! Why didnt she do this a better way?? WTH??? Someone please telling me I'm misunderstanding something. Please!!9/24/10 Angelia: Thank you so very much for your diligence. I appreciate your having done this for us. [|Interview Questions.doc]9/23 Stephenie: Hey guys. I typed up the interview questions for mod 1. Feel free to use them. No use everyone doing the work! Trying to get ahead!9/23 Bethany: I am guessing there is way we can access the readings on line through the UTA library?? Does anyone know how to to do this? I'd like to get started.Phantom: What is up with the book for the Curriculum course? I thought there was not a textbook. Also, am I missing something or what reading are we suppose to do in week one? Can't find a reading assignment. Did anyone find out about UTA offering an ILD course to the academic partnership folks?9/22 DebbieI looked at the syllabus, and it's very specific. There are tasks to do every week, interviews, readings, a culminating paper. Sounds challenging! I have had one class with Dr. McClellan before, and she is tough but fair. Also she answered emails and didn't send specific "don't contact me" messages via the academic coach. I hope the exponential growth of this program doesn't prevent her from communicating like she did before. I am going to a wedding this weekend and won't be working ahead just yet!9/22 StephAnieHey y'all, Curriculum Dev. is up and running. Wait til you get a load of this one!! Good luck.S.