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Matthew Lynch published in Higher Education November 1, 2015

Pioneering a ‘transnational’ university

*The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest column by David P. Dauwalder, Ph.D.

Welcome to the San Diego-Baja California Binational Mega-Region.

While that’s a mouthful, the term is now in wide use by U.S. and Mexican leaders and organizations to define the transnational area consisting of San Diego and Imperial counties and the State of Baja California. The region has an estimated population of 6.78 million, with 3.44 million in the U.S. and 3.34 million in Mexico, unified by a dense and complex set of transactions and relationships across the international boundary. It represents the largest concentration of population along the U.S.-Mexican border.

By any measure, it’s a remarkable place. The San Diego-Tijuana urban region is the largest binational metropolitan area in the U.S. and the largest in the world. At its center is the globe’s busiest land-border crossing, with more than 100,000 people coming northward every day to shop, work, and study and for tourism and recreation. Each month, more than one million U.S. citizens cross the border into Tijuana and back. Despite the security enhancements on the U.S. side of the border, the two halves of the region are intimately connected demographically, culturally, politically, economically, and in so many other ways.

The vitality of the binational region is incontrovertible. San Diego County is the state’s second-most populous, with a balanced, forward-looking economy based on universities and research, clean tech, the military, tourism, life sciences, aerospace, healthcare, maritime, and information and communications technologies. Tijuana is now the second-largest city on the West Coast of North America, with steep population growth in recent decades. It is a major center for manufacturing, especially in electronics, medical devices, aerospace, and automotive, integrated with the global economy. Much of the manufacturing includes shipping goods at various stages of production

back and forth locally across the border.

Leaders in the U.S. and Mexico, from the head-of-state level down to grassroots communities, have put in motion historic, multi-faceted efforts to enhance international integration with a strong emphasis on education, especially teacher and student mobility. These efforts are particularly vigorous in the binational region.

As it happens, the Mega-Region offers a set of special opportunities to enrich and transform colleges and universities. These opportunities are enhanced by exceptional developments in relations between Mexico, on the one hand, and a variety of key individuals and organizations in the U.S., the State of California, and San Diego County.

Preliminary at-border survey data suggest there are currently as many as 1,250 Mexico- originating university students in San Diego County, and that number could swell to 3,600 by 2025. Additionally, Mexico’s demand for higher education is growing: nearly 55 percent of the population is under 30 years of age. In addition, Mexico is the third-largest recipient of H1-B visas to the U.S. – visas aimed at well-trained non-immigrants, working for a short period. In broad strokes, Mexican students are drawn to academic programs with practicums (co-op experiences and internships), short-term and research programs, and language acquisition.

San Diego hosts the largest naval fleet in the world and has the only major submarine and shipbuilding yards on the West Coast. So, not surprisingly, San Diego County is also home to the largest population of active-duty military and retired military in the U.S. These individuals and their families enjoy substantial educational benefits.

Leaders in all sectors on both sides of the border have demonstrated a remarkable unity of purpose to foster closer relations and to profit from the advantages of the binational character of the Mega-Region. Significant disciplined and coordinated bi-national initiatives to build shared infrastructure, to lobby jointly both Washington and Mexico City on regional issues, to promote educational exchange, and to raise awareness of the Mega-Region appear to be gaining support in both countries. Regional leaders regard San Diego and Baja California as complementary assets.

These regional attitudes and initiatives coincide with an exceptional push at this time toward further integration of the three NAFTA countries, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. This push toward further integration responds to intensifying global competition from other multinational regions, particularly the European Union and eastern Asia and India. This theme of North American integration was stressed repeatedly during the recent California-Mexico Trade Initiative X, the 10th annual delegation to Mexico City by the San Diego Regional Chamber.

For colleges and universities in Southern California and throughout the Southwest, the prospect of transnational education seems both natural and inevitable. There simply is no better time for educational institutions to focus on transnational issues and on the aim of producing innovative thinkers and problem-solvers with the expertise to confront the challenges of transnational development from both a regional and a global perspective. Drilling down, the question is how can universities – acting individually or collectively — amplify these institutional U.S. and Mexican regional relationships, using them to develop alliances and partnerships contributing to program development, student recruitment, facilities expansion, and financial support?

Thanks to today’s climate of interdependence, we’re all about to find out.

__________________

David P. Dauwalder, Ph.D., is Executive Vice President and Provost of Woodbury University in Los Angeles and San Diego.

Matthew Lynch published in Higher Education October 31, 2015

4 tips for balancing an education and a full-time job

**The Edvocate is pleased to publish guest posts as way to fuel important conversations surrounding P-20 education in America. The opinions contained within guest posts are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of The Edvocate or Dr. Matthew Lynch.**

A guest column by Brooke Chaplan

According to a 2011 survey, 71% of college undergraduates retained a job while they focused on their degree. Of these, 2 out of 5 worked at least 20 hours a week, and 1 in 5 managed at least 35 hours.

Of course, these statistics don’t accurately portray the difficulty for maintaining both a career and education. Between the two, you have to spend time hitting the books and the showers, reading the latest essays and taking in your boss’ memos and emails.

At times, you may feel as though you never have time to eat or sleep, let alone socialize with friends and family. So what can you do meet all of your obligations, despite your busy schedule?

Save Time through Online Courses

While pursuing a degree often requires you spend at least a few hours in the classroom, many degrees allow you to take online courses at your convenience. With an online course, you can still acquire your necessary credits to graduate, but can do so in the early morning before your shift, or in the few minutes you have on your lunch break. There are also full-time options available like the New England College masters of public policy online, and criminal justice degrees from other institutions.

Apply for Financial Aid

You likely spend a lot of your time simply earning enough money for food and groceries. Any extra funds you have then go toward textbooks and tuition. But what if you could cut some of your tuition costs? Plenty of financial aid programs will cover the cost of your schooling, so you can spend more time reading textbooks than working to buy textbooks. If you need help paying for college, fill out a FAFSA application or talk to your school’s financial aid counselor for additional resources.

Cook Your Meals All at Once

When you have to get up early to drive to campus, and then drive across town to make it to your afternoon shift, you might not have a lot of time to cook your own meals. But don’t spend your hard-earned money on fast food! If you prepare all your meals at once, you can save money on meals and still enjoy healthy fruits and vegetables.

To start, wash and cut fruits and vegetables as soon as you come home from the grocery store. Separate your key ingredients into easy-to-grab bags that you can pop in the oven, or dump in the slow cooker after school or work. Make each meal large enough that you can use the leftovers for your lunch the following day or freeze them for quick heat ups during the week.

Don’t Procrastinate Your Assignments

When you find a gap in your schedule, you may want to use those few extra minutes to take a nap or play some video games, but don’t get too comfortable just yet! Any extra time you have should go toward finishing assignments early. Have an essay due in a month? Start gathering research. Don’t have to write that report until next week? Jot down a rough draft anyway. By working on your assignments long in advance, you give yourself an extra cushion of time should your work schedule shift and you have to take extra hours.

With these four tips and tricks, you’ll have an easier time juggling your education and your job without the hassle or added fuss.

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Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most her time hiking, biking and gardening.

Matthew Lynch published in list, Matthew Lynch, Policy & Reform October 30, 2015

3 Reasons K-12 Education Still Needs Federal Oversight

Educating American children has always been a responsibility that has fallen heavily on the states. As the public k-12 education matured in the 20th century, however, it became increasingly apparent that states left to their own educational devices meant dangerous consequences for many children—especially students with disabilities and those living in poverty, for example. Historically, the federal government has always been the one to pick up the slack in k-12 education when states have fallen short.

In his piece for The Daily Beast, Jonah Edelman of Stand for Children warns that members of the newly-seated Congress have already voiced intentions to reduce accountability and transparency over states’ educational systems, while providing additional flexibility with federal funding.

I have my reservations about this. Contrary to what some states-rights activists claim, states do not always act in the best interests of their residents, especially when it comes to education. Left to their own devices, states tend to enact discriminatory practices. Allow me to share a few reasons I think education still needs the support of the federal government:

Some states will run wild once given control.

My home state of Mississippi is an example of state control gone awry. If its schools were wholly reliant on the state to outline learning benchmarks and divvy up funding (based on a state population with 24 percent in poverty and over 70 percent of its students eligible for free-and-reduced-price lunch), the inequalities would compound exponentially.

And those inequalities are already startling. For example, while 83 percent of high schools in New Hampshire offer calculus, only 41 percent of those in Mississippi do.

Mississippi has never quite been able to recover from its rampant poverty that began after the Civil War. Even when freedom was granted to slaves in the state and nearby, the African-American population was not able to elevate its quality of life due to the barriers erected by segregation and Jim Crow laws. Less-overt inequalities still exist that keep each new generation of African-American students in the state from breaking the cycle of poverty at home and underachievement in the classroom.

Federal intervention can give students rights when states refuse to.

Edelman mentions issues like desegregation as wins for the federal government when states refused to do the right thing for all students. Without federal intervention, for instance, we wouldn’t have programs like the DREAM Act, which encourages continued education for students who might otherwise have been eligible for deportation. Instead, because of this federal program, they can contribute positively to their communities and to our country.

The federal government can help raise the standard of education so that all states have something to aspire to.

Federal guidance is needed to measure how much students are learning from one state to the next. Establishing a common high bar for academic performance that includes rigorous college-prep expectations can only be brought forth through federal involvement in schools.

It will be interesting to see what twists and turns the NCLB rewrites take and certainly no group will ever be completely satisfied. But the basic principle that guaranteeing every student in every state equal access to education is one worth fighting for.

Matthew Lynch published in OpEducation, Policy & Reform October 29, 2015

Can Schools Succeed without Enough Money?

Free, public education in this country comes at a price. When the country hits turbulent financial times, like the recent recession years, it takes its toll on the quality of education available in our K-12 schools, and it can even take decades for the true deficiencies to show.

When town and city administrators are forced to curtail the hiring of new teachers, or force the retirement of older teachers, class sizes then increase. The teacher-to-student ratio expands accordingly meaning less face time per student, reducing the overall effectiveness of educational institutions.

An economic crisis does not just affect the schools in terms of budgets. Financial difficulties within students’ families also play a huge role in the educational problems of the United States. With more parents scrambling to make ends meet, there is less parental involvement with their children. As a result, students may become unmotivated and slack off on assignments. They may become problematic at school, meaning more time and effort from school administrators, leaving less time to improve their various systems.

Most American homes are dual-income, with both parents working one or more jobs to try to meet their financial obligations. There are also many single parent families, where the time for work and domestic tasks takes away from one-on-one educational work with children. In nearly every family situation, the time parents have to give their children any type of grounding in basic knowledge is severely limited. The result is children starting school without much of the very basic knowledge children had in generations past. Without that early foundation on which to build, children find themselves forever running at a deficit.

Furthermore, testing regimens for our children are anything but uniform. Some children are over-tested to an extreme; States like Massachusetts may be venerated for their stringent policies and standardized testing, but that level of stringency does not necessarily carry over to other states. In fact, many other states are not nearly as rigorous in their own testing procedures, preferring to do only what is required to ensure that they receive federal education funds, and nothing more.

This level of inconsistency then becomes yet another problem for students. Given the economic climate of the nation, many students may find themselves moving from state-to-state as their parents pursue employment or better jobs. Inconsistency among state’ standardized testing procedures may result in students who have relocated suddenly finding themselves under a lot of pressure to do better than what was required in their previous school.

The Difference between Then and Now

In generations past, children starting school came into the system with far more knowledge already in hand. They knew their letters, they knew how to count, and some of them already knew the fundamentals of reading. This, of course, stems from the fact that most families had a parent who stayed home during the day and was therefore able to spend more time with the child. There were also less electronic distractions from the basics of reading.

Teacher retention is also difficult, stemming from economic factors. A number of the accelerated teacher certification programs, such as weekend and online programs, have good intentions but are turning out teachers that are unprepared to the meet the challenges that they soon will face in troubled classrooms.

Although these teachers are inexpensive since they are brand new and have not worked their way up to better pay scales and benefits, they are more likely to jump ship and leave the school system instead of staying to nurture their profession. Of course, the next group of teachers to replace them is new and inexperienced, too, but provides fresh bodies in the classrooms at an inexpensive level – so the cycle repeats itself. This is good for the budget, but not so good for long-term performance, morale, and achievement.

Certainly, the economic situation affects the task of balancing budgets, by the school system, government entities, and parents. Conversely, more money does not necessarily mean more improvement – but not enough causes a host of its own problems too.

America spends more per student than any other nation in the world, and yet we see meager results. With this kind of money being pumped into the system, why are our school systems in the state that they are? There’s no arguing that our schools need to be well funded in order for our children to succeed, but clearly our schools need to do a better job utilizing the funds that they already receive too.

How can public schools continue to thrive, even in difficult economic times?

photo credit: horizontal.integration via photopin cc

Matthew Lynch published in list, Matthew Lynch, Policy & Reform October 28, 2015

3 Real Facts About Behind the Senate’s Refusal to Consider Climate Change Education

The latest version of “No Child Left Behind” had a section that would have created climate change curriculum for K-12 students.

However, the Senate said “no” to this portion of the bill.

Why did this happen? Let’s look at the facts behind this decision.

According to theHill.com, the measure failed 44-53.

“The measure, from Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), would have created a grant program for school districts to “develop or improve climate science curriculum and supplementary education materials,” according to the amendment text. It failed on a 44-53 vote.”

Chair of the Senate H.E.L.P. Committee (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions) Lamar Alexander said that he wasn’t fond of the measure because it further inserts the federal government into public education. But that wasn’t all…
Alexander believes in climate change but is afraid that allowing the amendment to pass would, in essence, create a slippery slope due to political partisanship.

Interesting that politics is the reason why a measure like this failed. Climate change is real and has been proven by simple science. While the development of the curriculum hopefully wouldn’t grow around partisan ideas, giving baseline information on climate change and its impact on the earth seems fairly logical.

Explaining why temperatures in the ocean continue to rise, why the polar ice caps are melting, and why tornadoes have gotten more powerful is information all students should know. This attack on climate change as “made up” is not helpful to anyone — least of all the next generation of adults who will deal with this on an even larger scale.

Hopefully the Senate tries again with rewritten language and passes the measure. Our students need to learn about climate change and at an early age.

Matthew Lynch published in Parental Involvement, Policy & Reform, Teachers October 27, 2015

Student and Teacher Records: What are the Privacy Rules?

By Matthew Lynch

Personal histories and records exist for every student who attends, and every teacher who teaches, at a school. This history, in the form of school records, test scores and the opinion of teachers and mentors, can have a huge impact on a student’s future. In some cases, it is on the basis of these assessments about an individual’s potential and overall disposition that life-changing decisions are made about them.

These histories could determine what colleges they attend, the privileges that they are allowed, or even the jobs that may eventually be able to attain. It’s important, then, for these records to be maintained properly and justly and be void of impartial or biased content.

School records and who should have access to them was first realized in the 1970s when instances of parents and students being denied access to them came into the spotlight. The passing of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (or the Buckley Amendment, as it is popularly known) by the U.S. Congress in 1974 was the first federal piece of legislation that expressly addressed what students could and could not access.

The Act makes clear who may have access to a student’s records and who may not. The move was largely beneficial for parents who were previously denied access to records that were very likely to affect their children’s lives. The Act made it mandatory for schools to share all information about students with their parents, when requested. It also required schools to explain or interpret the recorded observations to parents, with the failure to do so resulting in federal funds being denied to the school. At the same time, the Act serves in the best interests of teachers. It clearly denies parents the right to inspect a teacher’s or an administrator’s unofficial records.

The Buckley amendment applies to all schools that receive federal money. The act has been a promising step in ensuring transparency in dealing with and handling student’s records. Aspects of the Act, such as the confidentiality granted to both parties, and fundamental fairness, make it stand out as a reformative measure in ensuring the right to privacy for individuals wanting to be educated.

Here is how the FERPA Act empowers parents and guardians and puts them in a better position than they were previously:

Parents and guardians can inspect their child’s school records.
The Act ensures that information about students under 18 years of age cannot be passed on without parental consent.
Parents have the right to challenge the accuracy of information at any point in time and to request a hearing to contest such information.
A legal route to get corrections made in children’s school records and to place a statement of disagreement in student regards too is now open to parents.
Parents can single-handedly decide who can access the information about their child.
In cases where parents find any discrepancies, they can always file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education to seek relief in the civil courts.

It is important for schools, parents and students to realize the importance of what is contained in teacher and student records, while still having reasonable access to both.

Matthew Lynch published in Bullying October 27, 2015

When coaches are bullies: What should students do?

A guest post by Jennifer Fraser

High-level coaches like John O’Sullivan are concerned about the stark fact that seven out of ten kids quit sports at the age of thirteen. O’Sullivan has written best-selling books on how we must “change the game” so that kids don’t quit sports, but instead become athletes for life. In 2012, he became the founder and CEO of Changing the Game Project such is his passionate belief that we can learn a different and better way to treat young athletes. O’Sullivan focuses mainly on parents, whereas I want to focus on coaches.

Our son, along with five others, quit playing basketball in his final year of high school. He had been dedicated to the game since grade four and had planned to try out for college teams. He quit because he was given the tragic choice for a seventeen year old: play for bullying coaches or quit the game you love. The bullying was the same you might find on a playground or in a locker-lined hallway: homophobic slurs, swearing, insults, ignoring, yelling, grabbing, detaining. It’s just that it wasn’t kids doing it: the bullying was being done by teachers while supposedly “coaching” basketball.

Boys ranging from grade ten to first year university reported their treatment to the Headmaster, but the conduct was brushed under the rug as “old style coaching”; the boys who reported were singled out as problematic because they had “unhappy experiences” and a vague promise was given that the coaches would “tone it down.” Funnily enough, that’s not what the police said. Their assessment was that there was a “definite pattern in the complaints, all pointing to verbal and emotional abuse.” However, the police could not intervene because emotional abuse is not in the criminal code. So, the boys were given the choice by the Headmaster: submit to the abuse or quit the team.

After witnessing what really happens when kids speak up, I started wondering how many other kids are treated this way? We know students find it extremely difficult to report on peer bullying let alone teacher bullying. We know seventy percent of athletes are quitting their sport at thirteen. We keep going on and on about how vital coaches are in kids’ lives; they’re more important than almost anyone. Coaches, we are told, are key role models and ‘sports teaches character.’ But does it in its present form? Seventy percent of kids are losing these crucial lessons and the thirty percent that remain might be learning lessons in bullying and narcissism on some teams. According to the Workplace Bullying Institute and many others, our workplaces are overrun with bullies. Is it possible they learn the advantages to bullying while on the court or the field?

Coaches who bully appear to have the ability to cover up what they do. We want to think of abusers as monsters, instantly identifiable, but that’s naïve. Abusers are far more often the most charming, sociable, and influential. They exude goodness publicly which appears to effectively cover up what they do behind the scenes. They seem to have a dual character presentation that I have discussed previously as a Jekyll and Hyde persona (1). Notably, this dual personality type or charismatic bully appears to be especially attracted to competitive sports because of the win-lose dynamic. Dr. Burgo explains,

It helps to view the bully as a kind of competitor on the social playing field, one who strives not only to win but to triumph over the social losers and destroy their sense of self. As in competitive sport, where winners and losers exist in a binary relation to one another, the bully is yoked in identity to his victims. To a significant degree, his self-image depends upon having those losers to persecute: “I am a winner because you are a loser.”

Dr. Burgo describes this competitive technique used by bullies and often by those who support them:

All bullies are narcissists, with an inflated sense of self-importance and a marked lack of empathy for their victims’ suffering, while many narcissists turn out to be powerful bullies. In defending his winner-status against detractors, for example, Lance Armstrong made extensive use of the legal system and his access to media in order to bully and intimidate anyone who challenged him. In particular, he tried to destroy their reputations. (2)

What’s so interesting is that this sport dynamic translates so readily into the work world and the cost is staggering. In a 2008 article on workplace bullying, Thomas Hoffman, quotes from Jean Ritala’s book, Narcissism in the Workplace where she compiles a list of behaviors exhibited by bullies at work.

There were at least fourteen students who came forward at my son’s school to say that they were being bullied by their teachers under the auspices of “coaching” and they wanted it to stop. Notably, the teacher-coaches involved exhibited most, if not all the behaviors used to describe bullies in the workplace. According to Jean Ritala, bullies or narcissists often display the following traits at work:

Arrogant and self-centered, they expect special treatment and privileges.
They can be charismatic, articulate and funny.
They are likely to disrespect boundaries and the privacy of others.
They can be patronizing and critical of others but unwilling or unable to accept criticism or disagreement.
Likely to be anxiety-stricken or paranoid, they may exhibit violent, rage-like reactions when they can’t control a situation or their behaviors have been exposed.
They are apt to set others up for failure or pit co-workers against one another.
They can be cruel and abusive to some co-workers, often targeting one person at a time until he quits.
They may need an ongoing “narcissist supply” of people who they can easily manipulate and who will do whatever they suggest – including targeting a co-worker – without question.
They are often charming and innocent in front of managers. (3)

This description fits so closely with what teenagers articulated about how their coaches conducted themselves at my son’s school. They found it hard to explain how charming the coaches could be which made no sense when put beside their out of control rages. They struggled to understand why they were penalized while other players were celebrated for identical conduct. They knew there was a history of kids quitting, but didn’t know how to understand it. They knew they were in pain, but lacked sophisticated reporting skills or insight to express it.

If adults in the workplace struggle to identify and shutdown bullying, imagine how remarkably difficult it is for teens. They have been taught all their school years that the teacher knows best and the teacher is a trusted figure to whom they can turn when bullying happens. Then suddenly they are in a situation where the teacher seems to be the bully, but that doesn’t make sense so they can’t even think of how to explain it.

Teachers and coaches have a sacred trust. They have enormous influence over young people. They need to get educated on just how serious the damage of emotional abuse is to the adolescent brain and psyche and they need to ensure it doesn’t happen ever on their watch. If they can’t control themselves, they need to seek help. Considering they too have probably been trained in a bullying dynamic, they need healing. Passing on the hurt is not the way to train young people to move from the court to the workforce.

References

https://jenmfraser.wordpress.com/2015/08/06/recognizing-the-abusive-coach-as-jekyll-and-hyde/
Joseph Burgo, “All Bullies are Narcissists: Stories of Bullying and Hazing in the News Break Down to Narcissism and Insecurity,” The Atlantic, November 2013: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/11/all-bullies-are-narcissists/281407/
Thomas Hoffman, “Narcissists at work: How to deal with arrogant, controlling, manipulative bullies,” Computer World, June 2008: http://www.computerworld.com/article/2535227/it-management/narcissists-at-work–how-to-deal-with-arrogant–controlling–manipulative-bullies.html

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Jennifer Fraser has a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Toronto and is a published writer. She is presently teaching creative writing and International Bacclaureate literature classes at an independent school in British Columbia.

Matthew Lynch published in EdTech & Innovation, Matthew Lynch October 26, 2015

Mainstream Technology Gives Lift to Assistive Learning

The concept of assistive technology to help special education students achieve more in K-12 classrooms is nothing new, but the portability of many of the devices is a relatively new trend that is making a big impact on the ways students with special needs learn. Assistive technology devices used to be big, clunky pieces of equipment that drew attention to learning and physical disabilities. Today, assistive devices are often the save types of technology K-12 students are using in traditional classrooms and there is a “coolness” factor in both instances.

The way that assistive technology looks is just one aspect of the effectiveness of the educational equipment, though. The use of assistive technology is also changing to provide students with more customized learning experiences. Studies show that dropout rates for special education students are on the decline – at least partially because the technology exists to keep these kids comfortable and in class longer than in the past.

Strides in Arizona

In December, the Arizona Department of Education announced a $260,000 federal grant among traditional public and charter schools in 12 districts to aid specifically with assistive education efforts. Through the grant, students with special needs can get personalized technology for iPads, notebook-size word processors and electronic pens that can scan words and display definitions. All of these efforts are intended to keep special education students in the K-12 system through graduation by having the technology to keep up in class.

This is not the first effort by the state to give an advantage to students with special learning needs. To help with the small technology budgets, the Education Department has an assistive-technology loan library on the Northern Arizona University campus. Last year, schools checked out over 2,000 items – ranging from pencil grips to iPads – to allow teachers and students to give the devices a trial run before the district made the purchase.
The assistive technology initiatives in Arizona district place traditional classroom inclusion on a pedestal with a heavy emphasis on technology. What administrators are finding is that non-verbal kids with devices prove they know a lot more than ever they themselves realize. Students with autism, cerebral palsy and other disorders that impair speech are reaping the benefits of these devices and feeling successful. Best of all: the students are developing better relationships with one another.

Autism and iPads

Depending who you ask, the iPad has varying effects on children with autism – but most parents and teachers would say that the device has made in-roads in their students’ attitude about learning. Experts at Apple say that iPads “cure” sensory overload and give autism children control, along with a way they can communicate effectively. Using less extreme language, researchers at Vanderbilt University say that speech-generating devices, like iPads, can encourage late-speaking children with autism spectrum disorders to speak, even from the ages of 5 to 8. In other words, the basic technology that is readily available in classrooms and many households is also effective in learning initiatives for children with a specific disorder that impacts traditional learning.

The iPad is just one example. E-readers with screen variance in size of font, brightness and even speaking command options make in-classroom learning possible for children with sight obstacles. Students who need extra help learning to read can spend that extra time with e-readers or computer programs that customize the experience. Students with physical disabilities can sit at a regular computer in a traditional classroom and use specific equipment or simply their voices to achieve the same academic results as their peers.

As assistive technology continues to integrate with typical technology, the students are the beneficiaries. The technology is not enough to keep them in their seats if they are not comfortable using it.

How has the assistive technology of the past few years had a positive impact in your classrooms?

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here.

Matthew Lynch published in list, Matthew Lynch, OpEducation, Policy & Reform, Teachers October 23, 2015

5 Fascinating Statistics About High School Dropouts in America

Considering the flack the United States educational system gets for its underperformance, you might think that the high school dropout rate would be a cause for concern. However, the reality of our high school graduation rates would actually surprise you. Here are some fascinating statistics about high school dropouts in the United States.

The numbers have fallen across all demographics. In 1972, the government started tracking the dropout rates specifically for Hispanic students because this group has consistently highest percentages of students who do not get their high school diploma. Back then, over one-third of all Hispanic students dropped out. Today that number is down to 13.6 percent. However, the group still leads all races and ethnicities when it comes to young people out of school with no diploma or G.E.D.OK

In 1967, black students dropped out at a rate of 29 percent. That number is down to 7 percent, the same as the national average, today. White students have always held on to the lowest percentage of the dropout pie chart, even when their numbers represented a larger majority of total student populations. In 1967, 15 percent of white students dropped out of high school; today, just 5 percent do.

Low-income students are much more likely to drop out than their middle-class peers. In 2009, students from families in low-income brackets ran a risk of dropping out that was five times higher than high-income peers. Students from low-income families are 2.4 times more likely to drop out than middle-income kids, and over 10 times more likely than high-income peers to drop out.

Still, the future is not completely bleak for kids from disadvantaged economic environments; in 1975, low-income students dropped out at a rate of 16 percent but that number now sits comfortably under 10 percent.

Students with disabilities are still being left behind by schools. Household income is the not the only disadvantage many dropouts have, though. Students with learning or physical disabilities drop out at a rate of 36 percent. Overall, a student who does not fit the traditional classroom mold, or who falls behind for some reason, is more likely to lose motivation when it comes to high school and decide to give up altogether.
Men and women drop out at around equal rates. When it comes to gender, there has not been much differentiation when it comes to dropout percentages in over 40 years. There have been four years since 1972 when the rate for young men dropouts was noticeably higher than young women: 1974, 1976, 1978 and 2000.
D.C. has the lowest high school graduation rate and Iowa has the highest. According to the latest set of national statistics, released in 2012, high school graduation rates were the lowest in the District of Columbia (59 percent), Nevada (62 percent), New Mexico (63 percent), Georgia (67 percent) and Oregon and Alaska (both with 68 percent). By contrast, the states with the highest graduation rates were Iowa (88 percent), Vermont and Wisconsin (87 percent), and Indiana, Nebraska and New Hampshire (86 percent). The type of area a student lives also impacts graduation rates. The average high school grad rate in the largest 50 U.S. cities is just 53 percent, compared with 71 percent in suburban America.

As you see, there are many factors that seem related to the high school dropout rates in this country. However, one thing is certain—in most demographics, fewer and fewer students are dropping out. That is encouraging, even if we do have a way to go.

Matthew Lynch published in EdTech & Innovation October 22, 2015

Do Gamified Language Learning Apps Work?

Note: The following guest post comes to us courtesy of Santiago Montero, founder and director of Spanish Tutor DC. Santiago has spent more than fifteen years integrating the fields of education and mass media in Europe and Latin America.

Gamified language learning applications are enjoying millions of downloads, and a certain degree of popular prestige, with Duolingo being named Apple’s app of the year for 2013. These apps use points systems, power ups and other game mechanics to make the memorization of foreign vocabulary and grammar rules more engaging and exciting, but are they able to make students proficient in their target language? Thier effectiveness is the subject of debate, but their enjoyability, as demonstrated by their popularity, is undeniable.

Applying game mechanics to learning is an old educational tool, but a natural fit with smartphone and tablet technology has allowed the idea to flourish. Socialization further drives engagement; earning a higher place on the scoreboard than their Facebook friends is an effective motivator for people with a competitive streak. The more cooperative among us might instead appreciate the fact that after each exercise is a chance to read tips and suggestions from other users. Digital badges and golden tracksuits, in addition to linguistic progress, are the rewards in store for those who persevere with the course, though it should be admitted that a significant chunk of Duolingo’s impressive user base doesn’t last longer than the first two hours of use.

These not so little apps have big dreams. They are already aiming to shake up the current language learning landscape and secure a larger portion of the market for themselves. Duolingo has announced plans for an English language learning certification programme, with French and other languages to follow shortly. Such intentions are sure to make the incumbent industry leaders sit up and take notice, as a cheap, but widely recognized certificate that can be earned from your bedroom would be an attractive prospect for those struggling to pay for classes or transportation. Duolingo claims that proficiency with their app is an excellent predictor of IELTS success. Critics point out that potential issues with cheating need to be addressed before Duolingo certificates are to be taken seriously. In many ways, which colleges and workplaces, if any, decide to accept Duolingo certificates will end up being more important than how accurate the test is itself, at least for potential students and employees.

So far the early skirmishes look promising for the apps. Carnegie Mellon University’s decision to partner with Duolingo gives it some much needed academic clout, and lends some believability to claims that a student can reach the same degree of proficiency by completing a Duolingo course as they can by completing the first semester of a typical language course at college. Dissenters say that gamified language learning apps only teach you vocabulary and grammar rules rather than how to actually speak a language, but then again, these same criticisms can be justifiably leveled at many traditional teaching methods. In either case, the development of these apps should be seen as part of a wider trend that is seeing education become more accessible by going online.

Gamified language learning apps are not without their drawbacks. Listening to a polished prerecorded sentence is not the same as trying to understand what that Nicaraguan taxi driver is trying to say, and it isn’t great practice for the natural back and forth of real conversation either. Formality and regional differences are specifics not best taught by ‘one size fits all’ teaching software. It’s also interesting to note that these apps have become so popular at a time when language learning is on the decline in the mainstream education system. Whether these apps will drive a renewed enthusiasm in language learning, or simply confirm that it is the classroom, not the subject, that is causing unpopularity remains to be seen. It doesn’t look like these apps are helping our current academic year of high school Spanish students, but perhaps we’ll see this change as the app gains deeper permeation into this demographic.

For all the shortcomings of language learning apps, the reality is that they don’t need to be perfect, they just need to be better than their competitors. No, Duolingo won’t teach you how to speak Spanish fluently, but then again, nothing does short of moving country or surrounding yourself with native speakers and teachers of your target language. However, these apps do level the playing field a little for those without access to the very best resources. For now, gamified language learning apps should be best thought of as a useful supplement to traditional face-to-face teaching models, and its creators are quick to acknowledge as much. Although, if these language learning apps continue to grow at the same rate that they have been doing, it might just get the IELTs and TOEFLs of the world glancing over their shoulder.

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here.

Matthew Lynch published in EdTech & Innovation, Teachers October 21, 2015

10 online tools for better student research

A guest column by Antonio Tooley

The biggest responsibility of any teacher is to equip students with the tools that they can use in everyday life.

The content is of course important, but with information so easily accessible, it is more helpful to them in the end if they have critical thinking, analytic ability, and research skills. You can best serve your students by engaging them in active debate, fun and absorbing problem-solving activities, and relevant research assignments. As philosopher Maimonides pointed out, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”

High-school students are among the hardest to engage, so you have to approach them in a way they understand. Traditional is out, online is in. Giving them the opportunity to use the tools they are most comfortable with can help them in ways that no amount of lecturing can accomplish.

You can make your students better researchers, and thinkers, with these 10 online tools.

1. Producteev

It is not easy to work as a team on a research project. There is so much going on in a high-school student’s life that getting together to work on a task is almost impossible. This simple and effective task managing software can help your students connect and work together remotely. Many companies use collaborative tools like this; it is a good opportunity for them to try it out now.

2. Labii tools

Frontiers are being breached all the time, so why not let your students experience working with others on their projects? Labii has a suite of tools that connect researchers of all kinds, providing them a venue for collaboration. Your students can join existing research groups or form their own online, thereby benefiting from the input of others.

3. Lazy scholar

Most high-school students use Google Scholar to find references, but choose only free articles because they have no budget for paid online libraries. This Chrome extension can make finding free academic resources on Google Scholar a breeze. It automatically searches out free copies or for-pay articles. It is a considerable time-saver.

4. Edugeeksclub

With so many things going on, sometimes there is simply no time to do everything. An easy way for your students to find good sources is to have a professional do it for you. Edugeeksclub can help them in any of the various stages of the research process such as the research of quality materials and related literature on the topic so that students can get into the actual research process. The important thing is how well your students use these resources, after all.

5. Pubpeer

Not everything you find in an online journal is necessarily a good source. Ask your students to check out their sources on this website and see what other academics have to say about it. Some peer-reviewed articles have been exposed as fraudulent; some merely have serious shortcomings that your student should take into account i.e., small sample size. It is a good way for them to learn to become critical thinkers when doing research. If there is anything they should learn from you, it is that they should not believe everything that they see, read or hear.

6. Sciencescape

Sometimes, less is more. The massive amount of information made available on the Internet can make it harder for your students to learn about real research. This site is a social network for academics and researchers trying to filter out the chaff from the wheat, so that you only get verified information. It is also a good site for your students to try out their research ideas and get feedback and suggestions from other like-minded individuals.

7. Scientific Journal Finder

This tool helps your students find scientific journals, not articles, that are closely aligned to their research project. They are then able to browse through these journals for promising articles. It is not the most intuitive site, but if your students know what they are looking for, it is a good place to nuggets of information.

8. Google Scholar

Hands down, Google Scholar is the first stop in any academic research. Together with the LazyScholar plugin, it is the quickest way for your students to find the information they need.

9. Colwiz

One of the things your students have to understand is accountability. They will have to deal with that when they go out into the real world. Accountability is what referencing is all about, and what Colwiz does admirably. Designed by the University of Oxford, it is a highly accurate yet simple to use reference management software used by many universities and corporations.

10. EasyBib

Another referencing management software, EasyBib has the distinction of being one of the easiest-to-use bibliography creation software around for MLA, APA, or Chicago formats. You can ask it to kick out a reference list by compiling all your individual citations in one folder, and it will produce a reference list. It is not always perfectly accurate, but not bad for a free service, although you have to pay $19.99 a year if you want it in APA.

These are great tools for your students to have, but they are just tools to make their life easier. In the end, it is how to teach them to think, analyze, and research that will make them a success in life.

Read all of our posts about EdTech and Innovation by clicking here.

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Antonio is a hopeless optimist who enjoys basking in the world’s brightest colors. He loves biking to distant places and occasionally he gets lost. When not doing that he’s blogging and teaching ESL. He will be happy to meet you on Facebook and Twitter.

Matthew Lynch published in HBCU's, Higher Education, list, Matthew Lynch October 21, 2015

3 Initiatives Designed to Help Minorities Succeed in College

It seems that graduating from high school is no longer the end goal of P-12 learning – earning a college degree has replaced it. By 2018, 60 percent of jobs will require a college degree. On Monday, I wrote about the nationwide average high school graduation rate being 80 percent – which is admirable but also means that at least 1 in 5 kids won’t make it to college classes. When you factor in the high school graduates that bypass college completely, it seems that at some point America’s workforce will simply not be able to meet the demands of its employers. When it comes to minorities who graduate high school and are ready for the rigor of college coursework, numbers are bleak.

A new report from the College of Education at the University of Arizona found that less than 1 in 10 minority high school graduates in the state are adequately prepared for college. Non-minority students are not much better off though, with only 2 in 10 prepared for college after graduating from high school. A rise over the past 15 years in minority students in elementary and high school in state, as well as economic disparities between students of color and their white peers, are cited in the study as drivers behind the high school graduation-college readiness gap.

There are several methods that have been proposed to help minorities have better access to education. Here are just three of them.

College scorecards and higher affordability. In 2014, Obama proposed the implementation of a rating system that would provide the general public with greater details about the total cost, graduation rates and alumni earnings of individual colleges and universities.

The program has since been nixed thanks to opposition from lawmakers and university heads, but the idea was that students choosing schools with higher ratings would have more access to Pell Grants and affordable loan programs. The plan was twofold in nature – first, getting more useful information into the hands of consumers and second, providing better affordability for young people who seek out higher education.

The rising cost of a college degree has been a concern of the Obama administration throughout both terms in the White House. College graduates in 2010 left their schools with an average of $26,000 in debt, leading to higher student loan debt in America than credit card debt. In order to reach his goal of leading the world in percentage of college graduates by 2020, Obama has been vocal about lowering the cost of the college process and providing more targeted, useful programs that address the needs of the economy.

This new “college scorecard” proposal was meant to one more step in that direction. Like public K-12 schools, colleges would be held more accountable by the federal government and would be compared to each other through data that truly matters.

Numerous publications claim to have the perfect formula in place for ranking the “best colleges and universities” based on a variety of factors but none are officially sanctioned by the government. The President’s ranking plan would avoid the fluff of other rating systems and address the core of educational matters: cost, graduation success and chances for achievement in the career that follows. These are the real stats that all students, whether recent high school graduates or those returning to campus for the first time in a few decades, need to make informed decisions.

In terms of minority students, the college ranking plan would have been beneficial. Though minority college student numbers are rising, 61 percent of college students in 2010 were considered Caucasian in comparison to just 14 percent Black students, 13 percent Hispanic students and 6 percent Asian or Pacific Islander students. Based on these statistics alone, minority students are at a disadvantage when it comes to attending and graduating from college. Every student situation is different but the cost of college and accompanying loan interest rates certainly play into the unbalanced collective college population.

This idea will not be implemented, but it’s still easy to see how a rankings system that effectively provides more grant money and more affordable loan options to students will make the dream of a college education a reality to more minorities. As more first-generation minorities attend colleges, choosing schools with high graduation rates (many of which likely have strong guidance policies in place) and good job placement will mean more career successes.

Online class offerings. Each year online learning initiatives become less of a fringe movement and more of an incorporated, and accepted, form of education. More than 6.7 million people took at least one online class in the fall of 2011 and 32 percent of college students now take at least one online course during their matriculation. It is even becoming commonplace for high schools to require all students to take an online class before graduation as a way to prep them for the “real world” of secondary education.

The flexibility and convenience of online learning is well known but what is not as readily talked about is the way distance education promotes diversity of the college population. With less red tape than the traditional college format, online students are able to earn credits while still working full time, maintaining families and dealing with illnesses. Whether students take just one course remotely, or obtain an entire degree, they are able to take on the demands of college life more readily – leading to student population with more variety.

The Babson Survey Research Group recently revealed that while online college student enrollment is on the rise, traditional colleges and universities saw their first drop in enrollment in the ten years the survey has been conducted. This drop is small – less than a tenth of one percent – but its significance is big. A trend toward the educational equality of online curriculum is being realized by students, institutions and employers across the board. The benefits of a college education through quality online initiatives are now becoming more accessible to students that simply cannot commit to the constraints of a traditional campus setting.

Free community college. During his sixth State of the Union address, President Barack Obama spelled out a proposal that would offer two years of community college for free to any student that wanted to take advantage of it. Once enrolled, these students would need to maintain a 2.5 grade-point average, stay enrolled at least half time and be on track to graduate on time to keep receiving the tuition-free access.

This program would, essentially, make the first two years of a college education a basic American right – aligning it with universal access to a K-12 (and even pre-K in some states) education. Of course there would be some requirements for having access to that right and it would not be mandatory, but the basic premise would be the same: free higher education for any American student.

Arguably this plan helps everyone in the long run. More Americans with access to a college education means a stronger economy and less college debt means more money in the pockets of college graduates that they can then pump back into that economy. Proponents of the plan say that it will particularly help minorities when it comes to college attendance because it removes the cost barrier that tends to discourage these groups from enrolling.

What do you think are some other initiatives that will help make more individuals from minority groups ready for college?

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Pioneering a ‘transnational’ university