Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Epilepsy Foundation Partners with Vector Solutions to Offer Seizure First Aid Trainings to Educators

BOWIE, MD. — The Epilepsy Foundation announced a five-year collaboration with Vector Solutions, the leading provider of training and software solutions for K-12 and higher education institutions, to offer the Epilepsy Foundation’s Seizure Recognition & First Aid Certification training in the Vector Safety and Compliance Course Library. This agreement will provide an easy and convenient way for educators and school personnel, who are already contracted with Vector, to take the seizure first aid training to better serve their students.

There are 470,000 children living with epilepsy in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the opportunity for academic success is increased when students with chronic health conditions have a safe and supportive learning environment.

“Our collaboration with Vector will give school personnel — who are required by state laws to take seizure first aid training — a place to do so easily and effectively through a familiar learning portal,” said Brandy Fureman, Ph.D., chief outcomes officer, Epilepsy Foundation. “In addition, it will expand access to our seizure first aid training to school systems around the country using Vector’s platform. Our end goal is to have a seizure safe nation where everyone who has a seizure feels safe, no matter where they are. This partnership is a stepstone toward that goal.”…Read More

How school-home communication combats chronic absenteeism

Key points:

  • Societal challenges are contributing to students’ absenteeism
  • Remaining in consistent communication with adults and caregivers can help reduce chronic absenteeism
  • See related article: 5 ways video improves school-home communication

Adolescents are in crisis right now. Social media, pandemic isolation, gun violence, and structural racism have formed a perfect storm. It’s been so devastating to teens that the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Children’s Hospital Association together declared a national state of emergency in children’s mental health.

CDC data show 42 percent of teens feel “persistently sad or hopeless,” and 1 in 5 have seriously considered suicide. Just tally up the effects of the past few years. The number of anxious and depressed teens soared during and after the pandemic. The harmful impact of Instagram, particularly on adolescent girls, was all over the news. Recently, the Surgeon General issued a warning about social media, saying, “We are in the middle of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is an important driver of that crisis.” While coming to school should be for learning and friendship, students are pausing to practice in case an active shooter bursts in, leading to a syndrome called vicarious traumatization.…Read More

Gaggle Launches 24/7 Student Crisis Line, Powered by AWS, and Staffed by Trained Crisis Counselors

Dallas, Texas (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Gaggle’s new ReachOut student crisis line has launched and is rolling out to K-12 districts nationwide, helping schools immediately support students with live, trained crisis counselors.

Today’s youth continue to struggle with their mental and emotional health. They often don’t have a trusted adult they can reach out to. The CDC released a harrowing report on February 13, 2023 noting the severity of the student mental health and safety crisis. Mental health among students overall continues to worsen, with more than 40% of high school students feeling so sad or hopeless that they could not engage in their regular activities for at least two weeks during the previous year. In 2021, 22% of high school students seriously considered attempting suicide, while 18% made a suicide plan during the past year.

To help fight our nation’s youth mental health crisis, Gaggle ReachOut, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS), provides in-the-moment support from crisis-trained counselors for students experiencing anxiety, depression, bullying, abuse, and suicide ideation. Gaggle ReachOut was built on AWS and utilizes Amazon Connect, an easy-to-use, cost-effective, omnichannel cloud contact center.…Read More

Funding an assistive listening system in your school

Untreated hearing loss can have lasting effects on students’ academic achievement, social relationships, and self-esteem. The Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) reports that even mild hearing loss can cause a child to miss as much as 50 percent of classroom discussion. Without appropriate management and support, children with mild to moderate hearing loss achieve one to four grade levels lower, on average, than students with typical hearing, according to American Speech Language Hearing Association.

The CDC reports that nearly 15 percent of children ages 6 to 19 have low- or high-frequency hearing loss of at least 16-decibel hearing level in one or both ears. Noise-induced hearing loss also is on the rise among young people. This is largely attributed to listening to music through earbuds at high volume. And hearing loss isn’t just affecting students. Nearly 48 million American adults have hearing loss. Assistive listening technology can help everyone in school environments, with and without hearing loss, hear more clearly.

An assistive listening system (ALS) is a wireless system with a transmitter and one or more receivers that send audio – from a teacher’s microphone, TV, or other sound sources – directly to headphones, hearing aids, or cochlear implants without amplifying ambient noise. Assistive listening systems provide a vastly improved experience for those with hearing loss.…Read More

Preparing for the worst, hoping for the best: School leadership for emergencies

According to The Washington Post, more than 331,000 children at more than 350 schools have experienced gun violence during school hours since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999. And while school shootings tend to capture news headlines, they are not the only ill plaguing schools today.

According to the CDC, about one in five high school students report being bullied on school property. These numbers do not include the faculty and staff that may have also been affected by these situations. Not to mention the increase in severe weather events – in the first three months of 2023, schools across the nation have scrambled to secure buildings and protect students because of heavy snow, rain, flooding, tornadoes and wildfires.  

The unfortunate reality is that it’s not a matter of if an emergency impacts a school–it’s a matter of when. And when an adverse incident occurs, time is of the essence. Here are three tips to help educational leaders effectively manage safety gaps and mitigate risks in their school community and ensure a swift response.…Read More

Riverside Insights and Kognito Partner to Offer Intervention Professional Development for School Health Providers

ITASCA, Ill. – Riverside Insights®, a leading developer of research-based assessments and analytics, today announced a partnership with Kognito, a provider of practice-based digital learning experiences, which provides strategies to improve mental health and well-being across schools. With this collaboration, school health professionals, such as psychologists, counselors and school nurses, will have access to additional training to support mental health-related cognitive interventions for at-risk students.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) research shows that in 2021 more than four in 10 students felt persistently sad or hopeless and nearly one-third (29%) experienced poor mental health. Through the partnership, health professionals will have additional training to notice the early signs and establish a therapeutic collaboration with the student.

“Riverside Insights’ partnership with Kognito is another example of our commitment to supporting the whole child,” said Sunjay Talele, clinical general manager at Riverside Insights. “School health professionals play a critical role in identifying and supporting students with behavioral or mental health concerns. Together we can provide the tools and training necessary to effectively manage the specific conversation with each student to motivate healthy behaviors.”…Read More

Focusing on upstream prevention can stem school violence

While instances of school violence are on the rise, there is strong evidence to suggest that upstream violence prevention is what’s needed to curb this trend. Since 1999 there have been over 300 violent tragedies that have played out from college campuses to elementary schools, and 320K students have been exposed to gun violence. 

According to a 2019 CDC study involving 13,667 students, 1 in 5 report of being bullied on school property within the last year and roughly 8 percent of high school students surveyed indicated they had been in a physical fight on school property at least one or more times within the last year.  

These events have cast a spotlight on school safety and have put teachers, students and administrators squarely at the center of taking steps to create a positive school environment. It is widely known that a safe and supportive learning environment has a profound, positive impact on the academic success, mental health, and social well-being of students.…Read More

How to identify student anxiety in the classroom

Issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic continue to pop up as educators devote more time to student anxiety issues in the classroom. Frustrations mount as they attempt to manage both instructional requirements and a decrease in achievement from at-risk students.

In particular, teachers report escalating anxiety symptoms since the pandemic lockdowns, and data is now available to support their conclusions. The CDC recently declared a student mental health crisis, with 44 percent of high school students reporting sadness or hopelessness.

Dealing with struggling students can overwhelm teachers as they report spending more time attempting to support individuals while shortchanging the rest of the class. Diagnosing and remedying problems is essential.…Read More

How analytics can identify student mental health challenges

As we get closer to the upcoming school year, it’s important to think about how to address student mental health. The pandemic has been difficult for everyone, but it has had an especially significant impact on our youth, who were already experiencing record high levels of poor mental health: The CDC reports that “More than one in three high school students had experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in 2019, a 40 percent increase since 2009.”

After having their lives upended by COVID-19, students are finally getting back into the routine of things, but their mental health should still be a major concern, as poor mental health can lead to trouble performing well in school, social isolation, and even self-harm or death.

In 2019, the CDC also reported that one in six youths had made a suicide plan within the last year, showing just how important it is to address this problem.…Read More

How to create a multi-layered approach to ADHD treatment

According to the CDC, 9.4 percent of children have ADHD. Teachers are often familiar with the associated behaviors of ADHD. Each child’s presentation of ADHD is unique. Some of the most common symptoms of ADHD include difficulty sustaining attention, completing assigned tasks at school (often including homework), physical restlessness, strain in social relationships and appearing off task due to daydreaming.

With nearly one in 10 kids struggling with some form of ADHD, it can put a strain on teachers in the classroom. For teachers and school systems, often the best way to manage ADHD in the classroom is to form a partnership with parents to develop a consistent strategy that can help children manage their ADHD behaviors. Consistency of care between a child’s home life and their school activities can provide the best support and least amount of disruption for the child as they transition between school and home. 

It is important to remember that the child’s brain is rapidly developing. Often they are not cognitively or emotionally developed enough to change their own behaviors. They need care and support from their parents and school systems. In many cases, teachers are aware of effective strategies for supporting children with ADHD, while parents are in new, uncharted territory as they begin to learn about the best ways to support their child.…Read More

How schools can improve infrastructure and air quality as masks come off

As the CDC shifts its recommendations and schoolchildren are no longer required to wear masks in many parts of the country, questions remain about how aging school infrastructure can support the health and safety needs–including air quality–that accompany reduced precautions.

The March 2021 American Rescue Plan brought widespread economic aid to address such issues, with $122.8 billion specifically earmarked for K-12 districts, but this funding has an expiration date. How can school districts best act now to create healthier schools and repair crumbling infrastructure before the first round of funding expires in September 2022?

Many school districts nationwide have been using stimulus dollars to rethink infrastructure, classroom design, and building upgrades. According to the U.S. Department of Education, one of the most popular uses of federal funding has been repairing school facilities, especially ventilation systems, to improve air quality and reduce the spread of Covid-19.…Read More

3 steps to creating a comfortable learning environment

Students have started a new school year and are facing the many challenges still present with in-person learning amid a pandemic. One of the most important to address is how schools address student safety and health–both physical and mental. CDC research has already documented the negative effects COVID-19 has inflicted upon children’s mental well-being.

Schools that established health and safety policies and procedures before this academic year began are best poised to help protect their students’ well-being. But it’s not too late–as school leaders confront the evolving situation, security technology can help build an environment where students feel safe, comfortable, and confident, and where every person’s well-being is prioritized.

Integrating security technology doesn’t have to be a complex process. Keep reading for an easy-to-follow approach school leaders can use to identify and execute on opportunities for enhancing their students’ health and safety journey.…Read More