Latest News and Comment from Education

Friday, April 17, 2020

Why covid-19 will ‘explode’ academic achievement gaps - The Washington Post

Why covid-19 will ‘explode’ academic achievement gaps - The Washington Post

Why covid-19 will ‘explode’ existing academic achievement gaps





The Washington Post published a story saying that millions of students are at risk for severe learning loss during the coronavirus epidemic and discussing some of the unprecedented steps to help them catch up. This post is a follow-up of sorts, looking at exactly why achievement gaps will “explode,” according to the scholar and author Richard Rothstein, who wrote it.


Rothstein, whose research and writings on segregation in America have been important, is a distinguished fellow of the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute and a senior fellow emeritus at the Thurgood Marshall Institute of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and of the Haas Institute at the University of California at Berkeley.
He is the author of a number of books, including his most recent, the award-winning “The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How our Government Segregated America.”
This first appeared on the community development website Shelterforce, and Rothstein gave me permission to republish it.
By Richard Rothstein
The covid-19 pandemic will take existing academic achievement differences between middle-class and low-income students and explode them.
The academic achievement gap has bedeviled educators for years. In math and reading, children of CONTINUE READING: Why covid-19 will ‘explode’ academic achievement gaps - The Washington Post

BREAKING NEWS: Texas has first statewide African American studies course | Cloaking Inequity

BREAKING NEWS: Texas has first statewide African American studies course | Cloaking Inequity

BREAKING NEWS: TEXAS HAS FIRST STATEWIDE AFRICAN AMERICAN STUDIES COURSE

After an extensive review, development and political process, Texas State Board of Education members Georgina Perez and Aicha Davis et al. have shepherded the first African American studies course to completion. Exclusive to Cloaking Inequity, I have obtained a draft of the new course that will receive a final vote today at the Texas State Board of Education. It is an outgrowth of a course from the Dallas Independent School District. There have been many people working behind the scenes on this course. As with many things in public policy, some people will take credit while other people did the work behind the scenes. So a special THANK YOU to those folks (Jamila Thomas, Joyce King etc.) who have put their hearts and passion into making this groundbreaking course happen. You know who you are.
While not perfect, as some important standards (organizations, individuals etc) were exited during the negotiations. Notably, several years ago we wrote, an extensive article in the Harvard Educational Review about the process that occurred in Texas relative to the US History standards).
Nevertheless, I am incredibly impressed and over the moon that Texas is leading the way and is responsible for this incredible milestone. Here is the first-of-its-kind statewide Texas African American studies course:
113.51. Ethnic Studies: African American Studies (One Credit).
(a)        General requirements. Students shall be awarded one credit for successful completion of this course. This course is recommended for students in Grades 10-12.
(b)       Introduction.
(1)        In Ethnic Studies: African American Studies, an elective course, students learn about the history and cultural contributions of African Americans. This course is designed to assist students in understanding issues and events from multiple perspectives. This course develops an understanding of the historical roots of African American culture, especially as it pertains to social, economic, and political interactions within the broader context of United States history. It requires an analysis of important ideas, social and cultural values, beliefs, and traditions. Knowledge of past achievements provides citizens of the 21st century with a broader context within which to address the many issues facing the United States.
(2)        To support the teaching of the essential knowledge and skills, the use of a variety of rich primary and secondary source material such as biographies, autobiographies, landmark cases of the U.S. Supreme Court, novels, speeches, letters, diaries, poetry, songs, and artwork is encouraged. Resources are available from museums, historical sites, presidential libraries, and local and state preservation societies.
(3)        The eight strands of the essential knowledge and skills for social studies are intended to be integrated for instructional purposes. Skills listed in the social studies skills strand in subsection (c) of this section should be incorporated into the teaching of all essential knowledge and skills for social studies. A greater depth of understanding of complex content material can be attained when integrated social studies content from the various disciplines and critical-thinking skills are taught together.
(4)        Students identify the role of the U.S. free enterprise system within the parameters of this course and understand that this system may also be referenced as capitalism or the free market system.
(5)        Throughout social studies in Kindergarten-Grade 12, students build a foundation in history; geography; CONTINUE READING: BREAKING NEWS: Texas has first statewide African American studies course | Cloaking Inequity

Right-wing groups with ties to Betsy DeVos are behind protests against coronavirus restrictions: report – Raw Story

Right-wing groups with ties to Betsy DeVos are behind protests against coronavirus restrictions: report – Raw Story
Right-wing groups with ties to Betsy DeVos are behind protests against coronavirus restrictions: report


According to a Politico/Morning Consult poll released earlier this week, 81% of Americans believe that the United States “should continue to social distance for as long as is needed to curb the spread of coronavirus.” In other words, most Americans are smart enough to realize that while social distancing is inconvenient and difficult, it is certainly preferable to dying from COVID-19. But a minority of far-right extremists have been holding rallies and protests against social distancing. And journalist Jason Wilson, in an article The Guardian, takes a look at some of the groups behind those protests.


“While protesters in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and other states claim to speak for ordinary citizens, many are also supported by street-fighting right-wing groups like the Proud Boys, conservative armed militia groups, religious fundamentalists, anti-vaccination groups and other elements of the radical right,” Wilson explains.
One of the protests occurred in Michigan on Wednesday, April 15. According to Wilson, that demonstration was organized by the Michigan Conservative Coalition, a.k.a. Michigan Trump Republicans, and was “also heavily promoted by the Michigan Freedom Fund, a group linked to Trump cabinet member Betsy DeVos.” Placards, Wilson adds, “identified the Michigan Proud Boys as participants in the vehicle convoy.” CONTINUE READING: Right-wing groups with ties to Betsy DeVos are behind protests against coronavirus restrictions: report – Raw Story

Teachers union calls for nationwide summer school

Teachers union calls for nationwide summer school

Teachers union calls for nationwide summer school


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Governor Bill Lee has recommended schools to stay closed for the rest of the year. However, some educators are concerned about students falling behind. That’s why one of the country's largest teacher's unions is calling for students to attend summer school.
The American Federation of Teachers is proposing a nationwide, four week summer school program. The plan is contingent on whether it is safe enough to be in school by then.
"It is really to get kids ready for next year," said Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers. "So instead of thinking about it as remedial, think of it as a bridge toward next year."
Researchers say ultimately, school closures will impact the classroom. Next year, students could return to school with only 70% of the reading level they should be on and almost 50% of the expected math knowledge.


"It's instruction to deal with summer loss or this year's loss or this change that has upended everything, it reinforces and provides instruction, it provides food and nurturing, it provides some well-being issues and it also really helps parents,” said Weingarten.
The teachers union has asked for a $25 billion federal relief to pay for this program. This would be separate funds from what should be used next year.

Two Cheers for an End to the SAT (**) - Alfie Kohn

Two Cheers for an End to the SAT (**) - Alfie Kohn

Two Cheers for an End to the SAT




One imagines the folks at the College Board blushing deeply when, a few years back, they announced that the “A” in SAT no longer stood for “Aptitude.” Scarlet, after all, would be an appropriate color to turn while, in effect, conceding that the test wasn’t — and, let’s face it, never had been — a measure of intellectual aptitude. For a brief period, the examination was rechristened the Scholastic Assessment Test, a name presumably generated by the Department of Redundancy Department. Today, literally — and perhaps figuratively — SAT doesn’t stand for anything at all.
It wasn’t the significance of the shift in the SAT’s name that recently produced an epiphany for Richard C. Atkinson, president of the University of California. Rather, the tipping point in deciding to urge the elimination of the SAT as a requirement for admission came last year during a visit to the upscale private school his grandchildren attend. There, he watched as 12-year-olds were drilled on verbal analogies, part of an extended training that, he said in announcing his proposal, “was not aimed at developing the students’ reading and writing abilities but rather their test-taking skills.” More broadly, he argued, “America’s overemphasis on the SAT is compromising our educational system.”
Of course, it must be pointed out that U.C., assuming its policy-making bodies accept their president’s advice, would not be the first institution to drop the SAT. Hundreds of colleges and universities, including Bates, Bowdoin, Connecticut, and Mount Holyoke Colleges, no longer require the SAT or ACT. A survey by FairTest, a Cambridge, Mass.-based advocacy group, reported that such colleges are generally well-satisfied that “applicant pools and enrolled classes have become more diverse without any loss in academic quality.”
On balance, this latest and most significant challenge to the reign of the SAT is very welcome news indeed. There is a possible downside as well, but we should begin by recognizing that even before colleges began hopping off the SAT bandwagon, the assumption that they needed something like the test to help them decide whom to admit was difficult to defend, if only because of a powerful counterexample to our north: No such test is used in Canada. But the more one learns about the SAT in particular, the more one wonders what took Atkinson so long, and what is taking many of his counterparts even longer. Consider:
* The SAT is a measure of resources more than of reasoning. Year after year, the College Board’s own statistics depict a virtually linear correlation between SAT scores and CONTINUE READING: Two Cheers for an End to the SAT (**) - Alfie Kohn

U.S. Department of Education Awards First Round of 2020 Grants in Federal Charter Schools Program | janresseger

U.S. Department of Education Awards First Round of 2020 Grants in Federal Charter Schools Program | janresseger

U.S. Department of Education Awards First Round of 2020 Grants in Federal Charter Schools Program


Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Education announced $65 million in new grants as this year’s federal Charter Schools Program (CSP) competition gets underway. CSP awards are for one of several grant programs; grants awarded this week are for “Charter Management Organizations for the Replication and Expansion of High Quality Charter Schools.”  Applications by states, for example, are being accepted until May 15 for the larger CSP State Entities Competition.
While the Department’s announcement declares that $65 million is being awarded to 13 Charter Management Organizations headquartered in Texas, California, Georgia, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Illinois, Florida, and Connecticut, Chalkbeat‘s Matt Barnum reports that these awards will eventually add up to more than $200 million over the five year life of the grants.
The $65 million figure, Barnum reports, includes only the part of each five-year grant that has already been appropriated by Congress, but the amount is expected by the Department to grow as Congress formally appropriates the money over the five year term of the grants.  For example, while the Department’s announcement declares that the largest grant recipient, IDEA charter schools has been granted $8.1 million, Barnum reports instead that IDEA charters will receive $72 million over five years assuming that Congress continues to appropriate the funds.
After questions arose about the disparity between the Department’s numbers and Barnum’s report, Barnum answered on twitter: “Full details on the grants (Numbers seem different CONTINUE READING: U.S. Department of Education Awards First Round of 2020 Grants in Federal Charter Schools Program | janresseger

CURMUDGUCATION: Why Teach Literature Stuff #7 Everything Is Reading

CURMUDGUCATION: Why Teach Literature Stuff #7 Everything Is Reading

Why Teach Literature Stuff #7 Everything Is Reading


When I was teaching, and I had extra time on my hands, I would reflect on the work--the whys and hows and whats. So in solidarity with my former colleagues, I'm going to write a series about every English teacher's favorite thing-- teaching literature, and why we do it. There will be some number of posts (I don't have a plan here).

Also, it would be nice to write and read about something positive, and I don't know anything much more positive than what teachers do and why they do it.

Well, actually, everything is history. But history is reading, so there you are.


Being able to read, then interpret and understand and make sense from what you've read is the most universally useful skill that exists. Today more than ever, as we have collapsed back to the text-based medium we call the internet. Even reading an image or a video is reading. And writing, which is the only means available (okay, maybe not the only) for reaching out beyond the physical bonds of your own body and somehow connecting with other humans-- writing is also reading.

You interact with other humans, socially or at work, and you have to read them, parse their words, draw conclusions about their character and intent. Reading.

You have to do the same thing with nothing but the written word to go on. You're on social media or email or even, God bless you, opening an envelope and lifting out a piece of paper with marks on it, CONTINUE READING: 
CURMUDGUCATION: Why Teach Literature Stuff #7 Everything Is Reading

CURMUDGUCATION: Why Teach Literature Stuff: #6 Not For These Reasons - http://curmudgucation.blogspot.com/2020/04/why-teach-literature-stuff-6-not-for.html


States Need to Plan Now to Forego Standardized Testing in 2020-21 | deutsch29

States Need to Plan Now to Forego Standardized Testing in 2020-21 | deutsch29

States Need to Plan Now to Forego Standardized Testing in 2020-21


As states grapple with the reality of insufficient COVID-19 testing, including critical testing of the asymptomatic who might be carriers as well as those who have already had the virus and unknowingly developed COVID-19 antibodies; and as states face the truth that a vaccine is likely at best a year away, and as states wrestle with the idea that the virus may well recycle in the fall, leaders in those same states need to decide now to scrap standardized testing in their schools for the 2020-21 school year.
Students nationwide are missing in-person classroom instruction this spring due to COVID-19, and it is realistic to expect that the virus may well impact the opening of schools for the 2020-21 school year. Even as governors, school boards and other officials contend with the complexities of shuttered school buildings in the spring of 2020, a cloud looms concerning how, exactly, to enact social distancing and other protections at school in the fall of 2020.
It is entirely possible in 2020-21 that students might have to attend school in shifts, or experience some hybrid of in-person and distant instruction, or that schools, districts, or entire states might have to shelter in place at some point during the 2020-21 school year due to coronavirus resurgence.
Standardized testing eats up a lot of time, energy, and money. For many schools, CONTINUE READING: States Need to Plan Now to Forego Standardized Testing in 2020-21 | deutsch29

Remote Teaching ≠ Real School | JD2718

Remote Teaching ≠ Real School | JD2718

Remote Teaching ≠ Real School




It’s not. Not close. But I’ll save the details for another day.
Big picture: we are working. We are working hard. Many of us are working as hard as we’ve ever worked. Many feel exhausted the way we haven’t since we were first-year teachers.
While we are trying, the City and the Department of Education are making our lives hard (and some administrations – not mine – are also standing in our way). They have stolen our planning time, while asking us to plan completely new lessons and even curricula. They have allowed misguided principals to over-schedule days for those unfortunate teachers, pushing them further behind on their work. They let us learn to do live lessons on Zoom, and then surprised us by banning that tool. They took Spring Break, then Passover and Good Friday. They send some of us to useless daily meetings. Instead of consistently supporting us, the Department has wasted our time; sucked our energy.
We are doing our best to engage our students. I’m fortunate. Most of my students want to be engaged. It makes my job easer than most. And it’s not easy. It’s hard. It’s real hard. And it’s just as hard, probably harder, for teachers across the city. Easily the worst problem? Kids without internet access. And don’t get me started on meeting students’ individual needs (from their IEPs).
Remote teaching? A pale imitation of teaching. We are not face to face, answering questions, explaining concepts, drawing students out. We are not making eye contact. We can’t encourage the same way. We CONTINUE READING: Remote Teaching ≠ Real School | JD2718

Half Of U.S. Public School Students Are Home For The School Year | 89.3 KPCC

Half Of U.S. Public School Students Are Home For The School Year | 89.3 KPCC

Half Of U.S. Public School Students Are Home For The School Year



As of Thursday afternoon, 26 states, representing about half of the nation's public school students, have recommended or ordered their schools to remain closed for the rest of the academic year, according to a tally by Education Week. The closures affect about 25 million of the nation's 50.8 million public school students. Louisiana joined the list Wednesday, when Gov. John Bel Edwards announced he would extend the closure of his state's schools.
When states began closing schools in mid-March, state leaders suggested the closures would be short-lived — perhaps just two to three weeks. But the surge in coronavirus infections has forced states to extend the closure of both schools and businesses. In fact, many of the states that have not yet closed schools for the rest of the academic year may yet do so. Maryland's schools, for example, are technically scheduled to reopen after April 24, but that seems unlikely.
While nearly all of the nation's K-12 schools are currently closed, a recent review in The Lancet of research on school closures questions the extent of their effectiveness. "Recent modelling studies of COVID-19 predict that school closures alone would prevent only 2-4% of deaths, much less than other social distancing interventions," the authors wrote. But note the authors' use of the word "alone": In the U.S., school closures have not been implemented on their own and have played a key role in keeping adults at home. Though, in keeping schools closed, state leaders are making it increasingly difficult for the Trump administration to make good on its commitment to reopen the U.S. economy as soon as possible. As long as tens of millions of children are stuck at home, their parents will be too.
School closures aren't just hard on the economy; they're also hard on kids. The Lancet review cites "loss of education, harms to child welfare particularly among the most vulnerable pupils, and nutritional problems especially to children for whom free school meals are an important source of nutrition." In the days after schools initially closed, districts raced to build new ways of distributing food to kids, including CONTINUE READING: Half Of U.S. Public School Students Are Home For The School Year | 89.3 KPCC

Thurmond Announces Digital Divide Task Force - Year 2020 (CA Dept of Education)

Thurmond Announces Digital Divide Task Force - Year 2020 (CA Dept of Education)

State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Announces Task Force to Close Digital Divide


SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond announced today the creation of a new task force to close the digital divide for California students who lack access to resources such as internet connectivity and devices. The Closing the Digital Divide Task Force will be co-chaired by California State Senator Connie Leyva.
“This task force signals a new era, that California is now working with focus and urgency to close the digital divide in the most concrete way we have ever seen,” said Thurmond. “COVID-19 is a public health crisis in California and all around the world, but it’s also revealed other crises like the technology gap that has persisted for too long, leading to opportunity and achievement gaps for California’s students.”
“As the Chair of the Senate Education Committee, I strongly believe that ensuring equity for California students is critically important,” said Senator Connie M. Leyva (D-Chino). “One vital step to ensuring equity is by closing the digital divide, which has become that much more evident and urgent as distance learning is now the new reality for millions of school children during the current COVID-19 crisis. I look forward to co-chairing this important task force as we all continue to work together to meet the needs of students in California.”
The Closing the Digital Divide Task Force will help facilitate donations, create more publicity, and cast a bigger spotlight on those who can help. It also plans to hold a public hearing where internet service providers may be called upon to testify on their efforts to improve internet access during the pandemic.
The California Department of Education (CDE) has in recent weeks assessed the technology needs for all California students and is working with partners to secure devices and Wi-Fi hotspots to close the technology gap. This effort comes following a strong recommendation last month from State Superintendent Thurmond for all schools to focus on distance learning models due to the COVID-19 health crisis.
The CDE also announced last week that it partnered with the Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation (CDE Foundation), the private non-profit partner of the CDE since 2011, to create the California Bridging the Digital Divide Fund. The fund is a joint effort of the Governor’s Office, State Board of Education, CDE, and CDE Foundation, and is a centralized resource for state leadership to provide essential device, connectivity, and related digital learning supports for pre-K-12 students, teachers, and their families.
The fund is focused particularly on building more equitable teaching and learning environments, which are currently in even greater jeopardy due to the uneven impacts of COVID-19 on students, families, and educators. This includes special attention to special education, English learner, low-income, and rural populations, for which additional virtual educator professional learning webinars are now in development.
The California Bridging the Digital Divide Fund accepts individual contributions at bit.ly/CADigitalDivide. Corporate and institutional donors may contact Mary Nicely at mnicely@cde.ca.gov.
# # # #
Tony Thurmond — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5602, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100
Thurmond Announces Digital Divide Task Force - Year 2020 (CA Dept of Education)

YONG ZHAO: Reimagine the “Grammar” of Schooling Part 2 of Tofu is not Cheese: Reimagine Education without Schools During Covid19

Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » Reimagine the “Grammar” of Schooling Part 2 of Tofu is not Cheese: Reimagine Education without Schools During Covid19

Reimagine the “Grammar” of Schooling Part 2 of Tofu is not Cheese: Reimagine Education without Schools During Covid19




Introduction from part 1: Tofu is not cheese so we should not expect it to smell or taste like cheese nor should we need to pretend it is or make it taste and smell like cheese. The message I was trying to convey is that we should accept the fact that schools are closed and we don’t need to pretend we can make online education the same as face-to-face schools. Instead, we should make the best out of the new situation. In my last blog post, I expanded the idea: Online education cannot replace all functions schools play in our society but it can do a lot more than being a lesser version of face-to-face schooling. 

Speak Education: Reimagine the “Grammar” of Schooling


The COVID-19 pandemic has indeed stimulated much talk about reimagining education. But from what I have seen and heard, the imagination has not escaped from the spell of the “grammar” of schooling: “the regular structures and rules that organize the work of instruction” (Tyack & Tobin, 1994, p. 454). Over a quarter of a century ago, education historians David Tyack and William Tobin made the very insightful observation that schools have a set of grammatical rules and structures just like natural languages and:
Neither the grammar of schooling nor the grammar of speech needs to be consciously understood to operate smoothly. Indeed, much of the grammar of schooling has become so well established that it is typically taken for granted as just the way schools are. It is the departure from customary practice in schooling or speaking that attracts attention (p. 454).
The grammar of schooling, such as “standardized organizational practices in dividing time and space, classifying students and allocating them to classrooms, and splintering knowledge into “subjects,” is so powerful that it has persisted despite many repeated challenges by very courageous, intelligent, and CONTINUE READING: Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » Reimagine the “Grammar” of Schooling Part 2 of Tofu is not Cheese: Reimagine Education without Schools During Covid19

Diane Ravitch in Conversation with Mercedes Schneider - Network For Public Education

Diane Ravitch in Conversation with Mercedes Schneider - Network For Public Education

A Conversation Between Diane Ravitch and Mercedes Schneider


Start: Wednesday, April 22, 2020  7:30 PM  Eastern Time (US & Canada) (GMT-05:00)

End: Wednesday, April 22, 2020  9:00 PM  Eastern Time (US & Canada) (GMT-05:00)

Diane_and_mercedes.001
The Network for Public Education invites you to join us for a video conference with NPE President Diane Ravitch. Diane's guest this week will be teacher, blogger and author Mercedes Schneider. Listen to Diane and Mercedes talk about Mercedes' new book, A Practical Guide to Digital Research: Getting the Facts and Rejecting the Lies.

To Succeed in Teaching, Think Like a ….. | The Merrow Report

To Succeed in Teaching, Think Like a ….. | The Merrow Report

To Succeed in Teaching, Think Like a …..


Because the pandemic has exposed the fundamental inequities in our education system, there’s lots of ‘Big Picture’ thinking going on about American public education.  For example, Paul Reville, the former Massachusetts Secretary of Education who now teaches at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, hopes that this pandemic will be education’s “Sputnik moment.” 
I hope that he and others who are looking ahead are right and that we will fundamentally overhaul our approach. Because I have written about this in Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education, I want to focus here on succeeding RIGHT NOW.  Not next year when schools have reopened, but tomorrow and next week, when teachers and parents are struggling to achieve ‘home learning.’
Four pathways to success: 
  1. Think like a librarian
  2. Think like a swimming instructor
  3. Think like a highway engineer
  4. Think like a gardener
Librarians do not have a captive audience. After all, no one is required to attend the library.  To survive and prosper, librarians have had to identify their audiences and find ways to appeal to them, to draw them into their buildings or electronic CONTINUE READING: To Succeed in Teaching, Think Like a ….. | The Merrow Report


Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education: Merrow, John: 9781620972410: Amazon.com: Books - https://www.amazon.com/Addicted-Reform-12-Step-Program-Education/dp/1620972417

SPECIAL CORONAVIRUS UPDATE Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007

Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007



SPECIAL CORONAVIRUS UPDATE Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... The latest news and resources in education since 2007








Statistic Of The Day: Not That Any Of Us Haven’t Learned This Fact, But Planning For Online Lessons Takes Longer

This was an interesting research finding in Ed Week’s article, Exhausted and Grieving: Teaching During the Coronavirus Crisis . I was a little surprised, though, by the idea that it takes longer to plan asynchronous lessons. It takes far more time and energy for me to plan my live lessons than my non-live ones. I feel I need to maximize every second for engagement. After all, it’s very easy for s
New Collection Of Studies About What Works In Long-Distance Education

Pexels / Pixabay Thanks to a new article in Ed Week (see National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance ), I just learned about a new collection of research studies on what works in distance learning. The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance put it together this week. The site is simply called Studies of Distance Learning . I’m adding it to THE BEST S
“I Can’t See A School District That Won’t Be Looking At Budget Cuts…”

We all know it’s coming (and I talked a bit about it in Five Great Ideas For Supporting Students Next School Year – Too Bad Only One Of Them Is Going To Happen . Ed Week’s new article, Draconian Cuts to Schools Could Come As Soon As This Summer , though, puts it in pretty stark terms: Cuts are coming, and they’re going to be big…

YESTERDAY

“Ways to Handle Student Absences in Remote Teaching & When We’re Back in School”

Ways to Handle Student Absences in Remote Teaching & When We’re Back in School is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Four educators share advice on dealing with student absences. These include trying to find out the real reasons behind the lack of attendance and building positive teacher/student relationships. Here are some excerpts: I’m adding it to The Best Resources On St
Around The Web In ESL/EFL/ELL

BiljaST / Pixabay Six years ago I began this regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention. You might also be interested in THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART ONE and THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART TWO. A
Video: “Pandemic Comparison: Probability and Number of Deaths”

leo2014 / Pixabay I’m adding this video to A BEGINNING LIST OF THE BEST RESOURCES FOR LEARNING ABOUT THE CORONAVIRUS :
April 25th Is World Malaria Day – Here Are Teaching & Learning Resources

41330 / Pixabay April 25th is World Malaria Day. You might be interested in The Best Resources For Learning About World Malaria Day ,
Five Great Ideas For Supporting Students Next School Year – Too Bad Only One Of Them Is Going To Happen

Wokandapix / Pixabay Students will go back to school eventually. Here are 5 concrete ideas for helping them catch up, readjust, by Matt Barnum and Kalyn Belsha is a typically well-written Chalkbeat piece. It highlights five great ideas, well-backed with research: Extend the school day or year Provide extra tutoring, particularly for students who are most behind ‘Loop’ elementary school teachers w
This Week’s Resources To Support Teachers Coping With School Closures

Wokandapix / Pixabay I have a number of regular weekly features (see HERE IS A LIST (WITH LINKS) OF ALL MY REGULAR WEEKLY FEATURES ). It’s time for a new addition to that list, and this post introduces a weekly compilation of new and good resources to support those of us dealing with school closures. Some will be added to The Best Advice On Teaching K-12 Online (If We Have To Because Of The Coron


What Teachers Are Facing Right Now, & It Ain’t Pretty – Check Out How Many Are Feeling

I sent out the above tweet yesterday afternoon. Lots of teachers are not doing well.Check out some of the scores of replies: Oh my gosh. It’s endless. There is no escape. — Elisabeth Johnson (@ElisJohnsonEDU) April 15, 2020 We are barely making it. Husband is a principal and our 2 and 5 year olds DO 


Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day... | The latest news and resources in education since 2007