School Policies Reflect Changing Times | The Record-Courier

As the Baker 5J School Board reviewed suggested policy changes from the Oregon School Boards Association last night, one theme became evident ? times are changing.? From cyberbullying to graduation requirements, the policy updates reflect legal, economic and social changes.

Concerns about harassment, intimidation, and bullying have led to policy changes for a number of years.? The newest modification is the addition of ?Teen Dating Violence,? with its definition, ?A pattern of behavior in which a person uses or threatens to use physical, mental or emotional abuse to control another person who is in a dating relationship with the person, where one or both persons are 13 to 19 ears of age.?? The policy also includes requirements about prevention, reporting, and investigation, as well as a footnote defining sexual orientation.?

A policy on cyberbullying, which had to be added a few years ago has been tweeked to include community, parent, and staff involvement in policy compliance.?? A reference to ?social media? has been added, as well as adjustments to required student and staff training.

Policies regarding abuse of a child (formerly child abuse) and sexual conduct with students have also been updated.

References to charter schools, and regulations regarding them, are sprinkled throughout the policies.

The ?Graduation Requirements? policy reflects both a push for higher standards and an increase in options to fit a range of student situations and needs.? Science requirements are up from two to three credits.? Career and technical education, arts and languages jumped from one credit to three.? In response to the number of ELL (English Language Learner) students, those with limited English proficiency may demonstrate skills ?in a variety of settings, in the language of origin??? There are also provisions for ?modified diplomas,? ?extended diplomas? and ?alternative certificates? for some students.? While these terms were added earlier, some of the stipulations are new.

Educational records, especially those involving special education, are continually evolving.? This time adjustments include references to U.S. and state officials who, under certain circumstance, may have access to records for enforcement and compliance purposes.

Confidentiality continues to be a concern, so the policy on ?personally identifiable information? has undergone some adjustment.? One change is a reference to ?biometric record?, which presumably refers to such things as DNA tests and eye scans.

A school transportation policy included the following change: ?A person over 40 pounds or who has reached the upper weight limit for the forward-facing car seat must use a booster seat until four feet nine inches or age eight and the adult belt properly fits.?

In a policy on wellness, ?Nutrition Education? became ?Nutrition Promotion and Nutrition Education.?? It also includes a reduction in wording (which is unusual) on physical education and activity.? Instead of specifying required numbers of minutes for p.e., the new policy says ?Physical activity should be included in a school?s daily education from grads pre-K through 12.?? The push for required p.e. time in the last version, seems to have been tempered due to financial and logistical constraints.

Source: http://therconline.com/school-policies-reflect-changing-times/

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