PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ENCINITAS, CA 92024 PERMIT NO. 94
THE COAST NEWS
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MAKING WAVES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
VOL. 27, NO. 9
MARCH 1, 2013
Schools look at needs of transgender students By Rachel Stine
COAST CITIES — When student J ack Cady started this past semester at California State University San Marcos, his preparation for new classes included an e xtra step beyond buying books and reading the sylla bus. He also had to r each out to each of his ne w professors to ensure that they do not refer to him as female or call him by his birth name. Cady said he sent each professor an email explaining, “Hey, I’m a trans-student, this is the name I want to use, these are the pronouns you should be using.” Cady began questioning his gender identity in 2011, and started his transition from female to male during the summer of 2012. Like other tr ansgender college students, he has had to sear ch for resources on campus that meet his needs, at times finding that the policies addressing transgender students are scarce, if they even exist at all. Over the past se veral years, San Diego’s colleges and universities have been following a national tr end of providing increasing support and establishing policies that ad dress the needs of transgender students. But when measured by the standards set by the Transgender Law and TURN TO STUDENTS ON A14
ART THROUGH GENERATIONS Encinitas resident Hildegarde Jaeger Stubbs took away something very important from her middle school art teacher. A18
With the Board of Supervisors approving a new pilot program, the water quality at beaches could be analyzed in as little as four hours, while the current method takes 24 to 48 hours. Photo by Daniel Knighton
A student at El Camino Creek puts together a presentation using an iPad. Every third through six-grader in the Encinitas Union School District has an iPad. New research, including a thesis and a study from the University of San Diego, is looking at how the iPads impact student learning. Photo by Jared Whitlock
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Studies look into the effectiveness of learning with iPads in Encinitas’ school district By Jared Whitlock
ENCINITAS — In Lindsa y Duncan’s class at El Camino Creek, one fourth grade student looked up the definition of “blubber.” One girl found a suitable picture of a whale and attached it to her presentation about marine life. Books, paper and pencils weren’t in the hands of any of Duncan’s students — only iPads. These days, it’s a common sight in classrooms throughout the Encinitas Union School District (EUSD). Every third through six-grader at EUSD has an iPad, and the district is looking at rolling out more iPads for younger students. Meanwhile, researchers are looking at how the r apidly growing technology is impacting learning. Duncan is among those researchers. She recently wrote a thesis on iPads in schools after surveying 120 fourth-graders and their parents last school year, when the pilot program debuted. Further, the University of San
Diego is slated to release a study this summer on the use of iPads in the district. “Most people think all technology is great,” Duncan said.“Without rushing to that conclusion, my question was: How might this affect kids? Are they (the iPads) motivational? And I was interested in how students and parents perceive the iPads.” Duncan’s research indicates students largely believe the iPads are a valuable tool. Parents also see the iPads as beneficial, but some have some reservations with the technology. Notably, 90 percent of students said the iPad aided their learning. For one, they liked the instant feedback that comes with iPads. Students no longer have to wait days for test results — now it’s a matter of minutes. “The questions are still fresh in their minds and they can figure out right then what they can work on or improve,” Duncan
Two Sections, 48 pages Arts & Entertainment . A16 Food & Wine . . . . . . . . A12 Legals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A19 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4
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Supervisors approve pilot program for testing county waters By Jared Whitlock
COAST CITIES — The county Board of Super visors voted unanimously, with Supervisor Bill Horn a bsent, to approve a y earlong pilot program that could significantly cut do wn the time it takes to determine whether local waters are too polluted to swim in. Currently, the county Department of Environmental Health collects water samples several times a week throughout the year. In the e vent of poor water quality, closure signs
are posted on affected beaches and the r esults are put online.The samples, however, take 24 to 48 hours to analyze. During this lag time, people could enter the water without knowing pathogen levels are high, making them more likely to get sic k. And in some cases, beaches might be closed longer than necessary because pollutants might have already left the water while the samples were being analyzed. “Any delay in identifying TURN TO TESTING ON A15
Authorities respond to ride operators’ appeal By Bianca Kaplanek
DEL MAR — The owners of the company that provides elephant rides during the San Diego County Fair didn’t get the exact response they sought in an appeal to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for a noncompliance issue. “But we’re happy the USDA acknowledged that we do a good job,” said Kari Johnson, who co-owns Have Trunk Will Travel with her husband, Gary. “They think we’re good people.” The company was cited for failing to maintain elephants under the direct control and super vision of a
knowledgeable and experienced handler in August 2012 during the Centr al States Fair in Rapid City , S.D. The USDA inspector noted that during the rides, the elephant not being used was not secured and often not supervised. Kari Johnson said the problems were corrected immediately at the site and an appeal was later submitted. Johnson said Ha ve Trunk Will Travel has been licensed by the USDA during the nearly 40 years that it’s TURN TO ELEPHANTS ON A15