Passion Counts: The “I Love” Admissions Essay

• Passion Counts: The “I Love” Admissions Essay
• Rethinking Schools - by Linda Christensen – Fall 2016
• Article Link

Educators Dipping Into Their Own Pockets To Help Fill Funding Gaps

• Educators Dipping Into Their Own Pockets To Help Fill Funding Gaps
• NeaToday - by Tim Walker on November 30, 2016
• Article Link
• Key Points: This article examines a very important issue in education that seems to be relevant year after year: funding. The author takes into consideration outside barriers as well as poverty levels throughout schools. He also takes a look at how many students do not have year-round access to books as well as how high quality teachers aren’t being retained and how educators continue to spend their own money for school supplies and classroom needs.
• Relevance: This article is very relevant to myself and others in this program as the majority of us are beginning teachers with a large debt to be paid back. Many school districts were recently awarded large bonds which will help immensely for future schools and classrooms. From my personal experience, I have already dug into my pockets to pay for small classroom needs. I think it’s vital that as newcomers we don’t shy away from these issues, that we voice our opinions at union meetings and advocate for funding for our classrooms and schools.

Corporal punishment still allowed in 15 states??

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/corporal-punishment_us_58337528e4b030997bc0efad?section=us_education

It is absolutely insane that there are still 15 states in our contry that allow corporal punishment.  Not only that, but there are seven additional states that don't "prohibit it".  Our education system in the United States is certainly not top notch in comparison to other countries, and it's reasons like this why. The article addresses a letter that was sent by the Obama administration, specifically by Secretary of Education, John King Jr., requesting (and giving reasons why) that school officers and governors should eliminate the practice in ALL states.  Not only is it obsurd that the practice is something that even still takes place, but African American children (male and female) are victims of physical discipline more frequently than white students - so are students with disabilities.  This adds yet another layer of sadness to this issue.  My hope is that this letter will prompt change in our education system and society as a whole.  So many students need their classroom and school to be a safe, consistent place for them that they may not have outside of school walls.  The thought of students coming to school in fear of their teachers, peers, and other adults is sickening to me.

When They Tried To Steal Our Classrooms

by Amy Lindahl. Rethinking Schools

http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/31_01/31-1_lindahl.shtml

Key Points:

This article is from Portland, so is very local to us. The article talks about the redesign and plans for new schools in the Portland School District. But what happened when the plans were unveiled, was the teachers found out about "100% utilization", where every classroom would be used every period, so less classrooms would be needed. Teachers would lose their classrooms for prep time, and could be in several different classrooms throughout the day. As one teacher put it, "100% utilization equals 100% chaos".  Students would have a hard time finding where their teacher was, teachers wouldn't have quiet areas to help students one on one, and they would have to have a cart of materials that would have to be stocked and ready to go for any lesson that the teacher would need. Making teaching even more difficult. 

Relevance: 

As populations around the area grow, and more kids are coming to our schools, it is important to remember that maximum efficiency of a building shouldn't outweigh the education of our students. They are the ones we should be building the buildings for, not the efficiency gurus.

Audience: Community, teachers, students, administrators, parents.

Understanding the Needs of Students From Military Families

Understanding the Needs of Students From Military Families

Edutopia/Maurice J. Elias/May 11, 2016

Understanding the Needs of Students From Military Families

 Key Points-This is a population of students that we don’t hear much about in terms of how to create an environment that is conducive to their access to education. The article identifies resilience in military children in their strong sense of purpose, capacity to socialize, knowledge of different cultures, and an intergenerational commitment to character, service and a devotion to something beyond themselves. While each child may differ in how these strengths are displayed, these are assets they bring to the classroom.

Presidency and Education

What Will Trump Do on Education? Seeking Clues on Common Core, School Choice, ESSA

by Carolyn Phenicie, in The 74 Million

November 9, 2016

Key Points: Donald Trump's early projected focuses are not on education. He may focus on ending common core, expanding school choice, reforming higher education, and doing away with gun-free school zones.

Relevance: The presidential election is on everyone's minds this week as there are many changes about to happen. Education will be affected, but it is unsure currently what those effects may be. 

Title: Trump Brings Uncertainty to Big Education Issues

Source/Author/Date: RealClearEducation, Andrew Ujifusa, November 9th 2016

URL Link

My Lesson From White America

“These days, economic forces are conspiring to make the stories of many of my white Oregon students more similar to those of my Latino students”

Key Points: The author takes on the topic of “white privilege” from the viewpoint of a professor who, after reading the journal assignments of white students, recognizes that many of them have had the same struggles as members of the latino community. These struggles include overworked parents, poverty, and discrimination. “You’re supposed to be able to make yourself rich, and if you can’t, it’s your own fault.” But still, you’re white.

Audience: Teachers, administrators

Relevance: We need to consider that there are stereotypes about whites that can be damaging as we instruct and mentor our students.

Individualized Learning Plans

 Full Article

Key Points:

- School system in Indiana wanted to develop individual plans for their students with unique education situations

- The district had no tools in place for this so they used Google Docs to collaborate

- Students were to take part in creating their individual learning plans (ILPs), and they were live documents that changed as their needs in education changed

- After one year, the ILPs failed, as they were too much work to keep up with

- The moral of the story is to try, and understand that failing is learning

Relevance:

This article is highly relevant in education because it supports trying new things and understanding that "failure" isn't really failure. It is a chance to revisit something and try again. The ILPs described are also very similar to Oregon's Individual Education Plans (IEPs).

• The Homework Debate
• 
  
• Education.com
• By Johanna Sorrentino
  Updated on Jul 29, 2013
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• http://www.education.com/pdf/The_Homework_Debate/
• 
  
• The key points of this article are focused around whether or not students should receive home work to complete at home, and how much should be given.
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• In this day and age of digital "everything", how important is it for a child to be given loads of homework on a daily basis. Does the completion of rote homework act as a reinforcer for school? Does homework go against what we are trying to teach our students about the actuality of understanding?
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Sir Kenneth Robinson: How to Escape Education's Death Valley

         

How to Escape Education's Death Valley 
Sir Kenneth Robinson

April 2013

http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_how_to_escape_education_s_death_valley

Key Points:

1.       Education in the US is based on conformity rather than the reality of diversity. Sir Kenneth highlights the point that students suffer from “childhood”. He says that children prosper when a curriculum touches and accesses their interest and curiosity. His point that, if you sit a child down and expect them to do 6 hours of office scribing, you get wiggly children is so evident in today's schools. I believe that this is more relevant now than it ever was. With drop-out rates at an all-time high in many areas, we need to be finding ways to excite the interests of students, encouraging them to explore and expand their interests rather than just having them become pencil pushers in classrooms.

Title: Disrupting Rape Culture Through Education

Source/Author/Date: Teaching Tolerance, Colleen Lutz Clemens, September 15^th 2016

URL Link: http://www.tolerance.org/blog/disrupting-rape-culture-through-education

Relevance: As educators, not only are we required to guide our student’s academic learning but we have a responsibility in teaching them how to better individuals in society.

Why America’s obsession with STEM education is dangerous

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-stem-wont-make-us-successful/2015/03/26/5f4604f2-d2a5-11e4-ab77-9646eea6a4c7_story.html

By Fareed Zakaria March 26, 2015

Audience: Parents, Educators, policy makers

Key Points:

The United States has led the world in fiscal ebullience, innovation and entrepreneurship thanks to exactly the kind of teaching we are now told to eradicate.  A broad general education helps foster critical thinking and creativity. 

Relevance:
In order to protect American jobs and be successful critical thinking is, in the end, the only way.
One reason to value a liberal education lies in its roots. The most valuable skills students need are the ones that are uniquely human, that computers cannot quite figure out like flexibility, common sense and judgement.

‘Education Suspended’ | Teaching Tolerance

‘Education Suspended’ | Teaching Tolerance

Submitted by Maya Lindberg on June 3, 2015

• Blogs and Articles:
 
• Discipline and Behavior
• Audience: Educators, Parents, University Admission Committees and School boards
   
  Key Points:
  Zero-tolerance disciplinary policies continue to have negative consequences for students in K-12 public schools.  High school disciplinary records have no place in post-secondary admissions.
  Relevance:
  School discipline records should not be part of higher education admissions. There are adverse consequences, two such consequences are school push-out, which often funnels students into the  juvenile and criminal justice system, and the disproportionate rates of discipline for students of color, students with disabilities and LGBT students
  
  

Study plans for students with Down Syndrome

NIH Resets Study Plans for Down Syndrome

Key Point: This article shares "an expanded focus on how to improve students' learning and memory and help them participate more in K-12 and higher education" (Sparks, 2015). The article touches on all the difficulties that students with down syndrome go through in their education. 

Intended audience: educators, general public, families of students with down syndrome

Relevance: We have a student in our transition program with down syndrome, and this article was very interesting to read. It opens up the mind to see how students with down syndrome learn and work. It helps to relate more to the struggles that he goes through with this learning and work experiences. One thing that the article talks about is the ability of speech for students with down syndrome. Our student struggles with speaking clearly and getting his points across. Is it something that he struggles with every day and that we work on. It takes a lot of patience for us to let him slowly speak clearly. He is learning to not get frustrated and to work on it daily in order to get his points across verbally.

URL: http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/01/14/nih-resets-study-plans-for-down-syndrome.html

Nonverbal Students

Nonverbal Special Education Students

Key Points: This article expresses ways to help nonverbal students in the classroom. It explains first what it means to be a nonverbal student. The article goes through ways that you can help nonverbal students succeed in the classroom experience.

Published: December 10, 2014

Intended audience: general educators, special education educators, administration 

Relevance: On a personal level, the relevance of this article is an everyday one. I work with two non-verbal students who we are working with the be more expressive. The ways this article expresses to help in the classroom can also be used in our community transition program as well. 

URL: http://www.edudemic.com/how-to-help-students-with-nonverbal-learning-disabilities/

Life on the Reservation - Running in Place

http://www.edweek.org/ew/projects/2013/native-american-education/running-in-place.html#jump

Intended Audience: General public

Key Points/Relevance: This is a personal story about a ten year old boy named Legend Tell Tobacco, and his life living on the reservation. His story shows the personal experiences that the students go through who live on the reservation and attend Native American schools. Students such as Legend could end up in the public school system, and it was very interesting to see his point of view on his situation. There is a video about his story as well below.
 

NEA - Advice for New Special Education Teachers

Advice for New Special Ed Teachers...

The Title sums it up pretty well.  I found this article very interesting, Glenn's tips and tricks come from 28+ years of teaching.  A good reminder if you are feeling unsure, frustrated or.....



http://www.nea.org/tools/advice-for-new-special-education-teachers.html