You should know these numbers

An item from the folks at the Digital Learning Collaborative.

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BY JOHN WATSON K-12 education in the US is so large, that for anyone thinking about state or national issues and trends, having some numbers in your working memory is imperative. The data points that follow are mostly from A primer on elementary and secondary education in the United States, published by Brookings, with a few from the National Center for Education Statistics. Quotes are from the Brookings primer. I’m rounding and simplifying the numbers below. The United States has: About 55 million K-12 students 90% are in public schools; 7% of these are in charter schools 9% of all students are in private schools 3% are homeschooled Three million teachers 13,000 school districts with about 100,000 schools in total Many of these are very small The number of districts in each state varies widely even after accounting for the state population Districts are usually managed by a superintendent who is hired by the school board, which may be elected or appointed State regulations govern most school district activities, but a small number of federal laws and a small proportion of federal funding has an outsize impact on district governance Additional, influential “non-governmental actors” include teachers unions, parents, foundations, and vendors. Per-student funding varies considerably, with “New York, the highest-spending state, spending almost $30,000 per pupil, while Idaho, Utah, and Oklahoma each spent under $10,000 per pupil.” Because of this wide range of funding, “Discussions of school funding equity—and considerable legal action—focus on inequality of funding across school districts within the same state.” “While people often assume districts serving disadvantaged students spend less per pupil than wealthier districts within a state, per-pupil spending and the child poverty rate are nearly always uncorrelated or positively correlated, with higher-poverty districts spending more on average.” These are all broad data points, not specific to digital learning. Why might they matter to you? Your mileage may vary, but some reasons why I believe them to be important for anyone seeking to influence education, or even just understand it, include: The scale of education is larger than most people realize, which leads to statements that may sound more impressive than they are. “We’re used in 1000 schools” or “we’re used by 30,000 teachers” would each equate to about a 1% adoption rate. That can be plenty large enough to operate a successful company, but it won’t change education, so reach has to be considered relative to goals. Given that there are 3 million teachers in the US, it’s quite easy to get adoption of any free technology by a substantial number of teachers. Private school and charter school enrollment is relatively small, but big enough for each sector to be influential. Homeschool is a much smaller niche. Governance is extremely complicated, which explains in part why change is so difficult. Mechanisms to respond to public opinion are built in, however imperfectly. School funding is exceedingly complicated, and statements suggesting that US schools are underfunded and/or inequitably funded are often made without any underlying data. The case can be made that certain schools/students/situations are underfunded, but those situations are narrower than is often understood. Budgets are huge, and therefore large numbers are relatively small by comparison. For example, when Mark Zuckerberg made a $100 million grant to Newark NJ public schools, that sounded like a big number (and it is). But the grant was spread over five years, and the district’s annual budget is over $1 billion, so the grant amounted to 2% of the budget, which helps explain why it didn’t have much impact. Education is also, of course, mostly a state and/or local issue. In many situations, the state/local context is more important than overall national numbers, so these countrywide numbers should be switched to the region, student population, etc. that is most relevant. Do you have a number or factoid that I didn’t include? Let me know in the DLC Community Portal’s Blog Discussion Group. If you’re already a DLC user or member, you must log in before you can join or comment in the group. If you’re not yet on the DLC platform, please create a free user account or join as a DLC member to join the discussion.

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From Pandemic to Policy

Note this upcoming event from the folks at the Digital Learning Collaborative.

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DLC June Webinar and More! Get ready to talk policy in our June webinar, but before we jump into all the exciting details, we have an important announcement to share.  Please note that the registration process for our DLC webinars has changed. We now have our new DLC Community Portal , where you can access webinars, events, and other digital learning resources. It’s not just for webinars, but also offers networking opportunities and other valuable content. Make sure to bookmark this portal for your professional development needs. You will need to log in or create a free user account!  Now, let’s dive into the details of the exciting June webinar you won’t want to miss! From Pandemic to Policy: The Texas Approach to Virtual and Hybrid Education Join us for a webinar led by D Thompson, legislative director for Shapiro Linn Strategic Consulting and Chief of Staff to the Chair of the Texas Commission on Virtual Education. D will provide exclusive insights into the path Texas used to create a new policy framework for virtual and hybrid education. This webinar will outline the process from the pandemic to a state level commission to getting legislation authored and passed in the Texas legislature. You will learn how the Texas Commission addressed myths about virtual education, engaged experts and practitioners, and influenced policymakers to make informed decisions about virtual and hybrid education. This is an opportunity to hear firsthand from someone who helped design the strategy for change and has been intimately involved with policymakers in shaping Texas’ approach to virtual and hybrid education. In addition to the insights shared by D, there will be plenty of time for questions and answers. When: Thursday June 8 at 3:00pm Eastern Speaker – D Thompson, Chair of the Texas Commission on Virtual Education and Legislative Director for Shapiro Linn Strategic Consulting Registration: Beginning in June, DLC webinars will now be hosted in our new DLC Community Portal under “Events.” To register for a webinar, please log in or create a free user account. All live webinars are available to those with a free DLC user account. Recordings of this webinar and past DLC webinars are available to DLC Members only. If you have any questions or need assistance registering for the event please contact us at DLC@evergreenedgroup.com. We’re here to help!

Copyright © 2023 Evergreen Education Group, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at the DLC or DLAC website. Our mailing address is: Evergreen Education Group 700 Main Ave Ste E Durango, CO 81301-5437

Elearning days are like emergency remote learning

I can’t say I disagree with John here, as based on past practice he is absolutely right.  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  The notion that something is temporary isn’t the defining factor or main distinction between online learning and remote learning (or emergency remote learning as John refers to it).  If it is something that is a planned transition, if students and teachers are prepared for that transition, it can be something meaningful.  But those are big “ifs”.

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Elearning days are more like emergency remote learning than like online learning And it’s doubtful that they work well BY JOHN WATSON Way back in the pre-covid times (December 2019), the DLC published a report titled eLearning Days: A scan of policy and guidance. As the study noted: “eLearning days are used to maintain instruction during unplanned school closures most commonly due to weather (snow, ice, and extreme temperatures), natural disasters, or for other reasons including widespread illness. Some districts are using eLearning days for parent conferences and educator professional development days as well. eLearning days provide districts and their stakeholders an opportunity to continue the learning process and eliminate the need for adding extra days during or at the end of the school year for instructional and/or funding purposes.” Of course, a few months after that study was released, most of the country’s schools shifted to an extended version of elearning days, as physical school closures led to emergency remote learning. The DLC has covered extensively the ways in which emergency remote learning differed from online learning, including in this graphic from the 2022 Snapshot. Post-pandemic, and despite widespread concerns about emergency remote learning, some people questioned why remote learning wouldn’t be used for short-term closures like snow days. There is continued interest in this idea, with outlets from Education Week to local media covering the topic. Those two articles linked to from the previous sentence do a good job of reviewing pros and cons, but as noted in the articles, quite a few districts have moved to using elearning days more broadly than they were used pre-pandemic. Here’s the catch: many of the issues associated with emergency remote learning apply to elearning days too. Let’s cover a few from the graphic above: Implemented with little planning by necessity: this doesn’t have to be the case, but in practice we know that training teachers, students, and families to teach, learn, and support students learning online takes considerable time. It appears that most elearning days implementations don’t take as much time as needed to deliver high-quality learning. Temporary: by definition, elearning days are temporary. What’s more, states and districts are limiting the number of elearning days that may be used. That policy is defensible, but the result is a disincentive to invest in training for elearning days when the district knows there is a low cap on how many elearning days may be used. For all classes, all students, and all teachers: In almost all other uses of digital learning, students, families, and teachers are opting in, which means that all parties have shown an interest in trying something new. With elearning days, the reluctant and unwilling are included whether they wish to be or not. There’s no question that elearning days could be successful, and could avoid interruptions in teaching and learning, with the necessary planning and practice. The DLC report included a long list of issues and questions to address, from teacher preparation to instructional strategies, to communicating with families. There’s also no question that post-pandemic, far more students have devices, and the digital divide is smaller (though not yet closed.) But the digital learning community, having put considerable effort into identifying differences between emergency remote learning and online learning, must continue to watch for and call out instances that are more like remote learning than online learning, and therefore less likely to serve students well.

Copyright © 2023 Evergreen Education Group, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at the DLC or DLAC website.Our mailing address is: Evergreen Education Group 700 Main Ave Ste E Durango, CO 81301-5437

Take our DLAC 2024 survey and you could win $50!

An update from the next digital learning conference.

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Take our DLAC 2024 survey and earn our eternal gratitude! The Digital Learning Annual Conference has been rocking for five years straight, and we’re on a mission to make #DLAC24 the best one yet. And we need your help to make it happen! Step 1: Get your ideas about how to be better! We’re diving headfirst into the 2024 DLAC program planning and we want to hear from you.  What do you want to learn?  How do you want to network?  And what do you want to take away from the conference? Share your opinions, ideas, and questions with us in this short survey. It won’t take more than 10 minutes of your time, promise! We’ll use the results from the survey to create the best possible program to meet your learning and networking goals at DLAC 2024 and beyond. Plus, we’ll make sure your ideas get into the Call for Proposals when it opens up in just a few short weeks. So what are you waiting for? Click the link below to take our survey and help us make #DLAC2024 the conference of the year! DLAC24 Survey And don’t forget to complete the survey by June 16, 2023 to be entered into the prize draw. Good luck! Thank you for your help, and let’s make #DLAC2024 the best one yet! Got Questions? Reach out! DLAC@evergreenedgroup.com

Copyright © 2023 Evergreen Education Group, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at the DLC or DLAC website. Our mailing address is: Evergreen Education Group 700 Main Ave Ste E Durango, CO 81301-5437

VLLA Blog

A newsletter from the folks at the Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance.

Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance Updates from the VLLA Blog Why SEL matters so much to today’s educators & students Part 1 of a 2-Part Blog A Q&A on the importance of social- & emotional-focused education School shootings, a global pandemic, civil unrest and cyber bullying are just some of the myriad of issues facing today’s K-12 students. Add in the “normal” challenges of just being a kid, and it’s clear that educators serve a vital role in the social and emotional well-being of their students. In a 2022 report, the National Center for Education Statistics released data that found 70% of public schools reported “an increase in the percentage of their students seeking mental health services at school since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and roughly three-quarters (76%) of schools also reported an increase in staff voicing concerns about their students exhibiting symptoms such as depression, anxiety, and trauma.” The good news, however, is that roughly half of public schools report that they can effectively provide mental health services to all students in need,” according to the NCES study. With the official end of the pandemic expected later this year, its residual impact along with other societal issues continue to affect U.S. youth. As trusted leaders in K-12 online learning, the Virtual  Learning Leadership Alliance embraces the critical role of social and emotional learning (SEL). VLLA members are spearheading SEL initiatives, incorporating best practices into their curricula for the overall health and wellbeing of students. VLLA recently sat down with Junell “Nellie” Christian, director of ACCESS Virtual Learning and a VLLA member, to gain insights into SEL and its importance for online educators and, especially, for those they teach. Why is SEL important for today’s K-12 student? It sounds cliche, but learning is so much more than academic. As educators, we want students to learn to be reflective, lifelong learners who are critical and innovative thinkers.  To evaluate, synthesize, and analyze academic content requires an understanding of how we are each reacting to any content in the context of the individual and the community perspective.  For a K-12 student, the messages that society sends are often confusing, subjective, emotional, and in need of perspective.  A well-rounded individual is the one who can understand that perspectives can be different between two individuals, but respect can maintain the highest levels.  Teaching and learning along the K-12 continuum is filled with many opportunities for students to interject their opinions, thoughts, and feelings and develop perspective.  Students process facts, interpret these facts through their developmental lens, and offer outcomes that should demonstrate growth.  However, what is growth? It is academic, social, and emotional, and often transcends much of what traditional testing can measure.  SEL, then, must be part of the teaching and learning process.  What are some best practices for SEL especially for online learners? Life is about relationships. Even in the online space, we have to figure out how to develop and maintain relationships with students.  This is not an easy task. I think the best practice is to be flexible and adaptable.  SEL will never be a stagnant concept.  As soon as we figure out the best way to connect with a student, the need for and degree of connection changes, and often because of circumstances well beyond the classroom and teacher’s control.  I do think we have to be careful not to silo SEL.  To be effective, it has to be a part of a whole meaning while educators can teach explicit SEL instruction, the value for the student is evident when they understand that concepts like self-awareness, healthy relationships, self-management, responsible decision-making, and social awareness (CASEL) are not just practices learned in one activity period a day but rather secondary and tertiary concepts taught in tandem with core content and electives.  SEL concepts will be most effective when they are interwoven into everyday life to include teaching, learning, and life outside of school. As referenced by Christian, student growth has as much to do with academics as it does with the child’s overall growth and development. As always, educators will continue to provide a strong foundation of support for overall success. Read More View this email in your browser Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance