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Wednesday, October 23, 2013

UPDATE: Why community schools are a no-brainer

Why community schools are a no-brainer:




Why community schools are a no-brainer


(http://www.freepik.com/)
(www.freepik.com/)
This seems so obvious that it shouldn’t have to be said, but with standardized testing being the focus of school reform, here goes anyway: Children can’t become high achievers in school if they arrive in class hungry, sick, exhausted, traumatized. That’s why community schools  should be a bigger part of the school reform movement than they are.
Community schools focus not only on academics but also, through partnerships with outside organizations, child and youth development, family support, health and social services, and community development.  By aligning with non-profits, businesses, and public agencies, community schools can streamline services to their students while avoiding costly redundancies and gaps in delivery.
This piece is about the value of community schools, written by Brock Cohen, who after teaching in the Los Angeles Unified School District for 12 years, is pursuing a doctorate at the University of Southern California while working at the Los Angeles Education Partnership nonprofit as a small schools coach. As such, he now works with the Los Angeles Unified School District’s teacher collectives to ensure that all of their students have access to engaging, high-quality curricula and instruction.

By Brock Cohen
No family exists in a vacuum, many parents need support to become the best parents they can be, and sadly, not every child has a parent as a champion. –

Harvard, Amherst feud over Emily Dickinson
The longstanding feud between Harvard University and Amherst College over who has the best claim to maintaining Emily Dickinson’s legacy has a new chapter: Tensions is bubbling over what Amherst believes is Harvard’s big-footing on a project involving the digital publication of some of her works. Harvard’s student newspaper, the Crimson, wrote: Wednesday’s launch of the Emily […]    

Teacher to reformers: ‘Invite us to the table’
It is no secret that many teachers today are demoralized about the direction of modern school reform; in fact, a major poll taken earlier this year showed that their level of job  satisfaction has dropped 23 percentage points since 2008 and is at its lowest in 25 years. This e-mail, which I received from New […]    

It’s Mole Day. What’s that?
It’s Mole Day. What’s that? Mole Dole is celebrated every Oct. 23 from 6:02 a.m. to 6:02 p.m. in commemoration of  Avogadro’s Number, according to the National Mole Day Foundation Inc. Web site (yes there is one). What’s Avogadro’s Number? It is 6.02 x 1023 , a basic measuring unit in chemistry discovered by the 18th century […]