Wishing you a Blessed and Joyous Holiday...

May your heart be lifted in praise this Christmas
for the wonderful gift of Jesus
and the joy He brings to our lives.
Have a wonderful Christmas
and a Blessed New Year.

Thankful...

It’s hard to believe that our first semester is almost gone. It has been a whirlwind. From our new technology initiative, to state championship appearances in softball and football, to the normal hustle and bustle of school life, it has been busy. However, we must not lose sight of the real reason we are here; to prepare our students for college and life beyond. As we passed Thanksgiving I gave thanks to God for our school, our students, our parents, and our faculty.

Even though we are at the forefront of technology, we have not lost sight that even the greatest gadget can't teach students--that requires people to choose the curriculum, manage the devices, and lead engaging classes. And even though we have our students the majority of the day, we cannot take the place of loving and nurturing parents in the lives of our students. We take our responsibility of educating our students seriously. Scripture tells us to “train up the child in the way he should go.” We touch the future every day at MHS and I am thankful for those opportunities.

I’m also grateful and thankful that we live in a country where we are free and I am especially grateful for those men and women fighting to keep us that way. Let us never lose sight of their sacrifices.

Finally, let’s not forget the real reason for the season – Jesus. God’s only son came to Earth over 2000 years ago; lived a life to teach us grace, humility, and service; suffered a brutal death for our sins; and then rose that we too could overcome death and spend eternity with Him.

I hope that during this time you will also reflect and offer your own prayers of thanksgiving for your many blessings.

May you have a blessed and joyful Holiday Season and a very Merry Christmas!

Rotary Program

Today, I had the honor of presenting a program to the Senatobia Rotary Club about our 1:1 initiative, iMHS. I think without a doubt, the highlight was a video in which our students and teachers shared their experiences, and how integrating this technology into our curriculum has made learning more exciting and student-centered. Even more, the video was made on a Macbook Air, identical to the ones our students use every day just as we received them with no additional programs or software.

Please click on the link to view the video and feel free to share with prospective parents and students.

Rotary Video iMHS

Have a great Fall Break!

The New Way is the Old Way

Among the many new and innovative practices at Magnolia Heights this year is the addition of the Harkness Teaching Method. This year’s Honor’s History Symposium students taught by Mr. Barry Coleman will benefit from the practice of this challenging method of instruction. In their first assignment, Mr. Coleman assigned readings from The Art of War by Sun Tzu. From their readings, he students then developed battle strategies to repel an invading army. 

In 1930, The Harkness Method was proposed by philanthropist Edward Harkness and accepted at Phillips Exeter Academy. "What I have in mind is [a classroom] where [students] could sit around a table with a teacher who would talk with them and instruct them by a sort of tutorial or conference method, where [each student] would feel encouraged to speak up. This would be a real revolution in methods," Harkness said.

Learning is a collaborative effort in a Harkness classroom where each student has a vested interest in the discussions. Seated around a large table with their teacher, students learn to bring to “the table” their observations, questions and prejudices from the reading, equipped to support their comments with textual evidence.  

They also learn to become listeners, as one goal of Harkness Method is to enrich perspective, not merely to share a sole opinion. Harkness is student-centered; the method builds confidence because each student’s opinions are valued.
 
The teacher directs the discussion of the day’s readings, occasionally changing the direction of the discussion and suggesting other areas of importance.  Students speak as they see fit rather than waiting to be called on by the teacher. Together, the class’ responsibility is to uncover truths in the text.
 
There is nowhere to hide around a Harkness table, no seats in the back row or classmates in front of you. Since the discussion at the table depends on active participation, the expectation is to come into class prepared to do the “work of discussion.”

The teacher does not give students the answers because there is no value in that. There is great value, however, in learning to think critically. This takes tremendous effort as students sit and struggle with the text at hand.  The correct answer is not as important as the means by which they arrived. Thinking critically will affect the way they approach a new problem tomorrow, or ten years from now.  

Our MHS students have a head start on the 21st Century Learning Skills that will be valued in the jobs and careers of the future where they will learn how to solve problems that don't yet exist using technologies and strategies that have yet to be developed. Stay tuned.

 

 

 

Great Start

August 5, 2013

Day one of the 2013-14 school year has come and gone at MHS and we had a fantastic first day! There were lots of smiles as everyone greeted old friends and met the new ones for the first time. From the opening prayer in the gym with grades 7-12 to my tour of all the elementary classes, I certainly felt the excitement of opening day.

There have been so many changes over the summer. From personnel to technology, and facility improvements to professional development for the faculty and staff, it has been an incredibly busy summer.

We have several new faces on "The Hill" this year. In math we added Mrs. Ann Robbins; in science we added Dr. Shelly Self and Mrs. Sharmin Hughes; in English Mrs. Lynn Savage; to our coaching staff we added Mr. Winn Scott who will also serve as our Director of Technology and Mr. Dusty Hughes who will also teach history; and finally, some of our teachers from last year have changed positions. Mrs. Rebecca Atkinson has moved to the junior high; Mrs. Janice Taylor has moved to the secondary library; Mrs. Hayley Warren has moved from kindergarten to the second grade; Mrs. Sunny Lane will be teaching a 3K section; Mrs. Mikelle Perry will direct the elementary technology center; and Ellen Glosson will teach art full-time.

On the technology front, year one of iMHS is in full swing; students in grades 10-12 are now using their MacBooks to access classroom resources to enhance the educational process; elementary teachers are piloting iPads this year thanks to a generous donor; the PC’s in the secondary computer lab were replaced with some of the MacBooks from last year, with the rest going to all secondary teachers; the school’s technology infrastructure was completely re-vamped with new access points and other infrastructure switches and routers; and finally, the faculty attended various workshops and conferences like the iSummit Conference in Atlanta a few weeks ago.

The school has also been the beneficiary of a new coat of paint and new ceiling tiles. Soon the doors on the gym will be replaced with attractive full glass doors, and, as always, the custodial staff did an awesome job getting the floors shinier than ever.

Fall sports are also underway. Our softball ladies are off to a great start and look to make it back to the State Tournament again. Varsity and junior high football are also underway with the varsity traveling to Pillow for their jamboree Friday, August 16th, before opening up on the road at SBEC (now Northpoint Christian School) Friday, August 23rd. The junior high opens with their jamboree on Thursday, August 22nd at Pillow, with their first game at North Delta on Thursday August 29th. Also our ladies’ soccer team under the direction of Coach Allen Holley has been practicing hard for the opening match with Kirk this Thursday, August 8th.

As you can tell, we have been busy, but we are also mindful of the tremendous opportunities that God has blessed us with. We get to work each day molding the minds of students to prepare them for the challenges of college and beyond. We never take that for granted. As I told the faculty during in-service, we never know where our influence stops. I used the following video to show how far -reaching our efforts can go, and I would like to share it with you.

Andy Andrews – The Butterfly Effect

Class of 2013 Challenge

This is a copy of the Challenge given to the Class of 2013 at Senior Award's Night, May 9, 2013.

It is now my honor and privilege to challenge the Class of 2013. You are about to embark on the most important journey you will ever make – the journey of life. There will many emotions you will experience over the next two weeks – from sadness over the fact that this may be the last time you see many of your classmates to exhilaration that high school is over and college is about to begin. It can be a very confusing time to try and make the life altering decisions that you now face. I don’t have a wonderful catch all answer for you. However, as you leave high school and enter college there are a few thoughts I would like you to consider.

Since you entered the 9^th grade you have spent roughly 2 million minutes in high school. That is far short of what other countries require. But what other countries don’t have is our American ingenuity and spirit. They try hard – even recruit our best teachers – but still they fall short. It seems that we still have the market on American spirit, creativity and ingenuity.

Did you know that only 18% of today’s 18 year-olds will have a college degree by the time they are 23?

Did you also know that the Department of Labor says that you will have 10-14 jobs by the time you reach age 38?

Even more - the top ten in demand jobs today did not exist in 2004 (10 years ago). During your college years you will be preparing for jobs that do not exist, using technology that hasn't been invented, to solve problems that do not yet exist.

Which leads me tonight to focus on 6 critical skills that I believe will be necessary in the days and years to come.

The first - Technology –

·        Doubling every three days which means half of what you learn in your first year will be outdated    by the time you finish college

·        How far have we come…

o   15 years ago Google was introduced. In 2006 there were 2.7 billion searches a month. Today 31 billion.

o   Ebay was just catching on. Amazon was just a book company.

o   We rented our movies from Movie Gallery or the local video rental store. Today iTunes, Netflix and RedBox fill that need.

o   Five years ago There was no android  iPhone let alone an iPad! Today they account for 72% of Apple’s Revenue – Where’s the Motorola Razer now?

o   Five years ago – No Facebook today 1 Billion users in over 70 languages 

o   Five years ago no Twitter. Today over 340 million tweets a day.

o   Finally today, Technology is everywhere. You can’t get away from it. As a matter of fact there are vacation spots now advertising their locations as off the grid. Commerce, Banking, Research. Even at MHS -Every member of the senior class with a Macbook – and Coach Patterson’s textbook is in the cloud!!

Secondly, Critical Thinking – I’m not talking about who’s buried in Grant’s tomb or what color was George Washington’s white horse. Or the problem – there’s a dead Bull frog in center of a 25 foot pond. How many jumps does it take to get out. Learn to assimilate all the information in the problem. As I said earlier,  you will be in jobs that currently don’t even exist, solving problems that we don’t know about, using information and technology that has yet to be discovered.

So Technology, Critical Thinking and the third - Adaptability – We have to be flexible and able to adapt quickly to new situations. Sometimes the race is lost in the first step. You should be life-long learners. We are never too old to learn. Set a goal to read so many books a year and not just non-fiction. Dave Ramsey, the Financial Peace guy, says the person you will be 5 years from now will depend on the books you read and the people you meet.

So technology, critical thinking, adaptability, and now fourth is Cooperation – We must learn how to work together. In proverbs we learn that a rope of many strands is much stronger than the single strand.

Fifth is Leadership – some take it unwillingly; some have it thrust upon them. You cannot lead where you will not go. Make no mistake -You will lead - good or bad.

So technology, critical thinking, adaptability, cooperation, leadership and finally ---

Service – Do unto others. He who wants to be first must be last. The lesson from the Bible from Jesus is we must have a servant’s heart. Look for ways to serve. It is incredible what can be accomplished if no one cares who gets the credit.

John Wooden the legendary coach from UCLA 10 national championships in 12 years got the following advice from his father and kept it in his wallet all his life

Four things a man must learn to do

If he would make his life more true:

To think without confusion more clearly

To love his fellowman more sincerely

To act from honest motives purely

To trust in God and heaven securely.

You heard me and your teachers say many times that you represent the future of our country, and I’m confident that each of you will find your special place in society.  Before me tonight are future leaders of business and industry, doctors, lawyers, CPA’s, and many other productive professions. As we enter this new world economy, we must be mindful not only of our opportunities, but also our responsibilities that come along with those opportunities. It has been said, critically I might add, that many schools today are producing a Rip Van Winkle generation – that is an entire generation of kids will fail to make the grade in the global economy because they can't think their way through abstract problems, work in teams, distinguish good information from bad or speak a language other than English.  To prepare for the competitive world you are about to enter it is more important than ever that you effectively prepare yourselves to compete against the best in the world. Skeptical --

One more fact – during my talk tonight there will be 67 babies born in the US, 274 in China, and 395 in India. The world you are about to enter will be even more closely connected that it already is. You will compete against the best the world has to offer. One more fact – India has more students in the top 10% of their classes than we have students!

You have an exciting and challenging future ahead of you and I challenge you to run the race with endurance as we are told in Hebrews 12:1, but also finish strong. I am reminded of the determination of the marathon runner John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania. While competing in the marathon in Mexico City, Akhwari cramped up due to the high altitude of the city. He had not trained at such an altitude back in his country. At the 19 kilometer point during the 42 km race, there was jockeying for position between some runners and he was hit. He fell badly wounding his knee and dislocated that joint plus his shoulder hit hard against the pavement. He however continued running, finishing last among the 57 competitors who completed the race (75 had started). As the Olympics we ending, the announcer asked the spectators to look toward the entrance to the stadium were a lone runner was entering. Badly bruised, injured and hardly able to run, he made it around the track to finish several hours after the first runner had crossed the finish. When asked why He explained that “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; they sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race."

Class of 2013 – make your mantra to not only run the race with endurance and finish, and not only finish, but finish strong.

Thank you and God Bless…

Spring has Sprung!

The NCAA is quickly approaching the end of “March Madness,” but at MHS we are now officially in “Spring Madness”! From baseball to track and golf to tennis on the athletic side, and science fairs and spelling bees on the academic side, our students and teachers are busier than ever and excelling in all areas.

Our baseball team is ranked #1 in the state and several of our track athletes are reigning state champions looking to defend the crowns they won last year. Our tennis and golf teams are very competitive and representing the school well.

Mr. Dees, Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Goodwin are preparing a large contingent of students for the state science fair to defend their unprecedented streak of a top three finish in the state 19 out of the last 20 years. Our students took the MAIS Academic Betterment Competition (ABC) test last week, and we look forward to another outstanding report on our results. MHS has consistently outpaced all other schools in our district and accounted nicely for themselves on the statewide level.

Despite all this extracurricular activity, day-to-day instruction carries on. This morning as I walked down the secondary hall, I saw students presenting their group projects in Computer Applications II. They had embedded videos into their powerpoints and demonstrated the thoroughness of their research. They were being graded on not only their use of technology but also their written and oral presentation skills, their degree of collaboration, their creativity, and content. These are all vital skills needed by a 21^st century student as they finish their secondary education and transition into college and their careers beyond. Many of these skills are also linked to the core competencies of the Common Core Curriculum which is in the process of being implemented nationwide in many of our public schools.

That, however, was only one example of the quality of instruction taking place. I also observed math teachers using their document cameras to explain problems, and history and economics teachers utilizing the internet to supplement their lessons. English and science teachers were also actively engaged, taking advantage of the few instructional days left in our second semester.

And although I only went down the secondary hall this morning, my previous visits to the kindergarten, elementary wing, middle school and junior high halls were no different. There I also saw active teacher-student engagement at all levels and numerous examples of utilizing technology, collaboration, and creative thinking in all areas. It is without question that as these students move to high school, they will be prepared for the next level.

I am so proud of our school, faculty and students. It is always a great day to be a Chief!

 

 

iMHS - Here We Go!

Over the past few weeks we have been surveying our parents for their input as the Board of Trustees finalized the school’s Strategic Technology Initiative. The plan, when fully implemented, will provide for one device (computer or tablet) for each student in the school.

This past year, all seniors and their teachers received a MacBook Air for their use (at home and school) as part of a pilot program. The program provided valuable insight that helped craft the school’s initiative. It also provided information as to the school’s readiness for a 1:1 program with regard to its infrastructure, as well as, the instructional expertise of the faculty in their use of technology.

Using the results of the surveys, the findings from the pilot program, and extensive research from other MAIS schools and technology consultants, the Board of Trustees voted to proceed and implement the plan at their January 2013 meeting. The plan will be phased in over the next few years. The full plan is available at the school and will soon be posted on the school’s website www.magnoliaheights.com.

We are excited to partner with Apple in our endeavor. Apple believes in creating products that enrich learner’s lives and help K-12 education achieve its goals for teacher effectiveness, college and career readiness and student achievement. These goals include national efforts such as the Common Core State Standards. These standards have been adopted by 47 states including Mississippi for English Language Arts and Mathematics. These standards emphasize that technological skills and information literacy in the digital age should not be taught separately, but rather be deeply integrated into the educational experience across all subject areas. We agree that the best technology should seamlessly connect the learner with what they are expected to learn. When a student is engaged in learning or creating, technological fluency happens as a by-product.

We know that to transform learning, we must develop a culture of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity. Today’s learners need to work collaboratively and communicate in meaningful ways to reach a shared goal. They need to develop critical thinking skills that apply their understanding of content and empower them to solve today’s challenges. A big part of developing global learners is to provide an environment with access to a range of devices and content that complement creative learning.

This is an exciting time for MHS and provides further evidence that Magnolia Heights is striving to provide your child with the best college preparatory education available. Although no computer will ever replace teachers and parents as the primary instructional leaders, our students need access to technology to keep pace in an ever changing global landscape. This strategic initiative will provide the blueprint to do just that.

Happy New Year!

I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year! School is back in full swing and second semester is going full tilt. Despite early dismissals and missing one day for inclement weather, we are off to a great start.

I want to thank all the parents who were so patient with us during those early dismissal days. The email notification seemed to go without a hitch and all the students were picked up in a timely manner. As we learn more and more about the capabilities of RenWeb, we are even more pleased with our decision to go with them.

You should have also received an email with a survey link asking for your input as we go forward with our 1:1 technology initiative, “iMHS.”   The survey is very short and should only take 3-5 minutes to complete. The results of this survey will be shared with the Board of Trustees as we take our next step toward the full implementation of our plan.
 
On a much somber note, after the Sandy Hook shootings, schools across our state and nation have been reviewing their safety and security plans and MHS is no different. Prior to our return to classes last week, the school leadership team met and reviewed our plan. On Monday before the students returned, the teachers met to review procedures and policies related to the plan. Since our in-service, we have continued to consult with other schools and local law enforcement agencies to make sure that our plan addresses all the foreseeable concerns that we have regarding school safety and security. We are continuing to look at upgrading our video surveillance system and school entrances, as well as any other measures the state and local authorities deem necessary. Your children’s safety and security are and remain our top priority.

Basketball and boys’ soccer are winding down with the playoffs for junior high less than 3 weeks away. I hope that you will take time to come out and watch these young men and women play. They do notice when you are there and appreciate your attendance.

As always, I am so proud of our school and its students and thankful to be a part of the MHS family!