Schools Cut Back on Announcements to Increase Learning Time
November 5, 2007 - 10:30am
WASHINGTON (AP) - Some schools in Northern Virginia are finding a small way to increase students' learning time.
They're cutting back on morning announcements over the school PA system.
Mel Riddile, principal of Alexandria's T.C. Williams High School, noticed last year that morning announcements were dragging on for 15 minutes or more and that cut into learning time.
Riddile ordered new rules to get the loudspeaker time down to just a few minutes.
School officials in suburban Maryland have made similar changes to announcements.
These changes reflect two powerful trends that are colliding, namely school security and academic achievement.
The Washington Post reports the three big national public address system companies -- Rauland-Borg, Bogen and GE Security -- find business booming as school shootings raise security concerns. At the same time, with a growing emphasis on academic achievement, some educators to call club announcements and sales more of a distraction than they are worth.
While announcements traditionally have been used to help students practice public speaking, some schools are looking at communicating the messages by telephone, computer, messenger and electronic bulletin boards.
Information from: The Washington Post
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Some schools in Northern Virginia are finding a small way to increase students' learning time.
They're cutting back on morning announcements over the school PA system.
Mel Riddile, principal of Alexandria's T.C. Williams High School, noticed last year that morning announcements were dragging on for 15 minutes or more and that cut into learning time.
Riddile ordered new rules to get the loudspeaker time down to just a few minutes.
School officials in suburban Maryland have made similar changes to announcements.
These changes reflect two powerful trends that are colliding, namely school security and academic achievement.
The Washington Post reports the three big national public address system companies -- Rauland-Borg, Bogen and GE Security -- find business booming as school shootings raise security concerns. At the same time, with a growing emphasis on academic achievement, some educators to call club announcements and sales more of a distraction than they are worth.
While announcements traditionally have been used to help students practice public speaking, some schools are looking at communicating the messages by telephone, computer, messenger and electronic bulletin boards.
Information from: The Washington Post
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
Come on Mel, really, is 15 minutes too much time to announce stuff? Is that time really worth all the ANALITY you project? Oh, that's right, you're a child abuser, OK, that explains it but doesn't excuse it. Lighten up man. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:
