الجمعة، 27 أكتوبر 2017
الخميس، 19 أكتوبر 2017
17 Critical Issues Facing Education in 2017
By Peter DeWitt
on January 10, 2017
Education wasn't a really hot topic for the Presidential campaign. It mostly took the backseat to Tweets, name calling, more Tweets, fake news, some more Tweets, and friends unfriending each other on Facebook because of how polarizing the campaign was then, and how the election still is now.
However, education has been a battleground of rhetoric over the years, and 2017 will certainly bring in some changes given, not only the campaign and ultimate election decision, but because of so many issues bubbling up to the top that need our attention. Some of the items may surprise you, while others seem like common sense. The 17 issues that I think will be critical this year are:
1. Betsy Devos - The New billionaire U.S. Secretary of Education pick is clearly coming in with a reputation if she gets approved. According to this USA News article Devos is the champion for school choice, and is well known for her charter school advocacy in Michigan. Educators, parents, politicians and pundits are all waiting to see what she will do when she takes over the position. Will it be that different from Arne Duncan and John King, who were both advocates for charters and school choice? According to Politico, incoming Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer has named Devos one of the 8 cabinet picks he will fight.
2. School choice - Clearly this has been one of the major priorities of Devos, so those affected by education will soon see what she plans to do. In the same USA News article from above, Devos was quoted as saying,
"I'm most focused on educational choice. But, thinking more broadly, what we are trying to do is tear down the mindset that assigns students to a school based solely on the ZIP Code of their family's home. We advocate instead for as much freedom as possible."
3. U.S. Department of Education - During the campaign there was a great deal of talk about abolishing the US Department of Education, but heh, there is always a lot of talk of abolishing everything during campaigns. With Devos in power, the US department of Education will certainly take on a role. Will their role be about undoing everything that happened over the last 8 years?
4. The Common Core - President-elect Trump has been vocal about his intentions of eradicating the Common Core. What will the Common Core look like in 2017? Will it be recycled under a new name? According to this NPR article there is little to nothing that the President-Elect can do to the CCSS. However, considering it was such a political mess over the last few years, and the President-elect was vocal about it, there certainly will be some changes. Will they merely just be political rhetoric changes?
5. ESSA Reauthorization - This one is a bit more complicated. For more information click on this link to my colleague Alyson Klein's Politics K-12 blog for an excellent run down of 5 things educators need to know when it comes to ESSA.
6. Media Literacy - Yes, media literacy...still. However, it's just as important for adults as it is for students. If you suffered through your friend's post for one candidate and against another, and now have to listen to the media cover the President-elect's Tweets about everything from nuclear weapons to Saturday Night Live or Meryl Streep (not to mention fake news!), media literacy is bound to take on a different role in education. Media literacy is more important now than ever. Check out the Partnership for 21st Century Learning's 4 C's for help on this one.
7. Multi-Cultural Education - Can't build a wall around this one anymore. The U.S. is made up of a very diverse population, and in order to move on we have to come to a better understanding and respect for one another. Too many negative, ignorant, racist, anti-religious, homophobic conversations are taking place, and they need to be replaced with a better understanding of the diverse country we live in, which will hopefully help our students get a better understanding of the world around them. That world around us is keeping a keen eye on everything that is happening in the US right now.
8. Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) - The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that,
"One in four people in the world will be affected by mental or neurological disorders at some point in their lives. Around 450 million people currently suffer from such conditions, placing mental disorders among the leading causes of ill-health and disability worldwide."
There is a strong need for SEL. In a meta-analysis involving more than 200 studies and 270,000 students, Durlak et al (2011) found "those who participated in evidence-based SEL programs showed an 11 percentile-point gain in academic achievement compared to students who did not participate in SEL programs."
One of the best resources on SEL is the Collaborative for Social-Emotional Learning (CASEL). Every school should be focusing on CASEL's five competencies for SEL, which are Self-awareness, Self-management, Social awareness, Relationship skills and Responsible decision making.
9. Transgender Students - In 2010, I finished my doctoral work researching how well school administrators safeguard LGBTQ students. At the time, very few schools allowed me to do my research with them, and only a few that I did get into actually knew what transgender meant. Fast forward 7 years and schools are trying to work with students transitioning. For those of you thinking I'm pushing my agenda, I'm not. However, I have long felt that schools have to be prepared for the students coming to them regardless of their beliefs, and right now many are not, which means we're telling a population of students we don't care about them and they're not reaching their full potential.
10. Recess - Students need a brain break and over the years we have seen schools get rid of recess in order to increase class time. Many of those schools will get an understanding of how wrong they were when they did that. Our students, no matter how young or old they are, need time outside. We will see more and more schools let students play so they can get their childhood back.
11. Crisis Teams - Considering the information by the Global Health Organization, we will see an increased importance in crisis teams at school. Although these have a combination of individuals involved, and different levels of involvement based on the crisis, the most basic crisis teams involve school psychologists, social workers, nurses, teacher representatives and school principals. They meet weekly to discuss students who are at risk because of mental health issues.
12. Collective Efficacy - The research around self-efficacy (Bandura) has been around for many years but John Hattie, someone I work with as a Visible Learning trainer, says self-efficacy is,"The confidence or strength of belief that we have in ourselves that we can make our learning happen." Not all teachers, students and leaders have it, and collective efficacy is the way to help raise the self-efficacy of individuals. Through authentic collaboration and group thinking, collective efficacy can help solve the real problems that each individual school is facing.
13. Testing - Yes, testing is tied to ESSA, but it needs to have its own category as well because it remains a huge topic. The President-Elect has said many times that the U.S. is not competing at the same level as other countries when it comes to international comparisons (PISA). He actually said he wants to spend less on schools because of bad test scores (read here). What does that mean? Does it mean we will pull out of PISA? Does it mean we will see a change in how students are tested? Who knows! However, testing will play a part in educational conversations for 2017.
14. Authentic Engagement vs. Compliant Engagement - In order to get students to a level where they are assessment capable learners (Hattie) which has an effect size of 1.44 (well over the hinge point of .40 which equates to a year's worth of growth for a year's input) we need to involve students in more authentic learning experiences. Compliant learning will take a backseat to more authentic experiences where students have a voice in their own learning.
15. Pre-service Teacher Programs - We have millions of teachers who work hard and find innovative ways to meet the needs of diverse students, and then we have others who work from bell to bell and have lower expectations of some students. Teaching is much harder than many of us ever understood when we were in college become teachers. That understanding needs to change, and it's based on how we prepare teachers. Higher education and schools have to work harder on their partnerships because the status quo relationships that have been happening for decades are no longer good enough. We need stronger teacher candidates that can help meet the academic and social-emotional needs of our ever-changing student population, as well as deal with an educational cycle that needs to be based on a pedagogical cycle as opposed to the present political one.
16. Leadership Prep Programs - We need better leaders. There are thousands and thousands of hardworking school leaders who go above and beyond in their daily roles as building and district leaders. However, there are many, many more who have done their time in their schools as assistant principals and are now handed the principalship. The old boys network needs to be replaced with high quality leaders. Leadership programs need to be stronger, and leadership coaching needs to become part of the norm. So many leaders want it, but often don't have the opportunity to take it.
17. School Climate - In order for any initiative to be successful, the school climate needs to be supportive and inclusive. Why? A positive school climate, where there is a sense of collective efficacy, can help eat away at a school culture that blocked authentic learning experiences for all students. Schools face tough circumstances, like those on this list, and in order to address those issues effectively, they will have to foster a school climate where stakeholders want to be a part of the process.
Those are my 17 critical issues. Please feel free to share your choices below.
Peter DeWitt, Ed.D. is the author of several books including the best selling Collaborative Leadership: 6 Influences That Matter Most (September, 2016. Corwin Press/Learning Forward). Connect with Peter on Twitter.
For original topic click the link below
الثلاثاء، 17 أكتوبر 2017
Ask 5 Questions to Choose the Right Online MPA Program
Given his passion for public service, Gordon-Andrew Fletcher felt that a Master of Public Administration would be an ideal supplement to his law degree.
When looking into different MPA programs, Fletcher also realized that completing one online would allow him to continue working full time.
"I'm very busy. But I didn't want me being busy to stop me from pursuing another degree," says the 32-year-old District of Columbia resident. Fletcher chose to pursue an online MPA at American University. An added bonus, he says, is that the school has a local alumni network.
An online MPA degree may be a good fit for those seeking leadership positions in government or the nonprofit sector who also need the flexibility to work around their own schedules.
[Learn how to assess the flexibility of an online degree program.]
Here are five questions prospective students should ask as they explore online MPA programs and consult with admissions officers.
1. Are there in-person requirements? Online MPAs vary as to whether they require students to come to campus.
At the University of Southern California Sol Price School of Public Policy, online MPA students visit campus twice – at the beginning and conclusion of the program. During that time, they network with each other and faculty and participate in team-building activities, among other things, according to the program's website.
Given that many online students also work full time, a program with an on-ground component may not be ideal. Students would likely need to take off from work and possibly pay travel expenses.
In addition, some online MPAs have practicum requirements. At the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill School of Government, students must complete 300 to 400 hours in a public service environment, which can be a project or interim duties as part of their current job, says Willow Jacobson, an associate professor of public administration.
2. Is the program accredited? Accreditation is a process conducted by an outside authority to determine if an online or on-ground university – and, in some cases, a specific program – meets certain standards of quality. When John Norwood, who's studying for an online MPA in nonprofit management at the for-profit Capella University, looked into programs, accreditation was top of mind.
[Discover how to check whether an online degree program is accredited.]
"Are they accredited? How long have they been accredited? Is their accreditation in any kind of jeopardy?" says the 36-year-old Tennessee resident.
Experts say prospective students should ensure an institution has accreditation from agencies recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or U.S. Department of Education. That increases the likelihood that future employers and other universities – should students transfer or pursue additional degrees – will accept their credits or recognize their diploma.
Depending on prospective online students' career goals, they may want to determine whether their MPA also has accreditation at the programmatic level from specific agencies such as the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration, or NASPAA. This may be important if they want certain organizations or companies to recognize their degree, experts say.
3. What's the regional reputation of the school's on-ground program? Most MPA programs have developed their reputations through face-to-face learning and regional job placements for graduates, says Daniel Smith, MPA director at the University of Delaware School of Public Policy and Administration, which offers an online program.
He recommends asking an adviser about postgraduation employment rates for on-campus students, even if they live far away. That can give prospective online students broader insight into the overall quality of an institution.
4. How does the online program teach real-world skills? Even though online MPA students may never meet each other in person, a program should still teach them leadership and management skills that they can apply in a face-to-face workplace.
[Explore four ways online education teaches real-world skills.]
Vicky Wilkins, interim dean of the School of Public Affairs at American University, says online students in her class write memos under tight deadlines and record presentations about staff training, diversity and inclusion. They also focus on case studies, which may pertain to topics such as violations of law in the workplace, and submit responses to real-life scenarios using a webcam.
Experts recommend asking if there's a capstone course that may allow students to apply what they learn. In the online MPA program at American, students complete a policy analysis project for a specific client.
5. How does the program encourage a sense of community? Community is often an important element of administration jobs in the nonprofit and public sectors, experts say. Prospective online MPA students should ask about student interaction, which can occur through on-campus residencies or events, discussion forums, meetups or online courses in real time.
The same goes for interacting with faculty, whether virtually or on campus, says Maryann Tobin, executive director of programs in the arts and sciences college at the University of Miami, which has an online MPA.
"That connection is very important to student success," she says.
Trying to fund your online education? Get tips and more in the U.S. News Paying for Online Education center.
Tags: online education, education, students, technology
Jordan Friedman is an online education editor at U.S. News. You can follow him on Twitter or email him at jfriedman@usnews.com.
For the original topic click the link below
الجمعة، 13 أكتوبر 2017
Why I Don’t Have Classroom Rules
A teacher tries a classroom management experiment thinking it will fail.
Years later, he’s still at it.
By David Tow
October 11, 2017
When I started teaching, I was incredibly traditional in terms of
classroom management and discipline. In those early years, a clear code of
conduct was reassuring. For infraction X, there was always consequence Y. It
gave me a simple if inflexible rubric through which to discover my position in
the class and develop a degree of comfort and ease as captain of the ship. As a
new teacher, I was thankful for the clarity and certainty this approach
offered—and I am sure other new educators feel the same.
However, while I was clearing my credential, working with mentor
teachers to reflect on my practice, and finding out how real students differed
from theoretical ones, I also spent long hours after school with the speech and
debate team reading philosophy and theory and talking about innovative
alternatives for national defense, natural resource allocation, and, of course,
education.
Getting Started
So I gradually abolished formal management protocols. Away went the
rules about bathroom policies, eating in the classroom, and what defines
appropriate behavior in a traditional classroom. Instead, I theorized about the
broad, underlying principles that would define the field within which we could
have a productive learning community.
To be honest, I was terrified. I was worried that if I started to
dismantle my power, the class would devolve into chaos.
But I also knew my students: They were thoughtful and reflective, kind
and observant, willing to take intellectual risks when they felt supported and
safe.
So we started with first principles—it’s wise to start with a simple
framework—identifying core premises from which we could build a classroom
community. These depend on the teacher’s values, the school culture, and the
needs of the students. In my case, I derived them from ideas of agency and
social equity, and let the students extrapolate from there.
Next, we proceeded to norm that behavior. I simply took the time to
comment on how particular contributions, habits, and behaviors were either in
concert with or contrary to the core principles, with the idea that students
would begin to mirror that level of depth and awareness. I made sure to offer
opportunities, usually at the end of class, to reflect not just on what
learning took place, but on what community standards were missing, newly
established, or reaffirmed. For example, without a school-wide policy about
bathroom usage during class, and after I expressed my own disinterest in
regulating bodily functions, we started a conversation about how to solve the
problem, deriving community standards from it. Students recognized that that if
they weren’t in the room, they couldn’t be engaged or prepared, and staying in
the bathroom wasn’t really respectful if other students needed to go as well.
One student suggested that it was impossible to take intellectual risks if you
were in the bathroom all the time.
The same approach applies to homework, often considered a non-negotiable
in high school classrooms. In my class, it’s a chance to demonstrate student
agency and experiment with what we’ve learned in class. If a student fails to
do it, the absence is its own punishment—I don’t need to double down with teacher-driven
shame. If a student tells me they haven’t done their homework, my response is,
“That’s fine, you’re all right, but why not?” From there, I can respond in a
more personalized way and unearth how to best help.
الأربعاء، 11 أكتوبر 2017
الجمعة، 6 أكتوبر 2017
الاثنين، 2 أكتوبر 2017
الاشتراك في:
الرسائل (Atom)
-
am -khal العم أو الخال el tío amma -khala العمةأو الخالة la tía ابن العم/الخال أو ابنة العم/الخال el...
