Social-emotional learning (SEL) is all the rage in schools around the country, as it should be. It shapes children’s, youth’s, and adults’ knowledge, skills, and attitudes crucial to human development and education. For SEL programs to succeed, their implementers should consider several critical elements that make for high-quality initiatives.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted school districts, students, staff, and families in unprecedented ways. In response to the learning loss, reduced instruction time, and low student engagement, the federal and state governmental agencies allocated ESSER I, II, and III funds to districts to utilize over the next two to three years.
Every year, CoSN awards a school district with the Community Leadership Award for Digital Equity to encourage and recognize those districts that are working to eliminate inequities and narrow the digital access gap. In a recent edWebinar, sponsored by ClassLink and co-hosted by CoSN and AASA, representatives from Desert Sands Unified School District, CA (the 2021 winner) and Santa Fe Public Schools, NM (the 2020 winner) presented their keys to success.
edWeb team member Doug Lerner lives in Japan and volunteered for the Tokyo Olympics. It was great to follow along with him for some of the behind-the-scenes happenings. We hope you enjoy reading his account of the experience.
After the sudden switch to remote and hybrid learning models at the start of the pandemic, the use of online tools and resources may seem like less of a concern now, but ensuring that students’ data remains protected is still a priority, especially as it is a federal requirement.
Congress is entering a period of intense activity before it departs for its August summer recess, which it terms a “District Work Period.” Before August, the House Appropriations Committee intends to mark up all of its FY22 spending bills and Congress will attempt to reach an agreement on and perhaps even pass a trillion-dollar infrastructure package. Waiting in the wings is a second multi-trillion-dollar budget reconciliation package that could contain major education initiatives including funding for school infrastructure, free community college, and teacher professional development.
The Tonasket School District (WA) experienced two student suicides in the last three months, surprising everyone. Steve McCullough, the district superintendent, described the students as active in high school and great athletes with bright futures. Nobody thought they had any problems.
According to a CoSN report, more than half of school districts and about one-third of public schools in the United States are in rural areas. Rural communities have unique challenges, ranging from poverty and vast travel distances to a lack of affordable internet access.
When something dramatic happens, like releasing student achievement scores, there’s often an outcry over educational inequities, and there are statements and calls to action to do better. Most of the time, though, the initial energy dissipates, and nothing changes. During an edWebinar hosted by AASA, The School Superintendents Association and AASA’s Leadership Network, John Krownapple and Floyd Cobb, Ph.D., authors of Belonging Through a Culture of Dignity: The Keys to Successful Equity Implementation, discussed why belonging and dignity are just as important as access and opportunity when it comes to educational equity.
If your students struggle with math—or don’t like it very much—singing (and some dancing) might cure their distress. Music is a bonafide learning medium that helps students grasp and remember information and, it turns out, successfully imparts mathematical thinking.