This message was sent to ##Email## April 23, 2020       Home  |  Membership  |  Events  |  Advocacy  |  Careers  |  Academy Archive  |   Subscribe      ALAS EVENTS Watch the ALAS Webinar "How COVID-19 has Exposed Education in-Equities in the U.S." ALAS    SCHOOL LEADERS NEWS As summer nears, school districts begin 'scenario planning' Education DIVE Saturday "academies" and extending the current school year are among the possible ways state and district leaders say they plan to use the summer months to counter some of the learning loss expected due to school closures, uneven internet access and delays in implementing formal online instruction.  READ MORE 6 mental health resources for students during the coronavirus pandemic eSchool News In addition to physical health concerns related to the COVID-19 outbreak, the global pandemic is causing most people — especially children — mental health stress and concerns, too. With schools across the country closed indefinitely and with states in various stages of social distancing or more severe lockdowns, students have lost their daily connections to friends and teachers. These abrupt changes in schedule can amplify anxiety and worry about what may happen to family members and friends.  READ MORE    SPONSORED CONTENT Benchmark Education Free Bilingual Online Library for Four Months District leaders can now arrange a free, four-month subscription to 3,500 e-books in English or Spanish. These leveled literacy and content-area e-books for K-8 students can be used at home or in school. Engaging formats and topics help students make more progress and avoid the summer slump. Click to Request Free Online Library or More Information.   Guidance requested on use of federal education funding for English learners Language Magazine The U.S. Department of Education has been asked to provide guidance on the use of CARES Act funding for English Learners in K-12 public schools by an alliance of associations: ACTFL, CABE, Californians Together, CAL, JNCL-NCLIS, MPI, NAELPA and TESOL International. The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act) includes billions of dollars for K-12 public schools, but there remains some confusion as to how exactly the money should be spent.  READ MORE The retirement elephant in US classrooms By: Patrick Gleeson (commentary) By now, most Americans know that pension plans in this country have a problem — put simply, many and perhaps most pension funds don't have enough money to pay the pensions they've promised their retirees. The coronavirus has already deeply affected education in K-12 classrooms. Soon, it will also affect the pensions of K-12 teachers across the country. Here's why.  READ MORE How closed schools impact English learners and how teachers communicate amid coronavirus Indianapolis Star Jill Hamilton called each one of her 104 students' families. As the English language coordinator for Greenwood Community Schools, she works with students who are learning English and attend one of the district's four elementary schools. Greenwood Schools used waiver days from the state for the week after spring break, and Hamilton spent that time at the end of March into April contacting each family — even if that meant tracking down their cousin's neighbor on Facebook to get an updated phone number.  READ MORE Schools struggle to educate students with disabilities amid pandemic U.S. News & World Report Setting up distance learning for the 55 million students who were forced out of school by the coronavirus pandemic is a challenge, but it's even more of a challenge for educators to figure out how to best educate the 7 million students with disabilities. And those students, who are less likely to be able to access online education, are also at much greater risk of falling behind.  READ MORE    TECHNOLOGY Ed, tech coalition launches resource for remotely serving special needs students Education DIVE As the U.S. Department of Education considers whether to recommend waivers from certain aspects of Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, several organizations have joined together to support the special education community through the challenges caused by school closures.  READ MORE Most teachers don't feel fully prepared for remote and online learning eSchool News The coronavirus outbreak has closed physical schools and pushed learning online, causing teachers to develop remote and online learning plans in as little as a couple days — but not all teachers feel prepared to meet this sudden and potentially lengthy challenge. ClassTag surveyed more than 1,200 U.S. teachers in mid-March to collect and share best practices, ideas and common approaches to remote learning. More than half of those surveyed teach in public schools (66 percent) and more than half are elementary school teachers (60%).  READ MORE How to prepare and support educators teaching from home EdTech Magazine As schools stay closed across the country, many students and educators are adapting to a new reality of remote learning. School districts that moved the majority of instruction online had to address existing challenges — from the lack of device and internet access to looming cyberthreats on sensitive data. They also had to acknowledge and bridge the gap between teachers and technology to ensure its success.  READ MORE To stay in touch with students, teachers bypass computers, pick up phones NPR When schools closed in Fall Creek, Wis., because of the coronavirus, the district staff got an unusual message. Don't worry for now about assignments or quizzes, Superintendent Joe Sanfelippo told them. Instead, "I want you to call people. And I want you to ask them two questions: How are you doing? And do you need anything?" The district had also ordered Chromebooks and Wi-Fi hot spots to help connect families in this small, rural community. But the hotspots were delayed, and many families live in areas with poor signal strength.  READ MORE    POLICY CORNER Betsy DeVos releases 1st coronavirus emergency aid for K-12 schools Education Week Governors can now officially apply for billions in aid intended to help public schools address the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced. The $3 billion in aid for the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund was included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, which Congress passed and President Donald Trump signed into law. In a statement, DeVos stressed that this application is "streamlined" to make it easier for governors; she also said that governors have a chance to "truly rethink and transform the approach to education during this national emergency."  READ MORE CARES Act stimulus funds and grants: What K-12 districts need to know Tech & Learning In a time when unity is particularly important, Congress reached a bipartisan agreement to pass a $2.2 trillion dollar stimulus package. The aim is to pump funds to citizens as well as agencies that are providing essential services during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this historic funding package (known as the CARES Act), $16.5 billion is set to go directly to state and local education agencies.  READ MORE    EDUCATION HEADLINES Oregon schools navigate serving English learners in a distance learning world Oregon Public Broadcasting Umatilla fourth grader Gabe Gutierrez has been out of school for weeks now. He's kept busy watching TV, reading and taking walks with his family, but he's sad to be out of the classroom. "I just, I just miss it," Gabe said. Gabe is an English language learner who attends McNary Heights Elementary. At the dinner table recently, Gabe's parents asked him what he missed most about school.  READ MORE Dual language teachers try to 'stay the course' separated from classrooms Education DIVE In late February, Holbrook Language Academy in Concord, California, a two-way, Spanish and English dual immersion magnet school, held a workshop to educate parents about the domains of language learning — reading, writing, speaking, listening and thinking. Principal Marga Marshall had no idea that a month later, schools would be closed because of the coronavirus, and parents would be supporting their children's learning at home.  READ MORE Supporting equity for English learners remotely Teaching Channel As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are all facing challenges in our personal and professional lives, the likes of which have never been seen. For our English learners, the fastest growing subgroup of students in the U.S., we are seeing the special challenges these students and their families face every day now magnified with schools being closed. At Confianza, our focus is providing access and opportunity to multilingual learners with our client schools and districts to respond in real time to the challenges of keeping teaching and learning going in some way, shape or form.  READ MORE A common wish amongst our children Language Magazine (commentary) Yu Zhou, a contributor for Language Magazine, writes: "My studying abroad experience started five years ago. Five long, sometimes short years, depending on my challenges, studying the Spanish language and all its glory in Dallas, Texas — a city filled with Hispanic culture. I know it must seem surreal for someone to have never eaten a taco before, but my Chinese self had the experience first in Dallas, and even though I forgot when I first tried the foreign taste of Mexican food, I do remember how I first fell in love with the Spanish language and Hispanic culture."  READ MORE 3 ways professional development is addressing the 'sharp learning curve' of teaching online Education DIVE For years, incorporating technology into blended learning environments has been a luxury for the districts that can afford it and an aspiration for those that don't have the resources for device rollouts. But with coronavirus-related closures going through April and extending through the end of the school year for some states, 1:1 devices have suddenly become the preferred avenue for instruction.  READ MORE Assessments and grading in the midst of a pandemic Education Week The coronavirus pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to educators throughout the world. Schools have had to change entire instructional programs in widely varied contexts with inequitable access to technology and other vital resources. School closures and requirements for social isolation have created untold hardships for students and their families, especially those with multiple children at different grade levels, whose parents cannot stay at home, whose English may not be the primary language and where the parents are also teachers.  READ MORE Do children soak up language like sponges? The New York Times A pervasive idea assumes that young children can absorb new languages with minimal effort, but it turns out that the science is more complicated.  READ MORE Half of US public school students are home for the school year NPR As of Thursday afternoon, 26 states, representing about half of the nation's public school students, have recommended or ordered their schools to remain closed for the rest of the academic year, according to a tally by Education Week. The closures affect about 25 million of the nation's 50.8 million public school students. Louisiana joined the list Wednesday, when Gov. John Bel Edwards announced he would extend the closure of his state's schools.  READ MORE How COVID-19 could affect kids' long-term social development Healthline The idea of long-term social distancing is daunting for everyone, but perhaps especially so for parents who have now become their children's main outlet for social interaction. In fact, as we prepare for a longer period of social distancing, many parents may be wondering how all this time away from others could affect the social development of their kids. Amy Learmonth, PhD, is a developmental psychologist who has studied children as young as 8 weeks old, looking at how they think and how their abilities change over time.  READ MORE NWEA data predicts students could be up to a year behind in math in the fall Education DIVE Using academic achievement for students in grades 3-8 during a normal school year for comparison, the organization's researchers estimate the decline in English would not be as drastic. Still, even with schools providing learning during closures, they suggest the "aspects of trauma and the current economic conditions" associated with the health crisis could negatively impact academic outcomes for "populations most historically marginalized."  READ MORE     CAREERS New Postings Every Week on ALAS Website! 04/02/20 — Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education, Cambridge Public Schools, Cambridge, MA 04/02/20 — Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Education, Cambridge Public Schools, Cambridge, MA 04/02/20 — Chief Talent Officer, Cambridge Public Schools, Cambridge, MA 04/02/20 — Dean of Academics and Equity, Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, Aurora, IL 04/02/20 — Dean of Student Support and Equity, Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, Aurora, IL 04/02/20 — Principal, School District of Springfield R-12, Springfield, MO 04/01/20 — Superintendent, Hickman Mills C-1 School District, Kansas City, MO 03/27/20 — Principal, Haven Middle School, Evanston, Il 03/27/20 — Principal, Evanston/Skokie School District 65, Evanston, Il 03/23/20 — Elementary Principal, Komensky Elementary School, Berwyn, IL VISIT ALAS WEBSITE FOR MORE CAREER OPPORTUNITIES & INFORMATION! 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