Tauheedah F. Baker-Jones, Ed.L.D.’s Post

Investing in the learning and development of teachers means investing in the community. Creating a pipeline of success is what happens when community organizations comes together and open the access to resources.

In our refreshed Blueprint coming soon, we explore how high-performing education systems work hard to bring people and institutions across the community together on behalf of young people. This piece by Dr. Cassandra Herring of the Branch Alliance for Educator Diversity offers examples of just that. "Trough community partnerships, we can build a pipeline of educators equipped to thrive in today’s classrooms on day one, delivering a more inclusive and equitable education system for all." https://lnkd.in/gqXevdDh

A new article co-written by NCFL President and CEO Felicia C. Smith, Ed. D., and Southern Regional Education Board President Stephen L. Pruitt, Ph. D., sheds light on the need to improve reading standards and outcomes at all stages of life. Read "Want a stronger workforce? Make reading initiatives multigenerational," here: https://ow.ly/iiTo50R4YSZ #familyliteracy #adultliteracy #earlychildhoodeducation

📚 Building educator capacity in the science of reading is one of our four shared strategic priorities to boost school readiness and early literacy in Arizona. Because student outcomes improve when teachers are supported with comprehensive training and coaching on effective approaches to reading instruction. Our focus is on: - Equipping K-3 educators with the tools they need to help all students develop foundational literacy skills. - Preparing pre-service teachers with the knowledge and skills to excel from day one. - Supporting early childhood educators in nurturing the early literacy skills young children need to go on to be successful readers. Investing in educator capacity and training is crucial for student success. Research shows that more than 9 in 10 children can learn to read at grade level with the right support and instruction. More than 13,000 educators in Arizona have already been trained in the science of reading. Check out this article on how Kyrene Elementary School District (Read On Tempe) is dedicated to training and developing educators, which is leading to significant growth for students: bit.ly/49pUGgR #LiteracyPowersLearning #EarlyLiteracy #Educators #Literacy #Education

From the article: "Minnesota still struggles with teacher shortages and diversity; Black male teachers make up 1.4 percent of Minnesota’s teacher workforce (Black Men Teach, 2022). As in most of the country, teacher scarcity in Minnesota is a chronic issue. Farther equipped on this, there is a significant lack of the variety of teachers represented within the educational system; without a varying representation of teachers, it can become impossible to mold the quality of education into the students, particularly in downtown segments with highly varying and diverse student bodies. It is at the level of the middle school that many of the key features that have been ascribed to starting GYO programs take on a particular resonance. By engaging diverse students early on, GYO programs provide a pipeline for the future of teaching that better reflects the student population. This early exposure in the classroom may give a sense of purpose to middle school students from underrepresented communities relating to the teaching profession and the belief that teaching is a satisfying and workable career. This is to say that teachers must break down boundaries in terms of demographics to be able to take this critical step of early exposure." https://lnkd.in/gkrV8Ez8

📚 Join the conversation: Read On Arizona’s Early Literacy Stakeholder Meeting - Dec 14 Collaboration is critical to advancing early literacy in Arizona.🤝You are invited to our annual virtual meeting that will highlight collaborative efforts of partners in Read On Arizona to improve school readiness and early literacy in our state, including: - Scaling evidence-based literacy solutions - Building educator capacity in the science of reading - Strengthening family and community engagement - Expanding access to quality early learning - Arizona literacy data tools and trends Your involvement matters in ensuring children in Arizona are on track to read at grade level and be successful in school. ⏰ Register now and be part of this important conversation: bit.ly/4a2eZBH #ThirdGradeReading #Literacy #WhatsWorking #LiteracyPowersLearning

"From the earliest grades, there’s a wide gap in performance in school. Some call it the achievement gap, while others call it an opportunity gap... Some 55% of these so-called rank order seats (in selective high schools) last year went to students from Chicago’s wealthiest areas. When looking only at the top five schools, 75% went to those students" How can we achieve equity in selective enrollment high schools? How do we account for "opportunity gaps" when admitting students? Should we even separate students based on the academic promise they show in 8th grade? This article addresses these tough questions and more, many of them reminiscent of the same questions that surrounded affirmative action. Although no clear answer is provided, it brings to light how early on students experience inequity in our education system and calls on readers to think about these questions from every angle. #EqualOpportunity #EducationEquity #InclusiveEducation #DiverseSchools #EducationForAll #PublicEducation #AccessToEducation #EducationReform #EquityInEducation #EducationJustice #AffirmativeAction #ChicagoEducation #ChicagoSchools #CPSAdmissions https://lnkd.in/gUsn5AfU

I stumbled upon this NPR interview and listened as I heard a far too common tale about the disproportionate access to "talented and gifted" programming, advance placement courses, and the "elite" schools within the district. "Chicago Public Schools’ student body is 82% Black or Latino, but only 42% of the students at the top five performing selective enrollment schools are Black or Latino. These schools — Jones, Lane, Payton, Northside and Whitney Young — are the best in the city and considered among the best in the state and even in the nation. For all 11 selective enrollment high schools, just 60% of students are Black or Latino." "Only 1% of 8th graders from mostly low-income and Black elementary schools were offered a seat at one of Chicago’s top five selective enrollment schools over the last three years, WBEZ found." Listen to or read the whole story: https://lnkd.in/dtB29Cdv Also, consider checking out our Kickstarter, if you haven't already to learn how we plan to do our part in disrupting the school to prison pipeline. https://lnkd.in/dCc6tDGW

The summer slide has been a concern since 1996, with studies showing significant losses in reading and math skills over summer break. Recently, it was found that children in grades 3 to 5 lost about 20 percent of their school-year gains in reading and 27 percent in math during summer break. At The Child Center of NY, we address this challenge head-on. Our afterschool services at over a dozen sites provide a meaningful connection to the school day, ensuring continuous learning. Programs offer a mix of homework help and enrichment in literacy, STEM, arts, sports, health, leadership, and community service. Our Beacon and Cornerstone programs extend these opportunities into evenings and weekends, fostering further engagement. Children from low-income families are disproportionately affected by the summer slide, impacting their education for years. Research by James Kim, Ed.D., of Harvard, shows that much of the reading score gap between low-income ninth graders and their middle-income peers stems from summer learning differences accumulated between first and fifth grade. Through our targeted programs like COMPASS for elementary school students, made possible with funding from NYC DYCD, we strive to bridge this gap and support every child’s educational journey. Together, we can combat the summer slide and ensure success for all children in our community. Below you can find The Child Center resources for summer learning in article 2. Article 1: https://lnkd.in/e-KhWpQ9, Article 2: https://lnkd.in/ggmVM6RD #SummerLearning #TCCNY

Hey Elementary Principals! Why wait??? That’s the question I want to pose to you today. If you aspire to become the literacy leaders of your district, you cannot solely focus on your upper elementary school teachers. Here’s what happens when you solely concentrate on upper elementary in your literacy initiative, instead of investing in your primary teachers: 👎🏾Decreased Student Achievement 👎🏾Widen Achievement Gap 👎🏾Teacher Burnout and Turnover If you're ready to be proactive and not reactive, join Melody from The Brooks-Johnson Group and I on Instagram Live on Monday, February 19th at 8 PM ET as we discuss the benefits of investing in your Early Childhood Educators (Preschool - 3rd Grade). Do you believe in the power of investing in early literacy education? Let me know in the comments! #mequelboldenconsulting #structuredliteracy #scienceofreading #elementaryprincipals