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ESY programs: The summer slide, eligibility and instruction
Howard Margolis EducationIt's anxiety time. Summer is around the corner, and the crunch of Individualized Education Plan (IEP) season has started. You, like untold thousands of parents of struggling learners, might be antagonizing over another summer slide: "This summer, will Harold again forget so much of what he learned that he'll struggle for months to relearn it? Will this cement his resistance to learning?"
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Fostering self-advocacy skills for all students
Brian Stack EducationWhat does it mean for a student to successfully self-advocate? Simply put, self-advocacy happens when a student, at any age, knows what they need to be successful and feels empowered to ask for help if and when they need it. The rise of innovative student-centered learning environments in K-12 education has increased the need for self-advocacy skills, particularly for students with disabilities.
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One for all and all for one
Debra Josephson Abrams EducationWhat is community? What is your community? Do you have only one? In a recent faculty meeting during which professors examined the successes we had and challenges we encountered teaching a lesson in which community was an incorporated, but not principal theme, some faculty noted that their students had trouble grasping the concept of community.
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Coach-parent relationships hinge on communication, empathy
Bob Kowalski Sports & FitnessClashes between parents and their children’s coaches might be publicized or dramatic, but they’re not the norm. The two sides have found ways to work together to benefit the athletes and the sports programs. For parents, the bottom line should be support. Coaches can help in that regard by being clear about ways that parents can provide that. The previous article in this series detailed some ways that conflicts between parents and coaches can escalate and damage the relationship, and weigh heavily on the student-athletes.
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To strengthen IEPs, stop blaming, start solving
Howard Margolis EducationWhen parents, students and school personnel disagree about the specifics of individualized education programs (IEPs), they often fall into the trap of angrily blaming one another. Bitterly, parents may accuse teachers, IEP team members and school administrators of not caring a wit about their child, caring only about dollars. School personnel may respond in kind, scornfully staring, rushing through proposed IEPs and presenting them with little if any further discussion, on a take-it-or-leave-it basis. Though all parties think they're right, they're usually wrong.
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What should kids with special needs be doing over the summer?
Susan Winebrenner Education"The summer!" you exclaim. "I'm still living in winter!" Yes, you may be stuck in winter on the calendar, but for both gifted kids and kids with learning difficulties, some summer opportunities close their application process by the end of March. I actually found some informational workshops at sites listed below that are advertising the dates of spring workshops that help you get the information you seek.
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Study: Education can change behaviors that lead to ocean pollution
Scott E. Rupp Waste Management & EnvironmentalAny beach in the world can tell you a devastating story, showing just how much of an effect humankind has had on the world and the environment. Strewn with plastic bottles, light bulbs, flip-flops, scraps of fishing net and timber, the scene is the same because of the nomadic trash.
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States renewing efforts to tackle teacher shortages
Bambi Majumdar EducationLike many other states, New York is suffering from teacher shortages. What was a case of a few districts facing a shortage has blown up into a major issue, as bad as the looming national crisis.
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Understanding dialects helps ESL instructors
Douglas Magrath EducationAs I've written previously, knowledge of basic linguistic principles should include dialects — both L1 and L2. Learners at the higher levels need to know that they will encounter different dialects as they interact with native speakers.
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Student protests: How should schools respond?
Ryan Clark EducationToday, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, will return to class, two weeks after the mass shooting that left 17 students and teachers dead. The horrific incident sparked nationwide protests as students across the country held sit-ins and walkouts over the issue of gun control.
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