November 3, 2016
Dear Jackson High School Families:
I would like to take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Kevin Barkholz and I am the new English Instructor at Jackson High School. I began working with students last Tuesday, October 25. Since that day, I’ve been attempting to integrate new classroom norms, standards, and practices. Although this transition has been hectic and difficult, I believe the transition is finally settling in for the students.
Outside of the normal transitional hurdles, there have been some questions about the previous instructor's’ methods of assessing. In other words, what will happen with the student’s grades?
When taking over the position, there were no records or documentation of what had been assessed, nor was the gradebook up to date. With this being said, I have informed each class that we will not be looking back at previous course work. Instead, we will be designing lessons and assessing the standards of reading, writing, thinking, and collaboration. These lessons will be weighted appropriately, which allows every student an opportunity to improve their grade. At the same time, if a student feels there is some undocumented coursework, they are more than welcome to schedule an appointment to address the previous graded assignment.
Lastly, I wanted to provide each family an opportunity to get to know the instructor. Throughout my 15 year career, I have researched practices that fit the context of academic development and technology. I welcome all students and families to visit my website: http://barkholzsciencesocial.weebly.com/. On the site, students and parents are provided access to course lessons, agendas, readings, and assignments.
I look forward to working with the students and families of Jackson High School and I’m excited to be a part of the Viking Community.
Sincerely,
Kevin Barkholz
517-841-3813
Twitter: @SciSocial6
Google+: kevinbarkholz@gmail.com
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