March 31, 2007

In 2003, OSPI released 10th grade math items; for todays discussion, I will demonstrate another selective attention problem and scored responses from the 2003 booklet (pages 47-55). On page 47, the student is given the directions for a 2-point question.

Directions

A team has won 10 of the 15 games it has played. The team has 25 games
left to play. The players figure they will make the playoffs if their winning
percentage for the season is 60%.

How many of the remaining games must the team win to have a winning percentage of 60% for the season?

Clearly show how you arrived at your answer.

Student A: 2-point response

Total games  15 + 25 = 40
60% of total games  24 games (40•.6)
games left to win  14 (24 - 10)
To have a winning percentage of 60 percent the
basketball team must win 14 of their remaining 25 games
How many more wins are needed? 14

Student B: 1-point response

25/40 = .625 = 62%
24/40 = .6 = 60%
fourteen more wins are needed to make the playoffs!
How many more wins are needed? 14

Analysis

Both students arrived at the correct answer; however, student B receives 1-point. Why?

The conditions set by the state, even though the directions do not specify the conditions the student must meet to gain full points, are required for a 2-point score. However, in Carkhuff theory, if a student has acquired attending (selective attention) skills, he or she would have responded by listing the three steps: related information (tell), procedures (show) and solution (do), which is the Carkhuff theory of achieving attending (selective attention) skills. Student B demonstrates how he or she arrived at the correct answer, but does not include the tell, show, do process of attending to his or her learning material; therefore, he or she receives 1-point, regardless of arriving at the correct answer.

Interestingly, the correct answer is not a requirement to receiving full points. The scoring guide for the question (page 49) states, "Note: The student may show all procedures with one computation error, and their final answer is consistent with the error made."

To understand the Carkhuff theory of attending (tell, show, do) view my PowerPoint Presentation, "Carkhuff's Conceptual Framework Implementation in Washington State Public Schools: 1993 to Present."

March 30, 2007

How has OSPI promoted the swastika? Let us look again at LINKs learning, OSPI created and hosted website. The website promotes what is called "Classroom Ready: Middle School Reading and Writing." Classroom Ready provides several sample lessons. The lesson I am going to focus on is "Tolerance." The lesson guides the viewer through a student exemplar writing assignment for the book entitled Memories of Anne Frank. The lesson provides 11 questions and exemplar responses. Throughout the lesson a purple boy, wearing a toga, ancient Roman sandals and a crown made out of olive leaves reads the responses. Purple is a significant color to Theosophists; the color represents devotion mixed with affection, which is a state of high spirituality. The toga, sandals and crown depict the people of the lost city of Atlantis.

LESSON CONTENT

Throughout the lesson the swastika and the Star of David appear, randomly. There is no explanation of what the symbols mean. At one point the Star of David and swastika are blended together (the background is the Star of David with the swastika formed over the Star of David yellow symbol with Hebrew writings).

The story refers to the SS guards (Schutstaffeln, Nazi elite paramilitary formation, under the leadership of Henrich Himmler) as "war camp guards."  The story suggests that the SS guards were intolerant towards the Jewish people "because they had to follow orders, or they might be punished terribly, too." The lesson attempts to question the truth of the concentration camp killings by stating, "They did horrible things that I can't imagine a whole bunch of people agreed with."  Question 6 student response further sympathizes with the Nazi SS guards.

Student Response

"The camps were a terrible place to live and there were many sick and dying people. The children didn't have real toys or sweet things to eat. One of the guards felt sorry for Hannah's little sister Gabby and gave her a cookie...That was nice of the guard to give Gabby a cookie. I think that was a big change for the guard to make."

Historical Fact Distorted

The lesson changes historical fact by suggesting that the United States of America joined the war because "the United States knew about the terrible things Hitler was doing in Germany, and it made us really mad. We knew that what [Hitler] was doing to other people was wrong, so we went over to Germany to make him stop." Historical evidence does not support this statement. The United States did not enter the war until the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. In fact, the United States would turn away ships with Jewish people trying to escape death from the Nazi party. The Jewish people were forced to return to Europe and face extermination.

People with Disabilities

To make matters worse, the lesson portrays people with disabilities as murderers. Question 10 asks the student to describe an event where someone stands up to a situation that is against an individual or group. The response tells of a preschool child who tries to stab another child with a pair of scissors, then notes that "the boy was sent away to a special school."

Complete Response

"One year there was a boy in my sister's preschool who was bigger and stronger than all of the
other kids there. He used to beat everyone up every day. One day, my sister Sarah got
really tired of his being a bully and she started defending all the other kids. If this bad boy
attacked someone, Sarah would jump into the middle of it and make him stop.

This boy soon hated Sarah more than anyone else in the class and he wanted to make her
pay for stopping him. Sarah didn't like him picking on the others and no one seemed to
catch him doing the bad stuff, so she decided to do something herself to protect the others.
Sarah is very tough, but not mean. She likes to protect others.

One day the boy snuck up behind Sarah with the teacher's scissors raised over his head. He
was going to stab Sarah in the back. Luckily, one of the teachers grabbed his arm before he
could stab her. Sarah was very lucky that she didn't get killed by this boy. The boy was
sent away to a special school so someone could try to help him.

He is back in Sarah's class this year, but I don't think that he hates anyone any more."

FINAL THOUGHTS

This lesson, its content, pictorial narration and subtle promotion of the swastika is very disturbing. The swastika is a symbol of the Theosophical society.

Theosophical Society and the Swastika

"The swastika is the sign of God as the Divine Creative Fire in the universe..Since the swastika is closely linked with evolution,it may well be that the forward motion means progress toward a goal, while the backward motion signifies retrogression. However that may be, it can be stated with certainty the memory of the use of the swastika, as an emblem of Nazism,will in future ages have faded into oblivion; white (sic) its true meaning as a symbol of the hidden 'fire' or 'spirit' within all manifestation, from the atom to a solar universe, will become increasingly revealed to humanity as it climbs painfully toward its goal" (Coon).
 
The subtle exposure of the swastika, portrayal of people with disabilities as murderers, the characterization of the SS guards as remorseful and forced to kill people because they feared persecution, and the misrepresentation of historical facts are demonstrations of propaganda supporting the advancement of Nazi doctrine, a hate campaign directed towards children with disabilities, the advancement of Theosophical teachings and state sponsored Nazi sympathizing.

To access the lesson with audio and pictures go to linkslearning, click on "lesson matrix," then "go to matrix," then lesson 2, and then "view exemplar."

Reference
Coon, A. M. The theosophical seal. Retrieved on March 30, 2007, from http://www.theosophical.ca/TSSeal.htm#introduction

March 29, 2007

Today, I have chosen a WASL math problem from the 2001 released items booklet to demonstrate selective attention scoring. Question 12 on page 20 asks students to estimate the total cost of replacing wooden steps with concrete steps. Pages 30-35 provide scoring guide and sample responses. 

Calculating the correct answer is not a requirement. The sample response answers are all different and not one has the right answer.

With the given directions, students are expected to produce a response that meets the conditions listed in the scoring guide (provided below). The correct answer is not a requirement for a 4-point response. The problem is designed to score a student's ability to focus his or her attention by generating a response that shows he or she is able to focus on the specific points detailed within the given directions. A student response that generates all four requirements listed in the scoring guide will receive 4-points, whether the total cost amount is right or wrong, or if the calculations within the estimation are correct.

Directions: P1, P2, P3 and P4 represent the requirements listed in the scoring guide,

                             (wood-P1)                                          (concrete-P1)    (surfacing-P1))
"You explain that a wooden form is built for each step, and concrete is then poured into the form
                          
                                   (label-P3)
Concrete is delivered in cubic yards. The bottom step is completed first, then the middle, and then the

                          (presentation-P2)    (calculations-P4)
top. You show them the drawing and the price list."

                                                            (total-P1)
"The homeowners ask you to figure out the cost and explain it to them. Create an organized job list for the cost part of the estimate."

Correct Answer:

The correct total cost is $94.00. A state certified Professional Civil Engineer and Estimator for a Construction company provided the calculations.

Sample responses:

4-point response: $109.50 or $110.00 (page31)
3-point response: $377.00 (page 32)
2-point response: $61.00 + ready-mix concrete (?) (page 33)
1-point response: $85.50 (page 34)
0-point response: $69.00 (?)  (page 35)

Scoring guide, page 30 (students are not provided the scoring guide)

A 4-point response demonstrates mathematical communication by doing the
following:
       identifications, and sequencing is appropriate. (P2)
       sufficiently to demonstrate understanding of and appropriate use. (P3)
       and calculations are appropriate and accurate. (P4)
A 3-point response includes three of the four listed above.
A 2-point response includes two of the four listed above.
A 1-point response includes one of the four listed above.
A 0-point response shows little or no mathematical understanding of the task.

In conclusion, the student with the closest estimation ($85.50) received 1-point out of 4-points.  According to the annotations, the student's response included only one of the requirements presented in the scoring guide.  The annotation does not clarify which requirement was met.

Confused?

March 28, 2007

I am going to start posting WASL released items that demonstrate how the WASL is assessing a student's selective attention skill. On March 3, I offered a brief explanation of what is selective attention. For review, "selective attention is an adaptive capacity, and research suggests that this is an acquired skill. As children mature, they develop a greater capacity to attend selectively to information presented.  However, research has also suggested that children with learning disabilities may lag behind other children in this skill. If this is the case, then much of the poor attention behavior attributed to children with learning disabilities may be the result of a lag in the development of selective attention capabilities" (Bender, p.79). 

The reading WASL 2006, 6th grade released item booklet has an excellent example supporting my belief that OSPI is using the WASL to assess a student's selective attention skills.

Student A receives 3 points out of 4 points (response)
Student B receives 0 points out of 4 points (response)

In accordance with Carkhuff's theory of attending, student A was able to use his or her selective attention skills by giving specific examples from the text, regardless of whether the student is able to formulate a well written response or elaborate on his or her understanding of the texts. Student B offers a far more advanced response because he or she is able to demonstrate a complete understanding of both texts and provide a well written summary that includes the information gathered from the text in his or her own words. However, student B did not offer any specific terms used in the text. According to the conditions set by the state, a student must respond using text-based evidence to demonstrate academic achievement or as I have concluded focused attention skills (selective attention or attending).

According to Carkhuff's theory, a student who is unable to demonstrate level 3 selective attention skills is considered a detractor or learning disabled. Carkhuff and his followers believe that with repeated practice some students can increase their selective attention (attending) skills. In theory, state funded summer school programs training students for the WASL, using OSPI developed modules, will give students the repeated practice to attain level 3 or 4 selective attention (attending) skills, which will then allow a student to express higher-order thinking processes.

In addition, the assessment responses demonstrate student A's willingness to cooperate and student B as a detractor, someone unwilling to conform, an enemy of authority because they may question policy and practices or philosophical ideas advanced by government or the leaders in authority. Student B is able to think on his or her own because the response suggests he or she is an independent thinker, able to view written material and analyze what is being presented to question its truth and decipher propaganda.

March 27, 2007

I have come across two important terms, exoteric and esoteric. Both words have great meaning to understanding the foundations of creating a willing and conforming society, which was advanced by the Nazis.

Exoteric: suitable for or communicated to the general public.

Esoteric: understood by or meant for only the select few who have special knowledge or interest...intended to be revealed only to the initiates of a group.

In creating a conformist society the exoteric doctrine assumes "the popular form of myths and parabolic tales intended for the lower social classes, while esoteric doctrine [is] concerned with the mysteries of the gnosis and [is] restricted to trainees for high office" ( Goodrick-Clarke, 2004, p.57).

Gnosis: knowledge of spiritual matters.

Perhaps this explains the reason why the WASL reading passages are mythical and parabolic.

Some examples of reading passages teaching myths and parables:

The First Lesson
Ruler of the Air
The Flame of a Candle
The Carvers
The Cellist Plays in the Streets of Sarajevo Page 1 Page 2

Some other teachings advanced by OSPI can be found on OSPI hosted website LINKS (for students). There are 11 leadership parables that teach about different eastern religious ideas; however, the teachings are somewhat distorted. For example, the parable "The Tail of Dashiell Hammett" includes a character named Dolly the Llama.  The parable "Panda-monium" incorporates religious practices of Confucianism. "Panda-monium" is dedicated to Shirley McCune, and is noted as teaching, "the wise leader can be entrusted with great concerns because her vision enables her to focus beyond small matters."  

Reference
Goodrick-Clarke, N. (2004). The occult roots of nazism: Secret aryan cults and their influence on nazi ideology [3rd ed.]. New York, NY: New York University Press.  

March 24, 2007

I must admit, as farfetched as it sounds, I believe, with the greatest fear, that the education reform in Washington State is founded on the principles of Nazism, or that of its occult roots. I have decided it is time for me to begin a deep study into the occult roots of Nazism and pre-Holocaust culture, and the definitive connections to the current education reform and sociological effects, of which I have been dreading for some time. As I move forward with my studies and research, I will continue to share my thoughts and fears throughout. 

I can say without a doubt that the occult roots of Nazism are founded in Theosophical doctrine and its two exalted masters El Morya and Koot Hoomi (Kuthumi). These are the same two masters of Shirley McCune (OSPI Federal Liaison and Executive staff member of the Bergeson Administration). According to Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke (2004), "besides its racial emphasis, theosophy also stressed the principle of élitism and the value of hierarchy. Blavatsky claimed she received her initiation into the doctrines from two exalted mahatmas or masters called Morya and Koot Hoomi, who dealt in a remote and secret Himalayan fastness" (p.21).

I shall begin my studies and research from this point.

Reference
Goodrick-Clarke, N. (2004). The occult roots of nazism: Secret aryan cults and their influence on nazi ideology [3rd ed.]. New York, NY: New York University Press. 

March 23, 2007

Well, another issue relating to the content of the WASL has hit the media. This time the Hispanic people are the targeted group. Knowing how Bergeson et al. think, I am not one bit surprised that the Hispanic people have been profiled as "berry pickers" and "janitors" who can be deported for reasons of contention. The story specifically relates to the migrant community. Apparently, OSPI failed to offer an introduction explaining that the fictionalized story's timeframe was set in the 1950s. Was this intentional?

According to the Seattle Times, "citizen committees review all WASL exams for cultural bias. The panel that looked at the excerpt in question recommended it not be used without a note about the year in which it was set, said Cenobio Macias, one of the panel members" (Shaw, 2007). Without the timeframe reference, one could conclude that OSPI's exclusion of the timeframe was intentional because the representation of the Hispanic people as "berry pickers" and "janitors" supports the elitist idea that the Hispanic people are subservient. The excerpt also describes the interactions between Papa and Ito (the owner). The story tells how Ito, when at the home of the migrant family, sat at the head of the table, and that Papa bowed his head when expressing his gratitude to Ito. Why would OSPI include a reading excerpt that belittles and demoralizes the Hispanic people, without giving historical contextual information? Could it be that OSPI is attempting to desensitize the majority so that a culture of elitism among a select group of people will be an accepted concept by the masses? The student who came forward expressed this type of discrimination was being "engraved in my generation's heads." How profoundly true his words speak of what I believe to be the true intentions of the Bergeson Administration.

I believe we should explore the idea of why OSPI would be so careless, whether intentional or not. I offer the following discussion.

The Hispanic student population has increased the most of all minority populations between the years 1996-97 to 2005-06. According to OSPI student count data, the Hispanic student population was 8.3% in 1996-97 and is 13.7% in 2005-06. This is an increase from 80,884 Hispanic students in 1996-97 to 138,807 in 2005-06. However, the white student population of 755,240 (77.5%) in 1996-97 has decreased to 701,127 in 2005-06 (69.2%). Further calculations show that the Hispanic population is increasing, on average, 5,792 per year and the white population is decreasing by 5,411 per year. Obviously, the Hispanic student population has exceeded white population growth.

Considering the religious beliefs of Bergeson et al., the idea of population growth among a group of people that Theosophical doctrine teaches are the lower-root races (people of color) will ignite concern among people who perceive themselves as superior. Therefore, within the mind-set of elitism, action must be taken to oppress the advancement of a growing population that is perceived as intellectually inferior. Associating a culture of people with labor work, poor wages and intellectual inferiority will advance the misconception that certain groups of people are expected to be subservient, and therefore must submit to the majority race and culture. Eventually, the majority, or those perceived as superior, will no longer question racist or stereotypic expressions or teachings because the expressions and beliefs have been engraved in their minds. A process of desensitization has begun, which is similar in behavior to what the Nazis did to gain national support in deporting Jews and Gypsies to concentration camps, which led to extermination. 

There were three groups of people systematically exterminated by the Nazis: people with disabilities, Jews and Gypsies. So far, I have demonstrated how similar the state WAAS-Portfolio is to that of the Nazi pre-genocide behavior towards people with disabilities. While Hispanics were not a targeted group of the Nazis, the Gypsies were and they have similar environmental factors, or should I say conditions of residency, to that of the Gypsies.

Let us first define the words migrant and Gypsy.

         Migrant: a farm laborer who moves from place to place to harvest seasonal crops.

         Gypsy: member of a nomadic people of Hindu origin with dark skin and hair.

According to Friedlander (1995), Nazi ideology and race science had always targeted not only the so-called degenerate portion of the Volk, that is, the handicapped, but also the members of the so-called alien and inferior races...those aliens were Jews and Gypsies" (p.247). Friedlander discusses how "large numbers of Gypsies established permanent residences and pursued regular occupations, but this reality could not overcome the stereotype of Gypsies as vagabonds, thieves, pickpockets, swindlers, beggars, and fortune-tellers...popular opinion about nomadic Gypsies failed to recognize Gypsy tradition, including a family structure different from that of non-Gypsies, and Gypsy occupational structure...Moreover, as a 'dark-skinned' people, Gypsies suffered from color prejudice" (p.247-248). How does the current reading excerpt portray the Hispanics and their culture?  Are we as a society being desensitized so that when the time comes we will accept policy that is designed to remove certain groups of people from society, then extermination?

Personally, I believe the author of Breaking Through would be disappointed in how the State of Washington used his literary depiction of the Hispanic immigrants' hardships and struggles as present day Hispanic culture and progression.

Which minority group will be the next target, the Asian population?

Reference
Friedlander, H. (1995).The origins of Nazi genocide: From euthanasia to the final solution. University of North Carolina Press. 

March 22, 2007

I received a response from OSPI to my March 1, 2007 letter requesting information about the WAAS-Portfolio. The response leads me to believe that there is no readily available documentation supporting the validity and reliability of the WAAS-Portfolio. I suspect that I will be receiving documentation that relates to the changes OSPI is making to the WAAS-Portfolio.

March 19, 2007

Several years ago, I challenged my school district's adoption of a communication arts curriculum. I presented my concerns to the District with a request that they remove the EMC Literature and Language Arts Series for grades 7 to 12 (I presented the Glencoe series as an alternative). I presented a detailed discussion on the questions assigned students throughout the series 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th.  I also submitted a report on the series. My request was denied and I was told that the District adopted the curriculum because they were told that the series best aligned with the Grade Level Expectations (GLEs). Well, in January 2007, OSPI published a reading curriculums report and the EMC series scored the lowest of all curriculums. The score was so low that OSPI would not qualify the series for a Master Price Agreement. The scores are as follows:

EMC Scores-grade 6-10
Student Proficiency  41.15%
Assessment  57.88%
Cultural Responsiveness  46.65%
Universal Access  46.21%

Glencoe Scores-grades 6-10
Student Proficiency  77.40%
Assessment  82.00%
Cultural Responsiveness  73.40%
Universal Access  77.19%

McDougal Littell Scores-grades 6-10
Student Proficiency  80.66%
Assessment  80.19%
Cultural Responsiveness  82.50%
Universal Access  83.13%


March 17, 2007

Yesterday, I spoke with Cathy Taylor, OSPI Director of Assessment Alternatives & Innovations, and she shared that the current WAAS-Portfolio guide, rubric and EALRs Extensions are being changed. The current rubric that scores a student’s targeted skills in reference to social relationships, self-determination, access of different settings, modifications and adaptations will no longer be used when scoring children who qualify for the WAAS-Portfolio. This will be completed in the near future. She also shared that sample evidence responses (level 1, 2, 3, and 4) will be posted on the website as well. Taylor informed me that the new and revised WAAS-Portfolio design would make the student's IEP goals the focus; students will be assessed in accordance with their IEP academic goals, which will determine whether they are achieving success. In other words, children with severe disabilities will be assessed according to their academic skills as decided by the IEP team. Their disabilities and behaviors will no longer be the focus of the assessment.

I would like to think that Governor Gregoire's Office might have played a role in expediting the quick action to remove the current WAAS-Portfolio criteria.  Until I see the changes in print, I remain a skeptic.

March 16, 2007

This past Tuesday, I took part in a walk against the WASL along with dozens of other anti-WASL protesters. The walk was organized by Parent Empowerment Network Director, Juanita Doyon, who delivered an open letter to the State Superintendent, Governor and others as part of the protest. The letter exposes the fraudulent WASL data that has been spouted by Bergeson and others in the attempt to defend the relevancy of the WASL and minimize the failure rate. Juanita Doyon ended the four-page letter addressed to Terry Bergeson with "You must provide [the governor, the legislature, and the Roundtable] the real numbers of WASL failure, and you must find and account for the lost students of the class of 2008." The letter had over 20 signatures of endorsement attached.

March 14, 2007

I have a funny story to tell regarding my inquiries into the WAAS-Portfolio. I began my quest for information on February 7, 2007 with a telephone call to Joe Willhoft and Judy Kraft (both OSPI employees). I asked Joe if he could provide me with information about the WAAS-Portfolio evidence responses. I wanted to receive samples of level 1, 2, 3 and 4 responses. He said he would send me an email with the information (I never received an email). I followed my verbal request with an email, then a reminder email on February 13. On February 8, I sent a letter detailing my concerns about the WAAS-Portfolio. On March 1, 2007, I sent a letter giving more detail about my concerns and questions. On several occasions between February 7 and March 13, I contacted OSPI requesting an answer.

On March 12, I contacted Joe's office, again. I was told that no one in the office knew if samples of evidence responses are on the website. I was forwarded to OSPI customer support for technology. When speaking to customer support they said I should contact the assessment department.  I shared that the assessment department connected me to customer support. The technician took down the information I was looking for and said someone would get back to me. Yesterday (March 13), I received a call from the English Language Learners department telling me they received a message from customer support that I was looking for information about the Washington Proficiency Level Test. I was somewhat humored by this call because my request did not reference second language learners. I specifically requested information about the WAAS-Portfolio for children with severe disabilities.

After the conversation with the English Language Learners Department, I contacted Bergeson's office, directly, and left a message that someone needed to find out if there were samples of evidence responses available on OSPI's website. Karen Conway took the message. At 12 noon, March 13, I received a message from Judy Kraft telling me she could assist me. I contacted the alternate assessment department, spoke to Cathy Taylor’s assistant; she told me that there are no samples of evidence responses on OSPI's website. She added that Cathy Taylor and Judy Kraft were working ‘really hard’ to gather the information I have requested concerning the WAAS-Portfolio. I have yet to receive a written response to my concerns and requests.

It took over a month of numerous telephone calls and letters to find out that no samples of evidence responses are on OSPI's website. I wonder how long it will take to gather the information I am requesting in my March 1 letter.

March 12, 2007

Yesterday, I went to Katie Dolan's celebration of life memorial. It was wonderful to hear from others how Katie touched their lives. So many of the people there were spoken of in our conversations, Ralph Munro, Judge Horton Smith and his wife the concert pianist, Cecile Lindquist, Bill Dussault, her adopted grandchildren, her son Patrick and so many more. 

The only disappointment I felt was when the facilitator read Governor Gregoire's statement of making March 11 Katie Dolan Day. The Governor wrote about Katie as if she was her friend. Years ago, Katie and I met with Governor Gregoire when she was the Attorney General. The then Attorney General kicked Katie and I out of her office. Apparently, Governor Gregoire took offense to my telling her that I hope she has no regrets with the choices she has made. Governor Gregoire’s bitter response was delivered while she pointed her finger in my face. Katie later told me that she had never seen a public official speak to someone the way Governor Gregoire spoke to me.  We were very much disappointed.

Katie and I never really spoke much of the meeting other than to conclude that our people with severe to profound disabilities were and still are in great danger.

March 10, 2007

On March 8, I contacted OSPI to inquire about my letter requesting information pertaining to the WAAS-Portfolio. I was informed that Cathy Taylor, project specialist for assessments at OSPI, is responsible for addressing my March 1 letter.  In the letter, I request specific information about the WAAS-Portfolio. Yesterday, I called Cathy Taylor; she said she was in a meeting discussing my letter and its content at that very moment.

I am requesting the following information be provided:



March 9, 2007

I have been giving a lot of thought to the letter I received from the Governor’s Office dated February 26, 2007.  In the letter, the governor’s constituent service manager claims, “Governor Gregoire does not have the authority over creating, administering, altering, or limiting [the WAAS-Portfolio] assessment.”  This letter suggests that Governor Gregoire has allowed her personal feelings towards the WASL to disconnect the governor’s legal authority from overseeing and making inquires of all executive branch public agencies, as well as making recommendations to the legislature and requesting an investigation by the Attorney General. The governor’s claim, through staff, that she has no authority relating to the WAAS-Portfolio contradicts her recent recommendation to the legislature to postpone the Math WASL requirement.

Why are children with severe disabilities not worthy of the governor’s protective authority?

March 7, 2007

I made a request of the U.S. Department of Justice, November 17, 2006, to receive copies of the correspondence between the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) regarding Carkhuff Thinking Systems. The Seattle office has had the request, sent from the Washington D.C. office, since January 9, 2007.  I was told today that requests are expected to be responded to within 10 days. In December 2006, I received a confirmation of my request. My November 17, 2006 FOIA request was sent to Chief U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sullivan, Criminal Division, and then forwarded to the D.C. office. Jeff Sullivan is the attorney that was working with the FBI agent. So, the Seattle office has known of my request since November 17, 2006.

March 6, 2007

Kristin Kline from the Snohomish Tribune called me yesterday. The Tribune is coming out with another story relating to Terry Bergeson and her pseudoscientific education reform. I am glad to know that there is still a responsible newspaper willing to tell the truth.

Anyway, my daily work is dedicated to building a case against the state of Washington as it relates to the implementation of an evaluation tool designed to assess my son who is deaf and blind. The state uses the test to judge whether he is worthy of receiving a high school diploma or deserves to be tagged as not teachable or incapable of being educated under the conditions set by the state. This type of judgment is dangerous, and has led to unconscionable atrocities, in the past.

The Origins of Nazi Genocide: From Euthanasia to the Final Solution by Henry Friedlander (1995) tells of the events leading to the genocide of World War II. Children with severe disabilities were the first victims of the Holocaust, as they were the first to be judged by the state in reference to their disabilities. Adolf Hitler signed in October 1939 the order to judge and then kill people with disabilities. The order handwritten and signed by Adolf Hitler reads as translated into English.

       Reich Leader Bouhler and Dr. Brandt are charged with the responsibility of broadcasting                        the authority of certain physicians, designated by name, so that patients who, on the basis of
       human judgment, are considered incurable, can be granted mercy death after a discerning
       diagnosis (dated September 1, 1939). 

When reading about the Holocaust, you will find that the state had to develop a system to find and then gather up people with severe disabilities. The first step was for the state to convince families that the state could cure their loved ones by sending them to education research centers. Instead of being cured, children and adults with disabilities died from complications associated to starvation, in the beginning, then euthanasia. Adults with disabilities were the subjects of experiments, which later led to the invention of gas chambers that ultimately led to the mass extermination of Jews, Gypsies and other hated groups of people.

In reading through the WAAS-Portfolio guidelines and EALR Extensions, I am finding that the conditions set by the state are too high for many children with severe to profound disabilities to achieve, simply because their disabilities prevent them from being able to perform the tasks required to demonstrate success. In other words, the state of Washington is judging a child's disability not his or her achievements. With this design, our children with the most severe disabilities will be diagnosed as having a disability that is not teachable, based on human judgment. Who are these judges and what do they believe about people with severe disabilities?

No one has been forced to take part in the design of the WAAS-Portfolio or to facilitate the process of judging a child with severe disabilities. Currently, the Washington Alternate Assessment System-Portfolio is policy but still based on voluntary participation for all concerned.

The Nazi genocidal program involving children and adults with disabilities was also based on voluntary participation. Friedlander notes, “T4 required voluntary participation, and no one was forced to join the killing operation” (p.232). T4 is the name for the euthanasia program. As discussed earlier, families voluntarily awarded the state custody of their children with severe disabilities believing the state was trying to help their children. However, the postwar investigation reveals that the children were being judged and diagnosed according to their disability. They were judged “life unworthy of life” because of their disabilities.

Is this where we are headed?

March 5, 2007

I am researching the idea of assessing self-determination skills of children with severe disabilities. So far, I have found that there is no empirical data to support this type of assessment and that there is a bit of controversy among the experts surrounding the issue of self-determination assessments. One group of authors from the University of Oregon (2000) concluded, "Without sensitive, valid, reliable measures, self-determination is a brilliant idea at risk of becoming another professional cliché."  More on this later.

As I continue my research into the education reform in Washington State, I am finding one very disturbing common factor relating to all areas of assessment and pedagogy introduced by the Bergeson Administration.  I am not finding any scientifically based evidence supporting the education reform methods of assessment, teaching or learning. Based on what I have found, Washington State has introduced a pseudoscientific education reform or simpler said wacky reform.

March 3, 2007

I am reading two books, Teaching Students with Severe Disabilities by David Westling and Lisa Fox, and Learning Disabilities: Characteristics, Identification and Teaching Strategies by William Bender. 

Bender (2004) discusses attention capabilities of children with learning disabilities. He argues, "Selective attention is an adaptive capacity, and research suggests that this is an acquired skill. As children mature, they develop a greater capacity to attend selectively to information presented.  However, research has also suggested that children with learning disabilities may lag behind other children in this skill. If this is the case, then much of the poor attention behavior attributed to children with learning disabilities may be the result of a lag in the development of selective attention capabilities" (Bender, p.79). 

I believe the Bergeson WASL education reform, designed in accordance with Robert Carkhuff's learning and teaching model (ROPES), is diagnosing a student's selective attention capabilities (attending skills) and then using WASL curriculum and retesting policy to encourage the repeated practice that Carkhuff teaches is necessary to learn a task or skill. This theory and its connection to the Bergeson et al. religious beliefs and practices will be the focus of my next PowerPoint presentation.

The reasoning behind the diagnosing of selective attention deficiency incorporates the idea of Bergeson et al. belief that not all humans have evolved to a level of higher-level thinking capabilities or the conscious level of the so-called advanced race. Therefore, creating an educational system designed to diagnose a student's attention deficiencies will create a system that will develop selective attention skills in what Bergeson et al. believe are the lower evolved human beings with limited mental faculties.

March 2, 2007

I watched a movie last night, “Sophie Scholl: The Final Days.”  The movie is based on true events, telling the story of a young anti-Nazi activist arrested for her membership in the resistance movement. As I watched the movie, I noticed that the behavior, language and philosophy of the Gestapo are very similar to the current political environment in Washington State. However, we are still allowed freedom of speech, but the courage to exercise that right comes with a very high price.  Without trying to compare myself with those persecuted by the Nazis, I do feel ostracized and rejected by our government simply because I have spoken the truth of the Nazi-like movement promoted by the Bergeson administration and allowed by the Governor, Attorney General and legislature to continue. 

In the movie, the Gestapo referred to the anti-Nazi activists as “subhuman” and “parasites.”  Bergeson et al. refer to those who are not conforming to her conditions and standards as subhuman, physically sick, laggards, having no soul or thought, and contaminated.

While there is no Gestapo, yet, in my efforts to speak out against Bergeson et al. reform, I have been nearly arrested, scorned, oppressed, harassed, and recently told by the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives in Olympia that I am disrespectful at public hearings, this disrespect he speaks of is my telling the truth. 

Sophie Scholl, her brother and friend were beheaded; so far, our hidden police, the legislative body and executive branch of government have only ostracized, harassed and intimidated me.

The good news about Sophie's story is that their anti-Nazi leaflets telling of the Nazi killings and oppression reached England, and then the world began to learn the truth.

My Daily Thoughts
March 2007
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