Subject:  Re: First Grade Homework
Date:     Thu, 26 Sep 96 09:59:12 -0500 (CDT)
From:     mdavis@wbap.com (Mark Davis)
To:       Tim Williams 

Great page!  And yep, I gave the address.

MD

Subject: pisd
   Date: Mon, 4 Nov 1996 08:30:26 -0600
   From: David Semon 
     To: timw@airmail.net

Reply-To: semon@comp.tamu.edu
X-Mailer: Jed [0.98-0]

I happen to be a former student of Plano High and some of what I see on your
web page is truly depressing. Why I thought anything should have changed, I
don't know. How can it be that so few of the staff have email? I've had
e-mail since 1982 or 1983 at the same address as the reply-to header. I find
it hard to believe that they paid someone 16,000 dollars for web page
design. A&M pays undergrad student workers $5.50 an hour to program and
write HTML when they need a break from thinking. For 16K, I hope they
included something like a DEC alpha. I didn't think so. Is there a way to
get on the list of consultants so that I can make some money during a spare
weekend?

David Semon

Subject:  Unofficial School Page comments.
   Date:  Wed, 11 Dec 1996 14:09:02 -0500 (EST)
   From:  GPOWELL@InfoAve.Net
     To:  tim@pisd.org

I tried to get into PISD's 'official' web page, but it seems it is down (and
has been for at least two days).  I have a good friend that works as a
computer technician within PISD and the stories I hear from that person
parallel what I read in your forum.

The price tag quoted for their web page was nothing short of a rip-off.  We
have local companies assisting us with web pages (along with kids from the
schools) and we haven't spent that much for the whole district yet!

Keep up the good work.  I know where to go to keep up with events back at home!

Subject:  Unofficial School Page Comments
Date:     Fri, 13 Dec 1996 23:15:04 -0600
From:     Olen 
To:       tim@pisd.org

I like your page very much, as one who does programming for a living, as
well as DBA work, I must commend you on the bandwidth saving features
you have on your page.  There is nothing more irritating than waiting 30
seconds for a page to load.

The comments and information you provide is what we are lacking in the
North Side Independent School District in San Antonio.  We must all be
very vigilant about what is happening in our schools.  The faddish
nature of modern education leaves one to wonder what would happen if we
attempted to evaluate other, every day, tasks using the same
methodology?  For example if we only rated the ability of the mechanic
that works on our car on the amount of effort and personal growth he, or
she, gained while repairing the breaks on our automobile rather than if
the breaks now stop the car, would that be satisfactory?  I think not.

Again let me congratulate you on a fine service you are providing and on
the Big C you earned, I was made aware of your page by the C-NEWS
mailing list.  Keep up the good work.

        Olen Kline

Subject: Weird Stuff in PISD
Date:    Mon, 03 Feb 1997 00:41:27 -0600
From:    [name withheld by request]
To:      timw@airmail.net

I'd like to know why teachers give out so much homework.  What are they
doing in the classrooms?  Do they expect everyone not to have a life? 
As a parent of one elementary student and one secondary student, I find
that some nights that's all we're doing around the house.  It's not like
their getting homework in one subject per night, sometimes they have
homework in every subject, every night.  Do they really think the
parents and kids appreciate this?  Maybe more needs to be done AT school
instead of at home!

My name is [withheld] but please don't print it.   Thanks!

Subject: 
Date:   Wed, 29 Jan 1997 23:18:43 +0000
From:   Teresa Masters 
To:     timw@airmail.net

I have just read your material, and I wonder why so rigid?  There are 
already too many lemmings, it should not be so fearful to give 
children the opportunity to see that there are many ways to a valid 
solution.

Subject:       Civil discourse and conventions of English
Date:          Mon, 28 Apr 1997 09:02:16 -0700
From:          Steve Ferrara 
Organization:  Maryland State Dept. of Education
To:            tim@pisd.org

Congratulations on the coverage your Web Page received in Ed Week this
week!  I enjoyed browsing through your page.

I understand your response to the unpleasant comments you got from
tenchi@airmail.net, but would like to offer a comment.  You chide this
commenter for lack of civility in a rather uncivil tone.  You also
criticize his/her errors in conventions of English, even though your Web
Page section on integrated curriculum incorrectly uses "it's" twice in
place of "its."  Finally, you warn readers that obscenities are edited
out of the page; however, this commenter uses the very vulgar term,
"*****."

Sometimes vacuous and nasty comments like those of tenchi@airmail.net
are best left alone....

Subject:  Weird Stuff in PISD
Date:     Tue, 27 May 1997 20:33:52 -0500
From:     ********** <****@*****>
To:       timw@airmail.net

Anytime there is a discussion of their practices such as 
block scheduling or Sophomores playing varsity, the administration
condemns the teacher or coach and stifles their input. 
Empowerment is not a term practiced by the Plano Independent 
School district in any form or degree. 

please keep my name private, they do like to get even also!!!

Subject: Harvey Hotel
   Date:  Sun, 27 Jul 1997 21:43:53 -0500
   From: "anonymous" <*****@*****.***>
     To: tim@pisd.org

I would ask that I be kept anonymous but I am disturbed about something. 
Last week the PISD held it's annual SEEII Workshop at the Harvey Hotel. 
Diane Allison the coordinator for the Plano Regional Dayschool for the Deaf
for PISD actually stayed the week at the Hotel.  Not only did she have a
room, but a suite for the enitire week.  This strikes me as odd since she
should be coming into Plano for work everyday anyway.