Education is on the ballot - but our work goes beyond the voting booth No images? Click here From Teach Plus Illinois Dear Teachers, Spring is always a season of change, and this year more than most. We have a new state superintendent, a general assembly serving newly redrawn districts, and elections today that will shape our schools for years to come - because education is very much on the ballot. In Chicago, voters have a choice between two mayoral candidates who both have deep ties to education but bring very different perspectives. And across the state, local school board races have become ideological battlegrounds, with huge implications for students. As educators who know the importance of equitable schools for all students, it's critical that your voice be heard today. But we also know that the work of building an equitable education system doesn't end when you cast your ballot. Teach Plus Policy Fellows are hard at work this spring to bring forward policy solutions that advance equity - and they need your voice, too. One of the most powerful advocacy tools we have is elevating teacher voice, and we urge you to take a few minutes today to share your perspectives in one of our teacher surveys or sign up for a focus group to provide deeper, more insightful feedback to policymakers. We are more powerful together when we speak with one voice, and the more perspectives we can represent the more we're able to advance solutions that serve all students. Scroll down to the "Opportunities" section below for details. Finally, we invite you to apply for one of our teacher leadership programs for the 2023-24 school year. Whether your passion is state-level policy, school-level impact, or supporting like-minded educators, we have a program to help you achieve your goals! Best, Opportunities Apply to become a Policy Fellow, Change Agent, or Affinity Group Facilitator! Applications for our teacher leadership programs will be closing soon! If you’re interested in developing your leadership skills in the world of policy, instructional practice, or in leading an affinity space, consider applying to one of our programs! You can see all the opportunities here. Each program includes a generous stipend upon completion. Please consider applying, coming to one of the Q&As, nominating a teacher you know who might be a great fit, or sharing with any other educators that you think may be interested! *Please note that the application deadline for the Illinois ECE Policy Fellowship and Chicago Change Agents has been extended to April 16th. ECE Policy Fellowship Q&A Session April 13, 2023 @ 6pm – Register Here Chicago Change Agent Q&A Sessions April 4, 2023 @ 11am – Register Here We also have a series of informational videos on each of our programs to learn more: IL Policy Fellowship Informational Video Teach Plus teacher leaders want to hear from you! K-12 IL Policy Fellows are launching two research studies this month to bring teacher voice to the state board of education and propose policy changes: 1) Fellows are studying school discipline practices to better understand what schools can do to embrace more restorative practices that teach and heal. Help us understand what is (or isn’t) working in schools by completing this educator survey, which should take no more than 10 minutes. Your input will help shape state policies and keep students on track for success—plus, twenty randomly selected respondents will receive a $25 gift card! 2) Fellows are holding focus groups to evaluate the Equity Journey Continuum that now appears on every district’s report card in order to offer recommendations to the State Board of Education. Help us understand how well the new tool reflects the lived experiences of educators by joining a live, interactive focus group with educators across Illinois to share your experiences. Focus groups will last approximately one hour, and will help ensure the state’s equity measures really shine a light and promote more equitable systems. Every focus group participant will receive a $10 gift card as a token of our appreciation: Tuesday April 4th, 7:00pm - 8:00pm IDHS Compensation Contracts Focus Groups Participants will provide feedback regarding IDHS’s new contracts approach with a proposed salary scale and will make suggestions for an educator-approved accountability system. Participants will be entered into a drawing for a $20 gift card or a book bundle of 25 children's books. The focus groups will be held virtually (access to technology for live survey participation will be needed). Register for one of the following virtual focus groups by clicking on the date/time: Wednesday, April 5, 6:30-7:30 pm Thursday, April 13, 7:00 - 8:00 pm Tuesday, April 18, 7:30 - 8:30 pm Thursday, April 20, 6:30 - 7:30 pm Wednesday, April 26, 6:30-7:30 pm If you have any questions, please reach out to Michelle Zurita-Sharpe at mssharpe1200@gmail.com. Special Education in Community-Based Centers Focus Groups As classroom teachers and Teach Plus Early Childhood Policy Fellows, we are conducting focus groups as part of a research study to understand teachers’ perspectives on how 3 to 5 year old children with special needs are being serviced in community-based organizations. We feel that by elevating the voices of teachers, we can help policymakers and administrators understand the issues teachers are thinking about. We would like to invite early childhood educators in community-based programs to share their insights in an hour-long group discussion in a small group of educators. These will be conducted virtually via Zoom and participants will also be asked to capture responses on an online survey. Please register for one of the focus groups below by clicking on the date/time: Tuesday, April 4, 7:00 - 8:00 pm Monday, April 10, 7:00 - 8:00 pm Tuesday, April 11, 6:00 - 7:00 pm Tuesday, April 11, 7:00 - 8:00 pm Saturday, April 15, 10:00 - 11:00 am Saturday, April 15, 12:00 - 1:00 pm All participants will be entered into a drawing for a $20 gift card. Thank you in advance for your time and interest in supporting our research. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out to Susan Cerza at cerzas@district65.net. Early Childhood Workforce Student Teaching Survey It is no secret that teacher retention rates are falling around the United States. In an effort to combat this, Teach Plus Illinois is advocating for policymakers to eliminate barriers that keep current educators from earning their Professional Educator License (PEL). Teach Plus IL is conducting research to understand the current early childhood workforce’s experience with student teaching. We invite you to complete this short survey, which should take about 10 minutes to complete. All responses will remain confidential. Data will be shared with state policymakers to promote best practices to eliminate barriers. All participants will be entered into a drawing for a $20 gift card. Thank you for your time and participation! If you have any further questions, contact bethrodriguez@hotmail.com. Teach Plus Policy Fellows in Chicago Public Schools are looking for teacher leaders and administrators to share their insights on Distributed Leadership in CPS. Your input is important, highly valuable, and will contribute to the findings and recommendations they will share with district leaders. They are holding three focus groups in April, two via Zoom and one in person (with food). If you are interested in sharing your views and experiences, please click on the links below to register. For
Teacher Leaders: For Administrators: Illinois Math Badging Initiative Showcase We know math is a hurdle to college and career success that many students never overcome, particularly students from underserved communities. Join EdSystems and a select group of high schools implementing a math badging system for a webinar on April 19 at 3:30
PM to hear how they’re re-engaging students for success in math. From XQ Institute, math badges are designed to improve outcomes and advance racial equity by validating learning that happens outside a traditional classroom and customizing math to align with student interests and the math necessary for postsecondary success.
Fellow Highlights IL ECE Senior Policy Fellow Michelle Zurita-Sharpe and Policy Fellowship Alumna Arnetta Thompson Join Teach Plus National Policy Advisory Board Congratulations to Arnetta Thompson and Michelle Zurita-Sharpe! Both are Policy Fellow alums (and Michelle is a current Senior Policy Fellow) who will be representing Illinois next year on Teach Plus’ National Policy Advisory Board, where they will have an opportunity to help guide Teach Plus' policy decisions and agenda, and will also be learning about government funding, reading and editing legislative text, writing policy memos, and building strong relationships with Members of Congress and their staff. IL Policy Fellows and Alum Featured in Chalkbeat Article on the Importance of Teaching Black History Current IL Policy Fellows Ashley Kannan and Kim Tate, and Alumna Jessica Kibblewhite were featured an article on teaching Black history in Chalkbeat Chicago. “The state needs to make a considerable financial commitment to investing in induction paths that lead to mentoring and that allow our teachers of color to not only be not only be recruited but to thrive,” said Kannan. “I don’t think there’s any other way for this to happen.” “We got to figure out a way to bridge that gap, because each year we’re not teaching students about Black history and about the legacy of Black people in this country,” said Tate. “We are really robbing all students of important knowledge that can help them be better citizens. My Black girls last year connected with Hurston’s work during the Harlem Renaissance and her colorful personality." But Tate has noticed all of her students engaging more in the material. “I’ve noticed that the students’ ability to engage in perspective-taking and to have empathy has increased,” Tate said. “So I have fewer conflicts and personal conflicts and fewer behavior issues.” As a white teacher who works with Black students, Kibblewhite said it’s important for students to see themselves in history books. “Students don’t learn anything unless they’re deeply engaged,” said Kibblewhite. “If students don’t see themselves in characters in text or historical figures that look different from them, they’ll be less likely to be engaged.” (Samantha Smylie, Chalkbeat Chicago) Read the full article here. IL Policy Fellows Madeline Wood and Kellyn Sirach Testify at State Board of Education Meeting IL Policy Fellows Madeline Wood and Kellyn Sirach testified at the State Board of Education Meeting held on March 15. Kellyn spoke to the need for comprehensive, evidence-based literacy instruction in all Illinois schools, while Madeline urged the Board to support passage of the Teach Plus-led Racism-Free Schools Act. IL Affinity Group Facilitator Daniel Jackson Featured in Chicago Public Schools Teacher Highlight "Meet Daniel Jackson, a second-grade teacher at Dixon Elementary School in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood, and how a weekly tradition he implemented encourages students to present their best selves. Learn more about Jackson’s 'Tie Tuesday' here." (Chicago Public Schools) IL ECE Policy Fellowship Alumna and Current Senior Writing Fellow Margi Bhansali Featured in Teachers in Their Power Series Margi Bhansali, an IL ECE Policy Fellowship Alumna and Current Senior Writing Fellow, was recently featured in Teachers in Their Power, a storytelling project focused on changing the narrative about the teaching profession. "I went to school to be a journalist. My financial aid package required that I take on a work-study job. So during my first year of school, I worked with Jumpstart, an AmeriCorps program where they put college kids in Title I preschools. As part of that job, I was an assistant to the teacher a couple hours a week and I worked one-on-one with a preschooler. I fell in love with that
student. I was so inspired by the teacher who was in that classroom, and I was able to directly see the impact of what the teacher was doing with her students and with her families. Teacher Voices Madeline Wood Your turn: When it comes to addressing racial harassment, words are not enough "In the high school where I teach, two students wrote a racial slur in white paint on a wooden bench they built in class. The students sent a picture to a few friends on Snapchat, and it was soon all-over social media and made the evening news. People started calling us 'the racist school.' I felt outraged, ashamed, scared, helpless and lost. Then I thought: If a white educator like me felt this way, how was this affecting my students of color? When it comes to addressing racial harassment, words are not enough. A 2021 federal report found that hate crimes in schools increased 81%, with roughly half of those incidents related to race. A concrete and meaningful policy response is needed to change behavior in our schools. That’s why a group of Illinois Teachers of the Year proposed the Racism-Free Schools Act." (Madeline Wood, IL Senior Policy Fellow) Read the full article here. Gina Caneva Stop the March Madness of high-stakes testing in our schools "March brings with it madness on the basketball court. But March and April also bring unwanted disruption to our students’ learning, with the madness of high-stakes testing season. For children in Illinois — including mine, who are in elementary school — there is the Illinois Assessment of Readiness, or the IAR. Soon, many elementary and middle school students will take the Measures of Academic Progress, or MAP exam, as well. High school students, like those I teach, will begin their exams in April, taking the SAT test. Some will continue testing with the Advanced Placement, or AP, exams in May.Institutions have begun to realize that relying heavily on standardized tests is an unfair way to assess students, decide on college admission and collegiate sports eligibility, let’s ask ourselves: Why are we still subjecting our students to the monotony of testing instead of providing them with engaging instruction?" (Gina Caneva, IL Policy Fellowship Alumna) Read the full article here. |