This message was sent to ##Email##
|
|
|
|
|
| | LATEST NEWS FOR PRINCIPALS |
NPR
The first day back from winter break can be restless. Many children are still coming down from the excitement of the holidays. Two unstructured weeks away from school — with strange food, rituals and relatives — can be overwhelming for many children, especially when it grinds to a halt after the new year and normality resumes. But for students whose families are struggling in poverty, time away from school isn't an exciting blip on an otherwise calm school year. For them, it can be a crippling time of insecurity when it comes to food and shelter. And teachers can tell.
READ MORE
Education Week
No Child Left Behind was the official name for the 2002 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, but it had many nicknames among educators. No Teacher Left Standing, No Lawyer Left Unemployed, No Child's Behind Left ... all were expressions of the frustration that educators had with the arbitrary and unrealistic expectations that — when unmet — brought harsh consequences to schools. In their attempt to help states deal with the fact that Congress wouldn't fix a broken law, the U.S. Department of Education developed ESEA waivers. While there were multiple components to the waivers, what really laid accountability on the shoulders of teachers were the new rules around teacher evaluations.
READ MORE
Education Week
Arts education advocates breathed a sigh of relief last month when the Every Student Succeeds Act, which includes language that cements states' obligation to support arts education programs in public schools, became the new federal education law of the land. Several proposals for the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act floated earlier last year did not specifically call for funding the creative disciplines. But ESSA, which replaces the No Child left Behind Act, includes the arts alongside math and language arts in its definition of a "well-rounded education."
READ MORE
By: Douglas Magrath
 In a recent article, I described why integrative testing is a better way of testing language competence than discrete-point testing. An integrative test draws on a variety of sources. Syntax, vocabulary, "schema," cultural awareness, reading skills, pronunciation and grammar are all factors the test maker and test taker need to keep in mind. A test is a gateway to a higher level, but it is also a part of the real world the learners will soon face, where communication is the key to success.
READ MORE
Edutopia (commentary)
Ellie Cowen, a contributor for Edutopia, writes: "Emely, a second grade girl in a pink sweatshirt, with wisps of brown hair framing her face, sits at her desk, her body poised in concentration over a small personal whiteboard. She looks at the classroom board, her eyes moving slowly over the words of a problem that her teacher projected there as the students came in from recess and sat down for their math lesson."
READ MORE
Advertisement
Science Weekly Magazine
Science Weekly Magazine
READ MORE
|
Phys.org
Young children who write letters back and forth to extended family members improve their literacy skills. They also develop a stronger connection with distant relatives, a University of Texas at Arlington study finds. Kathryn Pole, an assistant professor in the UTA College of Education's Department of Curriculum and Instruction, followed 22 kindergarten students at a public school for one school year. She wanted to track their progress when they wrote and exchanged letters with relatives such as a grandparent, aunt or other extended family member.
READ MORE
EdTech Magazine
The learning environment can be as important to student success as quality instruction and course curricula. And in today's world, that means outfitting students and teachers with the right set of resources. During the K–12 webinar Time for a Network Upgrade, expert Tim Landeck discussed a few of the classroom assets now found in California's Pajaro Valley Unified School District, where he works as director of technology services.
READ MORE
 |
|
The ST Math game-based math program makes learning tantalizingly tricky, teaching core math content while developing the grit and perseverance needed for complex problem solving.
Learn more about the kinds of games that can transform students into tenacious problem solvers.
|
|
NPR
"What are some of the things that the monsters like to eat in this story?" teacher Marisa McGee asks a trio of girls sitting at her table. McGee teaches kindergarten at Walker Jones Elementary in Washington, D.C. Today's lesson: a close reading of the book "What Do Monsters Eat?" "They like to eat cake," says one girl. "I noticed you answered in a complete sentence," McGee says. "Can you tell me something else?" "Stinky socks!" McGee follows with a line you might not expect in a kindergarten class: "Can you show me the page where you found that?"
READ MORE
THE Journal
Most schools providing online or blended learning programs rely on their own district budgets for funding. The main reason they turn to this form of instruction is to offer an alternative to those students who aren't succeeding in traditional formats. They consider the highest measure for the quality of their programs not to rest with proving student progress but with providing "engaging and highly interactive" curriculum.
READ MORE
|
Promoted by
|
|
|
|
 |
Education World
A new study from The Vision Counsel suggests that the increase of Americans using multiple digital devices a day is causing an increase in patients with eye strain. According to the 2016 report, "Eyes Overexposed: The Digital Device Dilemma," out of 10,000 Americans surveyed, 65 percent reported having symptoms of digital eye strain, which include "dry, irritated eyes, blurred vision, eye fatigue, neck and back pain and headaches."
READ MORE
EdSource (commentary)
When it comes to promoting teacher effectiveness, classroom observations of teachers are critically important, but sadly they have become rote, and the opportunity to provide teachers serious feedback and next-level growth is underutilized. Too often we hear teachers and administrators complain about outdated observation methods where an administrator schedules only one time a year to watch a lesson, checks a list and reports on the teacher's performance.
READ MORE
 |
|
Graceland University is ranked #5 in the country for Online Masters of Education programs by US News and World Report. We have a 98% graduation rate and 97% would recommend our program to a friend. We have 4 programs to meet the needs of practically any teacher.
Apply Now
|
|
eSchool News
Do these "edubabble" terms have meaning or are they just empty rhetoric? Get a group of educators together either online or in person and at times it can seem like they're speaking a different dialect. Want to disrupt the fixed mindset and combat the device gap in the age of the digital native? Well, have you tried innovating your hidden curriculum? Just add more grit (or should that be rigor?). And do it all like a pirate. No, wait: a rockstar.
READ MORE
 |
|
"The Fundamental 5 improves instruction. The power of these practices will transform classrooms and schools," E. Don Brown, NASSP past president. Order now at Amazon.com
|
|
eSchool News
Cutting out paper and pencils one day a week gets everyone thinking more creatively. Sometimes one simple question is all it takes to trigger revolution in a school. In the case of Kelly Mill Elementary outside of Atlanta, the question was: How can we more effectively engage our learners? It's loaded, I know. The idea migrated from my head into staff meetings, and a variation on that question eventually ended up posted next to every copy machine in our school to prompt teachers to find new ways of teaching — without paper and pencils.
READ MORE
|
Promoted by
|
|
|
|
 |
| | FEDERAL ADVOCACY AND POLICY |
Education Week (commentary)
As Education Week has told you before, the Every Student Succeeds Act seeks to strike a balance between continuing federal protections for historically overlooked groups of students (like English language learners and children in poverty) and reining in the federal government. That's led to all sorts of speculation about just how far the U.S. Department of Education can go in regulating on the law and deciding whether state accountability plans are up to snuff. So where is the line?
READ MORE
EdTech Magazine
Without a doubt, education is becoming increasingly digital. New technology also creates new demands for school and district leaders, who at times struggle to keep up with network stressors, particularly affordability, capacity, reliability, speed and the lack of competition for broadband services. That's according to CoSN's 2015 Annual E-Rate and Infrastructure Survey, which shows that school districts have made progress on their education networks but still have some work left to do.
READ MORE
 |
|
Choose from 87 digital, conceptual K-8 science units, with STEM, in grade-level bands, to meet evolving standards. Email for free sample and details: rseela@seelascience.com MORE
|
|
The New York Times
When Mayor Bill de Blasio took office, it seemed like the start of a bright new day in the relationship between City Hall and the people who run New York City's schools. Rather than close struggling schools, as his predecessor Michael R. Bloomberg had done, de Blasio promised to support them. In November 2014, he and his schools chancellor, Carmen Fariña, announced a program to funnel resources, training and social services into 94 of the lowest-performing schools.
READ MORE
Alaska Dispatch News
The Alaska Supreme Court ruled Friday that requiring municipalities to help pay for their local schools does not violate the state constitution, upholding how lawmakers have long financed public education and rejecting a lower court ruling in Ketchikan. "We're very pleased that the Supreme Court found what it did," said Alaska Education Commissioner Mike Hanley. "I think it's appropriate that there's local buy-in." The court's ruling came about two years after the Ketchikan Gateway Borough and four residents sued Hanley and the state of Alaska over the required local payments, calling them unconstitutional.
READ MORE
|
Missed last week's issue? See which articles your colleagues read most.
|
|
Don't be left behind. Click here to see what else you missed.
|
Education World
According to seventy percent of educators who responded to a survey administered by the Georgia Department of Education, 70 percent of the state's teachers would not recommend the career to others. Only 2.7 percent saying they would actively encourage others to consider it, said 11Alive.com. Though the state only expected 10 percent of its teacher population to respond to its survey, roughly half of its 112,000 teachers responded, indicating they had a lot to say.
READ MORE
NAESP
What do you consider a balanced work and personal lifestyle? Have you been able to master it? Finding a balance between work and personal life can be a challenge for anyone, but the long-term benefit of achieving it impacts your longevity as a principal. Working in a high-stress job like the principalship can take a toll on your health, productivity, family and lifestyle. The key is working a reasonable week with time for exercise, sleep, and leisure, while also making wise nutritional choices. The good news is that by finding balance you, too, can look forward to a long, healthy, productive life as a principal. Here are three keys to balancing work and life.
READ MORE
NAESP
Principals know when a teacher is having difficulty with classroom management. Weak classroom management results in a chaotic environment and lower student achievement, and often brings parent complaints directly to the principal's office. While it is easy to see the problem, it is more challenging to resolve the issue. When you need to intervene in a teacher's classroom to improve organization and management, consider following a four-step intervention process.
READ MORE
|
|
|
 |
|
| Students will enjoy reading all 5 books in the Cornbread Series (appropriate for 3rd - 5th).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
7701 Las Colinas Ridge, Ste. 800, Irving, TX 75063
|
