Students suffered big losses during the pandemic. New study shows who was hurt most
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Good morning! It’s Monday, May 16. I’m Lasherica, the new engagement reporter for The Ed Lab.
Let’s talk about learning loss.
Think back to before the pandemic.
Students were experiencing learning loss during the two months they were out of school each summer, dubbed “the summer slide.”
Some students were behind academically because they didn’t catch on in class, and there wasn’t enough time to support them. Or there might’ve been a lack of resources in school or at home.
Then there are groups of students at risk of starting school at a disadvantage compared to their peers because they don’t attend preschool.
For example, my coworker Julianna Morano and I attended the Public Policy Institute of California session for Setting the Stage for Universal Preschool. We learned that the state’s transitional kindergarten serves a higher rate of dual language learners and Latinx students. Native American, Pacific Islander, and Black students are underrepresented.
The pandemic opened legislators’ eyes to that learning loss while adding to the loss students experienced. Students were out of school at the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and stayed out of school as many districts remained remote up until this past year.
School districts that remained remote for most of the 2020/21 school year had “the largest declines and will need to pivot quickly to avoid permanent losses in student achievement,” according to a study of remote learning’s impact during the pandemic. The research evaluated testing data from 2.1 million 3-8 grade students.
Read about the study conducted by researchers with the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University (CEPR), CALDER Center at the American Institutes for Research, NWEA, and Dartmouth College.
The billions of dollars in federal grant funding spread out among school districts are expected to help students catch up using tutoring, summer school, or intervention and address learning loss and academic recovery.
At least 20% must be spent on ways to alleviate learning loss, but is that enough?
“School districts urgently need to reassess their plans and ensure that the scale of their catch-up efforts matches the magnitude of their students’ losses,” said Thomas J. Kane, the educational policy research faculty director.
“If they don’t, we will see the largest widening in educational inequity in a generation.”
You can check out the full study at this link.
Here’s the latest from The Bee’s Education Lab
More racist images, social media accounts emerge, targeting Black students in Fresno
More social media accounts targeting Black students in Fresno emerged over the weekend, students said Monday at a news conference in front of Edison High School.
Fresno students disciplined for racist photo. FUSD says it ‘learned from our mistakes’
Questions remain, however, about supervision in the weight room at the time the photo was taken. The district has not said who was supervising the room at the time or whether those staff members were aware the students were staging the racist image.
Are Fresno-area schools facing a looming teacher shortage? It depends whom you ask
While Fresno Unified officials say they have mostly avoided the teacher shortages plaguing schools across the nation, teachers say staff morale remains low and, unless something changes soon, an exodus of teachers could be on the horizon.
Sanger parents and trustees question move to drop Hallmark school’s charter status
Sanger Unified School District’s effort to merge Hallmark K-12 Charter school and the independent study program Taft Academy, dropping Hallmark’s charter status in the process, has been met with outcry from Hallmark alumni, students, and staff.
‘I’m honored and humbled.’ Central Unified board selects new district superintendent
Central Unified School District has named its assistant superintendent Ketti Davis, who has served as acting superintendent for nearly a year, to the permanent position.
Fresno author earns Pulitzer recognition for poetry about Hmong refugee experience
Assistant professor Mai Der Vang, who was born and raised in Fresno, is the first Hmong-American to be recognized in the 106-year history of the Pulitzer’s arts and letters prizes.
The Pulitzer Prize winning Fresno professor isn’t the only person bringing a positive spotlight to the Central Valley.
More Fresno-area education news
Students at Fresno High and Clovis East High are regional and statewide finalists for the statewide Directing Change Program & Film Contest for youth create short film or art projects about suicide prevention and mental health. During the 10th annual event, projects could also be about managing through tough times, the impact of the pandemic and returning to in-person education.
Students with a first-place winning film will be recognized at a virtual ceremony on Facebook Live on May 17, at 7 p.m. Watch the Facebook Event.
The Fresno County finalists will advance to the statewide round of judging.
The following tied for the first place award for suicide prevention:
“Call Me” by Fresno High School student filmmaker Mandy Yang and advisor Mohan Brown
“It’s Okay To Not Be Okay” by Clovis East High School filmmakers Mishaila Peña, Jaylene Peña and Floreida Uriarte and their advisor Derrick Davis
Brother and sister duo from Clovis North High School win plant science award and scholarship at largest international STEM competition. John Benedict Estrada, 17, and Pauline Estrada, 15, developed a novel artificial intelligence assessment model to measure and predict drought stress in crops quickly and accurately, according to an announcement.
The project placed first in the plant science category at the Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Society for Science global competition, which is awarding them $5,000.
The Estradas were one of two California winners. The other winners were from across the United States such as Florida, Texas, Georgia, New York and New Jersey and from across the world such as Taiwan, Turkey, Germany, China and Ireland.
Nearly 130 10-12th grade Edison High School students have been learning soft skills such as communication, critical thinking, problem solving, public speaking and time management in the school’s Green Energy and Technology Academy. The academy, a California Partnership Academy, teaches students about alternative energy and electronics through internships and job shadowing opportunities through companies like PG & E, Grid Alternatives, and the San Joaquin Valley Clean Energy Organization.
The academy is hosting its annual Tech Expo on May 27, where visitors can see students’ research projects on the clean energy sector.
Madera Community College is one of 10 finalists in the national grant competition “The Million Dollar Community College Challenge.” The Lumina Foundation-sponsored competition helps community colleges with their branding and marketing efforts to attract adult learners. Each of the finalists is eligible for a $100,000 grant and tech assistance with one finalist winning the $1 million, a media release said.
“Through education, people in our community can change the course of their lives,” Madera Community College President Angel Reyna said.
Want more education news? Here’s what we’ve been reading
Is recess a right or a privilege? Despite evidence they shouldn’t, teachers still take away recess. Experts say it’s time to stop. | Hechinger Report
An unmet promise: Early literacy for all in California They blamed the kids as opposed to the system itself. This is not a failure of children. It’s a failure of the state of California and the system itself. | EdSource
San Francisco Unified recall shows how parents can transform a district Serving on a school board should be about one thing only: ensuring excellent and equitable education for its district’s students, a public school parent who authored this commentary said. Three San Francisco Unified board members were recalled, removed from their positions and “replaced by three highly talented, competent public school moms — none of whom have higher political aspirations.” Having such people on school boards is how public education in California will progress, the author wrote. | EdSource
Glendale third-grade teacher showed gay pride videos. A year later, furious debate erupts The Glendale conflict is unfolding as teaching about gender identity in public schools has joined other politically fraught, divisive debates, including on critical race theory, social emotional learning and vaccine mandates for COVID-19.| Los Angeles Times
First-Ever Study of Mexican-American School Desegregation Finds Marked Gains for Chicano Students Nearly a decade before the landmark Brown v. Board case, a federal District Court judge in Orange County, California ruled in Mendez v. Westminster that it was illegal to separate Mexican and non-Hispanic white learners into segregated schools. But until recently, it remained unclear what impact the decision had on California’s Chicano students. | The 74
Another noose found hanging at Stanford University Last week – for the third time over the course of three years – a noose was found hanging from a tree outside an undergraduate residence on the university’s campuses. A school official condemned the “symbol of anti-Black racism and violence.” | San Francisco Chronicle
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Lasherica Thornton can be found here.
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