August 30, 2016
Delaware News
Delaware 105.9
Division of Public Health back-to-school checklist for safe and healthy school year
Another school year is underway and this has prompted the Division of Public Health to release their very own back-to-school-list that they say will ensure your child leads a healthier and safer school year. Wellness checks: Beginning at age 2, children and adolescents need an annual wellness check-up that includes a physical examination.
New student information app unveiled in IRSD
Indian River School District parents who have Home Access Center accounts can now access student information on their mobile devices by downloading the eSchoolPLUS Family App. The eSchoolPLUS Family App allows parents to view their child’s classwork, schedule, grades and other information using a smart phone or tablet.
Diverse Education
Delaware State using data science to improve retention
Not so long ago, officials at Delaware State University (DSU) — the lone historically Black college in the state — responded to dropouts and stop-outs in an after-the-fact manner. “In the past we would sit around and wait until the semester’s end, and then everybody fusses and fights.”
Newark Post
On first day of school, both students and administrators eye new beginnings
As the clock inched toward 8:20 on Monday morning, wide-eyed students started lining up outside Brookside Elementary School. Some excitedly gushed about wanting to meet their new teacher and reconnect with old friends. Others nervously clutched Mom or Dad’s hands, not quite ready to let go of summer vacation.
WDEL
Brandywine SD students excited for first day back to school
Ten-year-old Charles Miller Junior couldn’t wait to start fifth grade at Lancashire Elementary Monday. “It was awesome! Out of all the first days I’ve ever had, this one was the best!” said Miller. What made it so special? “Because I got to meet different people that I actually never talked to, and I met a new teacher that’s actually really a great teacher,” he gushed.
National News
Chalkbeat
New York City continues to expand Bloomberg-era middle school literacy program
When Ben Honoroff took over as principal of Brooklyn’s J.H.S. 50 John D. Wells last year, he stepped into a school headed in the wrong direction. The middle school, which once served well over a thousand students, had dwindled to just a few hundred.
Education Week
States to partner on social-emotional learning standards
In a step that organizers call a “critical moment for the movement,” eight states will work together to create social-emotional learning standards and plans to encourage schools to embrace teaching students about the growing field.
NPR
A new school year brings renewed focus on attendance
Like many schools, Gibson Elementary in St. Louis had big problems with attendance — many students were missing nearly a month of school a year. So Melody Gunn, who was the principal at Gibson last year, set out to visit homes and figure out why kids weren’t showing up. Her biggest discovery? They didn’t have clean uniforms to wear to school.
The Washington Post
Low-income kindergartners are closing the achievement gap, reversing a decades-old trend
Low-income kindergartners are entering school with stronger math and reading skills, narrowing the academic gap with their affluent peers and reversing a decades-old trend, according to research released Friday. The good news surprised researchers, who had expected to see school-readiness gaps growing — particularly given the broad societal trends of increasing income inequality and economic segregation.
U.S. News & World Report
Confusion over purpose of U.S. education system
There is no consensus among the public about the role of the public school system in the U.S., according to a new poll that also shows widespread discontent with some of the education policies that have been a major focus of the reform movement.