Driven by Data: Using licensure tests to build a strong, diverse teacher workforce

With the release of data never before published, NCTQ focuses on a uniquely challenging point of teacher certification: licensure tests. Their report, Driven by Data: Using Licensure Tests to Build a Strong, Diverse Teacher Workforce, raises many important considerations around the use of licensure exams and their results. After a careful analysis of available data, Read more about Driven by Data: Using licensure tests to build a strong, diverse teacher workforce[…]

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Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students

The federal Office for Civil Rights within the Department of Education has released a report outlining the disparate impacts of COVID-19 on America’s students. Major observations include the following: OBSERVATION 1 (K-12): Emerging evidence shows that the pandemic has negatively affected academic growth, widening pre-existing disparities. In core subjects like math and reading, there are Read more about Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students[…]

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ED Releases “Strategies for Using ARP Funding to Address the Impact of Lost Instructional Time”

Students across the country continue to return to in-person learning after more than a year of varied access to the educational opportunities they need to succeed. For example, some estimates show that 3 million students have either been consistently absent from or have not been actively participating in remote learning since the beginning of the Read more about ED Releases “Strategies for Using ARP Funding to Address the Impact of Lost Instructional Time”[…]

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The Overlooked

Over the past 18 months, the parents of an estimated 10.8 million students, or nearly one in five of the nation’s schoolchildren, did not get what they wanted from their child’s school, reports Bellwether Education Partners in a new report, “The Overlooked.” These families are not a monolith — they represent a diverse range of Read more about The Overlooked[…]

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A DEI Guide to Teacher Preparation Outcomes and Indicators

High-quality teacher preparation can play a critical role in dismantling inequities in education, such as disparities in student achievement and access to high-quality education, which often exist and persist along racial and ethnic lines. Black and Latinx students and students experiencing poverty – like Indigenous, Asian and other students of color – are more likely Read more about A DEI Guide to Teacher Preparation Outcomes and Indicators[…]

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Navigating Policy for Personalized, Competency-Based Education

Covid-19 exacerbated and brought attention to inequities long present in public education. Facing inconsistent access to learning across distances, students will leave this period with months of what’s been called “lost learning.” Short of repeating a full year, addressing these gaps presents a grave challenge for traditionally structured schools. Competency-based education (CBE)—an approach where learning Read more about Navigating Policy for Personalized, Competency-Based Education[…]

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Preparing Students of Color for the Future Workforce

A new issue brief from the Center for American Progress, Preparing Students of Color for the Future Workforce, applies a race equity, community-centered lens to understand how to prepare Black, Latinx, and Indigenous students for college and the workforce. Major themes emerged from community conversations, which have allowed the authors to identify gaps that obstruct Read more about Preparing Students of Color for the Future Workforce[…]

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Maine 2020 Early College Report

The University of Maine system has released the 2020 Early College Report, which analyzes the impact of early college (dual enrollment) programs in the state. Highlights of the report include the following: Enrollment in Early College (EC) classes has increased 76% system wide in the past five years. Students who take EC classes within the Read more about Maine 2020 Early College Report[…]

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A College Program for Disadvantaged Teens Could Shake Up Elite Admissions

Recently in the New York Times, Erica Green reviewed an education program that has underprivileged students thriving in Ivy League classes, and the students’ success has raised questions about how elite university gatekeepers determine college prospects. Excerpts from the piece appear below: Through an initiative started by a New York-based nonprofit, the National Education Equity Read more about A College Program for Disadvantaged Teens Could Shake Up Elite Admissions[…]

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Accurate Student Poverty Data Is Crucial to Supporting All Students: Fast Facts for Policymakers and System Leaders

The Data Quality Campaign recently released a set of fast facts for policymakers and system leaders about the importance and challenge of accessing accurate student poverty data.  Accurate student poverty data is critical to identify students who may be facing challenges, measure their growth, and ensure that they get the supports that will help them Read more about Accurate Student Poverty Data Is Crucial to Supporting All Students: Fast Facts for Policymakers and System Leaders[…]

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Districts Advancing Racial Equity Tool

Decades of reforms have proven insufficient to address persistent racial disparities in educational opportunities. In school systems across the United States, meaningful efforts to ensure access to strong educational opportunities require a bold and significant shift. A new tool from the Learning Policy Institute and the Racial Equity Leadership Network, a program of the Southern Read more about Districts Advancing Racial Equity Tool[…]

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The 10 Most Significant Education Studies of 2020

Edutopia reviewed hundreds of educational studies in 2020 and has highlighted 10 that they believe are the most significant—covering topics from virtual learning to the reading wars and the decline of standardized tests. Selected studies include the following: To teach vocabulary, let kids be thespians. Neuroscientists defend the value of teaching handwriting – again. The Read more about The 10 Most Significant Education Studies of 2020[…]

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Understanding Well-Being Through A Whole-Child Lens: Introducing The Well-Being Index

All students have unique strengths and needs that vary over time and are expressed differently. This year, persistent disruptions to learning, systemic racial oppression and the collective trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic have deeply affected the well-being of young people everywhere. To help educators assess student well-being directly, quickly, and frequently, both in-person and virtually, Read more about Understanding Well-Being Through A Whole-Child Lens: Introducing The Well-Being Index[…]

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Social, Emotional, and Academic Development through an Equity Lens

The majority of public schools and districts in the U.S. report they are working to support the social and emotional learning of students. But in too many places, the approach is to focus narrowly on changing student behavior rather than implementing practices that build relationships and create learning environments that support positive social and emotional Read more about Social, Emotional, and Academic Development through an Equity Lens[…]

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Is Your State Prioritizing Teacher Diversity & Equity?

Research shows that access to a racially and culturally diverse teacher workforce is beneficial for all P-12 students, particularly for students of color, who often thrive in classrooms led by teachers who share their racial and cultural background. But unfortunately, the diversity of the national public school teacher workforce does not reflect the diversity of Read more about Is Your State Prioritizing Teacher Diversity & Equity?[…]

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How Districts Can Better Support Teachers of Color

Writing for The 74, Bekah McNeel explores what districts can do to better support teachers of color. Excerpts from the piece appear below: Right now, around 80 percent of the teaching workforce is white, compared with 48 percent of public school students in the U.S. Research has shown the various ways this racial imbalance hurts Read more about How Districts Can Better Support Teachers of Color[…]

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