Friday News Roundup

TGIF! Here’s your News Roundup.

In Cities with School Choice, Low-Income Kids Catching Up to Wealthier Peers (The 74)

The 74 reported recently that,

“A new report form the Progressive Policy Institute finds that over the last decade, low-income students in large districts that aggressively expanded public school choices have started to catch up to their peers statewide – and performance levels are rising in both charter and district-led schools. In fact, in the 10 districts with the highest percentage of students enrolled in charter schools, low-income students citywide closed the gap with statewide test score averages by 25% to 40%.”

Choice, talented adult learning leaders, motivation, engagement, and a focus on results all matter when it comes to making young learners smarter and stronger in their reading, writing, problem-solving, and character development skills.

Treating Chronic Absenteeism Like a Public Health Emergency (ASCD SmartBrief)

SmartBrief reported recently that,

“A silent crisis known as chronic absenteeism is unfolding in our schools and is affecting millions of…students. The consequences of unchecked absenteeism are severe and far-reaching. It starts innocuously with a few missed days but can quickly spiral, decimating a child’s future prospects. When dropout rates increase and college readiness declines, the ripple effects impact entire communities.”

The article goes on to encourage schools to implement the following strategies to combat chronic absenteeism – convey urgency, provide accurate information, mobilize stakeholders, advocate for prevention, foster two-way, and foster two-way, equitable communication.

Here’s one SmartBrief forgot –

Make sure every young learner’s day is engaging and that the young learner feels like they are getting smarter and stronger every day they attend school.

If traditional schools made that promise, I don’t think we would have a chronic absentee problem to fix.

Grades and Standardized Test Scores Aren’t Matching Up. Here’s Why (EducationWeek)

This isn’t really news. Since I’ve been around public education, grades and standardized test scores have never aligned well.

EducationWeek reported earlier this month that,

“Average composite ACT scores decreased from 22.51 to 21.90 from 2018 to 2021 while the average high school GPAs test takers reported rose in that period from 3.48 to 3.59, according to new ACT research.”

Pay attention to the standardized test scores. If I told you how some teachers figure grades, you’d be shocked.

Black Children in Florida Face Harsher School Discipline, New SPLC Report Shows (Southern Poverty Law Center)

Again, no surprise here. In fact, I’d guess that most states have similar data to Florida when it comes to disciplining African-American children inside their public schools.

The real news story will be when a state changes their data, so that African-American school discipline aligns with white discipline.

Who Could Be Kamala Harris’ Education Secretary? (EducationWeek)

EducationWeek lists current U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, North Carolina’s Governor Roy Cooper, Wisconsin’s Governor Tony Evers (who served as the Badget State’s superintendent for public instruction from 2009 to 2019), New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, or maybe Becky Pringle, president of the National Education Association.

Who Could be Dpnald Trump’s Next Education Secretary? (EducationWeek)

EducationWeek lists Vivek Ramaswamy and former U.S. Representative Lee Zeldin (NY) as frontrunners, with Tiffany Justice (co-founder of Moms for Liberty), Cade Brumley, Louisiana’s state superintendent of education, Oklahoma’s state superintendent of education Ryan Walters, South Carolina’s state superintendent Ellen Weaver, and Florida’s state superintendent Manny Diaz, Jr. as possibles. One name absent from the list is Betsy DeVos, Trump’s education secretary during his first term.

ESSER Deadline Puts Out-of-School Programs on the Chopping Block. That’s a Shame (The 74)

The 74 reported this week that,

“The deadline to obligate Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds just passed, which means school and district leaders are facing tough choices about what to preserve for next year’s budget. Afterschool, vacation and summer programs were key beneficiaries of federal stimulus dollars: 80% of district superintendents reported expanding learning time beyond typical school hours, with an estimated $8.1 billion flowing to programs that took place outside typical classroom time.”

“Now, early indicators suggest these types of programs are likely to be first on the chopping block.”

No surprise here. Traditional school districts usually spend money on out of school learning only when they have fat budgets. The minute a budget is cut, out goes any program that doesn’t occur during the school day.

That’s why school world and the real world don’t play well together in the sand box.

Chicago Fire: Chaos Reigns as School Board Quits and Elections Loom (The 74)

The Chicago school board is a mess – again. There is no need here to provide the details of their last implosion.

I’m reminded of something my good friend Rod Paige, past U.S. Education Secretary, would say about school boards. He would remind me that, over fifty years of school reform, there is only one institution that has flown under the radar when it comes to change – and that would be the American school board.

Most school boards are too political and need to be changed for the better, so that kids can benefit from decisions supposedly made about them.

Here’s When Most Americans Think Cellphones Should Be Banned (EducationWeek)

I can’t get away from this topic, especially during the Friday News Roundup.

EducationWeek reported this week that,

“Educators and parents are often at odds regarding school cellphone policies. While teachers and principals may want to restrict students’ access to the distracting devices, parents want to be able to reach their children in case of emergencies.”

“However, new data from the Pew Research Center shows there might be an area for compromise. While banning cellphones throughout the school day is not popular with parents of children in school – or U.S. adults generally – banning cellphones during class time has strong support.”

For now. Until we identify a group of adult learning leaders who depend on their young learners having cellphones on their person so they can learn anytime, anywhere.

That time is coming.

That’s it for this edition of the Friday News Roundup. Early voting has opened in Iowa! Have a great weekend. Til Monday. SVB