The Oakland Education Week in Review: 7/12-7/21

All the Ed news fit to link in Oakland and beyond–this week–setting the record straight on West Oakland schools, the Kaiser drama continues, some great stories on reducing gun violence in Oakland, the Curry’s invest in Oakland, the NAACP’s role in keeping reading standards, the crisis in Latinx education, depression and Black boys, research on suspensions and their long term effects, all that and much more please read, share, and get involved

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  • Students Move Further Down School-to-Prison Pipeline With Every School Suspension
    • On the school-to-prison pipeline, school suspensions may be a key shut-off valve…That’s because, regardless of students’ past behaviors, every school suspension weakens their connection to school and increases their odds of committing theft, assault, and other crimes. This is the conclusion of a new national longitudinal study published Friday in Justice Quarterly, a journal of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences.
  • Black and Hispanic students should take iodine tablets and head east
    • To say that the American public education system works for many kids would be true; but saying three of the reactors at Chernobyl never detonated also would be true. Whether you’re looking at PISA, NAEP – you name it, the graphite is on the roof – the reactor is exposed. American Black and Hispanic students in particular should take one iodine pill a day for as long as they last and get as far east as they can.
  • ‘This is the agenda of white nationalists’: Four minority congresswomen condemn Trump’s racist remarks
    • After being targeted by President Trump with racist tweets — following days of scolding from their own party leaders — four Democratic congresswomen chose to stand together before the cameras and defend their vision for their country.
  • Certain Groups of Students Attend Alternative Schools in Greater Proportions Than They Do Other Schools
    • Students may attend alternative K-12 public schools due to issues like poor grades and disruptive behavior. Some students attend for a few days to a few years, while others cycle in and out.
    • Among other things, we found:
      • Enrollment at these schools dropped between school years 2013-14 and 2015-16. Declines in White and Hispanic enrollment accounted for most of the drop
      • Some groups, such as Black boys and boys with disabilities, were overrepresented—particularly in schools with a discipline focus
      • A lower percentage of alternative schools had support staff (such as counselors and social workers) than nonalternative schools
  • Depression in Black Boys Begins Earlier Than You Think
    • From 2001 to 2015, the suicide risk for Black boys between the ages of 5 and 11 was two to three times higher than that of White boys, according to a new research letter in JAMA Pediatrics (Bridge, 2018). This concerning trend continues through adolescence as reported by the Nationwide Youth Risk Behavior Survey (Kann et al., 2017). The rates of attempted suicide, including attempts that resulted in an injury, poisoning, or overdose, are 1.2x higher among Black males compared to White males.
  • Most Students of Color Have White Teachers. Here’s Pete Buttigieg’s Plan to Change That
    • While a majority of U.S. public school students are children of color, most teachers are white women, data show. Would new federal requirements for accountability and transparency about educator hiring practices help change that?
  • A Girl, 15, Reported a Sexual Assault, Then the Detective Abused Her, Too
    • The investigator, Neil David Kimball, pleaded guilty to a charge of unlawful sexual intercourse with a teenager he met when she reported a sexual assault to the authorities.
  • For Teacher Professional Growth, Study the Soil
    • To cultivate growth in teachers, we need to understand our teachers and the context in which they work. This simple idea, which teachers apply when designing learning opportunities for students, can get lost when it comes to teacher learning. There seems to be no shortage of cookie cutter professional development that districts purchase to address everything from teaching literacy across the content areas to blended learning to project-based learning. While many outside PD providers have content expertise, most lack what I call contextual expertise. 
  • Op-Ed: Get children out of cages at the border and into school
    • The Trump administration’s campaign of terror against immigrants and asylum seekers worsens by the day.Parents and children continue to be forcibly separated, children sleep in cages and in freezing rooms, some are so traumatized they no longer speak. Late last month, an administration lawyer argued that maintaining “safe and sanitary conditions” for the 13,000 migrant children in U.S. government custody doesn’t necessarily require providing them with soap and a toothbrush.
  • In This War to Educate Black and Brown Kids, Are You in or Are You Out?
    • Listen, we want and need to be in partnership to alleviate the system of inequity that plagues millions of Americans daily. However, if you are claiming to be an “ally”, then be a good ally. It is completely fine to spend your money however you want but be honest. If you no longer want to help fund this struggle then say that, but to say that you have just now discovered economic inequality is intellectually and morally dishonest.
  • Here’s Why President Trump’s Tweets About ‘The Squad’ Are Nothing New for Black Women in Education
    • The president’s assault on these four women of color continued well into Monday. I am a Black woman and I’m here to tell you—the microaggression is not all that micro. As I processed the racist rhetoric tweeted from our nation’s highest office, I could not help but think about the words Malcolm X spoke more than 50 years ago: “The most disrespected person in America is the Black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the Black woman. The most neglected person in America is the Black woman.”
  • Children Face Foster Care Over School Meal Debt, District Warns
    • A Pennsylvania school district notified parents, whose children had a meal debt of $10 or more, of the potential consequence but officials said the letter was not sanctioned by the superintendent.

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