A new report by LFA and Grunwald Associates, with support from AT&T, examines how parents perceive the value of mobile devices, how they see their children using mobiles, and what they think of the possibilities for mobile learning.
Community Based Learning
Blog Entries
Phi Delta Kappa, International has just released the results of the 40th Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public's Attitudes Toward the Public Schools. It makes for fascinating reading.
The Big Headlines
The press will no doubt focus on the following findings: ...
On Tuesday, we pondered the concern that the community schools approach recently championed by Randi Weingarten of the AFT could turn schools into "social service agencies of last resort" while driving education to the margins. This is indeed a danger, we argued, when schools must use their money to "fill the void" left by cuts to essential social services. ...
Addressing the American Federation of Schools convention after her election as president, Randi Weingarten urged the dramatic expansion of the community school model:
Can you imagine a federal law that promoted community schools — schools that serve the neediest children by bringing together under one roof all the services and activities they and their families need?…Imagine schools that are open all day and offer after-school and evening recreational activities, child care and preschool, tutoring and homework assistance. Schools that include dental, medical and counseling clinics.
Robert Podiscio of the Core Knoweldge Blog worries that such schools could relegate education to the margins while becoming "social service agencies of last resort." This is definitely a danger--if schools lack the resources and support to carry out their broader role. Pondiscio thoughtfully describes what often happens when schools must redeploy their existing resources to fill the void left by policymakers who blithely de-fund programs for communities in greatest need. ...
Over the past few weeks, Public School Insights has been interviewing signers of a recent statement calling for a "Broader, Bolder Approach to Education"--an approach that combines ambitious school improvement strategies with out-of-school supports for student achievement--such as early childhood education, after-school programs, and health services for children.
A few days ago, we had the privilege of interviewing Nobel prize-winning economist James Heckman, a signer whose recent work on topics such as graduation rates and the benefits of early childhood education has attracted close attention from education advocates. ...
The Public Education Network has just released its "Civic Index for Quality Education," a tool to assess and improve community support for excellent public education. According to the good people at PEN, the Civic Index "identifies and measures the level of involvement across 10 sectors of the community...:
- Education leadership of local elected officials
- Commitment to the values of tolerance and inclusiveness
- Active parents
- Strong civic organizations (parent, philanthropic, civic/religious organizations)
- Utilization of school performance data to improve school quality
- Youth involvement
- Partnerships with higher education
- Knowledge o, and voting for, the school board
- An active business community
- Media coverage
"These [indices] reflect 10 key conditions that must exist outside of schools--and complement those conditions we know from Standards Based Reform must be present inside schools--to ensure student success." ...
Luajean Bryan is a star.
Just ask her principal at Walker Valley High School in Tennessee, the students who flock to her advanced math and science classes, or the people at USA Today who named her to their 2006 all-star teaching team.
Bryan recently spoke with us about the innovative teaching practices that have won her local admiration and national attention. Her emphasis on hands-on learning is exciting students and swelling enrollments in higher-level science and math classes. With support from the NEA Foundation, for example, she accompanies students into caves and on untethered hot-air balloon trips to help them learn first-hand about mathematic and scientific principles that govern the world around them. ...
Rounding out Public School Insights' three-week celebration of Earth Day is our interview with Milken Award-winning educator Tamala Newsome, principal of the revolutionary Rosa Parks Elementary School in Portland, Oregon. The Rosa Parks School has garnered national attention for its eco-friendly building, its thoughtful incorporation of environmental science into the curriculum, and its integral place in the low-income Portland community it serves. ...
Richard Simmons should feel vindicated by a new studies that demonstrate the importance of health and physical education.
Today's on-line edition of Education Week reports that five elementary schools in Philadelphia have managed to control obesity rates among their students by keeping sodas and candy out of vending machines, trimming back snack foods, encouraging physical education and educating parents, teachers and children about healthy nutrition.
According to a study of these schools published today in Pediatrics, students in schools that followed these steps for two years were half as likely to become fat as students in schools that did not. ...
Documentary filmmaker Robin Smith has produced an award-winning film, Come Walk in my Shoes, that "follows the Honorable John Lewis on an emotional pilgrimage to the churches, parks and bridges where young people played a pivotal role in the struggle for equality and voting rights."
In observance of the 40th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination, I spoke with Smith about her film, its reception in middle and high schools around the country, and the importance of teaching American youth about the struggle for civil rights. At a time when we commonly describe American youth as disaffected and disengaged from their communities, Smith argues, the history of the civil rights movement offers a powerful reminder to young people that they can change the world. ...
New success stories keep coming in from districts across the country--Many thanks to Public School Insights readers who have taken time to submit news about what's working in their schools.
Many of the stories we have posted over the past two weeks focus on community connections.
Here's a sample: ...
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A VISION FOR GREAT SCHOOLS
On this website, educators, parents and policymakers from coast to coast are sharing what's already working in public schools--and sparking a national conversation about how to make it work for children in every school. Join the conversation!
