GLOBAL
Education International. Iraq: Social dialogue leads to a roadmap for quality education. During their meeting with the Education Minister of the Iraqi region of Kurdistan, leaders the Kurdistan Teachers’ Union (KTU) were able to address several crucial educational issues… *Training teachers and developing their capacities to use new teaching methods and techniques…
Schools Week [UK]. ITT reform ‘hugely risky’ to teacher supply and quality, warns government’s own adviser Professor Sam Twiselton, a member of the advisory group set up to contribute to the review, also told Schools Week the “risk to school engagement is a particular concern”. She appears to back delaying implementation for an extra year so issues are “properly worked through and sensible solutions found”. Leading universities have also rebelled against the plans.
Sydney Morning Herald. NSW schools struggle to find teachers as supply collapses A federal discussion paper on university teacher training, released at the weekend, found almost 50 per cent of trainee teachers nationally failed to complete their degrees.
UK Department of Education. Initial teacher training (ITT) market review report The aim of the review is to enable the provision of consistently high quality training, in line with the ITT core content framework (CCF), in an effective and efficient market.
University of Cambridge. Statement on the UK Government Initial Teacher Training (ITT) market review report: The University of Cambridge prepares around 300 new teachers to enter the profession every year, many in priority subject areas such as STEM disciplines. The University cannot in all good faith accept or offer aspiring teachers a programme that would lower standards in this way. Now, more than ever, children need teachers of the highest possible quality. These recommendations would compromise the essential characteristics of programmes such as ours, which are already producing outstanding teachers, year after year.
UNITED STATES
Associated Press (AP). Biden says teachers deserve ‘a raise, not just praise’ And he pitched further investments for teachers, including a proposal to double the amount of a federal grant for aspiring teachers and to boost career training for current teachers.
Deans for Impact. How American University redesigned teacher preparation [YouTube Video] American University is one of 10 programs participating in DFI’s Learning by Scientific Design Network. For the last two years, Dr. Traci Dennis and colleagues have helped future teachers understand the science of how students learn and what the implications are for their teaching practice…
Diverse Issues in Higher Education. Diversity in the Classroom: Why Representation Matters. … before teachers of color enter the field full-time, educator preparation programs can support the retention of candidates of color through the establishment of affinity groups, supportive clinical field experiences, and residency models that include partnerships between the preparation program and the district.
EducationWeek.
1) Live Online Talk Show. Critical Race Theory: Understanding the Debate [July 13, 2:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time]
2) Science Teaching and Learning Found to Fall Off in Pandemic “The current emphasis on content dimensions of the current standards that we have, along with how we’re thinking about teacher education, teacher preparation, in-service education, makes it really challenging to pivot when we get to moments like this when we as a field really do need to pivot and adjust to this international crisis,”
3) Teachers’ Unions Vow to Defend Members in Critical Race Theory Fight … at the NEA’s representative assembly, held virtually last week, union delegates passed several measures that explicitly support the use of critical race theory in curriculum and allocated tens of thousands of dollars to those efforts.
InsideHigherEd.
1) Controversial Student Visa Rule Withdrawn The Biden administration formally withdrew a rule proposed by the Trump administration that would have required international students to reapply for student visas after fixed terms of up to four years.
2) Regulatory Changes to TEACH Grant Program Take Effect The Department of Education has implemented changes to the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant program in an effort to provide greater flexibility and alleviate challenges that previous grant recipients have had in navigating the program. In exchange for grant funding of up to $4,000 a year for students to complete teacher education coursework, recipients of the TEACH Grant must complete four years of teaching in a high-need field and underserved school within an eight-year period or their grants will be converted into direct unsubsidized loans.
LPI. Supporting the Educator Pipeline: How States and Districts Can Use Federal Recovery Funds Strategically Strong educator preparation is critically important to support improved teacher effectiveness and retention and improved student achievement. State and LEA investments in comprehensive educator preparation are allowable through multiple routes.
WashingtonPost.
1) How and why Loudoun County became the face of the nation’s culture wars Prior, a former Trump administration official, has appeared on Fox to discuss Loudoun and critical race theory, and won a reputation as the face of the county’s movement against critical race theory… Prior said his group is also broadly opposed to the implementation of critical race theory in teacher trainings and the classroom.
2) One of the nation’s largest student loan servicers plans to cut ties with the Education Department: PHEAA’s decision comes as the federal agency seeks to revamp its system for collecting student loans A group of teachers also sued PHEEA over its management of the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant, a federal program that provides money to students willing to work in high-needs schools or teach high-needs subjects for four years. The educators claimed the servicer converted their grants to loans in error and refused to right the wrong. Other teachers complained of having their grants converted as a result of paperwork snags, missed certification deadlines or receiving incorrect information from FedLoan.
NEW YORK STATE
Troy Record. Local teacher prep program creates first-of-its-kind apprenticeship. New Yorkers will now have the opportunity to enter the profession through a new apprenticeship approach to initial state teacher certification… Under the first ever New York State Apprenticeship program for teacher preparation through the state Department of Labor, SUNY students will now be eligible for $5,000 in SUNY tuition assistance in addition to the $22,000 per year living stipend they already receive through the BOCES.
NEW YORK CITY
Chalkbeat. Eric Adams is New York City’s Democratic mayoral candidate. Here are major education issues he could face. The focus on COVID-19’s toll has drawn attention away from a problem that has long confounded New York City mayors: how to improve the city’s lowest-performing schools. Struggling campuses often suffer from structural inequities ranging from academic and racial segregation to teacher recruitment and retention. Adams has said he is committed to hiring more bilingual educators and aides, particularly for the roughly 4,000 students who require bilingual special education.
NYDailyNews. What does Eric Adams want to do as mayor? Read his policy book In education, his big new idea is “moving to a full-year school year.” You can’t have a full-year school year without thousands more teachers or other child-care professionals willing to work through the summer months.
