The U.S. government shut down this morning because Congress was unable to pass a bill to fund federal programs as the new fiscal year begins. This week's Capitol Connection cuts through the politics and brinkmanship to outline what a shutdown means for the nation's students, educators, and schools.
1. What's the bottom line for schools and districts? How would a government shutdown affect daily operations?
Most schools and districts are unlikely to feel immediate effects of a shutdown because the advanced funding nature of federal education spending means that states and districts have already received much of their federal funding for the school year. In addition, the vast majority of school funding (about 90 percent) comes from state and local sources. Moreover, the U.S. Department of Education has awarded dozens of competitive grants in the past several days so that it is not held up by a shutdown.
2. Will any education programs be affected in the short-term?
Head Start (which provides early childhood education to low-income families) and Impact Aid (which helps fund school districts that cannot fully rely on local tax revenue, such as those on military bases or tribal lands) depend heavily on federal dollars that are not necessarily distributed at the beginning of the school year. Thus, these programs could experience more acute and immediate shutdown consequences. This is especially concerning because Head Start and Impact Aid have already deeply felt the effects of sequestration. More
ASCD continually seeks to provide solutions to the challenges that face educators of all levels. Recently theASCD SmartBrief ED Pulse poll addressed the debate about recess in elementary schools.
In the rush to meet new standards in math and reading, some school districts across the country have reduced the time for other subjects and for recess. For example, the Washington, D.C., schools started the school year with 15 minutes a day of recess, but after parent protests, the dedicated recess time was inched up to 20 minutes a day. At the same time, D.C. was the first school district in the country to fully commit to First Lady Michele Obama's Let's Move! Active Schools program, which aims to help schools provide at least 60 minutes of physical activity a day for students, either before, during, or after school. In D.C., then, this would leave 40 minutes of daily activity that would be performed presumably in physical education class, or before and after school. As testing requirements and budget cuts take hold, about 40 percent of U.S. elementary schools have reduced or eliminated recess, mostly to make room for more academics, reportsUSA Today.
There are multiple studies that point to the fact that increased activity and aerobics are related to better learning, memory, and better performance on tests while school districts across the country are finding more reasons to cut back on recess. The American Academy of Pediatrics issued its first policy statement on the issue of recess, with its medical members strongly supporting increased recess time, reporting that "recess is a crucial and necessary component of a child's development and, as such, it should not be withheld for