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By MHS Principal Terry Howell |
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Last week teachers participated in several days of
in-service training designed to help their professional
development. I thought that nearly all of the planned
events had merit and had the seeds for future growth.
On Friday, August 1, all county teachers attended a
workshop at Bethel College entitled “Understanding
Poverty” conducted by Texan educator, Freta Parks. This
in-service addressed strengthening teachers’ abilities
to recognize emotional, attitudinal, and communicative
differences of children who live in poverty. Especially
impressive were the points made about language
differences, lifestyle adaptability, and problem solving
techniques in socio-economic classes. With the No Child
Left Behind initiative of the Bush Administration, this
workshop is especially topical as it addresses one of
the subgroups to show academic gains.
Teachers also had sessions during last week on a wide
range of topics. They included items as diverse as
special education issues; the technique of Highly
Effective Questioning; Power Writing; updates on No
Child Left Behind, Tennessee School Improvement Plan,
and TVAAS (valued-added scoring); teaching strategies
and techniques in the block schedule; techniques to deal
with difficult students, and information about blood
borne pathogens.
As I look over these various topics, I am struck by
the tremendous change in education during my career. I
do think that acquainting teachers with tools to use to
become better at their craft is an excellent investment
of time and money.
One of the social and behavioral goals of a school and
of parents is to make young people more responsible. I
recently read some good tips to teach students
responsibility. First, give the young person as much
responsibility as possible. This will help them grow and
expand in the direction of their talent. Second, young
people should be challenged to think about consequences.
This is the age of impulsivity. Young people need to
think about what could occur as a result of their
actions. Third, students need to develop a plan in which
they balance their time to include studies along with
the other activities in their lives. Fourth, young
people need to learn from experience. Along the way,
they will make mistakes, but they must learn that
corrective behavior after a set-back is not failure.
These are some common sense approaches for young people
and parents for the new year.
The football team begins its third week of pre-season
practice this week. Last week the team scrimmaged
Humboldt and Southside on Tuesday. None of the three
teams played particularly well as the coaches
experimented with different players and with working
offensive and defensive schemes. On Friday, the Rebels
played perennial powerhouse Crockett County. Although we
lost three touchdowns to one, we did play better with
the offense moving the ball and the defense playing
better outside of a few long gains by the Cavaliers.
This week the Rebels play Henry County on Tuesday in the
final pre-season scrimmage. They will battle at home on
the practice field at the high school.
Season passes are on sale at the high school for all
varsity, B-team, and freshmen games. The price of the
passes is $25.00 and is good for the regular, high
school home games. Also, on sale are jamboree tickets
for our game-like scrimmage in Huntingdon on August 22.
All tickets sold locally will remain in our athletic
account. Those sold in Huntingdon will be split among
the eight participates. The Rebels will play the third
quarter against Lexington. Our season opener is August
29 against Obion County.
Many students will request schedule changes within the
first week of school. It is our practice to create a
schedule with the anticipated load of students from our
spring registration. We will look at changes, but two
considerations will be at the forefront. First, the
change must help the student satisfy his/her 4-year plan
and assist him/her in meeting career goals. Second, the
projected change cannot adversely affect an existing
class by making the class size too large for maximum
instructional effectiveness. It is certainly our mission
that all students take four credits of instruction this
semester. With upper classmen, many students might think
about vocational/technical school or off-campus college
courses if we can fit that into their schedules.
Again, I ask the assistance of parents in making traffic
flow easier in the morning and afternoons. Drop-offs in
the mornings are in the back of the building. We will
conduct bus duty in the back lobby. Pick-ups in the
afternoon are in the front. Also, please help homeroom
teachers by returning all paperwork as soon as possible.
That will help with the smooth, efficient operation of
our school. A reminder that all students participating
in athletics, band, cheerleading or physical
education/wellness must purchase School Day Insurance or
sign a note that they are covered by a private policy.
Our Mission Statement posted throughout the building
reads: McKenzie High School will provide a safe, quality
environment where students can grow and develop skills
to become productive members in a changing society. That
is our mission. It is one that is only possible with the
help of parents and stakeholders in McKenzie. I ask that
we all work together to make our mission easier to
attain. |
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Students returned to the halls Monday. The excitement
was enhanced with a number of building improvements over
the summer. The PTO purchased 220 new lockers. This
enabled us to position lockers on one side of each hall.
We hope the extra space helps reduce congestion during
class changes. We had our gym floor sanded, sealed,
painted and finished. Everyone that has seen it has
commented on the beauty. New electric bleachers were
installed on both sides. No more splinters! Our
cafeteria has received new furniture. We have new tables
that fold and roll with the seats attached. This will
help us greatly with our daily maintenance. Ms. Christy
Hampton spent a great deal of time painting. We are very
pleased with the new look. We appreciate all the
improvement and offer that appreciation to Mona
Batchelor, Debbie Chapman, Jim Ward and the Board of
Education. We invite everybody to come by and see the
changes.
The Touchdown Club is holding the annual Middle
School Jamboree this Saturday night at 6:00 p.m. at
Rebel Field. Admission is $3.00 in advance and $4.00 at
the gate. Middle school football players and
cheerleaders are selling tickets. Match-ups include
Huntingdon vs. Dresden, Camden vs. West Carroll, Hollow
Rock-Bruceton vs. Inman and McKenzie vs. Medina.
The Middle School Rebels will open their regular
season at Dresden on August 21. The first home game will
be on August 26 against Huntingdon. |
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