last week, Pacific Islanders and absenteeism, a celebration of Mr. Wright, teachers of the year are announced, a health pathway making a difference, a proposal to slow the math curricula and reduce pressure on 8th grade algebra, the importance of dyslexia screenings, universal Pre K from the governor, a great opportunity for teachers in the Jazz and Democracy Project, charter schools with open seats, and schools showing progress with Black children, and a new federal program for free broadband, that and more, please read share and get involved
Oakland:
- As Pacific Islander absenteeism soars in OUSD, Oakland organization IKUNA finds ways to create belonging
- Episode 9: James Harris & Dirk Tillotson | A Revolution In Education (Season 2)
- Honoring Mr. Oscar Wright–One of our Local Heroes
- OUSD Early Literacy Update May 2021
- GO’s What’s Happening in Public Ed
- Students thrive in Oakland Unified’s health career pathway, study finds
- Oakland Unified School District Announces 2021 Teachers of the Year
California:
- California’s new math war: Should schools push students to speed through algebra, calculus?
- Students, community organizations ask judge to order mental health services, internet access
- What happens when California students in special education return to the classroom?
- Op-Ed: California must fix its school inequality problem. Early screening for risk of dyslexia is a start
- Newsom Proposed Pre Kindergarten for All and Sweeping Education Initiatives for Low-Income Californians
Other Stories:
Resources:
- The Jazz and Democracy Project is Recruiting Teachers
- Charter schools with open seats for next year
- How can we ensure $3.2B in FCC funding brings communities of color offline online? We need YOU!
- High Schools that Showed Progress with African American Children
- Emergency Broadband Benefit: How to get $50/mo. off your internet bill
Oakland:
- As Pacific Islander absenteeism soars in OUSD, Oakland organization IKUNA finds ways to create belonging
- “We wish we had more people who looked like us at our schools,” Pacific Islander families tell Taimani Lauti, an Oakland native, co-founder of IKUNA, education advocate, and first generation Polynesian.
- Episode 9: James Harris & Dirk Tillotson | A Revolution In Education (Season 2)
- James Harris & Dirk Tillotson preaching it from the heart of Oakland. They both have views of what is not working in our system of education through YEARS of experience. James, from his schooling in Oakland to his being President of the Oakland Unified School District and now zealot for all things education for youth in Oakland. Dirk Tillotson, a brother in arms, Founder and Executive Director of Great School Choices, who has devoted his life to improving schools for poor Black and Hispanic youth in Oakland, New York City, and beyond. They talk about school funding, public investment in lower-income communities, and how federal money is and could be spent for youth and communities. They dig right in. They see hope – but it will take a continued press from everyone to do the right thing.
- Honoring Mr. Oscar Wright–One of our Local Heroes
- Our State of Black Education Series honored elders last year, and I wanted to share this video of one of my personal heroes: Mr. Oscar Wright. Please watch and share
- OUSD Early Literacy Update May 2021
- No work we do is more important than ensuring our youngest students learn how to read and write. As our communities demand racial and social justice, it must also be our collective call as educators to guarantee the basic right of literacy for each and every student. Considering the long-standing inequities in access to literacy and the impact on life outcomes of our children, now is the time to invest in early literacy and unite around shared goals for all students. Developing our students into fluent and confident readers will open pathways to college, career, and community impact.
- GO’s What’s Happening in Public Ed
- Welcome to What’s Happening in Oakland Education? volume 2, a newsletter to keep the community informed. We know how busy families and educators are. The typical OUSD board meeting stretches past midnight and few parents or teachers can tune in as they juggle so many responsibilities.
- Students thrive in Oakland Unified’s health career pathway, study finds
- As school districts search for ways to reengage students after the pandemic, at least one district in California has found success in a health career training program that’s led to higher graduation rates, more students enrolling in college — and rave reviews from students and alumni.
- Oakland Unified School District Announces 2021 Teachers of the Year
- During the remarkably challenging 2020-21 school year, thousands of educators across Oakland have done outstanding work supporting students. Now, the District is recognizing three of them as 2021 OUSD Teachers of the Year. The three teachers, one each at the elementary, middle and high school levels, will have the opportunity to enter for consideration as 2021 Alameda County Teachers of the Year. As Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell announced at Wednesday night’s Board of Education meeting, the OUSD Teachers of the Year are Jessica Jung at Bridges Academy, Chantel Parnell at Bret Harte Middle School and Whitney Dwyer at MetWest High School.
California:
- California’s new math war: Should schools push students to speed through algebra, calculus?
- A debate over how to teach math in California is heating up as state officials look to redefine success in the subject, with calculus no longer the gold standard of achievement, and a move to push Algebra 1 out of middle schools.
- Students, community organizations ask judge to order mental health services, internet access
- Arguing that appropriating billions of dollars alone will not ensure action, community organizations and parents from Los Angeles and Oakland are asking an Alameda County Superior Court judge to order the state to immediately provide computers and internet access and address the mental health needs of children who have borne the brunt of the pandemic.
- What happens when California students in special education return to the classroom?
- For students with disabilities, the pandemic has been a landscape of extremes. Some have thrived with distance learning and want to continue in the fall, while many have languished without the in-person support of therapists and teachers and have lost ground academically, socially and emotionally.
- Op-Ed: California must fix its school inequality problem. Early screening for risk of dyslexia is a start
- California has received more than $22 billion in new federal funds for public schools since December that have not yet been accounted for in the state’s 2021-22 budget plan. Education leaders in the state are anxiously awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom’s revision to the budget to see how those funds will be invested in communities and school districts across the state hard hit by the pandemic.
- Newsom Proposed Pre Kindergarten for All and Sweeping Education Initiatives for Low-Income Californians
- California would open prekindergarten to all 4-year-olds, fund college savings accounts for low-income students and bring more after-school programs to disadvantaged communities under a plan Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday to “transform our educational system.”
Other Stories:
- The GOP fears educating students on systemic racism and its effects
- The GOP, who have rarely met a piece of oppressive legislation they didn’t endorse, is fighting back again. This time their target is Critical Race Theory, a sociocultural context that few republicans recognized as valid before the bills limiting its teaching in schools started flying.
Resources:
- The Jazz and Democracy Project is Recruiting Teachers
- The Jazz & Democracy Project® (J&D) is enrolling elementary, middle and high school teachers in the Oakland/East Bay region for the second Curriculum Think Tank cohort, convening in June. Seeking experienced teachers only who have classroom management skills, command of their content standards, tech savvy, and who would like to integrate jazz into their teaching.
- Charter schools with open seats for next year
- If you are looking for school for the next school year (2021-2022), there are still many great school choices in both the district and charters, if you are still looking, please apply and find the right spot for your child. Go to Oakland Enrolls to submit your application.
- How can we ensure $3.2B in FCC funding brings communities of color offline online? We need YOU!
- Digital connectivity is no longer a luxury — it’s a necessity. In 2020, we saw the disproportionate lack of connectivity by race, income, and zip code grow even wider, while we simultaneously relied on digital connectivity more than ever before. For many of these reasons, closing the digital divide has become a key national priority.
- High Schools that Showed Progress with African American Children
- Where you send your child to school is one of the most important decisions you can make. We haven’t had new school quality data from the state due to distance learning, so the data is from the 2018-19 school year and I wanted to highlight some of the schools making progress with Oakland children, and encourage families to visit. Every child is different, and I will break it down into subgroups (schools showing progress with Black, Brown and low income students) in the next few weeks and highlight these schools that have open seats for next school year. You can also take a look at the schoolfinder tool to find local schools.
- Emergency Broadband Benefit: How to get $50/mo. off your internet bill
- The FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit launched on May 12, 2021. Here’s how to find out if you’re eligible.
What do you think?