Let's K12 Better

Have you joined your school’s PTA, PTO, or PA, yet? Why not? They need you! The parent association at your school isn’t just a super-cliquey group of hyper controlling moms and dads putting on bake sales. The PTA is actually an advocacy wing that represents the needs of all kids in a school.  

Did you know that parent advocacy in schools doesn’t stop at the school PTA? We sat down with Jim Bradley, parent and education advocate, to discuss the need for parent participation at all levels of the school system and how parents can work together to build a stronger school district.

Learn more about the benefits of joining your school’s PTA: https://www.momofallcapes.com/blog/increase-your-k12-parent-participation.

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Education policy and research can be super wonky… How can parents use education policy and education research to inform their understanding of their child’s K12 learning ecosystem?

We sat down with Cara Jackson, Associate Partner at Bellwether Education Partners and Adjunct Professorial Lecturer at American University to discuss education policy - what it is, how it impacts our child’s education, and how parents can access research and best practices to better inform them of what’s required for a successful K12 experience. 

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Check out these resources!

• Chalkbeat (Matt Barnum and others) https://www.chalkbeat.org/2020/4/7/21225437/school-budgets-are-in-big-trouble-especially-in-high-poverty-areas-here-s-why-and-what-could-help
• Brookings Brown Center https://www.brookings.edu/blog/brown-center-chalkboard/
• Education Next https://www.educationnext.org/

More from Cara! 
Co-edited/co-authored books and articles:

• Linking Teacher Preparation Program Design and Implementation to Outcomes for Teachers and Student: https://www.infoagepub.com/products/Linking-Teacher-Preparation-Program-Design-and-Implementation-to-Outcomes-for-Teachers-and-Students
• Assessment Education: Bridging Research, Theory, and Practice to Promote Equity and Student Learning: https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781475851069/Assessment-Education-Bridging-Research-Theory-and-Practice-to-Promote-Equity-and-Student-Learning
• Engaging with parents: the relationship between school engagement efforts, social class, and learning: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09243453.2012.680893
• The effects of historical reading and writing strategy instruction with fourth- through sixth-grade student: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-08950-001
• Time to pay up: Analyzing the motivational potential of financial awards in a TIF program: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0162373714524622
• Assessing the Evidence on Teacher Evaluation Reforms: http://caldercouncil.org/assessing-the-evidence-on-teacher-evaluation-reforms/#.XthOtzpKhPY
• Blog posts at Ahead of the Heard https://aheadoftheheard.org/author/cara/

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No episode this week. Enjoy your Labor Day weekend!  In the meantime, spend time listening to one of 18 episodes on your favorite podcasting platform. 

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Parents and educators play an integral role in serving us narratives through our formative years; narratives that will shape the way we value others and look at life throughout our lives. This month we submersed ourselves in diverse narratives. We watched Beyoncé’s Black is King; Parasite, The Host, both directed by Bong Joon-ho; and the Lovecraft Country series developed by Misha Green. We’ve spent our time reading the wise and creative words of Chimamanda Adichie, James Baldwin, Nawal El Saadawi, Angie Thomas, Sobonfu Somé, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Dubois, James Weldon Johnson.

In this episode, we discuss how our adopted narratives shape the way we view life and the need for expanding our narratives to create more inclusive experiences. We mentioned the work of two very important thinkers. Please learn more about Gloria Ladson-Billings and Kimberlé Crenshaw below… 

Gloria Ladson-Billings Culturally Responsive Teaching: 

https://www.the74million.org/article/74-interview-researcher-gloria-ladson-billings-on-culturally-relevant-teaching-the-role-of-teachers-in-trumps-america-lessons-from-her-two-decades-in-education-research/.  

Kimberlé Crenshaw’s Ted Talk on Intersectionality: https://www.ted.com/talks/kimberle_crenshaw_the_urgency_of_intersectionality.  

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This week we sat down with Canissa Grant - a math and special education teacher; and Stefanie Wager - President of the National Council for the Social Studies (starting at 27:20). This episode is part of a Back to School series focused on a variety of topics designed to peek behind the curtain or even blur the lines a bit between the parent-teacher realm. 

ATTN: This is a two-part episode (on the same track).

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This week we sat down with Dr. Lindsay Portnoy a mother, author, cognitive scientist, and school board president; and Corwyn Collier a father, educator, track coach, and veteran. This episode is part of a Back to School series focused on a variety of topics designed to peek behind the curtain or even blur the lines a bit between the parent-teacher realm. ATTN: This is a two-part episode (on the same track). Subscribe to our monthly newsletter: https://bit.ly/LetsK12BetterNewsletter!  
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****We apologize if you experienced an error in our episode. We had an errant ghost track floating on the recording. We've since uploaded a new episode which may take a bit to update on your podcasting platform. Thanks for your patience with us as we learn to do this podcasting thing!

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This week we sat down with Gabriel Valdez an educator from Texas and Dr. Jasmin Whitfield, DNP, MSN, MPH, RN a Director of Health Service and mother on the east coast. 

This episode is part of a Back to School series focused on a variety of topics designed to peek behind the curtain or even blur the lines a bit between the parent-teacher realm. 

ATTN: This is a two-part episode (on the same track). Part 2 begins at 24:00.

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Right now, families across the country are inundated with information about COVID-19 and back to school. But what do the kids think? We invited two special guests, Judah P. (12) and Levi P. (10) to share their thoughts with us. We challenge families to use the time leading up to schools reopening to hold an open discussion about COVID-19 as a family.

This episode is part of a Back to School series focused on a variety of topics designed to peek behind the curtain or even blur the lines a bit between the parent-teacher realm. 
ATTN: This is a two-part episode (on the same track).

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter: https://bit.ly/LetsK12BetterNewsletter


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No episode this week. We're working on a Back to School series! 
Listen to your favorite episodes and others. Rate. Subscribe. Share.

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Athletes bring their unique selves to the game no matter what level of play. But sometimes black athletes feel as if they must mute themselves or withhold a part of who they are in order to fit in on their team. During this time we challenge coaches (and parent-spectators) to think about how best to support their black athletes? We met with Janee Hayes, a mom, an entrepreneur, and a former two-sport Division 1 athlete to discuss this and more.

Learn more about Janee’s Spiked City DC volleyball club: spikedcitydc.com
Follow them on Instagram: @spikedcitydc
Follow them on Facebook: @spikedcitydc

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