Grants available to members affected by Ida storm
The AFTNJ-AFT Disaster Support Fund is offering direct grants of up to $250 to members in good standing who sustained significant losses of primary dwelling, personal property and vehicles or mandatory-evacuation expenses due to Tropical Storm Ida.
“Because of the pandemic and the unknown, the excitement of a new school year has been replaced with stress — and for many AFTNJ colleagues, Tropical Storm Ida added to that stress,” said AFTNJ President Donna M.…
Read more
Biden aims to advance educational equity for Hispanic students
President Joe Biden on Sept. 13 signed an executive order to advance educational equity, excellence and economic opportunity for Hispanics.
Hispanic and Latino students, Biden wrote, “face systemic inequitable barriers in accessing a high-quality education and a fair shot at the American dream.” He goes on to cite such stats as “only 40 percent of Latino children participate in preschool education programs” (with whites at 53 percent) and “only 19 percent of Latino adults have at least a bachelor’s degree compared with 1 in 3 overall, and just 6 percent have completed graduate or professional degree programs, versus 13 percent nationally.”…
Read more
NTU’s Moore retires; AFTNJ seeks his PreK-12 VP replacement
Newark Teachers Union member Jerry Moore has retired from the Newark public school district, and he has also stepped down from his position as an AFTNJ vice president/PreK-12.
AFTNJ bylaws outline the following procedures for filling this VP vacancy:
Section 7: Vacancies in any other elected office except the presidency shall be filled by selection from the Delegate Assembly at its next regular meeting after due notice to all member affiliates.…
Read more
Make the most of digital storytelling in class
After the successful implementation of a digital storytelling unit during the most recent school year, Connecticut high school teacher Kimberly Hellerich says digital storytelling “has a permanent place in my classroom.”
“As we return to class, digital storytelling can give students access to different interpretations of an art form and enable them to explore the concept of empathy through literature, art and music,” Hellerich writes for Edutopia.…
Read more
Teachers interviewed students for Imagining September report
During the spring, more than 200 teachers interviewed 4,000 K-12 students for an Imagining September report to get their thoughts on remote learning and returning to in-person learning.
The results can be found in “Healing, Community, and Humanity: How Students and Teachers Want to Reinvent Schools Post-COVID,” and a free webinar about the report will take place Sept.…
Read more
NJ Spotlight News’ virtual conversation series to begin with education
“Election Conversations,” NJ Spotlight News’ five-part series of virtual discussions focusing on key issues leading up to the gubernatorial election, begins Sept. 14 with a talk about education.
Rowan University College of Education Dean Dr. Gaetane Jean Marie, NJ Spotlight News founding editor and education writer John Mooney and NJ Spotlight News correspondent Joanna Gagis are among the scheduled speakers.…
Read more
AFTNJ begins process to provide Ida disaster relief
One day after President Joe Biden’s visit to flood-ravaged Manville, AFT, AFTNJ and NJ HPAE leaders on Sept. 8 held a virtual meeting to launch plans for providing financial assistance to New Jersey members who experienced property loss and damage due to Tropical Storm Ida.
AFTNJ President Donna M. Chiera said the criteria for the application process is in the works, and she will be using the federation’s Hurricane Sandy relief playbook as a guide.…
AFTNJ looks to fill higher education VP post
Rutgers AAUP-AFT’s David Hughes recently stepped down as an AFTNJ higher education vice president, and AFTNJ bylaws outline the following procedures for filling any vacancies on its board:
Section 7: Vacancies in any other elected office except the presidency shall be filled by selection from the Delegate Assembly at its next regular meeting after due notice to all member affiliates.…
Read more
Building a supportive classroom for teens and tweens
Providing support for teen and tween students can be a challenging task, “particularly for new teachers,” writes Tennessee high school math teacher Ty’ara Jones.
“The classroom should be a safe haven where students feel comfortable no matter their level of proficiency,” she writes for Edutopia. “It’s essential that educators build appropriate and trustworthy relationships with students, so that they’ll develop a passion for learning.”…
Read more
ACE Engage workshop addresses inclusion for students with disabilities
Dahlia Shaewitz of the Institute for Educational Leadership will facilitate a two-part American Council on Education workshop about the need to create college and university campuses that are inclusive of all students.
As described by ACE, the Sept. 21 and Oct. 5 sessions will be “a deep dive into disability awareness that includes learning about disability prevalence, ableism and inclusion,” as well as “a discussion about the importance of disability diversity in supporting your equity and inclusion goals.”…
Read more
Drive teaching and learning with an outdoor program
According to Mike Chapman, a former instructor with the Cadet Corps Leadership Program at St. John’s College High School in Washington, D.C., “the greatest opportunity that the pandemic provided was the opportunity to teach — and learn — outside.”
“For example, at my school, we were fortunate enough to teach all of our classes outdoors for most of this past year,” he writes for Edutopia. …
Read more
Empower students by having them co-create notes
There’s an element of risk involved when an educator shares classroom ownership with students, writes special education teacher Rachel Jorgensen for Edutopia.
“Teachers must let go of the expert role and understand that students do best when they have the opportunity to take part in meaning-making,” she writes. “Strategies such as co-created notes offer a structured approach to collaborative learning in the classroom, inviting students to work with their teacher to construct meaning from content knowledge.”…
Read more
Resilience will be in the spotlight as new school year begins
The start of the 2021-22 academic year “will be an opportunity to impart a skill that will be important no matter where life takes [children]: how to bounce back from a difficult experience,” writes Newsweek’s Adam Piore.
He adds, “In the coming months, the actions of teachers — along with coaches, pastors, rabbis and, of course, parents — will be crucial in determining which children are able to emerge from the crucible of COVID having strengthened their resilience, an attribute that has been tested in all of us in recent months.”…
Read more
College employees reevaluate their professional, personal priorities
Through recent interviews with about 60 current and former higher education professionals regarding the pandemic, the fall semester and their attitudes about work, The Chronicle of Higher Education was alerted to “a desire for long-established dynamics that have governed the relationship between colleges and their employees to change in ways big and small,” writes Lindsay Ellis.…
Read more