To aid the growing number of Lincoln students attending college, we have created the Lincoln High Scholarship Fund. The Scholarship Fund was formed in response to rising college costs and a desire to make college accessible and affordable to our students. This year Lincoln High School is looking to raise over $25,000 to support these college bound seniors. The scholarships include:

-Willie James Jones Scholarships
-Monique Palmer Scholarships
-Principal’s Scholarships
-Counselor’s Scholarships
-Alumni Scholarships

All scholarships will be awarded during the Senior Awards Night on June 5th 2012. If you are interested in contributing to the Lincoln High School Scholarship Fund or visiting the Lincoln High School College and Career Center please contact Conrado Castro (ccastro2@sandi.net/ (619) 266-6530 x 2325) or Isela Medina (ismedina@ucsd.edu).

Working at Lincoln over the last 6 years has impacted my life in so many ways. This has been my second home and my family- I actually spend more time here than at home and with my family J! I cherish the collaborative partnerships and friendships that have developed. Over the last 23 years, I have worked with some amazing people. The Lincoln staff has been among the top of that “amazing” category – resilient, productive, supportive, and adaptive. Through the high and low points, everyone has pulled together to focus on providing a wonderful learning environment for our students. I truly appreciate the efforts of each person to create a model school for all.

Our students and in particular, this senior class, have been wonderful. I am sad to miss out on the rest of their senior year and the graduation events, but am confident that each one has a world of opportunities open to them. They are the reason for ensuring that everyday counts in the classroom.

Continue to grow and flourish! I will miss you deeply.

Sincerely,
Ana Maria

Common Core Assessments, the Next Generation
Cory Robertson, Anaheim School District

Common Core assessments will be piloted in 2014 and implemented statewide in 2015. They are a significant change from our current system, requiring significant rigor and depth. Students will not be asked to compute and make simple choices. They will be assessed on their abilities to research, edit, revise, critique, collaborate, synthesize and write to a specific audience while addressing real life problems. Tests will consist of not just multiple choice items, but constructed responses and writing in all content areas. ELA will not have narrative content; it will be expository and demanding.

So how do we prepare? What role will technology play? Mr. Robertson suggests that social networking is the key. It is authentic, engaging and a medium that our students already use. The days of drafting on paper are behind us. While many teachers feel uncomfortable opening up to media like Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and SMS, these are the media that offer our students a relevant foundation. The greatest value of learning to learn in a social network environment is students’ opportunity to build a life-long Professional Learning Community. Educators need to get beyond thinking of these tools as nuisances and learn to use them as important, essential tools.

Ignite Students’ Creativity with Scratch
Chris Mosier

Scratch is free visual programming software. Files can be saved and shared or published to the Scratch web site. Designed my MIT, this is a free resource that should remain free. All uploads are open source, so students can find something interesting and download the programming. Files downloaded from the web site automatically show attribution. They can be edited and revised by multiple clients.

Scratch web site
Presentation link

ePortolios
Gil Diaz

Started as cooperation between general and special education, an effort to build genuine assessment. Students with online portfolios go beyond the standard paper based model. Started with PowerPoint, then online and now moving to Acrobat. ePortfolios should be a part of the transition to instructional processes that support Common Core. Mutimedia can also be integrated into ePortfolios.

Adobe Acrobat Pro is the main tools they use now. Acrobat files can be password protected by site and every document. Adobe can provide online access and tutorials. Requires Acrobat Pro 11 to fully implement and manage, but Acrobat Reader can read any files with permission.

ePortfolios 2010
Adobe tutorials

State and Federal Legislation – What’s the Status for Ed Tech?
Hilary Goldman

November Election – congressional elections will drive what happens this year. Mostly it will be limited to bills that MUST pass. FY13 budget has no funding for Education Technology (EETT) for the third year in a row. Education is about 2% of federal budget, with none of it going to Ed Tech. The prospects for change in the foreseeable future is bleak.

NCLB Re-authorization – one comprehensive bipartisan bill in the Senate, and several individual bills in the House. Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is the current term. We do not expect re-authorization prior to the election.

Achievement Through Technology and Innovation Act (ATTAIN) offers some hope for funding, but nothing is certain at this time. Any funding will probably be in the form of block grants.

What can schools to? ADVOCATE. Educational Technology is a special interest that is organized. It needs the participation of teachers, administrators, students and parents. The leading Ed Tech organization is the Education Technology Action Network (ETAN). Log on and find out what you can do.