District continues to investigate changing school start times; option for juniors/seniors will be implemented next year

In April 2018, the Business Advisory Council (BAC) reported to the school board that moving high school and junior high start times later (ideally to 8:30 am) could provide significant health benefits to teens, whose circadian rhythms naturally lead them to a later bedtime and a physical drive to sleep later in the morning. Studies from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, and even experiential data from school districts that have moved their start times support the benefits of later start times for teen students.

The benefits of not getting straight As

A huge dichotomy exists between what it takes to get into college (or after college, into grad school), and what is truly the best for developing a creative, well-rounded person. In this article by Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist and the youngest tenured professor at The Wharton School, Dr. Grant proposes that getting straight As can cause many more problems for students than the benefits it offers.

New concept for structure of school day explores how to increase student engagement, success

Milford School District is proactive and conservative in how it runs its business

Last week was the annual Ohio School Board Association conference. One of the “hot topics” was whether or not the Ohio legislature would be passing “alternative pathways” for students in the Class of 2019 to graduate.

Highlights from 7/19/18 school board meeting

District implements new strategic plan, Portrait of a Graduate
Worried about job loss to Artificial Intelligence?
Superintendent’s Report
No Athletic/Extracurricular reports in July

Here are the highlights from the July 19, 2018 school board meeting:

District implements new strategic plan, Portrait of a Graduate

A strategic plan is important to school districts, just as it is for businesses, providing the guidance to ensure the district is providing the programs and services required to prepare our graduates for success in a rapidly changing world. Since the district has not updated the strategic plan since 2009, it was time to revisit where we’re going and how to get there.

Milford HS to eliminate class rank, Valedictorian/Salutatorian

Beginning with the Class of 2022 (this year’s freshmen), Milford High School will no longer be reporting class rank, unless it is specifically requested by a college or other institution. This decision was made following extensive research re: what colleges are looking for; what other school districts are doing; and how our students and parents feel about various factors in the educational process.

Teenage brains are still developing

Along the same lines as the Business Advisory Council’s work on later school start times: Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London, has released recent research on the myriad changes that take place in the teenage brain.

Highlights from 3/15/18 school board meeting

WOW! This is not from our school board meeting, but it’s breaking news – Ripple, a company that uses blockchain and cryptocurrency technology to make international payments faster, lower cost, and more reliable, has donated $29 million to DonorsChoice.org to fund every single one of the more than 35,000 classroom projects posted! Thank you, Ripple, for helping over a million students around the country!

 

Resolution Supporting School Safety
Resolution Opposing HB 512 (Consolidating the Ohio Department of Education, the Ohio Department of Higher Education and the Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation into a new state agency called the Department of Learning and Achievement)
Increase learning by taking notes by hand

Here are the highlights from the 3/15/18 school board meeting:

Increase learning by taking notes by hand

How often do you write these days? I type almost everything, to the point where my handwriting (which was never exceptional) has gotten noticeably worse.

Yet while typing may be convenience (and necessary) in the business world, is it the best course for students who are working to learn and retain information? Perhaps not, according to a study published in Psychological Science.