What Teachers Are Talking About This Week

October 13, 2016  |  Sign up to receive The Teachers Edition.

College Access and Affordability for First Generation Latino Students

With Hispanic Heritage Month 2016 coming to an end, the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics is proud to provide ¡Gradúate!: A College Planning Guide to Success, a resource for students, families, and educators to help navigate the process of pursuing higher education. The guide provides information for high school students, descriptions of the financial aid process, and tips for the first semester of college. Educators and families may also find ¡Gradúate!: A Financial Aid Guide to Success helpful.

VOICE FROM THE CLASSROOM Dr. Angela A. Palacios is a Spanish high school teacher in Phoenix, Arizona. A daughter of immigrants, Dr. Palacios found her calling to teach through her higher education experience. On the Homeroom blog this week, she shares her advice for students interested in becoming a teacher and how she has found success through ganas and corazón.

Indigenous Language Instruction Now an Option

“When you say things to people in a native language, it touches their soul and their spirit,” says Aurelia Washington. Students at La Conner High School (La Conner, Wash.), have a unique opportunity to learn their tribal language, Lushootseed, right in their school. Washington, who is the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community’s cultural director, describes this initiative as a way to preserve language and culture. Classes are taught by local language experts and are open to tribal and non-tribal students (Wanielsta, GoSkagit.com).

Battle of the Student Food Trucks

Students, sharpen your knives! Get ready, get set, cook! Culinary students from four high schools in the Austin, Texas area competed in the first food truck battle hosted at the Chalk Walk and Festival. All the trucks made sliders served on Hawaiian rolls, but the sliders ranged from jalapeno popper-stuffed meatball to Korean-style barbecue. Students from the winning truck received scholarships. (KVUE.com)

Engagement Strategies for Students and Teachers Routines are important, but sometimes our routines turn into ruts. Jonathan Eckert describes how changing wait time, altering discussion protocols, and returning to our teaching roots can help energize the classroom for kids and teachers themselves. Eckert says, “Never lose your sense of humor -- it will make you less boring and is probably essential to maintaining your sanity,” (Eckert, Edutopia).

These are a Few of My Favorite Teachers

On World Teachers Day, the World Bank asked students from across the globe what they like about their favorite teachers. Not surprisingly, the results were consistent among respondents. Teachers that listen to the needs of their students, teachers that treat students with kindness, and teachers that inspire were all popular answers, but don't take my word for it, check out the video (YouTube.com).

Looks and Sounds Like an Effective Teacher There are many ways to describe the actions of an effective teacher, and fortunately, The Teaching Channel shares the University of Minnesota’s observable characteristics of effective teaching from their Methods of Evaluation resource. The 20 items provide specific actions that teachers can integrate into the classroom immediately. Take a look to see what actions you may embed into your classroom.

Teachers' Trust is a Must  In a new global survey of what constitutes educator effectiveness, teachers, students, parents, school administrators and policymakers in 23 countries cited relationships between teachers and students as the most important factor. While the survey was fielded in 23 countries, respondents from the U.S. were united in their top choice: the ability to develop trusting, productive relationships. The survey explores how people answered by country, role, development level, and many more characteristics (McKnight, Pearson).

Celebrating Student Art ED honored this year’s Scholastic Art & Writing award winners at its 13th annual celebration of the winners and opening of an exhibit that will be housed at ED until August 2017. This year, the Scholastic judges selected 2,500 medalists in grades 7 through 12 from almost 320,000 submissions across 29 artistic categories. The works convey themes, from love, death and identity to politics, peace and technology. The 2017 Scholastic Awards are now open. Guidelines and deadlines vary by region.

Making Allowances for Early Financial Literacy

Kids who learn about money early, tend to manage money better later. This is not surprising, but putting this common sense into practice requires planning. A cadre of 24 schools in Palm Beach, Fla., participated in My Classroom Economy, a program that simulates a micro-economy. Fourth- and fifth-grade students were “paid” for their work in the classroom and used their “money” to cover expenses, such as a desk – which they had to choose whether to rent or buy (Kadlec, Money).

At the Corner of Literacy and Science  Learn about how relationships with formal and informal educators from schools, museums, and youth programs are focusing on the relationship of science and literacy. Ten funded projects are exploring how increasing the interconnectedness of literacy and science can support local projects. The National Science Teachers Association dives into two of the projects with the local affiliates of the National Writing Project and the members of the Association of Science-Technology Centers sharing how collaborative projects benefit students, teachers, and community.

What's Your Innovation Index?

Bellwether Education’s new publication,  The U.S. Education Innovation Index: Prototype and Report describes the new education systems that are taking root in cities across the country, how innovation plays a pivotal role in improving schools for urban students, the importance of  measuring innovation, the index framework and methodology, and case scores and case studies on our four target cities -- Indianapolis; Kansas City, Mo.; New Orleans; and San Francisco. Each city has a very different innovation profile that reflects its local and state contexts (Weeby, Robson, Mu). 

Resources to Use

•  Federal Student Loan Repayment Options and Programs for Educators Virtual Summit. The US Department of Education invited you AND your network of educators to Session 2 of the Virtual Summits on Federal Student Loan Repayment Options and Programs for Educators on Thursday, October 27 from 5:30-6:30 pm EST.  The purpose of the virtual summit is to inform educators and public servants about the programs that are available to pay their federal student loans and answer questions that they may have about these options.  You must register by Monday, October 24, 2016.
•  #LatinosTeach. Beginning in 2014, the White House Initiative on Education Excellence for Hispanics began their #LatinosTeach online campaign to feature Hispanic teachers to demonstrate that while they may be underrepresented in the classroom, there are many Hispanic teachers who are dedicating themselves to serving their community through teaching. Hear from five such teachers as they share what pathways they took to become a teacher, why they teach, what motivates them to continue, and what advice they have for prospective teachers.
• Using Teacher Inquiry to Support ELLs. Watch teachers engage in collaborative inquiry to support newcomer English Language Learners. High school teacher Jade Talbot presents her inquiry project to colleagues, receiving feedback to help create a successful warm-up routine (TeachingChannel).  

What We Heard from Educators This Week

5. "Secretary King’s willingness to speak with educators during the Title II roundtable affirms the importance of providing support to ensure all new teachers receive optimal training." Teacher, Montana 4. "There is no greater preparation for teachers than real time in classrooms." Instructional Coach, Utah 3. "We are in the middle of a teacher shortage crisis; however, we cannot sacrifice quality teacher preparation to simply fill open positions as quickly as possible." Teacher, Utah 2. "The nation is facing a serious teacher shortage, and better preparation would without a doubt help districts deal with this double-edged challenge of recruitment and retention." Teacher, Colorado 1. "If we invest in strengthening and lengthening our teacher prep programs, we will create life-long teachers." Teacher, California

U.S. Department of Education

THE TEACHERS EDITION - ED Teacher Newsletter

The Teachers Edition contains links to other websites and news articles. These links represent just a few examples of the numerous education reference materials currently available to teachers and the public. The opinions expressed in any articles or web pages do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the U.S. Department of Education. The inclusion of resources should not be construed or interpreted as an endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education of any private organization or business listed herein.