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| | LATEST NEWS FOR PRINCIPALS |
EdSurge
At the recent U.S. Education Learning Forum, Bill Gates talked about an exciting shift in ed policy, which puts a strong focus on what happens inside the classroom. The focus not only elevates understanding and admiration for the invaluable role of effective teachers, but aims to support all teachers in moving up the learning line. In order to do this, professional learning must reflect the kind of learning we want to see for our students. We are moving toward true learning cultures, which are personalized, relevant and empowering. To that end, the antiquated ideas around teacher training and development will fade out, and a new era of professional learning experiences that support and push educators can come out into the sun.
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Education Week
Affordable Internet service and cost-effective access to related infrastructure remain major hurdles for schools, although access to fiber-optic cables and faster wireless networks is improving, according to a new survey of school district leaders. "While progress is happening, policymakers and educators will need to keep their eyes focused on continued investments in robust, reliable education networks...to enable digital learning and address issues of digital equity," wrote Keith Krueger, the CEO of the Consortium for School Networking, in the group's third annual "E-rate and Infrastructure" report.
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District Administration Magazine
The rising popularity of blended STEAM programs reflects a nationwide K-12 push to develop the next generation of innovators. Injecting the arts into science, math, engineering and technology encourages students to think creatively and critically in traditional STEM subjects that, until the recent and widespread adoption of new standards, didn't often encourage students to think outside the box.
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THE Journal
For the first time ever, most states will be giving their end-of-year, high-stakes tests in elementary and middle school via technology other than pencil and paper. According to a new report by EdTech Strategies, only 15 percent of the 800-plus tests being offered to students in grades 3-8 this year will be available in printed format.
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By: Debra Josephson Abrams
 As an experienced educator new to a decades-old university-based ESL program, I quickly found a curriculum moribund from decades of inattention and lacking best practices. The program had lost its CEA accreditation and was trying to regain it. In the classroom, it meant working with outdated texts, weak assignments and flawed assessments. To resuscitate my listening and speaking and pronunciation courses, I used music and art to invigorate the materials and the students.
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Science Weekly Magazine
Science Weekly Magazine
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Edutopia (commentary)
Monica Burns, a contributor for Edutopia, writes: "Reading aloud to children is an essential part of the school day. Experiencing stories as a whole class or in a small group can help students learn essential reading skills. Educators who read aloud to children understand the importance of modeling thinking, providing opportunities to talk about books, and encouraging students to respond to reading with their own thoughts and opinions. As schools increase the amount of technology available to teachers, educators are presented with unique opportunities to incorporate tech tools into their instruction."
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Scholastic Administrator Magazine
At Zaharis Elementary School in Mesa, Arizona, kids can grab a book anywhere — in the hallway, the cafeteria, even in the restroom. Step into Principal Mike Oliver's office and you'll see hundreds of books displayed from floor to ceiling on rain gutters transformed into shelves. "We decided to flood our school and our classrooms with real books," says Oliver, who boxed up the basal readers when he opened the K–6 public school 14 years ago. "No child in the history of the world ever said, 'Mom, will you read me another excerpt from my favorite basal before I go to bed tonight?' They don't motivate."
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The IRLA is a reading leveling assessment, and conferencing tool that maps out the developmental sequence of reading acquisition, K-12. With the IRLA, teachers know where each student is, where they should be, and which skills/behaviors must be mastered to close the gap.
Learn more at americanreading.com
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NPR
They're hard. At least, that was the rep on new tests aligned to the Common Core State Standards that millions of U.S. kids took last spring. Now you can be the judge. There are now a slew of actual math and English Language Arts questions online — searchable — from the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers — better know as PARCC. You can also see some student responses and guidance on how they were scored. Amid all the political controversy over the Common Core and whether students should even take these exams, this gives us a chance to look objectively at the tests themselves.
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TeachThought
It's that time of the school year when teachers are facing writing their first or second wave of unit tests and assessments. The following list of items are things best avoided in designing quality teacher-made assessments.
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K-12 TechDecisions
Protecting students from harm is a top priority for every K-12 school. Schools should be a safe place for kids to learn and grow, and there's no doubt every district looks to implement as many safety procedures and security technology as possible to keep its students safe in the event of an emergency. School safety, however, goes beyond protecting students in a life-threatening situation. Schools should do their best to implement security technology and systems that will prevent emergencies from happening in the first place.
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Education Week (commentary)
Peter DeWitt, an author, presenter and former K-5 public school principal, and John Hattie, director of the Melbourne Educational Research Institute at the University of Melbourne, Australia, write: "Truth be told, I have not always liked the word 'flipping.' As a school principal, I flipped my leadership for a couple of years before taking a leave of absence to work as a trainer for John Hattie through Corwin Press. I wrote a book about it, which you can find here. The word flipping made it seem as if it was a gimmick, even though it brought about some great dialogue and learning with staff and parents. Over the last few years I have thought about how powerful flipped leadership can be for a school community."
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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.
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eSchool News
School leaders said affordability remains the top barrier to robust internet connectivity in their schools, according to the Consortium for School Networking's 3rd Annual Infrastructure Survey released November 3. Improving network speed and capacity and increasing competition for broadband services remain significant challenges to districts as well, the survey reveals. The results also detail the impact of changes to the E-rate program, as well as the growing issue of digital equity for technology access outside of the classroom.
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The Huffington Post
There are a lot of reasons why teaching isn't the sought after profession it should be, low pay and increasing pressure on teachers among them. But what if we're missing something big here? What if our nationwide teacher shortage as cited by the New York Times, the Washington Post, and Education Week is being exacerbated by a leadership and management gap? Most of our country's teachers are passionate about their work, but too often, they're stymied by things that would send most professionals running for the exits: lack of autonomy, an unclear path for professional growth, suboptimal operations and processes that impact their work, and more.
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The New York Times
Asked to call a transgender boy by a male name he has chosen for himself, teachers and administrators around the country have leaned toward a simple response: Sure. Allow a high school student who was born male but identifies as female to join the volleyball team? Fine. But as transgender students assert themselves more, schools have hesitated at the locker room and the bathroom. Many have developed policies that require transgender students to use private changing and showering facilities, drawing opposition from these students, their parents and advocates who say the rules are discriminatory.
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EdTech Magazine
When planning the rollout of a new mobile application, school districts should focus on use cases, relevant metrics and other important considerations. As mobile devices become ubiquitous in schools and the workplace, mobile applications are increasingly integral to everyday operations and workflow. But effective mobile application deployment requires a thorough understanding of business needs and a coherent app strategy.
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"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
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| | FEDERAL ADVOCACY AND POLICY |
The Hechinger Report
A movement to push more schools to swap out traditional textbooks for the free variety just got a boost from the federal government. The U.S. Department of Education launched a new program last week to encourage the use of open educational resources (aka free books and materials). The campaign, branded as #GoOpen, could convince more schools to use non-traditional textbooks in the classroom.
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The Associated Press
The vast majority of states now require that teachers be evaluated, at least in part, on student test scores - up sharply from six years ago. And in many states, those performance reviews could lead to a pink slip. The comprehensive state-by-state analysis by the National Council on Teacher Quality shows 42 states and the District of Columbia have policies on the books requiring that student growth and achievement be considered in evaluations for public school teachers. In 2009, only 15 states linked scores to teacher reviews.
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Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Unified School District is facing a looming, long-term deficit that could force the system into bankruptcy, a panel of experts has concluded in a new report obtained by The Times. The group, which met in private over the last several months, concluded that L.A. Unified will face a budget deficit of $333 million in the 2017-2018 school year, an additional $450 million the following year and $600 million more the year after that. This year's general fund totals about $7.1 billion.
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Chalkbeat New York
When Mayor Bill de Blasio recently unveiled his plan to give all eighth-grade students access to algebra, he dove into an issue that has stumped policymakers in the past. He and others are convinced middle-school algebra classes can catapult students toward high-level math in high school and college. But other districts have faced dilemmas that de Blasio is hoping to avoid — either they reach too few students, often excluding low-income and minority students from critical coursework, or they reach too many, setting up unprepared students for failure.
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The Wall Street Journal
Educators in this Oklahoma City suburb jumped into action when state leaders in 2010 adopted the Common Core academic standards that were sweeping states across the country. The Edmond school district has a big military population that moves frequently, so officials liked the idea of using the same standards as other states. They also saw Oklahoma's old standards as inferior. They spent about $500,000 preparing teachers and students, collaborating with educators in other states and buying materials and computers for a new Common Core test, finishing a year in advance.
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NAESP
States and districts across the nation are moving to new teacher evaluation systems, and principals are tasked with making all the pieces — from observations and conferences to goal-setting and feedback — fit. The solution? Masterful time management, says Wendy Kelly Jordan, principal of Mineral Springs School in Ellerbe, North Carolina. "[Principals] are completely in control of how they spend their time each day," says Jordan. She suggests school leaders take advantage of that fact, and strategically schedule the components of the teacher evaluation process. Learn how Jordan and other principals are using tools, delegating tasks and integrating evaluations with professional development to realize the big picture: boosting teaching and learning.
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NAESP
In collaboration with the Wahl Foundation, NAESP has launched a school grant program called "UNThink My School" that will award a total of $40,000 to schools that champion themes of innovation and creativity. The Wahl Foundation will award one $20,000 grant and 10 $2,000 "UNthink My School" grants to schools that use artistic concepts and creative expression to solve school problems and spur innovation. Applications will be accepted and reviewed from Oct. 6, 2015 until Feb. 15, 2016. Winners will be announced in March 2016.
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ZipKrooz™ brings zip line-like adventure to the playground in an exciting, inclusive and safe way!
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| Math Problem solving contests for teams of up to 35 students in grades 4 through 8.
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