Educational Resources & Tech Tools 01/01/2021

• Resisting the Pushback Against the Work for Racial Equity and Justice  — Teaching While White

  • whenever there’s a concerted effort to address racism in the nation, forces of resistance rise up.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Educational Resources & Tech Tools 12/31/2020

• The Dos and Dont's of Talking to Kids of Color About White Supremacy | Colorlines

  • Do ground your children in a worldview that includes their spirituality, family traditions, heritage, cultural values and
  • self-respect.
  • Don’t perpetuate the myth that we live in a colorblind society. Everyone is not treated the same, and race and color do matter and America is a not meritocracy where they will succeed if they just try hard enough. Even if you believed this in the past, those ideas lack credibility today. If you need to do an about face, say so and explain why.
  • And research shows that by the time a Black boy turns 10, White adults often perceive him as being up to four years older than he is and less innocent than other children. A study released in June revealed that Black girls ages 5 through 14 are viewed as more sexually mature and less innocent than their White peers.
  • Do role-play to help them practice what to say during stressful encounters.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Educational Resources & Tech Tools 12/21/2020

• Listen and Connect: How Parents Can Support Teens’ Mental Health Right Now - MindShift

  • “It sounds really simple, but the thing that teenagers are craving the most is connection and listening because this is hard for everyone,” she said.

     

  • “Children take their cues first from us, always. We are their people.” But adults do not need to be paragons of positivity. We don’t have to pretend it’s easy, says Hurley. Instead, we can talk about how we are feeling with teens “so that they know that, right now, feeling like you're on a roller coaster every day is normal.”
  • “Whether it is taking that daily walk or doing an online yoga class or some sort of exercise to get the endorphins going, we have to think about our own coping strategies,” says Hurley. She also strongly recommends meditation apps because mindfulness is a proven way to reduce the acute stress response. “When we use it, it works.”

  • Check-In Without Interviewing

     

  • Hurley said the most common response she’s hearing from kids right now is that they are lonely. They miss their friends, and they miss “a teacher leaning over their desk to point something out on their paper. Teachers have this magical way of connecting with kids in small ways and they can't get that over Zoom, no matter how hard they try.”

  • Parents often report that their teens are not coming to them for support. But they are, Hurley says.

     

    “They're just doing it in a way that you don't like. When they're venting or sniping at you over little things – there it is!

  • Even as the ‘warm fuzzies’ are not often reciprocated, teens still need them, still need to know they are loved unconditionally.”

• Should Schools Be Giving So Many Failing Grades This Year?

  • “The question is not, how can we get these kids who are close to failing to not fail. It’s, what is not working for those kids?” MacIndoe said. “How can we do a better job for them?”

• NAIS - NAIS Research: Budget Considerations for the 2021-2022 School Year

  tags: budget tuition

  • Data from the NAIS Snapshot surveys of varying groups of independent school leaders reveal that 61% of schools have increased their expense budgets for the 2020-2021 fiscal year, while 58% are projecting a loss for the same time period.
  • 49% of schools experienced a decrease in enrollment for the 2020-2021 school year, with 33% seeing a decrease of greater than 5%. At the same time, 47% of schools reduced their fundraising goals from the previous year.[2] Tuition revenue will only help fill the gap at some schools: 49% increased their tuition, while 41% kept it the same and just 5% of schools reduced it.[3] However, 70% do expect to raise tuition in 2021-2022.[4]
  • Sixty-seven percent of schools have already implemented revenue-increasing strategies, and 76% plan to do the same in 2021-2022. Schools most commonly plan to rely on summer programs, with 67% already offering them and 79% likely to for the next summer.
  • 74% of schools increased their technology budgets.[6] Thirty-six percent expect IT expenses to increase further in 2021-2022.[7] Other schools appear to be angling to attract and retain staff despite the cost: 43% increased salaries (compared to 21% who cut them), and 74% hired additional staff (though data from a different sample of NAIS members found that 30% had implemented a hiring freeze, while 19% instituted layoffs).[8] Additionally, 38% of schools have increased their general financial aid budgets, with 31% increasing it by more than 5%. Fifty-four percent have established a separate emergency grant fund for students needing additional assistance.
  • Despite the need for additional teacher training in online and hybrid learning, professional development budgets have frequently been cut to make up for additional spending elsewhere, with 41% of the schools decreasing the amount allocated (and 26% decreasing it by more than 16%).[10] Thirty-nine percent of schools are likely to continue to reduce professional development in 2021-2022, and 22% may freeze it altogether.
  • adding new degree programs was a common and successful tactic for boosting enrollment during the Great Recession and one that was also popular with faculty.
  • A parallel tactic for independent schools in markets that have seen increased demand for their programs, whether in-person or online, would be to add a part-time or afterschool component for parents worried about learning loss for their public school students.
  • Determining what motivates your parents can help your school focus its offerings and rein in expenses, helping you focus on what matters most to families.
  • Fifty-five percent of independent schools lost teachers this year due to COVID-19 concerns, and 8% lost 5% or more of their teaching staff, according to NAIS Snapshot surveys.[21] All of this has led to a nationwide shortage in both dedicated substitutes and, more broadly, people who can just watch over a classroom when the teacher isn’t physically present.
  • The goal of financial sustainability seems to have been superseded by the reality of teaching during a global pandemic
  • To address the substitute shortage in South Dakota, for example, one public school district partnered with a local university’s college of education. Teaching candidates are able to get the field experience hours required for their degree by substitute teaching in various classrooms.
  • After all, the job market for recent graduates has shrunk dramatically during the pandemic, with unemployment during the third quarter of 2020 particularly high among young people—almost 18% of 18- to 19-year-olds were unemployed as were about 15% of 20- to 24-year-olds.
  • • One-time revenue shortfall (with expected rapid recovery): This scenario is optimistic during the pandemic, but schools that were unable to hold a large revenue-earning event in 2020, such as an auction, community fair, or summer camp, but expect to be able to do so in 2021 can rely on endowment funds for the time being.
     
    • One-time or short-term expenses: Schools may need endowment funds to repair the campus after natural disasters or offer emergency financial aid grants for families facing hardship.
     
    • Short-term expense for long-term savings: Schools that haven’t already done so, or haven’t done so to as full an extent as they would like, can use endowment funds to upgrade technology or PPE infrastructures in order to attract and retain students in the long-term.
  • When making financial decisions, school leaders need to be honest about the challenges affecting their final choice.

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Educational Resources & Tech Tools 12/02/2020

• You want this party started, right? Here We Go!

  You want this party started, right? Here We Go! #BidenHarris2020 https://t.co/cC1IYm8QaC

  tags: BidenHarris2020

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.