NOTICE

Third Annual NCUST Symposium: Building Excellence in Teaching

The National Center for Urban School Transformation will be holding their Third Annual Symposium: Building Excellence in Teaching on May 7-9 at the Westin Horton Plaza in San Diego, California. The symposium offers a unique chance to learn from urban schools around the country who are overcoming the odds by improving outcomes for their students. Through their stories, leaders from these schools will be offering strategies for effectively improving academic achievement in schools.

For more information or to register please visit their website at www.ncust.org

SPOTLIGHT

Health and Nutrition

March was National Nutrition Month . The American Dietetic Association created the campaign to provide education and information about making healthy choices in food and exercise. Their website offers games and quizzes to test your knowledge and provide information about health and nutrition. Nutritional understanding, meal planning and physical fitness are important factors that impact the well-being of children and adults. To make this a daily practice, families can take care of their health together by making meal time educational. You can plan, shop and cook together. After meal time, you could go outside and play a game, take a walk or ride bikes. Healthy living is contagious. The more informed your decisions are about eating and exercising, the more you can encourage others to make healthy decisions.

PEOPLE IN EDUCATION

Bradley Scott, Senior IDRA Education Associate

Dr. Bradley Scott, Director of the Intercultural Development Research Association's (IDRA) South Central Collaborative for Equity, is committed to improving education for all students. In his work providing technical assistance, he has created an agenda that brings the issues of race and equity to the forefront of professional discussions. While he engaged school districts with self-assessment and improvement activities, he realized that a lack of equity among the learners continued to be an area of concern. To address these issues and ensure that all student and family strengths are acknowledged and built upon, Dr. Scott took it upon himself to develop a set of standards for which districts could strive. His work has been so influential that all ten equity assistance centers are now using his "Six Goals of Education Equity:"

Goal 1: Comparably high academic achievement and other student outcomes
As data on academic achievement and other student outcomes are disaggregated and analyzed, one sees high comparable performance for all identifiable groups of learners, and achievement and performance gaps are virtually non-existent.

Goal 2: Equitable access and inclusion
The unobstructed entrance into, involvement of and full participation of learners in schools, programs and activities within those schools.

Goal 3: Equitable treatment
Patterns of interaction between individuals and within an environment characterized by acceptance, valuing, respect, support, safety and security such that students feel challenged to become invested in the pursuits of learning and excellence without fear of threat, humiliation, danger or disregard.

Goal 4: Equitable opportunity to learn
At minimum, the creation of learning opportunities so that every child, regardless of characteristics and identified needs, is presented with the challenge to reach high standards and are given the requisite pedagogical, social, emotional and psychological supports to achieve the high standards of excellence that are established.

Goal 5: Equitable resources
Funding, staffing and other resources for equity-based excellence that are manifested in the existence of equitably assigned qualified staff, appropriate facilities, other environmental learning spaces, instructional hardware and software, instructional materials and equipment, and all other instructional supports, are distributed in an equitable and fair manner such that the notion that all diverse learners must achieve high academic standards and other school outcomes become possible.

Goal 6: Accountability
The assurance that all education stakeholders accept responsibility and hold themselves and each other responsible for every learner having full access to quality education, qualified teachers, challenging curriculum, full opportunity to learn, and appropriate, sufficient support for learning so they can achieve at excellent levels in academic and other student outcomes.

In planning and creating school programs and activities, districts should work toward these goals, allowing for greater student benefit.

For more information see www.idra.org

RECOMMENDED READINGS

Culture, Literacy and Learning by Carol Lee

In an e-newsletter published in January, edweek.org made an important requests to educators: get real about race. We would also like to encourage you this month to "get real about culture." As the school year is winding down, we recommend you pick up Carol Lee's new book Culture Literacy and Learning. Lee gives the reader a framework for teaching from a culturally responsive perspective using, what she calls, Cultural Modeling. Cultural modeling takes advantage of the competencies that the students already have from their daily practices. For example, teachers could incorporate students’ knowledge of hip hop and African American English Vernacular. These competencies are used to teach and learn complex literary texts. The author uses real moments from her experience in the classroom, describing how the students' cultural competencies enrich their learning and understanding of literacy. Lee also explores the function of how students’ cultures should be the center of learning for any subject matter. This book is recommended for practitioners, individuals in leadership positions, and researchers.

TOOLS YOU CAN USE

Family School Linkages Project

The Family School Linkages (FSL) Project of the National Institute for Urban School Improvement seeks to assist schools to think about and improve their relationships with all the families of their students. A growing number of studies show that when family members talk to their children about schooling, participate with school personnel, and support their children's efforts, those students achieve more, attend more regularly, and are more motivated and engaged as learners.

On the NIUSI website, there are links to activities your school can do to increase parent and community involvement and read case studies of what has worked for other districts.

RESEARCH BASED PRACTICE

Social and Emotional Learning

Throughout this newsletter we have stressed the importance of learning outside of school: learning happens 24/7. It is also important to remember that there are emotional, social, nutritional, and physical factors that must be supported all day long so that students are in environments that provide both safety and stimulation.

Supporting this idea in December 2007, Education Week highlighted Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) President Roger P. Weissberg's research, which discusses the significant positive impacts of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) on students' social development and academic success from a recently completed meta-analysis, presented at the CASEL Forum in New York. In his meta-analysis, Weissberg contends that schools need to create a space in the curriculum to teach students to manage their emotions and to practice empathy, caring, and cooperation. The results: Their academic achievement could improve in the bargain. This research is gaining momentum in some schools and has also found an ally in research being conducted in neuroscience.

There are three main goals undergirding this research-based practice in the state of Illinois, where standards have been created to teach the subject:

GOAL 1: Develop self-awareness and self-management skills to achieve school and life success.

GOAL 2: Use social-awareness and interpersonal skills to establish and maintain positive relationships.

GOAL 3: Demonstrate decision-making skills and responsible behaviors in personal, school, and community contexts.

For more information please click here.

You can also read an article about Weissberg's research highlighted in the January 2008 edition of O Magazine. Please click here.

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UPDATE

Memphis

The National Institute for Urban School Improvement (NIUSI) made site visits to Memphis city schools last month. The schools have utilized the NCCREST rubric to assess their practices for cultural responsiveness. NIUSI is assisting them in increasing and improving services for students with disabilities in the regular education classroom. Technical assistance was provided at the school level so that the schools could make improvements on the classroom level. Staff worked together to design inclusive classrooms with intensive instruction in the general curriculum. Memphis and NIUSI are eager to continue this collaboration in an effort to improve equity in their schools.

FEATURED NCCRESt STATE WORK

Washington

NCCRESt provided technical assistance to the state of Washington's Special Education department to support them in effectively sustaining their school districts’ efforts in using the NCCRESt rubric assessments. During the consultation, we clarified the purpose of the tool, giving guidance on how to best use the assessment at the school level. We specifically discussed who should do the assessment, clarifying how to utilize the tool at different grade levels. We provided information about other Technical Assistance centers available in their region and about the TA&D network and RRFC website.

Click here to view the NCCRESt self-assessment tools.

FEATURED NIUSI DISTRICT WORK

New Haven, Connecticut

New Haven schools are working toward complete implementation of the community school model (Comer School Development Program). In a recent site visit by the National Institute for Urban School Improvement, we conducted focus groups with teachers, counselors, school psychologist, school liaisons, and senior staff in the New Haven district to determine patterns that would allow us to compare what is actually happening in schools to the intended goals of a community school model, pinpointing particular obstacles that needed to be addressed. One of the solutions we posited was for the district to pursue a new direction for professional learning, one based on a needs assessment. Then, we suggested plans for more effective movement toward a school-wide integration of the community school model.

We also want to highlight the accomplishments of one school in the district. At this school, the students performed a musical review for Black History Month. The review was an excellent example of student-facilitated learning and inclusion. All students were involved, creating, writing, planning, and performing in the review, which included plays, dances, songs and poetry readings.

FEATURED NIUSI-Leadscape PRINCIPAL WORK

Clara Chavez, Andrews Elementary

As principal of Andrews Elementary, Clara Chavez has nurtured her students love for learning outside of school in as many meaningful ways as she has inside the classroom. To support learning within the schools, Ms. Chavez offers an after school tutoring program funded by United Way and Title I. The program offers students extra assistance in academic subjects, emphasizing reciprocity between the tutors, who are teachers, teachers' assistants and pre-service teachers, and the students.

Some of the most celebrated programs are the after-school clubs. Students stay after school to socialize while at the same time choosing to pursue new learning in an area, typically a non-academic one, that piques their interest: dancing, singing, learning to play recorders, stepping and the most popular activity, learning to ride a unicycle. These clubs also give the students a chance to share their learning with the community. All of the groups take their newly developed talents and share them at local functions such as parades and senior care centers. This is a great way to motivate and engage learners to spotlight their interests within the community!

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

"There is really nothing more to say-except why. But since why is difficult to handle, one must take refuge in how." -Toni Morrison

FEATURED WEBSITE

http://www.terc.edu

Technical Education Research Centers (TERC) offer a website full of useful resources for engaging students in meaningful activities and learning outside of the school environment. Students participate in math and science activities in their daily lives without even realizing it. TERC works to generate awareness of how learning in the real world and the classroom overlap. Learning takes place all around us at all times and in all settings, so TERC suggests optimizing school learning by participating in community activities and programs as well as visiting local museums and places of interest. The website offers games and activities that can get students excited about learning outside of the classroom.

DID YOU KNOW

According to The Center for Summer Learning:

• All young people experience learning losses when they do not engage in educational activities during the summer. Research spanning 100 years shows that students typically score lower on standardized tests at the end of summer vacation than they do on the same tests at the beginning of the summer (Alexander et al., 2007).
• Most students lose about two months of grade level equivalency in mathematical computation skills over the summer months. Low-income students also lose more than two months in reading achievement, despite the fact that their middle-class peers make slight gains (Cooper et al., 1996).
• Two-thirds of the achievement gap between lower- and higher-income youth can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities. As a result, low-income youth are less likely to graduate from high school or enter college (Von Hippel et al., 2007).

For sources and more information, visit their website: www.summerlearning.org

Alexander, Karl L., Entwisle, Doris R., Olson, Linda Steffel. (2007). Lasting Consequences of the Summer Learning Gap. American Psychological Review, 72, 167–180.

Cooper, Harris; Nye, Barbara; Charlton, Kelly; Lindsay, James; Greathouse, Scott. (1996). The Effects of Summer Vacation on Achievement Test Scores: A Narrative and Meta-Analytic Review. Review of Educational Research, 66 (3), 227-268.

Von Hippel, PT; Powell, B; Downey, DB; Rowland, NJ. (2007). The effect of school on overweight in childhood: gain in body mass index during the school year and during summer vacation. American Journal of Public Health, 97 (4), 696 -702.

UPCOMING EVENTS

2008 School of the 21st Century National Conference

July 14-16
Omni New Haven Hotel at Yale

Challenging the long held belief that formal learning begins in Kindergarten and is supported five days a week, six hours a day, for twelve more years, The School of the 21st Century (21C) is proving that learning really is a 24/7 process, beginning at birth. Using a community school model, the 21st Century program incorporates child care and family support services into schools, including school-based preschool, before and after-school care and family support services designed to promote the optimal growth and development of children beginning at birth. 21C, also known as Family Resource Center (FRC) in some communities, transforms the traditional school into a year-round, model.

The 21C conference will focus on the Changing Roles of Schools: Schools of the 21st Century, Family Resource Centers, Early Care and Education, School-age Care, and other school-based family support programs. Workshops will be offered in the following areas:

• Research and Program Development
• Technology - New Opportunities
• Effective Program Strategies
• Establishing Partnerships and Collaboration
• Leadership, Policy, and Program Management

For more information visit their website http://www.yale.edu

FOR PARENTS

Parents as Teachers

As summer approaches, it is not uncommon for parents to wonder what they can do to provide an environment at home that is enriched with learning and discovery activities. Fortunately, the internet provides parents with unfettered access to many resources. For parents who do not have internet access at home, public libraries provide free internet access.

Although many of the things you already do are contributing to your child's learning in the home--reading, writing, singing, storytelling, game playing--and in the community--trips to museums and zoos and cultural events--wouldn't it be great to combine these two experiences, meaning bringing the museum or the cultural event into your home?

Many museums have online exhibits or programs that students can experience from home. The Smithsonian, for example, has many different activities on their website for exploring other cultures and their traditions. You and your child can learn together and from each other during your free time at home. To view their website click here.

To give you a taste of what this website has to offer, we are highlighting one of the many activities available: Keeping Traditions. This activity is a great way for you and your children to explore the traditions of your family and community. First, you will read about how one member of the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians in Arizona keeps the artistry of her ancestry alive by using traditional methods and materials to create baskets for infants and how one woman is keeping her family traditions alive by making sweetgrass baskets like her African-American ancestors. Then, you and your children can begin to interview your kin for any traditions or hidden artisans within your family. The Smithsonian even provides a guide for interviewing relatives: The Smithsonian Folklife and Oral History Interviewing Guide.

We hope that these tools will give you many new ideas for spending time learning with your children outside of school.

FOR STUDENTS

Discover the Color of Your World

Where do you see art? Is it in a painting in a museum, the design of your Myspace account, or in the graphics on your skateboard? If an artist is someone who has a talent for seeing and using color in unique ways, then many creative young people can claim, "I am an artist, too."

To embrace this inner artist and re-imagine how color in your clothes or hair or design of your room could be amplified, you could travel to New York City to The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) via the Internet. Their interactive website provides you an opportunity to view traditional paintings and sculptures, art that you have been told to appreciate, but the MOMA is also hosting an exhibit--Color Chart--that departs from the typical, color palette, highlighting artists that challenged people to reject traditional color and color patterns through media, painting, sculptures, drawing and prints. You might even say that these artists are the pre-cursors and the contemporaries to punk, emo and hip hop. Like the art you create, listen to, define your life by, the artists in this exhibit begin with the belief that art and life should mingle, where beauty is located in the everyday. How do these artistic expressions move you? To what mediums do you gravitate? How does this exhibit challenge what we interpret as art?

To view this exhibit on their website click here.

EquiNews reflects the collaborative relationship between the National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems (NCCRESt), the National Institute for Urban School Improvement (NIUSI), and NIUSI-LeadScape. With a new issue every month, EquiNews can communicate with the broadest audiences and provide the most innovative, vital and current information on issues in education, school reform, cultural diversity, disproportionality, inclusive practices, and much more. EquiNews will keep you informed of the work of these projects as well as other news and information in related fields.

For questions or comments on this newsletter, please email the editors of this newsletter - Angela Clark-Oates (aclarkoa@mainex1.asu.edu) or Wendy Duran (wdduran@mainex1.asu.edu).

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To view the past issues of EquiNews, please visit http://urbanschools.org/enews/2008_archives.html