Washington Post — Students in the nation’s only federally funded school voucher initiative performed worse on standardized tests within a year after entering D.C. private schools than peers who did not participate, according to a new federal analysis that comes as President Trump is seeking to pour billions of dollars into expanding the private school scholarships nationwide.
“D.C. students who used vouchers had significantly lower math scores a year after joining the program, on average, than students who applied for a voucher through a citywide lottery but did not receive one. For voucher students in kindergarten through fifth grade, reading scores were also significantly lower. For older voucher students, there was no significant difference in reading scores.
“For voucher recipients coming from a low-performing public school — the population that the voucher program primarily aims to reach — attending a private school had no effect on achievement. But for voucher recipients coming from higher-performing public schools, the negative effect was particularly large.”
The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) released a policy brief examining how states are utilizing social and emotional learning in ESSA plans. The paper suggests five ways for states to successfully incorporate social and emotional approaches:
Articulate a well-rounded vision of student success
Provide professional development to improve educator SEL capacity
Identify evidence-based SEL interventions as a school improvement strategy
Leverage Title IV grants to implement SEL strategies
Make data related to SEL transparent to the public
By Deb Harding
You can’t read the news without stumbling onto an article related to the STEM skills gap.
In many schools around the country, including my own in Colorado, educators and students are opting into problem-based learning and STEM programs to help fill that gap. Yet early benchmarks indicate this approach is not yet producing the science, technology, engineering, and math workers we need.
And then there is the divide between low-income and affluent school districts. Where I teach, many of my students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch and don’t have access to STEM professionals within their daily lives. They have hard-working role models, but not necessarily people who are engaged in the computer science field, the subject I teach…
Read the full article here: May require an Education Week subscription.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has announced the availability of the 2017-2018 Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG). The RSIG grant is a competitive grant. Request for Applications will be announced through this PENN*LINK and posted on the Department Refugee Program website http://www.education.pa.gov/K-12/Refugee%20Education/Pages/default.aspx#tab-1. The Invitation to Apply (ITA) refugee application for the 2017-18 RSIG grant should be created and submitted via U.S. Mail or hand delivered.
The Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG) is a competitive federal grant. The primary goal of Pennsylvania’s Refugee Education Program is to assist recently arrived refugee students and their families in adjusting to their school and community in a culturally and linguistically comfortable assimilated manner through the funding of the Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG).Applicants must do the following:
Demonstrate creative and supportive activities to remove barriers for refugee students that will result in optimum progress in academic and social development.
Implement a holistic view of refugee students and their families with consideration of their past experiences/living conditions and current change of environment.
Focus services on new arrivals who are making initial adjustments and those who have been in the country for one year or less.
Strive for a culturally competent transition that is comfortable for all served refugee students and their families. Thus, this guiding transition will enable the refugees to move forward and adapt to a new and different cultural and linguistic environment.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) requires program funds to be used to:
Provide before/afterschool, summer, evening, and/or weekend programs;
Attend one state consultation and quarterly regional collaborative meetings; and
Serve school-age refugee students (5-18 years of age)and their parents who have lived in the United States for one year or less.
Refugee students who have been in the country less than three years at the beginning of the school year, and have academic and social adjustment needs are eligible for services funded by the RSIG. The U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement recognizes that in some states, the age limit for high school education is older than 18 and, as such, may allow those eligible refugee students who are full-time high school students to be eligible for services under this announcement.
Due Date
Applications must be received by 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 8, 2017. No extensions will be granted. Emailed and faxed applications will not be accepted.
Period of Availability: Jan. 2, 2018 – Sept. 30, 2018
Amount of Funding Available
Grant awards will not exceed $70,546. Applicants will apply for funding for the Jan. 2, 2018-Sept. 30, 2018 grant term.
Funding amounts may be lower than the stated possible maximum, and will be dependent on the following:
The range and extent of services to students and their families as described in the complete proposed application; and
The proposed number ofnewly arrived refugee students making major initial adjustments and those that continue to face persistent challenges in school.
Funding Authorization
Section 412 (c) (1) (A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. §1522 (c) (1) (A)), as amended, includes the use of funds to support local school systems that are impacted by significant numbers of newly arrived refugee children.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants must be an entity that operates in one of the seven counties in Pennsylvania where over 93 percent of refugees have resettled over the past three years: Allegheny, Dauphin, Erie, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lehigh, and Philadelphia. Applicants may be:
Local education agencies (LEA) including public school districts and intermediate units;
Submission Process
Paper application: One signed original application plus two copies must be received by PDE by
3:30 p.m. on Dec. 8, 2017:
Application package mailing address:
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Attn: Pamela M. Kolega, Refugee School Impact Grant Program Officer
333 Market Street, 5th Floor
Harrisburg, PA 17126-0333
Note: No extensions will be granted
Please contact Pamela M. Kolega at pkolega@pa.gov or at 717-265-8964 with any questions related to the Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG) program.
CHICAGO — For Immediate Release, Mon, 11/27/2017
Contact:
Rob Christopher
Marketing Coordinator
ALA Publishing
American Library Association
(312) 280-5052
CHICAGO — Despite the proliferation of online homework websites and tutoring services, public libraries still have an important role to play when it comes to supporting young people’s educational needs. Public libraries that take a proactive approach—by setting up organized homework centers—have the potential to become catalysts for better performance in school, improved self-esteem, and engaged learning. Whether readers are investigating the possibility of setting up a center from scratch or are eager to revamp an existing center, Cindy Mediavilla’s “Creating & Managing the Full-Service Homework Center,” published by ALA Editions, shows the way forward with:
discussion of the philosophy behind a public library homework center and its many benefits, with useful talking points for getting stakeholders on board;
examples of model programs from across the country;
guidance on assessing the community’s educational priorities and utilizing outcome-based planning and evaluation methods;
pragmatic advice on how to collaborate with schools and educators to coordinate goals;
thorough consideration of such key issues as carving out a space, setting hours, scheduling staff, and selecting and procuring educational resources;
handy tools for a successful homework center, including sample surveys, homework helper application forms and contracts, staff and volunteer job descriptions, and focus group questions;
advice on equipment and technology considerations; and
methodologies for evaluation and improvement.
Mediavilla authored “Creating the Full–Service Homework Center in Your Library,” (ALA, 2001), which has been called “the quintessential guide to the practicalities of setting up a formal homework help center to provide one–to–one homework assistance to student patrons” (Intner, “Homework Help from the Library,” ix). In the early 1990s she managed a homework center, called the Friendly Stop, for the Orange (CA) Public Library, and she has been studying after–school homework programs ever since. She has published several articles on the topic and has evaluated homework programs for the Long Beach and Los Angeles public libraries. She has made presentations on homework help programs at the conferences of several major library associations, and she has also conducted many workshops on the topic.
ALA Store purchases fund advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library professionals worldwide. ALA Editions and ALA Neal-Schuman publishes resources used worldwide by tens of thousands of library and information professionals to improve programs, build on best practices, develop leadership, and for personal professional development. ALA authors and developers are leaders in their fields, and their content is published in a growing range of print and electronic formats. Contact ALA Editions at (800) 545-2433 ext. 5052 or editionsmarketing@ala.org.
By JAMIE MARTINES of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
As darkness faded just after 7 a.m. recently, sleepy high school students across Allegheny and Westmoreland counties stood at bus stops or steered vehicles to school.
Others already were inside on the way to breakfast or study halls, while others were beginning their first academic classes of the day.
Districts in and around Pittsburgh, including some whose first bell rings at 7 a.m., are evaluating daily schedules as research and day-to-day experience make it increasingly clear that later start times could benefit students’ mental health and academic success.
“What we’re worried about is when you really start to look at the stress, it leads to things like depression, it leads to things like suicide, it leads to risk-taking behaviors,” said Robert Scherrer, superintendent in the North Allegheny School District. “And some of those are tied directly to sleep, in some cases, but they’re also mental health concerns.”
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and I’d like to take a moment to tell you how thankful I am for you and your work supporting schools and communities. I admire and appreciate your steadfast commitment to ensuring that the children of New York State receive a quality education . As parents, you make a real difference in your child’s learning — from reading with your child to helping your child with homework to spending time in your child’s classroom. It’s also National Family Week, a good time to recognize and support you and your families. I hope you will be able to spend time with your families this week and throughout the holiday season.
I’d like to share some updates from last week’s Board of Regents meeting, including NYSED’s partnership with the College Board and an announcement about the State Library’s summer reading program.
Last week, NYSED announced a partnership with the College Board to help students identify and prepare for a postsecondary program that best fits their needs. Through this partnership, NYSED will work with the College Board to expand student access to unique, personalized learning pathways, including free, Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy and Advanced Placement (AP) courses. The partnership builds upon the College Board’s ongoing work with school districts and BOCES across the state, including in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Yonkers, and New York City.
Black students in Louisiana are more than twice as likely as white students to be suspended, according to a study from Tulane University’s Education Research Alliance for New Orleans. The new study from the organization also concluded that for fights involving one white student and one black student, black students receive slightly longer suspensions than white ones.
Drawing attention to how students of color and low-income students experience higher rates of suspensions and expulsions than their peers nationwide, the organization released a report Monday (Nov. 20) analyzing Louisiana Education Department data on discipline among K-12 students in the state’s public schools from 2001 through 2014.
Although researchers say the data provides “new insights” into the origins of disparities, the study acknowledges it offers “an incomplete look” because researchers cannot observe whether behaviors that were tolerated for some groups of students were coded as infractions for other groups of students. Researchers usually cannot observe students’ true behaviors and can only analyze the records created by schools writing up students.
The study reviewed discipline infractions and corresponding punishments by race and free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility, which was deemed a common measure of family income. Researchers also reviewed the punishments issued after interracial fights for “a credible check for the existence of direct discrimination in cases where students behave similarly.”
“It’s extremely difficult to assess whether discriminatory school practices contribute to disparities in suspension rates,” co-author Jon Valant of the Brookings Institution stated…
“By looking at interracial fights and controlling for students’ other background characteristics, we tried to isolate cases in which it would be hard to attribute gaps to explanations other than discriminatory practices. We see small but statistically significant gaps in how black and white students are punished,” he added…
Contact:
Jennifer Habley
Manager, Web Communications
American Association of School Librarians
312-280-4383 jhabley@ala.org
PHOENIX – The American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) closed the curtain on a landmark National Conference & Exhibition Nov. 9-11 in Phoenix, Arizona, after introducing new standards school librarians will use for years to come.
Attended by more than 2,500 school librarians, administrators and exhibitors, the conference affirmed and strengthened the common beliefs of school librarians as they carry on their mission to make the school library the hub of a learning community that prepares learners for college, career and life.
Themed “Beyond the Horizon,” the event brought together school librarians, educators, authors and exhibitors at the only national conference dedicated solely to the needs of school librarians. Attendees participated in preconference workshops, author events, more than 100 concurrent sessions and access to an exhibition featuring companies relevant to school libraries and their users.
The major event was the launch of the “National School Library Standards for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries.” The Standards, the result of a research-based approach with feedback from more than 1,300 school librarians and stakeholders, proclaim the role of school librarians in modeling, promoting and fostering inquiry. It also points to the school library’s value in bridging digital and socioeconomic divides.
“The National Standards demonstrate a long-term commitment to our profession that provides guidance for school libraries, school librarians, and the communities and learners we serve,” said AASL President Steven Yates. “The standards editorial board, led by Marcia Mardis, and the implementation task force, led by Mary Keeling, deserve fist bumps and high-fives for their monumental efforts.”
Local school libraries opened their doors to conference attendees for tours. They included a stop at Casa Grande Union High School. This school had plans to eliminate the school library program, but students successfully advocated for the program to be kept open. The tour also stopped at Vista Grande High School library, a joint-use library with a brand new maker space and a gaming space.
Attendees took advantage of such networking events as IdeaLab, a best-practice showcase featuring tabletop video displays several topics, among them blended learning, flipped classrooms and STEM/STEAM. In addition, an Unconference offered an opportunity to examine the National School Library Standards in a structured World Café format.
Concurrent sessions focused on pertinent topics for combating fake news, going beyond makerspaces and meeting the needs of autism spectrum disorder students in the school library. Several concurrent sessions were dedicated to the new AASL Standards, broken down into related foundations: inquire and include, collaborate and curate, and explore and engage.
Jaime Casap. served as Opening Keynote speaker. Google Inc.’s chief education evangelist preached the power and potential of technology and Web as enabling and supporting tools in the pursuit of inquiry-driven project-based learning models.
Jason Reynolds, award-winning author of “Ghost,” a National Book Award-finalist and the recipient of the Coretta Scott King Honor, the Walter Dean Myers Award and the Kirkus Award, regaled those who attended the Saturday General Session, with his love of stories and his concern about reluctant young readers.
Special events included Authors in the afternoon, featuring Christian Robinson, author of such award-winning books as “Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker,” Jordan Sonnenblick, who wrote the acclaimed “Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie” and Sarah Dessen, author of “Once and for All,” who was awarded the 2017 Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults.
The conference celebration on Friday night was held on Corona Ranch, an authentic Phoenix treasure, with a mariachi band and rodeo entertainment,,
Reporters from Publishers Weekly, American Libraries and School Library Journal were onsite and provided conference coverage. AASL President Steven Yates published an opinion in the Arizona Republic on the dire need for school librarians in the state. Yates was also interviewed on the same topic by Phoenix’s KTAR-FM for a recurring news segment that aired Thursday and Friday.
For more information regarding the AASL National Conference & Exhibition, please visit national.aasl.org.
The American Association of School Librarians, www.aasl.org, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), promotes the improvement and extension of library program services in elementary and secondary schools as a means of strengthening the total education program. Its mission is to empower leaders to transform teaching and learning.
…on to our next question, which deals with ESSA funding. It comes from Sarah Boder, the director of policy & affiliate relations at the North American Association of Environmental Education.
Boder wants to know: “What’s the latest timeline for distribution of Title IVA funds to states? Are they able to receive funds as soon as their plans are approved? Do you have any sense of how many states will opt to administer those grants competitively, given the smaller appropriation?”
First off, what exactly is Title IV? And what does Boder mean by a “smaller appropriation”?
ESSA cut dozens of programs in the U.S. Department of Education and combined them into one giant block grant districts can use for everything from safety and health programs to arts education to Advanced Placement course fees. The program was supposed to get about $1.6 million annually, but Congress only provided $400 million for fiscal 2017. To help districts get more bang for their buck, lawmakers gave states the option to compete out the funds. They could also choose to dole them out by formula, with the goal of giving each district at least $10,000…
By Deb Harding
CHICAGO — For Immediate Release, Mon, 11/27/2017
