While gaps in technology access were highlighted during the pandemic, many school and district leaders are trying to make strides with an even older issue: educational equity for children of all races and economic backgrounds. In the edWebinar, “Leading for Equity: Pursuing an Equity Agenda,” hosted by AASA, The Superintendents Association and AASA’s Leadership Network, Dr. Frank Barnes, Chief Equity and Accountability Officer, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS), and Kimberly Vaught, Principal, Allenbrook Elementary School, discussed their approach to building equity.
While most educators and students are returning to the familiar classrooms left abruptly in March, teaching this upcoming year will be anything but business as usual. According to Aimee Dearmon, Speech and Language Pathologist (SLP) and Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), in a recent edWebinar sponsored by STAR Autism Support, the disruption of routines, schedules, classroom layouts, and necessary social distancing protocols will be very difficult for our most vulnerable students with autism and other developmental disabilities.
Providing science and math content online can be relatively straightforward, but engaging students in true distance learning requires more than just transmittal of information. Secondary students in particular need to be able to see and ask questions during laboratory experiments, or receive feedback when developing their own solutions to math problems. During a recent edWebinar, two experienced teachers explained how they made the transition from teaching in a classroom to remote instruction during the spring, and how they are prepared to teach online or in hybrid settings during the new school year.
Achieving educational equity doesn’t just happen when schools change their expectations and goals in the classroom. Support and understanding from all stakeholders, including families, local businesses, elected officials, etc., is essential to ensuring everyone in the community is working towards the same goal. During the edWebinar, “Leading for Equity: From Research to Practice – Accelerating Outcomes for Scholars of Color, Part II,” hosted by AASA, The Superintendents Association and AASA’s Leadership Network, the presenters continued their exploration of strategies discussed in Part I and how leaders in the Selma City Public Schools are mobilizing their community in pursuit of educational equity.
Achieving educational equity is a moral and fiscal imperative, according to Dr. Bren Elliott, Chief School Improvement and Supports Officer for District of Columbia Public Schools. Moral because all students deserve access to the same high-quality education and opportunities, and fiscal because research shows the negative economic impact when students are left behind. In the edWebinar, “Leading for Equity: From Research to Practice – Accelerating Outcomes for Scholars of Color, Part I,” hosted by AASA, The Superintendents Association and AASA’s Leadership Network, the leaders from Selma City Public Schools in Alabama shared the first part of their plan and how it ties into Dr. Elliott’s research on successful strategies for achieving educational equity.
edWeb.net is excited to announce the release of selected audio recordings of professional learning presentations on edWeb podcast channels. Many informative and insightful conversations with education leaders and experts work well as podcasts and will help edWeb reach a wider audience of educators and the general public interested in leading issues in education.
As we head rapidly towards back-to-school time, schools and districts are facing rapidly changing circumstances as a result of the coronavirus. MCH Strategic Data has released a map to help everyone involved in education to keep up with the latest information and data. View the map here. Here is more information on this new resource.
In the midst of a deadly pandemic and a Presidential election, both of which are generating conflicting claims that may or may not be based on real data, teaching students to analyze the sources and presentation of online information has never been more important or timely.
Regardless of one’s political views, there seems to be consensus on one political reality: America is dangerously polarized. According to Michelle Luhtala, Library Department Chair at New Canaan High School in Connecticut, in an edWebinar sponsored by Mackin Educational Resources, “The future of democracy presents a case for the critical need for school librarians in every school.” They are valuable for students to ensure equitable access to quality inquiry instructional experiences for all learners, not just for the future of education but also for the future of democracy.
In-person, online, or a hybrid classroom for the 2020-21 school year, there’s no one right way to teach science. But for all methods, safety should be the first priority along with helping students engage in the scientific process and relate the lessons to the real world. In the edLeader Panel, “Teaching Science and STEM in a COVID World Fully and Safely—Whatever the Learning Approach,” Dr. Mike Marvel, Chief Scientist at Flinn Scientific, and James Palcik, Director of Education, Safety, and Compliance at Flinn Scientific, helped teachers prepare for the fall by answering the key questions they’ve received about science in a COVID world.