Born before the Emancipation Proclamation, Stephen J. Boykin dedicated his life to improving educational opportunities for black citizens in the early days of the Jim Crow era. In 1899, he founded the first normal school for black students in Baldwin County, and one of the first black newspapers in Alabama – The American Banner. Great-grandson and Chickasaw High principal Arnold Cox shares Boykin’s story.
Registration is open for the 3rd Annual Alabama Conference on Grading and Assessment for Learning, taking place online this Saturday – November 7 – with national assessment-for-learning expert Dr. Douglas Reeves as the keynote speaker. REGISTER NOW and read a personal message from Dr. Reeves. We’ve also included links to more details about the conference. We hope you’ll join us for this deep dive into how we grade and assess our students.
Recent research from PISA reveals a “reading-for-pleasure gap” between students in the United States and countries like China. ARI Director Tracye Strichik and ABPC’s Cathy Gassenheimer are encouraging teachers and parents to help children, tweens and teens discover the joy of devoting time each day to reading just for fun. (They don’t even have to know it’s good for them!)
In a time of social isolation and feelings of loneliness among many children and adults, ABPC’s Cathy Gassenheimer and education consultant Dr. Kisha Tolbert Simmons discovered they were both reading an insightful book: Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World, by Vivek Murthy, MD, the 19th U.S. Surgeon General. They’ve teamed up to share their reflections in this joint blog post.
This past year, participants in ABPC’s Powerful Conversations Network dove deep into Fisher, Frey, and Smith’s All Learning is Social and Emotional. In 2020-21, we’ll extended this work with a new text by Kristin Souers and Pete Hall, Relationship, Responsibility, and Regulation, a book that provides concrete approaches for helping learners develop resiliency. Stoney Beavers has an overview.
While ABPC Instructional Rounds are not exactly like medical rounds, writes Assistant Director Stoney Beavers, they are amazing learning and collaborative opportunities. Reflecting on several rounds he participated in just before social distancing began, Stoney expresses his hope that more schools “will plan on joining us in the future for a truly one-of-a-kind, wonderful learning experience.”
ABPC is excited about the choice of Michael Fullan’s Coherent School Leadership as the focus text for the Key Leaders Network learning experience during the 2020-21 school year. “Finding clarity in a complex education world is a common goal for school leaders,” writes Assistant Director Stoney Beavers, “and we should all be able to see how more clarity and focus will have a powerful impact on students and adults alike.”
Dakota Punzel is our new ABPC Program Coordinator. Please welcome him in the comments and on social media! Dakota is a graduate of Cleveland High School (Blount County) and Troy University and comes to us from the Edmundite Missions in Selma, where he served as Executive Assistant to the CEO and facilitated organizational events throughout the year. Read his first post to learn more!
Over the past decade we have seen a surging interest in having our students “turn and talk” to each other about what they are studying, writes ABPC Assistant Director Stoney Beavers. Many educators agree peer conversation can increase student engagement in the learning process. But does Turn and Talk really boost learning? It all depends, according to Natalie Wexler – author of The Knowledge Gap – in a new Forbes article.
The proposed new Mathematics Course of Study has the potential “to give ALL students, not just the brightest ones, more access to rigorous standards and quality math education.” Tammy Dunn, Vice President for Academic Affairs for A+ College Ready, shares insights from committee members.
