[Ohiogift] Public Education NewsBlast — May 27, 2015

[Art Snyder]

           ?                May 27, 2015 - In This Issue:
       Whether complex trauma is a disability
  Climbing suicide rate for black kids
  Can racial understanding be programmed?
  The proficiency disconnect
  What ESEA reauthorization must not ignore
  The crucial matter of hiring, firing, and retention
  Here's what's good about Common Core math
  Vocational degrees? Perhaps.
  BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA
  BRIEFLY NOTED
  GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
                                            Whether complex trauma is a disability
A group of students and teachers in Southern California have filed a federal class-action suit against the Compton Unified School District, alleging it failed to sufficiently address the influence of trauma on student learning, reports Angela Almeida for The Atlantic. Labeled by backers as first-of-its-kind, the suit will test whether federal law determines ?"complex trauma" to be a disability, in which case schools are obligated to offer mental-health services. The lawsuit focuses on trauma tracing to home rather than school settings, a nod to the prevalence of household stressors and the scarcity of mental-health resources in Compton. The city's murder rate is five times the national average, and one 15-year-old plaintiff estimates he has seen more than 20 shootings over the course of his life, including the death of his close friend last September; he has been expelled from three schools and is attending an "alternative school." At present, no standard or clear-cut definition exists for a "trauma-sensitive" model of education, but the general concept involves training staff to recognize trauma and educating students about how to cope with anxiety and depression. Programs would use strategies that restore and heal rather than punish. The lawsuit's outcome could set a precedent in what role schools play in a child's mental health, especially in lower-income and crime-heavy neighborhoods. More
 Climbing suicide rate for black kids
A new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association of Pediatrics finds that over the last two decades, suicide rates dropped for white children but climbed significantly for blacks, reports Evie Blad for Education Week. Rates for white children dropped from 1.14 per million between 1993 and 1997 to 0.77 per million between 2008 and 2012; for black children, rates increased from 1.36 per million between 1993 and 1997 to 2.56 per million from 2008 to 2012. Suicide is the leading cause of death for school-age children younger than 12, and rates are much higher for boys than girls. Black children are also more likely to experience early onset of puberty, which increases risk through greater liability of depression and impulsive aggression. "Black youth are also less likely to seek help for depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. Nevertheless, it remains unclear if any of these factors are related to increasing suicide rates," according to the report. Suicide prevention organizations say they have taken a new approach with schools in recent years, working to help teachers identify warning signs of suicide and mental-health issues at earlier ages. The study's authors recommend further analysis to identify factors that are contributing to racial disparities?in this area. More
Can racial understanding be programmed?
The Fieldston Lower School in New York City has become a lot less white in recent years -- less than half -- making it one of the most racially diverse private elementary schools in the city, writes Lisa Miller for New York Magazine. This year, the school offered a pioneering curriculum to boost self-esteem and a sense of belonging for minority kids, while also combating racism. It's mandatory, built into the school day itself; it compels participation from all races, at first separated into racial "affinity groups"; and it starts in third grade. Apprehension around it rocketed through certain factions of (white) parents, but the school held course. The program reflects a generational transformation in how the broader culture approaches identity, Miller writes, now seen as more elective and performative. The ambitions of the Fieldston program are large, with some aspects better articulated than others, but at base the school hopes to initiate "authentic" conversations about race, which researchers say have been inhibited for decades by liberal "color-blindness." The school acknowledges the program might have been rolled out better, with more outreach to resistant parents, but the program took place as planned, with full support of the administration and board. Mariama Richards, who runs the program, points out that true integration can't happen if just half a student body discusses it. More

The proficiency disconnect
A new brief from Achieve details discrepancies -- or the "honesty gap" -- between student proficiencies as reported by states to students, parents, and educators, and as reported by NAEP, the standard for student assessment comparisons across state lines. Over the past two years, many states report proficiency rates that are more than 30 percentage points higher than their 2013 NAEP rates, leading parents and educators to believe that far more students are succeeding in grade-level ELA/literacy and mathematics than is the case. NAEP is the only assessment with comparable results for all 50 states, administered to a representative sample of students from all 50 states every two years, providing results for individual states, and comparable with prior assessment years going back to 1990. State participation was optional until 2003, when all states were required to participate. The Achieve report includes state-reported proficiency data from 2012-13 and 2013-14, and compares it to 2013 NAEP results. Some states have progressed in closing the honesty gap by switching to new assessments aligned to college- and career-ready state academic standards in 2013-14. Many more states are administering new tests aligned to college- and career-ready standards this school year, and 2015 NAEP results will be released this fall, perhaps narrowing the "honesty gap." More
What ESEA reauthorization must not ignore
A new brief from the Alliance for Excellent Education argues that reauthorization of the ESEA must ensure states and districts target resources and reforms toward high schools repeatedly failing to graduate a third or more of students, or consistently demonstrating low graduation rates among student subgroups. Twenty-nine percent of African American students and 25 percent of Hispanic students do not graduate from high school within four years -- if at all -- and more than 1,200 high schools serving 1.1 million youth fail to graduate at least a third of their students. At the same time, federal funding for high school programs has stagnated, decreased, or been eliminated. Therefore, ESEA reauthorization must include a dedicated funding stream for school turnaround, targeting funds toward these low-graduation-rate high schools. Research shows that the current federal strategy of investing in early years and postsecondary education, largely skipping over middle and high schools, is unlikely to yield hoped-for returns. In addition to the above recommendations, ESEA reauthorization must require states to intervene in high schools where one or more student subgroups miss one or more state-set performance targets for two or more years, and authorize funding for "next-generation high schools" that implement new models for school turnaround, expose students to the workforce, and provide students with college credit while in high school. More
The crucial matter of hiring, firing, and retention
Few schools get turnarounds right, least of all high schools, writes Sara Neufeld for The Hechinger Report. In 2012 and 2013, the federal Institute of Education Sciences (IES) asked 49 states and the District of Columbia about their capacity to support failing schools that had received federal turnaround money. This money disproportionately went to high schools, and states reported significant problems. To fix a struggling school of any level, the right principal and teachers are paramount; state policies often negatively impact hiring and selection. At Quitman Street Renew School in Newark -- on which Neufeld wrote an earlier series -- an excellent principal received teacher-hiring authority in 2012 and replaced half his staff. Each successive year this authority was challenged, because the district had tenured teachers without placements and a budget shortfall. Principal Erskine Glover made some excellent hires from the district pool; others were not top choices. Meanwhile, New Jersey introduced a law mandating teacher evaluations, making it harder to get tenure but leaving seniority rights intact. This tension around hiring operates nationally. Areas where states reported struggling most were in implementing the right teacher evaluations to effectively reward teachers performing well at low-performing schools and dismiss teachers who weren't. The IES report cites several states with promising turnaround practices, yet none of these address hiring, firing, and retention. More
Here's what's good about Common Core math
A new post on the Education Next website by Tom Loveless looks at Common Core (CCSS) instruction and its impact on how teachers teach, as well as how teacher decisions around instruction shape implementation. Standards emanate from the top and are produced by politicians, policymakers, and experts.?Curricular decisions are shared across systemic levels.?Instruction, on the other hand, is determined by practitioners.?Loveless looks at Common Core mathematics in the elementary grades, with an example of how the standards will likely shape math instruction.?The CCSS introduces fractions as numbers on a line, versus traditional representation as parts of a whole. Emphasis on a number line doesn't guarantee effective instruction, and there will be variation in how teachers implement the concept, but overall it's a shift that will yield needed and beneficial change.?Loveless points to a practice guide published by the What Works Clearinghouse, Developing Effective Fractions Instruction for Kindergarten Through Eighth Grade, which states supporting evidence for use of number lines inferred from studies involving whole numbers and decimals. This is the kind of research that underlies many curricular changes in the Common Core that will have huge ramifications for how teachers teach. In a successive post, Loveless will cover less-promising Common Core impacts on instruction. More
     Vocational degrees? Perhaps.
Many return to school to get a vocational degree, but does it pay? asks Jill Barshay in U.S. News & World Report. A study?by the National Bureau of Economic Research examined career- and technical-training programs offered by California's community colleges, finding vocational certificates and degrees made up half of all their degrees?conferred annually, a 50-percent growth over 20 years. Engineering and industrial programs are top fields, but many programs fall into non-mechanical categories, from business to prison management. Researchers tracked wages of students before and after receiving vocational training, gauging a degree's financial impact. Salary increases were compared against those of similar students who started but didn't complete vocational training. In some fields, especially healthcare, vocational degrees pay off enormously -- as much as 65 percent more income per year. Other fields, such as informational technology (IT), see less gain. However, the authors caution against dismissing all vocational IT programs, even though the return for a two-year degree was zero (i.e., similar students without the degree earned comparable salaries). "IT" is a category that ranges from sought-after certificates in computer programming to secretarial programs in data entry. Interestingly, the study found returns on investment for vocational degrees were as strong for people over 30 as for younger students. More
          BRIEFLY NOTED CALIFORNIA

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Cautiously optimistic
In his proposed budget, California Governor Jerry Brown is calling for increased funding for education and a tax credit for the working poor, though he stopped short of agreeing to fund social programs that were cut during the recession despite a jump in state revenues. More
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Possibly illuminating
In the coming weeks, California families will receive report cards describing how children did this spring on new statewide tests tied to the Common Core, aiming for a more robust explanation of student performance by using bands of scoring to show whether a child has met an achievement standard or fallen short.?More
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The slide continues
The number of credentials issued to new teachers trained in California has decreased for the 10th consecutive year, according to latest figures?from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.?More
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Give peace a chance
The Oakland Unified school board has voted unanimously to eliminate willful defiance as a reason to suspend any student and to invest at least $2.3 million to expand restorative justice practices in its schools.?More
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Mulch ado about... nevermind.
LA Unified will begin phasing out?polystyrene trays this month, replacing them with environmentally friendly compostable plates.?More

          BRIEFLY NOTED?
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Reality check
The Common Core-aligned tests that debuted in 11 states and the District this spring will be approximately 90 minutes shorter next year after parents, teachers, and administrators expressed frustration with the amount of time devoted to the new exams. More
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Pearson got some splainin' to do
Virginia students taking the annual Standards of Learning exams were unable to log in to the tests for more than an hour, the third time in a week that computer problems have disrupted the statewide standardized testing administered by Pearson.?More
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Are we all getting along?
The portion of students who experience behaviors used to measure bullying -- being threatened, pushed, made fun of, or excluded -- dropped to 22 percent in 2012-13, the first significant decline since 2005, the U.S. Department of Education reports.?More
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Lasting legacy
African Americans who attended racially diverse schools had better cognitive abilities decades after graduation, according to a new study.?More

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Cuomo hearts tax credits
In a campaign-style tour meant to put pressure on lawmakers, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo visited churches and a yeshiva to promote a bill to give tax credits to families of students at private schools, including religious ones.?More
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Get your affairs in order
Districts across Kentucky are tracking down 16- and 17-year-old high school dropouts to tell them they are required to return to school this fall if they don't get a GED by June 30.?More
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A boon for parents
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has signed a bill that overhauls how severely disabled children are educated in the state; the Individualized Education Act will turn over roughly $6,600 in education funds per student.?More
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/state/haslam-signs-bill-overhauling-special-education-funding_56886170
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Impending crisis
Driven by a combination of budget cuts and declining enrollment, the closing of schools is profoundly impacting communities in the U.S. island territory of Puerto Rico, forcing children to commute long ways to new campuses and creating a blight in places already hard-hit by recession.?More
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No big surprise
New findings published in the journal Sleep Health suggest that teens with sleep problems are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, synonymous with previous findings that link increased risk of substance abuse to sleep disorders or insomnia.?More
          
GRANTS AND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

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Ribbons of Hope: Grants to Benefit Women and Girls
Ribbons of Hope/Invest in Women, Inc. is an Atlanta-based foundation that began as friends and family of the Coca-Cola Company who wanted to reach out and support organizations making a difference in women's lives. Its membership is now 50 women who together are committed to an annual grant to non-profit organizations that empower women and girls in the areas of education, health, economic independence, social well-being, or human rights. Maximum award: $100,000. Eligibility: 501 (c)(3) status organizations or agencies with at least three years of financial records and an annual operating budget of at least $500,000. Deadline: May 31, 2015. More
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MLB: Baseball Tomorrow Fund
Major League Baseball's Baseball Tomorrow Fund gives grants to nonprofit organizations involved in the operation of youth baseball and softball programs and facilities. Funds may be used to finance a new program, expand or improve an existing program, undertake a new collaborative effort, or obtain facilities or equipment necessary for youth baseball or softball programs. Maximum award: $40,000. Eligibility: U.S.-based or international nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations involved in operation of youth baseball and/or softball programs and facilities. Deadline: July 1, 2015.?More
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RWJF: Healthy Eating Research Projects
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has issued an RFP for two types of awards aimed at providing advocates, decision-makers, and policymakers with the evidence needed to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic. Round Nine Grants: grants of up to $190,000 over 18 months. RWJF New Connections Grants will award up to $100,000 each for 12-18 months. Eligibility: public entities or 501(c)(3) organizations. Deadline: July 1, 2015.?More
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American Legion Child Welfare Foundation: Grants for Children
The American Legion Child Welfare Foundation supports organizations that contribute to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual welfare of children.
The foundation awards grants for dissemination of information about new and innovative programs designed to benefit youth or information already possessed by well-established organizations. Projects must have the potential to help American children in a large geographic area (more than one state).Maximum award: Grant amounts are determined on a project-by-project basis. Eligibility: 501(c)(3) organizations. Deadline: July 15, 2015.?More
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Quote of the Week:?
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"It is incomprehensible that estate tax cuts for millionaires and property tax relief for large corporations are higher priorities for your House Republican caucus than investing adequately in our students and young children." -- Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton (D.), in a letter to the Minnesota House speaker, Representative Kurt Daudt, (R.). More



 

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