Community Partners, Curriculum, School Climate, Student Support, What Can I Do?

Video/Audio: Madison United for Academic Excellence Meeting on Charter Schools 10/29/2007

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mp3 audio file

 Paula Sween and Dory Witzeling from the Odyssey-Magellan charter school for gifted students in grades 3-8 in Appleton and Senn Brown of the Wisconsin Charter Schools Association participated in a recent Madison United for Academic Excellence event. Ms. Sween was one of the founders of the Odyssey-Magellan program. She is currently the TAG Curriculum Coordinator for the Appleton school district. Ms. Witzeling is a teacher and parent at the school.
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2 thoughts on “Video/Audio: Madison United for Academic Excellence Meeting on Charter Schools 10/29/2007”

  1. I attended the presentation given by the Appleton School District GT coordinator and a teacher from their charter GT schools Odyssey (elementary) and Magellan (middle).
    I left thinking “Why don’t we have this in Madison?” Is the time right for Madison to have a similar school?
    Here are some features of the Appleton GT schools:
    – There is acceleration of curriculum: Differentiation cannot meet the needs of all students. There is a large body of research in GT literature that shows these students need the right level and speed. While the curriculum generally follows the Appleton District’s, the starting point is one grade higher, and then the information is taught at a faster pace and in more depth.
    – Teachers have training specifically in the subject they are teaching such as with secondary ed (high school) certification.
    – There is curriculum enrichment and foreign language instruction.
    – There are guidance sessions because GT kids can have special psychosocial needs.
    – The cost of running the school is not higher than the cost for the rest of the district schools.
    – The schools are housed in existing elementary and middle schools. Core academic classes are through the GT charter, but students participate in the life of the host school for physical education, lunch, and there is a shared PTO.
    In addition to these GT charters, Appleton also offers GT classes at the various grade levels for those students who are not interested in the charter schools.
    A group is forming to discuss the possibility of a charter GT Middle School here in Madison. If you are interested please e-mail: pbe@terracom.net

  2. I also attended the meeting. (Hey, I organized it! 🙂 ) One thing that came through loud and clear was the importance of support — for g/t education and for charter schools — FROM THE TOP. Clearly, that made a huge difference in both Appleton and Verona during the years when they started so many charters. How serendipitous and how lucky that we are in the process of choosing a new superintendent at the same time the conversation about charters and other choices is getting louder. (Then again, maybe it’s not a coincidence at all.)

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