ASCD continually seeks to provide solutions to the challenges that face educators of all levels. Recently theASCD SmartBrief ED Pulse poll sought out the opinion of its readers on the idea of community schools.
Over the past year, there has been an increase in attention paid to the idea of community schools, from the media showing the results being produced at community schools to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan declaring the community school strategy as one of the preferred models of education reform. More and more school systems across the country are touting the positive impact community school partnerships have on student achievement and communities.
A quarter of these readers were not aware of the concept of community schools (25 percent). Of the remainder, the readers who responded to the poll were overwhelmingly in favor of community schools (67 percent positive to 8 percent don't see the benefits.) Specifically, the readers felt the most important benefit of community schools was to create increased family stability/greater family involvement with schools (39 percent).
Secondly, respondents felt that community schools can create significant and widespread gains in academic achievement (12 percent). Next, they felt that community schools create essential areas of
Stand Up for Others — Whole Child Education
Stand Up for Others — Whole Child Education: Stand Up for OthersAccording to current statistics, more than 30 percent of our school-age young people—approximately 5.7 million children—are bullied in schools, on playgrounds, and in recreational facilities each year. Research shows that these numbers can be reduced by nearly half through the use of effective bullying prevention programs. During the