What’s that they say about a silver lining? It looks like COVID-19 has one in the education sphere. Despite myriad challenges schools faced during the pandemic, many will come out of it with richer approaches to teaching and learning.
In a diverse school district with more than 20 schools and 23,000 students, providing an equitable opportunity for every student to learn and grow is not an easy task. The plan and process used to generate positive results in the Northshore School District (WA) were discussed during a recent edWebinar, hosted by AASA, The School Superintendents Association and AASA’s Leadership Network.
According to Dr. Tammy Campbell, Superintendent of Federal Way Public Schools (WA), working towards equity requires using the head and the heart. School leaders need to have the skills and understanding to understand and change educational systems, she said, but they must also have a passion for their community and the equity mission.
COVID-19 was tough on schools, calling for swift shifts in teaching and learning practices to support virtual learning environments and a host of new pedagogical demands. The changes altered the educational landscape, inspiring educators to embrace new instructional methods and carry them over to their classrooms once they returned to normalcy.
Being a teacher during a pandemic may seem challenging enough without taking on potentially divisive political and social issues, but for three teachers who were recently named the Teacher of the Year in their states, working on equity issues with their students is a crucial part of the job and well worth the effort.
edWeb.net has just released its 2021 Professional Learning Survey at a time when supporting educators with current and effective professional learning has never been more important with the COVID-19 pandemic. Educators had to pivot instantly to remote learning and make unprecedented changes in the delivery of instruction and support for students and families.
The disruptions and changes during the past year have made a return to the industrial education model of the 19th and 20th centuries problematic for school districts committed to preparing diverse students for 21st century careers. Instead, a more innovative and agile approach is needed to help today’s wide range of students recover from the pandemic and achieve more equitable outcomes.
It’s been a rough year, especially for students. Virtual and hybrid learning, schools opening and closing, struggles with technology and access, sickness and restrictions. Who wouldn’t be anxious, scared and out of sorts with this level of disruption?
About one in five kids will exhibit some type of severe social-emotional behavioral symptoms that would qualify for some level of support. And yet, very early since the pandemic began, there has been over a 20% increase of kids experiencing depression or anxiety after one month of lockdown with a disproportionate impact on students from minoritized populations.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, blended learning is a style of education in which students learn via electronic and online media and traditional face-to-face teaching. As stated by Ann McMullan, Project Director for CoSN’s EmpowerED Superintendents Initiative, the world that we have been living in for over the last year or so looks very much like a combination of both.