COVID-19 resources for our education community

What we are reading

Coronavirus lays bare inequities in K-12 education

Imagine doing your high school math or history homework while also being the full-time caregiver for your younger sibling. It鈥檚 a challenge that teenagers across the country are facing as schools have switched to online classes, said CU Boulder education researcher Michelle Ren茅e Valladares. Read more

Master鈥檚 student brings home middle school makerspace to create masks for frontline workers

Middle school teacher Nick Schuster had one day to return to his school to pack up materials to prepare for teaching remotely, and he knew what he needed to do. Schuster, a Master鈥檚 student in the CU Boulder Educational Equity and Cultural Diversity program, created a makeshift makerspace at home, where he is using 3D printers to make masks for frontline workers. Read more

NEPC podcast dives into educational equity and policy in the midst of a global pandemic

National Educational Policy Center Researcher and School of Education PhD student Christopher Salda帽a interviewed a group of educators and activists about their experiences serving children, schools, and communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Salda帽a and the group discuss the unique ways that the pandemic has interrupted the normal interactions between students and teachers, administrators and personnel, and schools and communities in this monthly podcast. Read more

Learning Assistants take compassionate leadership online during difficult times

When universities nationwide announced that their classes were going remote as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the Learning Assistant Program began to receive emails from all over the world requesting help. Online panels of learning assistants will answer questions about how students are experiencing remote instruction and how they can help. Read more

Now is a time to rethink monitoring teachers during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond

In this Washington Post commentary, Dean Kathy Schultz calls on school administrators to trust teachers and honor the humanizing educational practices that are front and center in their distance work with students during school disruptions caused by the COVID-19 crisis. Schultz explores the lessons we might learn during this unprecedented time. Read more

When a school is more than just a school: How Schools of Opportunity are handling closures

From teachers鈥� virtual lessons to free 鈥済rab-and-go鈥� meals and even emergency child care centers, schools have been finding innovative ways to serve their students after their doors were closed. The National Education Policy Center (NEPC) has been recognizing extraordinary Schools of Opportunity across the nation for the past five years. Here NEPC shares the many ways Schools of Opportunity have been responding to the crisis and continuing to creatively serve students and their families in their communities. Read more

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Children鈥檚 data privacy during COVID-19 closures: 10 questions to ask

With nearly every American school shut down to slow the spread of COVID-19, many educators are听adopting online educational and conferencing products. This means that millions of children per day are logging in from home to Internet communications platforms such as Zoom, Google鈥檚 G-Suite for Education, Nearpod, and Flipgrid. These online options offer the potential for students to connect with their classmates and teachers, structure their days at home, and 鈥渟ave鈥� some of the remaining school year. But they also pose threats to students鈥� privacy.听This blog post from the National Education Policy Center encourages parents and educators to ask 10 questions about how ed-tech companies are collecting and protecting students鈥� data.

CU Teach students create online STEM lessons for math and science teachers

The CU Teach and STEM Education students and faculty听have created online lessons in science and mathematics. With lessons like "Skatepark Physics" and "NBA Statistics and Box and Whisker Plots," the lessons听are designed for all of the mentor teachers and partner schools听working with the student teachers in the program and beyond.

Learning Assistants provide webinars and online leadership during difficult times

When universities and colleges nationwide announced that their classes were going remote听as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, the CU Boulder Learning Assistant Program led by Professor Valerie Otero sprang into action to help. In the coming weeks, online panels of Learning Assistants are answering questions from professors and the community about how students are experiencing remote instruction and how Learning Assistants are helping faculty and students.

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National educator preparation leaders discuss adapting during COVID-19

As school districts and universities across the nation adapt to distance learning, how are educator preparation programs responding? How are they meeting their candidates鈥� needs right now? What are they doing to prepare for the future? In this climate of uncertainty, it is more important than ever to ensure teachers and leaders are being prepared to provide deeper learning opportunities to all students, especially those from our most vulnerable populations. This webinar features Dean Kathy Schultz and other leaders from educator preparation programs around the country who are members of the Educator Preparation Laboratory (EdPrepLab) network

NEPC Review: Public-private virtual-school partnerships and federal flexibility for schools during COVID-19

A Mercatus Center听report argues that, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, education budgets should be reallocated toward investments in virtual schools and the pandemic is presenting Americans with the opportunity to see the benefits of virtual schooling. This National Education Policy Center (NEPC) review explains how that recommendation runs counter to a solid body of evidence documenting the shortcomings of this online approach. Author Kevin Welner, a professor of educational foundations, policy and practice and the director of NEPC, details how the听result is an uncompelling plea for policymakers to use this crisis to embrace an educational approach that the author sees as beneficial, notwithstanding the clear evidence of its limitations and problems.听

Newly created social network mimics afterschool club and connects children with pre-service teachers

Assistant Professor Jos茅 Lizarraga developed an enclosed network in collaboration with his graduate students and partners in the Boulder Valley School District. Functioning much like Facebook, the EPIC Friends site connects P-6 learners with each other and with pre-service teachers in the School of Education鈥檚 Educational Psychology for Elementary Schools course. This digitized social network is designed to provide an engaging enrichment program that resembles the types of playful yet rigorous activities that are part of our face-to-face, afterschool EPIC Futures program at Sanchez Elementary School in Lafayette.听Young learners and pre-service teachers create profiles that describe them and their experience.听Young participants are also able to connect directly with pre-service teachers/mentors using the enclosed network鈥檚 chat feature and via听live video chat sessions, with parent permission.听

Open SciEd and iHub projects bring teachers together to launch remote learning resources for science teachers

Professor Bill Penuel has been working with a team of researchers and teachers to develop resources to adapt the routines and norms across their units for remote learning as part of their Open SciEd and iHub projects in Denver Public Schools. The Staying Grounded when听Teaching Remote webinar series supports educators with best practices of science teaching and learning while they shift to remote learning during school closures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This series focuses on routines and elements of storyline instructional models that are central to OpenSciEd, inquiryHub Biology, and NextGen Storylines materials.听

PEER Physics team providing online experiments, eBooks, webinars for students, teachers, parents

Through CU Boulder鈥檚 Physics through Evidence, Empowerment through Reasoning (PEER) Physics project, Professor Valerie Otero and her team are working with teachers to provide resources to support instructors as they transition to remote teaching. Led by K-12 teachers Shelly Belleau and Emily Quinty, the PEER Physics team provides a suite of online experiments and eBooks to support students, together with materials and virtual meetings for teachers and parents. In these meetings teachers discuss their challenges and successes and work through existing obstacles together. Students are still able to learn in collaborative environments that rely on evidence and class consensus using eBook lab manuals and associated experimental videos and simulations. Every two weeks, we will be providing interactive webinars to support instructors with this transition.

Self-care webinars for state science leaders

Professor Bill Penuel and Annie Allen are leading a set of self-care webinars for state science leaders focused on mindfulness and compassion, drawing on work of the Renee Crown Wellness Institute through the Council of State Science Supervisors.

For more information, contact Bill Penuel.听

STEM education faculty to host professional development for teachers this summer

CU Teach master teachers and instructors are working on projects with the Colorado Science Education Network (CSEN) and the Colorado Department of Education to support K-12 science teachers through providing online resources and professional development. Additionally,听STEM teacher are invited to summer professional development courses in which several different strategies will be modeled to improve both teachers' engagement with the new science standards and facilitation of online learning. A major component of these workshops is developing lessons that educators can use in their classrooms.听

Webinar explores pandemic and privilege: is everyone affected equally?

Krishna Pattisapu, director of diversity recruitment and retention, joins a panel about how privilege is playing out in higher education during this pandemic. Hosted by the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council, the webinar considers how privilege influences the different ways individuals and families experience the affects. Do differences in age, class (socioeconomic status), race, ability/able-ness, gender, sexuality result in differences in: experiences, accessibility to resources, susceptibility, mental and emotional health, etc.?

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Creative and engaged student teaching

Three teacher candidates share what it's like to teach right now

Anne Fisher

This week was supposed to be the launch of our biography unit, where students were to do thorough research and actively participate in a presentation showcase, with families and the community invited. Instead, my mentor and I have chosen to do read alouds of biographies of inspirational people who stood against social injustices that our students viewed over Google Classroom.
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Our students then chose one individual and made a poster that represents the cause or injustice that particular person was advocating for or against! They additionally were able to see each others' work over Zoom. The kids LOVED it, and seemed to think more deeply and critically about injustices in their world.鈥澨�
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Libby Friend

I am student teaching with kindergarteners, so virtual learning for us looks a little different than other grades. My mentor teacher's and I currently have a Google Classroom and use Google Hangout to chat with a different small group of students for about 15 minutes each day. They get so excited to connect with each other and are responding so well to this platform of technology.
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We also upload daily videos to the Google Classroom with both the morning message and the calendar. Parents have given such positive feedback thus far, so we think this is really working for them.听Right before BVSD closed, the kindergarteners had earned a 'Stuffy Day,' where they each get to bring a stuffed animal to school. We plan to honor this reward and have a Google Hangout session dedicated to their stuffys! This will be with the whole class and each student will have the opportunity to bring their stuffy to the camera (or favorite toy) and tell the audience two things about their stuffy.听
鈥淲e have nearly the same schedule as we did before BVSD closed. These kindergarteners really rely on consistency and routine, so we have tried to uphold that to the best of our ability. The kindergarteners still have rest time, play time, and recess on their daily schedule. This has worked very well so far.鈥�
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Rachel Malsam

I am currently student teaching at Niwot Elementary School in 5th Grade. Although online learning is unexpected, new and hard to navigate at times, my mentor and I are making the best of it. We found a simple schedule to stick to and have been providing our students with innovative and meaningful work. We have whole group video conferences on Mondays and Fridays.
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Monday's function as a class meeting for the week and Fridays function as a "Friday Fun Day". Last friday we all had lunch together, had a pet show and tell, and played a couple rounds of Kahoot as a class. The students loved this and I saw it as one of the most valuable things we could do because what students need and are missing is that personal connection and interaction with their teacher and peers. On Tuesday-Thursday we have small groups to go over some material and answer questions, with the additional opportunity for a one-on-one conference. Overall online teaching is going well for us, and although I miss my students greatly, I love getting to see them on our conference calls. I am extremely proud of how hard my students are working despite these challenging times. These kids inspire me and constantly remind me of why I wanted to become a teacher. Together we will make it through these trying times!鈥澨�

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