B.Y.O.T Bring Your Own Thoughts
The latest on all student-centered models, leadership development, strategic planning, teacher retention, and all things innovation in K-12 education. We answer questions before you think to ask them.
District Leadership | Education Elements | Personalized Learning | School Districts | School Leadership
As soon as you enter Vogel Elementary School, you are greeted with large smiles. It is no secret that students are excited to show up to school every day and teachers are ready to embrace their kiddos as soon as the bell rings. The reason? Students are at the heart of all choices made at Vogel– a blended learning campus in Seguin Independent School District. In the 2021-2022 school year, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) identified Vogel Elementary as a campus that qualified for a school action. Historically, Vogel Elementary has received D accountability ratings from the state, although they earned a C rating based on 2022 Accountability results. These results made them eligible for the School Action Fund (SAF) Cycle 6 grants. As part of the school action plan, the school selected a blended learning redesign model. This model was the best fit with existing campus and district initiatives, including the implementation of high-quality instructional materials (HQIM) in Math and ELAR classes. At Education Elements, we partnered with Seguin ISD on this work, collaborating on three key steps which led to an increase in student-driven outcome data.
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District Leadership | Education Elements | Personalized Learning | School Districts | School Leadership
Nation-wide, building literacy in our children is a persistent challenge. So much of a challenge that according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, more than 60 percent of American fourth graders are not proficient readers. Other research has shown that 95% of students are cognitively capable of reading proficiently, which indicates that lacking literacy isn’t the result of students’ capabilities; it’s the consequence of instruction failing to access and amplify students’ potential as readers and writers. The implications of this are serious. It’s often said that reading opens doors. For students who can’t read proficiently, many of those doors remain closed and the paths behind them go unexplored, so further opportunities to learn, grow, and achieve are rendered inaccessible.
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District Leadership | School Districts | Teacher Retention | Teams & Culture | school climate
Post-pandemic data shows that teachers are leaving the profession in higher numbers than they were before the pandemic and for reasons other than retirement or inadequate performance. These high turnover rates have many impacts on the school community, not the least of which is a detrimental effect on student growth and achievement. Why are teachers quitting, and what can be done to stop this troubling trend? Aside from compensation, teachers say they are leaving their positions due to frustration and even exhaustion from managing unreasonable expectations while feeling overworked and undervalued. Some cite weak or uninspiring leadership as a factor while others point to political pressures interfering with how they do their jobs and serve their students. This level of dissatisfaction is contributing to the unhealthy state of the teaching profession overall.
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District Leadership | Personalized Learning | School Districts | School Leadership | Strategic Planning
Picture this: sunrise in Rochester, NH, where the promise of a fantastic day starts with the aroma of fresh coffee and the delightful sight of pastries from the local gem, Potter's House. If you haven’t visited, you're missing out on a slice of Rochester's personality—hard working, welcoming, curious, and determined. During a recent trip, while gearing up for one of our sessions, we made sure to kickstart the day with something sweet. Chatting in line with a local Potter's House patron, she asked why we were visiting Rochester. Her response was heartening: "I love our schools, and our students are amazing. I am so excited for the strategic planning that we are doing with you." Being part of Rochester's dedication to nearly 4000 students is a true privilege.
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District Leadership | School Districts | School Leadership | Teachers
Schools across the country are grappling with fewer students in classrooms, causing a ripple effect on learning, funding, and engagement. Research shows that the number of chronically absent students has nearly doubled, from about 15 percent in the 2018-2019 school year to around 30 percent in 2021-2022. Millions of students miss 10% of the school year or more—whether excused or unexcused—and substantial increases in chronic absenteeism were prevalent across every state that captures this data. The research results imply that an additional 6.5 million students became chronically absent in the ‘21-’22 school year, on top of the millions of students who were chronically absent before the pandemic. Because of the correlation between attendance and learning, this uptick in absenteeism has grave consequences for student growth. In states like Texas, where school funding is tied to attendance, it also creates financial constraints.
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District Leadership | Equity | Innovative Leadership | School Districts | School Leadership
Did you know that New York State has nearly 800 public school districts? (Source: nysed.gov). This ranks New York in the top 10 states with the highest number of school districts per state (Source: nces.ed.gov). Within those districts exist some of the largest and smallest in the country. In a small village between the Shawangunk Ridge and the Catskill Mountains, Ellenville Central School District (CSD) serves 1,475 students in seven different communities. On the drive to Ellenville, you will face highways that bleed into long, windy roads, and just before you approach the village, seemingly out of nowhere, you will be greeted with a beautiful view of a mountain in which Ellenville sits at the base of. When you talk to an Ellenville Blue Devil, there is no shortage of pride and love for their sprawling community. This district is committed to its students and bettering itself to create more equitable outcomes.
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