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Better Together
After weeks of struggling with the
fallout of COVID-19 — working remotely, social distancing,
helping neighbors when we can — I’m quite sure no one needs to be
told that we’re living in “unprecedented times.” That seems clear
enough.
Our teachers are coping with a digital environment that most were not trained for, trying to maintain their focus on equity to be sure every child has a chance at a quality education, meanwhile managing houses and budgets and families and concerns about their health, as we all are. It’s more than anyone was prepared for.
CTE Centers: Answering the Call for Care Amid COVID-19
Fred Rogers said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” In this unprecedented time of crisis, many are rising to be helpers. All across the United States, healthcare workers are leaving their families and risking their lives to take care of all who are suffering with the coronavirus. Schools and career and technology centers are also coming together to donate much-needed resources and use their equipment to make face masks for those on the front line.
Distance Learning for Rural Schools During Extended School Closures
As we move further into the
COVID-19 crisis, rural schools across the U.S. are struggling
with how to continue students’ learning amid school closures. In
recent weeks, SREB instruction coaches have been collaborating
with educators in our region on how to deliver learning
virtually, and we’ve learned about the specific challenges rural
schools are facing.
Online Professional Development Support for Educators
As we enter our second and third
weeks of school closures and social distancing, I am amazed and
proud of our educators. I see school systems scrambling to feed
children. I see teachers preparing lessons, packets and online
resources. I see principals giving weekly messages, reading
bedtime stories online, leading virtual parades and calling every
teacher for weekly check-ins. I see heroes. But to be
quite honest, I saw these heroes before the advent of COVID-19.
Right now, our teachers need extra support.
Navigating the Road of E-learning
The last two weeks have certainly required flexibility, innovation and problem-solving for educators not just in SREB states but across the nation and the world. Those of us at SREB who support teachers and district- and school-based coaches have been flooded with emails, texts and phone calls asking for help. In an effort to support all of you from afar, we offer some tips and strategies for how you can navigate the road of e-learning.
Virtual Labs for STEM and CTE Teachers and Students
We know that this is a challenging time for teachers across the country. Many of you have been plunged into the world of virtual learning without a lot of time to prepare. Following sudden school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you’ve had to move quickly to shift your carefully planned lessons online so your students can continue learning at home. And those of you who are STEM and career and technical education teachers in particular face unique challenges as you work to adapt hands-on learning experiences to a virtual format.
A Path to College and Career
Stepping Stones for States
A thriving economy and a workforce prepared for it will increasingly demand that more adults earn postsecondary credentials. Ensuring that students successfully move from middle grades into high school, then into college or technical education programs, is critical if states hope to boost their adult educational attainment levels.
Thank Goodness for Mississippi
Star NAEP Showing Follows a Long Commitment
“Thank goodness for Mississippi.”
It used to be that this was something you heard from people who were grateful that Mississippi kept their own states from the dubious honor of last place in education rankings. Those folks may not have noticed that, since 2005, Mississippi has been making steady gains.
And now, after Mississippi offered a rare bright spot on the Nation’s Report Card earlier this month, we have a new reason to be thankful for Mississippi: We can learn from their success.
Real progress takes time.
How Can a Roundtable on Education Human Capital Help Your State?
Another school year has started, and nearly every state in the SREB region is facing major human capital challenges including teacher shortages. Schools now face shortages not only in STEM courses and special education but in most subject areas.
Effective Adult Education Programs: A Challenge for States
States face an uphill battle in meeting the needs of adult learners, especially at a time when technology is advancing rapidly. Adults can turn to adult education programs to improve their skills, but enrollments have fallen in recent years.
Using Data to Transform Teacher Preparation
The SREB Teacher Preparation Commission has called on state leaders to build data systems that will improve preparation programs. The commission identified three groups that would benefit from robust and accessible data:
- Individuals choosing where to enroll
- Preparation providers interested in improving their strategies
- Policymakers considering changes to state requirements
Adapting Education, Keeping Pace with Automation
Technology is advancing at unprecedented rates. Though there have been grand transformations in information technologies, including computers, cell phones, automated services and customer-facing machines, these changes will likely be dwarfed by others in the coming decades. Automated vehicles and artificial intelligence have the capacity to reshape not only our workforce but our social and political systems. Machine learning will create work tasks in the future that can only be imagined today.
Joan Lord Retires
Joan Lord has always put the and in “policy and practice.” In nearly twenty years at SREB, Lord has overseen policy research and analysis, worked with her share of policy commissions, and written innumerable policy briefs and recommendations, always with the second half of the pair — practice — firmly in mind. Policy is not, to her mind, an empty intellectual exercise but an action plan, a living document to improve the region’s education from top to bottom.
Making Sense of Changes to Teacher Preparation and Licensure
SREB state legislators introduced over 4,600 education bills in 2019 regular sessions. At least 850 of these bills will become law, with roughly one hundred this year relating to teachers and principals. Here’s how seven notable bills align with SREB’s Teacher Preparation Commission recommendations.
The Eisenhower Matrix: A Tool to Help School Leaders Focus Their Time
The Eisenhower Matrix can help busy leaders make the most of their limited time to get things done. During World War II the matrix helped General Dwight Eisenhower plan and carry out the most complex military operation in history, the D-Day invasion of Normandy. He used it as a tool to ensure that he spent his time on the right work.
Automation: Changing Jobs For Generations
Workforce changes are coming quickly, across the nation and especially in the South. In fact, they’re already here. Education and training across the SREB region will need to respond just as quickly to avoid severe economic outcomes.
Spotlight on Clinical Experiences
How State Leaders Could Support High-Quality Clinical Practice
The SREB Teacher Preparation Commission called on state leaders to consider ways to improve the quality of teacher candidates’ classroom experiences. After consulting the research, Commission members learned that the length of a clinical experience is less important than ensuring that candidates are supported by effective mentors and supervised by university faculty who have experience in the classroom.
Giving Elementary Teachers the Tools to Teach Math Well
Broad preparation can leave math-specific knowledge lacking
It’s no secret that aspiring
teachers with strong math backgrounds tend to be drawn toward the
secondary grades, where they can just teach math. In fact,
results of the 2018 National Survey of Science and Math
Education showed that just 3 percent of elementary teachers
surveyed held a degree in mathematics or math education, compared
with 45 percent of middle grades math teachers and 79 percent of
high school math teachers.
Educator Effectiveness is About Learning and Growth Opportunities
And that should never end
Lessons learned from three years of work in 8 states
Providing real-time feedback and
growth opportunities to teachers — the real purpose of educator
effectiveness systems — means that school leaders have to
understand and value the skills to be instructional leaders
and be properly trained on those skills. In any career
path, professionals need to know how they’re doing and need help
honing their craft. Teaching is no different; teachers need a
coach, they need feedback.
Why Do We Say “I’m Bad at Math”?
How math anxiety affects performance, and what we can do about it
We’ve all likely heard someone say, “I’m bad at math,” or even “I hate math.” In the United States, math is too often considered a subject that either comes naturally or doesn’t — there are “math people,” and everyone else can expect to struggle with it. If you stop and think, though, this makes as much sense as saying we’re all naturally good (or bad) at sports, or music, or writing. It’s true that becoming skilled in any of these areas may come more easily to some people than others, but we generally understand that no one becomes expert at baseball without learning the game and spending a lot of time practicing.