DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) is a commonly used acronym, but what does it mean in the context of day-to-day operations in a school district?

As many experts will point out, DEI initiatives are prone to fail when they aren’t getting at the crux of the issue—existing systemic processes and challenges that prevent promising solutions and DEI-focused policies from being successful.

During an eSchool News Innovation Roundtable with a focus on DEI, moderated by eSchool News Content Director Kevin Hogan, district leaders delved into the critical but complicated topic of DEI in school districts. Roundtable participants included:

• Julie Mavrogeorge, Coordinator II – CTE (Esports, Drones, AME and Ag) with Fresno Unified School District
• Allison Reid, Senior Director of Digital Learning and Libraries in the Wake Forest County Public School System
• Dr. Cynthia Wise, Principal of J.H. Hines Elementary in Waco, Texas

Here’s what eSN’s panel of educator experts had to say about DEI in action in their schools, the challenges they still face, and what they think will advance DEI initiatives in the years to come.

What does DEI mean in your district’s day-to-day operations?

JM: DEI doesn’t live in one place. Some people say we need a DEI team. But it’s the responsibility of the entire district to focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion. I need to create programs for students that will help educate them in their own culture and their own way. Ethnicity, diversity–all students need to learn how each culture is different. There’s also the equity and inclusion of gender preference. To me, [DEI] is educating myself and our team, but also educating teachers, staff, and students. We only know what we know until we know something different. My passion is specifically for the neurodivergent population and our foster and homeless youth. I try to educate people that we’re all human; we need to be treated as human. How do we go about training our students to realize that where we come from is important? How we’re wired is also important, but we also need to understand people who are different than we are.

AR: I believe that creating a space where each student, every day, feels like they belong is critical for moving the needle for students and allowing students to become the most successful version of themselves. In touching on the different types of ‘otherness’ – DEI means we see people for who they are. We are not blind to their otherness; rather, we see their otherness, we celebrate their otherness where we can, and we use that as a basis to make sure we’re giving those students what they need as individuals and see them wholly so they can grow into the best version of themselves. In looking at policies and processes, we must keep in mind that [we are] teaching students every day–regardless of race, nationality, gender, religion, orientation, neurodivergencies, whatever their otherness might be or not be. Are the decisions we’re making made with consideration of all our populations? Are we courageous enough to have the conversation and really look at what we’re already doing and make changes where necessary? Context matters, and we have to ask the questions to understand the context for each and every student.

CW: I have dedicated my entire administrative career to ensure students of color receive a high-quality education that is safe, inclusive, and recognizes and celebrates diversity while meeting every child’s needs so they can thrive. Diversity stands for acknowledging that there is a range of differences in the classroom. Equity is meeting each individual student’s needs–their exact needs. Inclusion signifies embracing those differences so all students feel supported. I also believe the equity should be applicable to employees, not just students. All employees should be appreciated and allowed to make meaningful contributions and that would boost morale in the workplace.

How do these DEI concepts play out in your districts? What do they look like in terms of the active participation of teachers and students?

AR: [One of the U.S. Department of Education’s recent edtech plans] discussed active vs. passive consumption of technology. We started looking more closely at how our students were using tech in the classroom. What’s fascinating, when you look at it, is students of marginalized subgroups–when we give them technology to use, we give them technology that is passive consumption. We would like for them to watch a video; we would like for them to do a drill-and-kill online. Students in those at-risk subgroups–that’s the kind of technology we give them, and we wonder why it doesn’t work. They’re not actually doing anything–they’re not making decisions, they’re just receiving. We’ve removed the opportunity for conversation, dialogue, or interaction with a human. We’ve given them technology in ways that, quite frankly, stink, because it is passive consumption, and in doing so we’ve removed the human element. Now, our advanced students–when we give them technology, we ask them to create with it–create a video, or a slide deck, or make a movie. Far different cognitive asks of the student regardless of the modality. When we’re talking about DEI, how we use technology with specific subgroups can either exacerbate or help with the achievement gap we see. Making sure that as we’re making decisions about how we integrate technology into our instruction and into our curriculum, are we allowing students of all achievement levels, all subgroups, the opportunity to use technology in an active way, in a creative way. That’s why, when you look at research on gamifying learning, it’s so powerful–because kids are actively engaged in what they’re doing and they’re making choices versus just passively consuming text. We’re starting to see some changes.

CW: In my district, every student has Chromebook, but the downside is that it’s for class use only. We are a Title I district. At my school in particular, 98 percent are on free and/or reduced lunch. I have friends working in more affluent districts and those children are allowed to take their Chromebooks home. The students from these Title I schools are at a disadvantage because the only use they have, as far as using Chromebooks/computers, is at school. The other side of that is, let’s say the district allowed them to take the Chromebooks home. Most of these homes don’t have internet, so now you have another problem, because it’s very expensive. You can give them the devices, but when they get home, where’s the connectivity? In my opinion, the issue is beyond being equitable. I think the issue is more affordability. Internet access is not affordable for all families, so that raises the question around whether this is about equitable access to technology or about affordability. And this creates a digital divide between those who can afford it and those who cannot. Technology is here to stay, so we need to understand what it can and can’t do for the users–but at the same time, it’s expensive for many things and families cannot afford the additional costs.

JM: We are over 90 percent free and/or reduced lunch. About 1 percent of our student body is homeless or foster–that’s 700 students in our district. We also are 1:1 with our devices–our students do take their HP or Lenovo laptops home. When we talk about coming back from the pandemic, our students are so disengaged, regardless of their socioeconomic status or their ethnicity. They’re not as engaged with humans as they were prior to the pandemic. Our district applied for a grant that enabled us to put up Wi-Fi towers in our regions. There’s a Fresno Unified tower families can connect to for Wi-Fi. Through one of our internet providers, families can also get internet access for $10 per month. Technology is here to stay; it’s not going anywhere. My main focus has been the integration of technology or the integration of students with technology in their current classes, as well as in after-school programs. I help to run our esports programs. When you take what seems dry and you put in creative ways of delivering it to students, gamifying just that general education–a huge component of Minecraft in education and what you can do with Minecraft in a classroom. There’s not a single subject you cannot teach within Minecraft, not a single assessment you cannot do within Minecraft. We have to take us older-school education people and retrain our way of thinking about how to deliver [instruction]. And that provides that equity and inclusion for students where they are, but we’re still delivering the content they need in order to succeed in society.

Is it ultimately the responsibility of a district to not only provide a student with a device, but also guarantee them access to anything they’re being assigned at school, at home?

CW: When it comes to technology, we’re stagnated rather than being innovative. Schools really don’t have the freedom to fully invest in the active use of technology, and the other side of that is most schools don’t have the funding to invest in the active use of technology. The way the schools were able to get 1:1 Chromebooks was because of pandemic ESSERR funds, but those funds will run out. Also, the system is designed and geared towards closing the achievement gap in reading and math between black children and white children. That’s what this is designed to do. So, unless, the way I see it, you have to get other outside [funding and support] sources such as tech companies and other companies, grants, donations, but outside of that, the funding is not there. A lot of districts are cutting staff and making deep cuts because the money is no longer there.

AR: I do think we have a responsibility to provide students with the resources they need to access their education. But I very strongly believe having internet access for students and families is not a K-12 problem. This is a community problem that our local government should be investing in. This is not an educational problem. We are at a point in our history in America where connectivity is a basic utility; if there are not programs in our community (we are not there yet either–we provide Mi-Fis for kids who don’t have access at home but sometimes those Mi-Fis are inadequate)… Stop giving our school districts all the problems to solve. We need community partners to step up and own the responsibility for providing this very basic utility for our families, regardless of whether they have children in schools or not. I do think we’re at a point that we owe students that and we certainly should partner with our municipalities, but I do not think this is a K-12 education problem. We’re already facing an educator shortage; these are big problems that are going to have to involve a lot of infrastructure and that doesn’t happen in the silo of a school district–we’ve got to have community partners.

CW: When you look at equity, [it means] each individual student has received exactly what that student needs to be successful, but then you have to train teachers. Where does the funding come in for that? The emphasis in education is not on educators becoming active users of technology; teachers don’t receive that training. The training they receive promotes passive use of technology. I like the [mention of] looking at community partners and municipalities. I want [to also focus on] the continuing education for teachers and teacher prep programs. Those programs do not prepare teachers to actively use technology. Teachers need extensive training on how to actively expand and use technologies in their classrooms. If we’re going to make this a primary goal, it’s going to take some radical rethinking of education in the United States. And I don’t think we’re there yet.

AR: If all we do is give kids a Chromebook and send them home with a device, and we are not changing the pedagogy of how we design instruction for our students, then we have only given lip service to DEI as it relates to using technology for student achievement. Technically, access has to happen first. Without question. But until we shift how we design instruction and kids are asked to do different things with it. we’re not really going to see the potential exponential growth technology can provide for us. If all you’re doing is taking that Chromebook or device and you’re turning your 30-year-old worksheets into digital tech worksheets, you’re just not doing anything different. Nothing has changed in terms of that child’s attitude about school–you’ve made the notebook heavier. I do think we’re at a point that we owe students that and we certainly should partner with our municipalities, but I do not think this is a K-12 education problem. We’re already facing an educator shortage; these are big problems that are going to have to involve a lot of infrastructure and that doesn’t happen in the silo of a school district–we’ve got to have community partners.

JM: That’s largely my role, to find the tech that can transform what kids are learning. We have teachers using Minecraft to teach during the day. We have a class we call Tournament of Technology in our middle school geared toward design, coding, robotics, and video production. And it’s mainstreamed with a lot of the linked learning, so students are doing this with their science, English, and math teachers, and projects of value are being incorporated into teaching. In my opinion, we need to absolutely do away with standardized testing–it’s a waste of time; all we’re doing is teaching a kid whether they can or cannot take a test and most students walk away feeling that they failed. A lot of what I have been working on in our district is providing students with internships during their class period. I work with industry partners to work with those students during their class period on real world projects. [I’m also] training teachers on how to play Minecraft, training them on Raspberry Pi, and how to work with robots, drones, and coding. I have a huge background in communication and conflict resolution. What is it you’re struggling with and how do we make you successful, because if you’re successful, your kids are going to be successful. We can’t just focus on the student–that teacher often needs support, love, and care.

What are your hopes for 2-3 years down the line?

CW: It’s going to require a systematic shift in education, and education as a whole is very conservative. It’s going to take some time, but I know we will get there. I’m not saying that we are not offering any type of active usage of technology. We do it, but we don’t do it with fidelity, and that’s what is needed. I believe the earlier we start with our students at the elementary level, they’ll become more proficient as they progress onto the secondary level. I think we have to be careful and not lose sight that one of the most significant parts of elementary instruction needs to be a focus on learning to read and write in order for elementary school students to be successful at that elementary level and beyond. I see where technology will play a significant role–there are some awesome programs to reinforce those reading, writing, and math skills. I would love for us to get to the point where our students will become active users.

AR: In the late 90s, they’d talk about how education will experience a paradigm shift. For 20-some years, I’ve been looking around waiting for a paradigm shift. We’re still testing kids just like we did in the late 90s. The reality is that what gets measured gets done. So, we test whether or not we covered content. What if we said that the 4Cs were important and we measured and reported on that–I don’t know how we’d do that; that’s messier, that’s not black and white. We have to have some shifts in what we assess, but I do think there’s a paradigm shift on the horizon and I think it’s coming to us by way of AI. For the first time in my career, I think we have some technology that can actually give time back to teachers. We just keep adding to the plates, and we’re not taking anything away. AI has the potential to take some of those mundane tasks and offload those, so teachers can get back to the art of connecting with children on a human level–so they can know them by name, strength, and need, and help them be successful. If we can be more strategic about what we measure and what we report, maybe we can change our attitudes about assessment and focus on the things that can really move the needle. I think AI is going to help us do some of that.

JM: AI is going to help teachers, and we do need to help them embrace it. It is going to give them back time and help them make those connections. That’s what’s needed–teachers need more time. Thy need to feel loved and cared for, and they don’t. How do we expect teachers to teach when they’re almost robots in front of a classroom having to teach to all these standards that kids aren’t embracing? It’s not engaging. We definitely need a shift. We can do what little bits we can in our district, but it needs to be from the top down.

Related:
Navigating cultural diversity in American education
How to work for equity of access in classrooms
For more news on DEI, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership hub

Key points:

• Educators can implement strategies to validate students’ unique backgrounds
• 3 strategies to support inclusive learning
• Advancing educational equity with UDL and generative AI
• For more news on diversity, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership hub

The tapestry of America’s history is arguably woven with threads of multiculturalism, reflecting a nation that has embraced diversity since its inception. In many ways, the history of multicultural education runs parallel with the history of the United States, because we have been an ostensibly multicultural nation from the very beginning.

Within the educational landscape, the concept of Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) has emerged as a multifaceted approach that aims to promote equitable excellence and validate the diverse experiences of students. CRT refers to a student-centered approach that seeks to validate and affirm students’ diverse experiences and contributions. By creating bridges between students’ knowledge and classroom content, educators who employ CRT practices aim to affirm identities and values. Furthermore, educators who employ CRT extend learning beyond the classroom, thereby fostering community engagement and service learning to enhance students’ critical consciousness regarding social justice and racial inequalities.

The educational landscape calls for teachers to be well-versed in the role of culture in learning to address the needs of students from diverse backgrounds. CRT helps bridge the gap between teachers and students, thereby leveraging cultural backgrounds as assets in the learning process. Effective teaching is deemed as inherently and inevitably culturally responsive. Proper teacher preparation becomes crucial to address the cultural gap, as well as to ensure that teachers are adequately equipped to respond to students’ varied learning styles and needs. Culturally responsive instructional practices play a pivotal role in creating equitable classroom climates. Teachers must employ cultural scaffolding to help diverse students use their backgrounds to enhance academic achievement, including collaborative learning opportunities that empower students to participate actively in decision-making processes. Culturally responsive caring involves setting high expectations for students while recognizing and addressing their unique needs.

Despite its advantages, CRT faces challenges. Negative perceptions from parents (irrespective of their cultural background) may arise if they feel the content taught does not align with their cultural values. Teacher preparation also plays a crucial role, as some educators may struggle with implementing CRT consistently. A lack of awareness amongst teachers about their own biases and privileges can hinder effective implementation. Superficial attempts at diversity, such as using ‘ethnic’ songs and dances, may lead to trivial celebrations as opposed to the intended meaningful improvements in student achievement. Additionally, deficit thinking by teachers may contribute to misconceptions about students (i.e., conflating race with socioeconomic status). Teachers themselves need increased exposure to diverse cultures to overcome these biases and deliver truly culturally responsive education.

Educational pluralism is prevalent in many democratic school systems. It involves government funding and regulation of schools without direct operational control. Accountability is maintained through national curricula and standardized exams, emphasizing the belief that education benefits both individuals and society. While the United States boasts a diverse ecosystem of schooling options, it lacks a truly pluralistic system due to preferences for local control, along with resistance to a government-prescribed curriculum. Pluralistic systems in the United States face constitutional challenges, particularly regarding funding for religious schools. The Blaine Amendments of the 19th century prohibit direct or indirect funding for parochial schools, thus presenting fiscal and operational concerns for pluralistic education. Federal education laws, such as the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and Titles I and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), include provisions for non-public schools within the pluralistic framework.

Assimilation in education entails shaping students into fully functioning citizens by infusing common cultural traits into curricula. This approach encourages students to adopt mainstream cultural values, leaving behind their own cultural identities in favor of national unity. There are drawbacks even though assimilationism aims to create a unified society. Advocates of assimilation argue that schools play a crucial role in nation-building by instilling established values in children. However, assimilationist education may inadvertently disadvantage students with different learning styles, perpetuating perceptions of mainstream superiority. The historical roots of assimilationism in education can be traced back to the 19th century, with policies like the Civilization Fund Act, which sought to assimilate Native American children through off-reservation boarding schools.

As the United States continues to navigate its diverse cultural landscape, educators grapple with the challenges and opportunities presented by CRT, pluralism, and assimilationism. Acknowledging the strengths and weaknesses of each approach is essential for crafting an inclusive and effective educational system. In essence, educators can contribute to a more equitable and enriching educational experience for all by fostering a deep understanding of cultural diversity and implementing strategies that validate students’ unique backgrounds.

Key points:

• Simple design changes can transform student experiences
• 4 ways we designed collaborative learning spaces
• Sensory spaces may help support all students
• For more news on equity and access, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

For generations, school facilities have been designed for the average student, leaving neurodiverse individuals to struggle in environments that don’t meet their needs. Recently, however, the growing awareness of neurodiversity has started to shift the school design narrative for students with unique learning styles.

Every student deserves to feel like school is a place designed with them in mind – a space where they belong and can thrive. The sense of belonging is key to promoting success and equity among all students, which has a profound ripple effect on their futures. Using the built environment to promote equity in the classroom starts with understanding each student’s sensory needs and learning styles, whether in the classroom or on the playground.

Indoor design

Many neurodivergent students have sensory needs and sensitivities that can be accommodated through intentional school design choices. Standard school designs that have been around for 40 or more years can leave them feeling stressed and anxious. These feelings can hinder their ability to learn or lead them to act out, damaging their academic performance and overall school experience. However, research and experience have shown that simple school design changes to hallways, shared spaces, and classrooms can transform a student’s time at school.

Incorporating tactile details can help students fill their sensory stimulation needs. Small additions, such as textured walls, allow students to engage with the building itself as they walk from class to class. These tactile additions can calm agitated students, providing them with a healthy outlet for their sensory needs. Placing these textured surfaces on walls or other non-centralized areas empowers students by allowing them to engage with the materials when they need to, which can be especially helpful for overwhelmed students who may already be struggling with sensory overload.

Designing dedicated sensory spaces throughout campus gives both neurodiverse and neurotypical students an area to gather themselves before tackling the next assignment or transitioning to a new class. While changing the lighting and incorporating sensory walls or water features makes these spaces particularly soothing for neurodiverse students, sensory environments are calming for anyone who needs a break from the bustle of school, whether they’re students or even teachers and administrators.

Even the furniture is adapting to each student’s unique learning style. Research consistently shows a link between comfort and productivity, but traditional school desks are hardly a comfortable learning environment. Many students don’t sit at a table to do their schoolwork at home–they’re lounging in bed or on a sofa. Substituting some traditional furniture for standing desks or bean bags allows students who focus better while moving, standing or slouching to thrive in a comfortable learning environment tailored to their needs.

Outdoor design

Crafting outdoor spaces that ensure every student has access to nature is essential to providing an equitable education. Time spent outside is grounding and stabilizing for students, so crafting spaces that are accessible to all is integral to the holistic development of each student.

Playgrounds offer an abundance of opportunities to creatively design for all students. Incorporating elements such as a musical environment, edible gardens, or sensory paths encourages children with autism or other neurodiversity to engage with the space. Establishing inclusive school environments hinges on providing play areas where neurodiverse students can feel understood and enjoy themselves. The positive impact extends beyond neurodiverse individuals, benefiting every student who engages with these spaces.

A variety of outdoor environments allows all students to learn and grow through exposure to nature, which promotes their physical and mental well-being. Without thoughtfully designed outdoor spaces to accommodate all learning styles, neurodiverse students may feel unable to enjoy their time outside, whether that be because they can’t physically access different play spaces or because those spaces don’t meet their needs. Designing spaces with every child in mind allows all students to benefit from the many advantages of time outdoors, which then translates to better focus and behavior inside the classroom.

No child should ever be left out, especially at school. These research-backed designs can equip every student for success by helping them feel seen, included and understood. However, the advantages of these changes go beyond just neurodiverse students. By incorporating inclusion into the physical structure of the school and exemplifying it in classroom furniture, schools can educate neurotypical students about diversity through tangible examples and practical applications. Today, schools have a powerful opportunity to model and shape their classroom toward a more equitable future.

Key points:

• A federal outline for education technology intends to close access gaps
• How to work for equity of access in classrooms
• How schools can help students overcome the digital divide
• For more news on digital access, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

The latest iteration of the U.S. Department of Education’s National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) takes aim at several obstacles limiting edtech’s ability to transform teaching and learning.

While past NETPs have largely served as surveys of the state of the field, the 2024 NETP frames three key divides limiting the transformational potential of educational technology to support teaching and learning, including: 

• The Digital Use Divide, addressing opportunities to improve how students use technology to enhance their learning, including dynamic applications of technology to explore, create, and engage in critical analysis of academic content and knowledge.
• The Digital Design Divide, addressing opportunities for educators to expand their professional learning and build the capacities necessary to design learning experiences enabled by technology. 
• The Digital Access Divide, addressing opportunities for students and educators to gain equitable access to educational technology, including connectivity, devices, and digital content. This also includes accessibility and digital health, safety, and citizenship as key elements of digital access. 

The 2024 NETP maps each of the three divides to the “instructional core” (i.e., students, teachers, content) and focuses on how schools, districts, and states can use educational technology to help design learning experiences that improve student access to educational opportunities and their outcomes. The NETP provides action-oriented recommendations for states, districts, and school leaders alongside examples from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several Territories for addressing disparities in educational technology and closing the three divides.   

“From the American Rescue Plan to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and more, the Biden-Harris Administration has made bold investments aimed at closing the digital divide and ensuring all students can equitably access the latest digital tools and technology,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona.

“As we work to Raise the Bar in education, it’s essential we focus on empowering teachers to become designers of active learning, using technology in effective ways to engage and inspire students. The 2024 National Educational Technology Plan is a forward-thinking approach to reframing and realizing the potential of educational technology to enhance the instructional core, reduce achievement gaps, and improve student learning in our schools.”

“The launch of the 2024 NETP comes at a pivotal moment for educational technology and learning,” said Sarah Edson, director of projects and initiatives at SETDA. “We are proud to stand at the forefront of this exciting journey, advocating for effective integration of technology in education systems nationwide.”

To complement the 2024 NETP, the Department also released guidance that aims to increase understanding of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s requirements regarding assistive technology (AT) devices and services for children with disabilities. The Department will also release a collection of federal resources to support students’ digital health, safety, and citizenship. 

This press release originally appeared online.

Key points:

• Inclusive learning can lead to improved academic outcomes for students with disabilities and their peers
• Advancing educational equity with UDL and generative AI
• How to work for equity of access in classrooms
• For more news on inclusive classrooms, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), passed in 1975, ensures that eligible children with disabilities receive free public education along with the services they need to succeed. The IDEA act also guarantees that students with disabilities have the right to engage in the Least Restrictive Learning Environment (LRE) that best meets their individual needs.

The LRE ensures that students under IDEA are offered equitable access to education alongside their non-disabled peers. Under these requirements, special education students should be in the same classrooms as their peers to the maximum appropriate extent. The goal isn’t to make sure that special education students are in the mainstream classroom as much as possible, but to allow students to engage in a classroom setting that is the most beneficial to their academic success and development and to have equal opportunities to their peers. This requires some training for educators on how to create more inclusive classrooms.

Strategies for educators to support inclusive learning

Inclusive classrooms are classrooms where students with diverse abilities and backgrounds learn together in a mainstream classroom setting. To maintain an inclusive learning environment, it is critical that educators have effective strategies to ensure that all students, regardless of their abilities, are given the opportunity to thrive academically.

Here are three strategies for educators to support inclusive learning:

1. Foster a collaborative classroom culture

A collaborative classroom culture encourages students to work together and appreciate the unique perspectives that their peers bring to the table. Educators can create this culture through tactics such as group projects or peer tutoring programs. Other activities like circle time, where students have the opportunity to share their thoughts and experiences, can also help foster mutual understanding and respect. Collaboration not only helps to create a sense of community and belonging inside the classroom, it also prepares students for the real world that values teamwork.

2. Professional development

To enhance educators’ capacity to support diverse learners and inclusive classrooms, they need ongoing training and professional development opportunities. Having regular professional development training helps educators to learn more ways to best serve their students.

3. Differentiated instruction

Offering tailored teaching methods, materials and assessment strategies can help students to better understand the curriculum. Students learn in various ways, and offering materials at different difficulty levels, providing visuals or offering kinesthetic activities ensures that all students can engage in the classroom.

Why special educators are essential

Expertise

Special educators play an important role in ensuring the effectiveness of inclusive classrooms. They have the expertise, training, and resources to address the diverse needs of students, especially those with special needs.

Teaching methods and materials

In an inclusive classroom, special educators can tailor their teaching methods and materials to meet the abilities and preferred learning styles of students. This ensures that every student has access to individualized support that suits their unique needs.

IEP familiarity

Special educators are also trained to create Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) for students who have special needs. IEPs describe how a student learns, how they demonstrate what they are learning, and what educators can do to help a student learn more effectively. They are tailored using input from general and special education teachers, parents, school administrators, and the students themselves. Having an IEP can also help to determine if a fully inclusive classroom environment is the right fit for a specific student.

Behavior management

Behavioral difficulties are often a challenge in inclusive classrooms. Special educators have the necessary training to manage students with behavioral issues and can help maintain a productive learning environment in the classroom.

While special educators are important in driving the success of inclusive classrooms, they also face challenges such as being responsible for too many students.

Pros and cons of inclusive classrooms

The pros and cons of inclusive classrooms have been heavily debated and can vary with each individual circumstance or classroom.

Inclusive education has benefits for both students with disabilities and for their peers as it promotes social integration, cultivates empathy, and exposes students to those with diverse abilities. Studies have shown that inclusive education can lead to improved academic outcomes for both students with disabilities and their peers.

While inclusive classrooms have many benefits, there are also drawbacks that often dissuade schools and classrooms from adopting an inclusive classroom environment. Meeting the needs of students with varying abilities and offering individualized support can be challenging for teachers, especially in larger class sizes. Resource allocation can also be a concern because special education students often need support staff, specialized teaching materials or technology.

Inclusive classrooms are not a one-size-fits-all environment. By working with special education students alongside their peers, with an appropriate IEP in place, educators can tailor their teaching to better serve each student. While an inclusive classroom might not be the best fit for every student, every student should have the opportunity to participate in the learning environment that allows them to gain the most from their education.

Key points:

• Our education system produces inequitable outcomes–it’s time to change that
• See article: How to work for equity of access in classrooms
• See article: How schools can help students overcome the digital divide
• For more news on equity, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

As we all struggle down the path toward true educational inclusion, we are confronted with four pillars of equity as described by Rochelle Guiterize: Access, Success, Power and Identity.

Educators with a mind towards equity typically excel at access. Opening doors to all students is an obvious move. However, we must continually push systems so that all students are able to be successful in spaces where they have ownership and feel a sense of belonging (identity). Otherwise, equity and inclusion are still just a dream.

While we recognize that some of these elements require large systems change, we also want to challenge all computer science educators to be the example.Taking computer science, with its long history of exclusion, towards an inclusive future will cause ripple effects across all content areas. Utilizing the AiiCE tenets, which recommend taking approaches that are responsive to student identities (Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education, 2023) we will suggest steps towards inclusive education pedagogy with Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and generative AI thought partners. 

A first step towards inclusive education can be done through the adoption of UDL. According to the CSTA: Inclusive Teaching Pedagogies, “UDL is an instructional planning approach designed to give all students an equal opportunity to learn by removing barriers that prevent students from fully engaging in their classroom communities” (White, 2023). However, this is a time-consuming (though worthwhile) task for already taxed teachers. 

In the frame of working smarter, not harder, we will describe a way to start integrating UDL principles into lessons, moving toward greater equity and inclusion through the use of Generative AI (GenAI) tools. The generative model being used is ChatGPT 3.5 (for optimum use we recommend ChatGPT 4). 

Teaching to the average student has never been effective. Our students possess a wide range of different brains, with different sensory and processing abilities. Good teachers are finding ways to meet the learning needs of all of these diverse brains within the same classroom.

UDL uses fundamentals from neuroscience to give educators a framework to empower all learners (CAST, 2018). UDL is a process, not a product, and requires that teachers rethink their planning and delivery of instruction. Though this is not necessarily asking for teachers to do more, it is absolutely asking them to do something different. As teachers wrestle with transforming their teaching practice, generative AI offers robust opportunities. When we pair a tested, research-based framework like UDL with AI, it brings us a step closer to the goal of true inclusion of all learners in CS classes.

Implementation of UDL requires rethinking the development and planning of lessons. Ralabate (2016) gives us five fundamental questions that allow teachers to begin to transform their practice. As teachers embrace this transformation, generative AI can be a thought partner in utilizing the five fundamental questions efficiently. These questions are around the accessibility, flexibility, lack of bias, validity, and reliability of our learning activities.

We address the first four of these questions below, along with generative AI prompts that can be used to increase the velocity of implementing each of these questions.

The final question is around reliability. Reliability measures the ability for a learning activity to meet its goals. Is the variability in my student’s performance due entirely to their performance, or is there variance that is due to the design of the activity (Ralabate, 2016). It is impossible to truly eliminate variance due to design, but it will be minimized if the first four questions are carefully considered and implemented into the design process. As a final check for reliability, GenAI can be used for triangulating grading – ask it to evaluate student data against a rubric. By comparing multiple GenAI responses with results from the teacher, we can minimize implicit bias, and ensure that the grades we are giving are authentic measures of student learning.

Systems produce what they are designed to produce. Our education system was constructed to produce inequitable outcomes, and that is what it produces. We believe that computer science educators can rise to the challenge of the day and remake their instruction in a way that effectively educates every brain–brains that come with extremely diverse needs. We know the why (equity), we know the how (UDL), and with generative AI, we now have the means to accomplish what is demanded of the moment.

References

Alliance for Identity-Inclusive Computing Education (2023). AIICE IIC Tenets. https://identityincs.org/resources/aiice-iic-tenets/

CAST (2018). UDL and the learning brain. Wakefield, MA. Retrieved from http://www.cast.org/products-services/resources/2018/udl-learning-brain-neuroscience

Gutiérrez, R. (2011). Context matters: How Should We Conceptualize Equity in Mathematics Education?. In Equity in Discourse for Mathematics Education: Theories, Practices, and Policies (pp. 17-33). Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands.

Ralabate P. (2016). Your UDL Lesson Planner: the Step-By-Step Guide for Teaching All Learners. Brookes Publishing.

White, S. V., et al. (2023, June 5). Inclusive Teaching Pedagogies. Computer Science Teachers Association. https://csteachers.org/inclusive-teaching-pedagogies/ 

Bios:

Each year, we share our 10 most-read stories. Not surprisingly, many of this year’s Top 10 focused on equity, edtech innovation, immersive learning, and the science of reading. This year’s 8th most-read story focuses on the need for more Black educators–especially Black male educators.

Representation matters, and when students have educators who look like them, it does wonders for their learning experience. At ISTELive 23’s opening mainstage event, featured speakers sat down for a chat about the challenges around representation and getting more Black educators—particularly Black male educators—into classrooms.

Director of ISTE Certification Carmalita Seitz sat down with Joyce Abbott, the inspiration behind Abbott Elementary’s name and a recently retired educator; Tyler James Williams, 2023 Golden Globe winner for best supporting actor as teacher Gregory Eddie on Abbott Elementary; and Sharif El-Mekki, CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development to discuss just how much representation matters for students and teachers.

“Immediately after we wrapped Season 1, we had an overwhelming respect for what educators do and felt a need to advocate for educators,” Williams said. This advocacy is especially critical for Black teachers and Black male teachers in particular, he added. If Abbot Elementary can represent Black educators and give educators a stress-relieving laugh that buoys them as they go back to their classrooms the next day, that’s a win.

“We need Black teachers. Back in the 1800s, in this city, Caroline LeCount said we need more Black educators for Black children,” El-Mekki said. “About 1.3 percent of our teachers are Black men in this country. Invite them into the profession. Continue inviting them into the profession. Many young Black youth say they were never invited into the profession. When you see them doing great things, like great leadership, tell them, “That’s what the best teachers do,” and help them connect the dots. Help them shape the narrative of what dope teaching looks like.”

El-Mekki added: “Black pedagogical frameworks, a Black historical lens, and Black teaching traditions are critically important, and if more people understood it, we’d be in a much better place.”

“It takes people like you looking at this critically saying, ‘OK, here’s what needs to be implemented, here’s what isn’t being taught, here’s how it CAN be taught.’ We see how a lack of education in our world today has led to a growth of misinformation. That education needs to start when they’re children,” Williams told the audience.

Understanding the population they serve is critical for teachers who are not of color to help with diversity in the classroom, Abbott said.

“You have to be in the company of educators of color just to learn some things,” she said. “The Black male educator—that is SO important. A lot of times in our schools, you do see Black females at the helm—they’re the strong ones in the school. This is what students see at home—in our communities, a lot of our students come from single-parent households with a mother or grandmother. They don’t see a lot of positive Black male role models, so when they see that in school—I just think that’s so important. If you don’t understand the population you serve, it’s going to be difficult to make an impact and be successful. You have to understand what [students] go through outside of their [classroom] walls.”

Suggesting education as a career path early on is of particular importance, El-Mekki said, noting that while white women often heard people tell them they’d be great teachers as early as third grade, Black men don’t usually hear the same encouragement until after college.

“Make sure we do the intellectual rigor to understand students’ culture, history, and help them connect the dots between what you’re teaching and real-world relevance,” he said. “Just imagine if they know you see them—and that they’re inspired to be your colleague one day. That’s how you start rebuilding the profession and uplifting the profession.”

Related:
At ISTELive 23, balancing humanity with AI
5 ways the homework gap is worse for students of color
For more news on equity, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

Key points:

• Equity of access is crucial in ensuring students are prepared for success
• See also: How schools can help students overcome the digital divide
• See also: Five action steps to shrink the digital divide
• For more news on equity, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

Ensuring equity of access in the K-12 classroom is crucial for providing all students with a fair and inclusive education. Educational disparities can exacerbate existing inequalities, and it’s essential that school leaders and teachers address these issues to promote a level playing field.

Here are five key strategies to ensure equity of access:

1. Digital inclusion and accessibility: Embrace digital tools while ensuring they are accessible to all students, regardless of socioeconomic background or ability. Schools should invest in providing devices and reliable high-speed internet access for students who lack these resources at home. Additionally, ensure that digital content, including websites, learning platforms, and educational materials, adheres to accessibility standards. This includes considerations for students with disabilities, such as providing text alternatives for images and accommodating various learning styles.

2. Professional development for teachers: Equip teachers with the knowledge and skills to leverage technology effectively in diverse classrooms. Professional development should focus on integrating technology in ways that support different learning styles and address the needs of students with varying abilities. Teachers must be well-versed in using digital tools to personalize instruction, cater to diverse learning needs, and promote inclusive practices. This ensures that technology is a tool for equity, not a barrier.

3. Curriculum diversity and inclusion: Review and update curricula to be more inclusive and representative of diverse cultures, backgrounds, and perspectives. Incorporate diverse authors, historical events, and cultural contexts into the materials used in the classroom. This helps students see themselves reflected in the curriculum, fostering a sense of belonging and engagement. Additionally, diverse curricula promote cross-cultural understanding and prepare students for a globalized world. Digital resources can play a significant role in expanding the accessibility of diverse materials.

4. Flexible learning environments: Create flexible learning environments that accommodate different learning styles and preferences. This includes providing options for in-person and online learning, as well as asynchronous and synchronous activities. Some students may thrive in traditional classroom settings, while others may benefit from remote or self-paced learning. By offering flexibility, schools can better meet the individual needs of students, ensuring that everyone has an equal opportunity to succeed. This flexibility should extend to assessment methods, allowing students to demonstrate understanding in various ways.

5. Community engagement and partnerships: Engage with the community to understand and address specific needs and challenges related to access. Establish partnerships with local organizations, businesses, and community leaders to bridge gaps in resources. Community engagement can lead to initiatives such as community Wi-Fi projects, after-school programs, or technology lending libraries. By involving the community in the conversation about equity, schools can develop more targeted and effective strategies to address access issues.

Ensuring equity of access in the K-12 classroom requires a comprehensive and multifaceted approach. By addressing digital inclusion, providing professional development for teachers, diversifying curricula, fostering flexible learning environments, and engaging with the community, schools can create an environment where every student has the opportunity to thrive.

Key points:

• Educators acknowledge that digital equity is of critical importance today
• What’s more, home internet is essential to helping students achieve learning outcomes
• See related article: Five action steps to shrink the digital divide
• For more news on equity and the digital divide, visit eSN’s Educational Leadership page

When it comes to digital equity, U.S. schools are well-positioned to help families get online with low-cost, high-speed internet options through the federal government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), according to a new study from Discovery Education and Comcast.

However, the study also found that educators lack centralized resources and direct support necessary to successfully overcome barriers to the digital divide. Released to help support this year’s Digital Inclusion Week theme of “Building Connected Communities,” key findings include: 

• Nearly all educators surveyed feel strongly that digital equity is more important today than ever before. 
• 82 percent of families and 80 percent of educators surveyed feel strongly that high-speed Internet at home is extremely important to fulfilling learning outcomes. 
• While two-thirds of families and educators acknowledge their school’s interest in closing the digital divide, only one-third are aware of actionable measures being taken by the school district.  
• Only 39 percent of parents were aware of the ACP, and of those that were aware, just 13 percent of parents have signed up. What’s more, only 22 percent of educators surveyed strongly agree that administrators in their school districts are equipped with the necessary information to communicate options for high-speed internet access at home. 
• Data shows multiple disconnects between what parents pointed to as actual barriers to broadband adoption versus what teachers perceived as parents’ barriers to adoption. Addressing these will be critical to ensuring that school districts and digital navigator programs are effective in closing the digital divide for students. 
• There was a 52-percentage-point difference between the share of teachers who thought that cost of service was the primary barrier to adoption for families versus the actual share of parents who pointed to cost as a barrier. 
• Significantly larger shares of teachers thought that families did not live in buildings that were wired for broadband, did not know how to set up the Internet, and did not have devices than the share of parents who raised these barriers. 
• Findings from the study also support a recommendation for school systems to partner with proven and trusted programs such as those that include support from Digital Navigators — to help streamline communication, advocacy, and adoption strategies that lead to equitable opportunities for all students. Ensuring all ACP-eligible families are signed up is equally important in supporting district connectivity goals. 

To help further address these issues, Comcast is helping school administrators more quickly and easily access additional resources to get more households enrolled in the ACP during the back-to-school season through the Online For All Back to School Challenge, led by the U.S. Department of Education and Civic Nation. 

A new online tool from Comcast is designed to help administrators quickly and easily assess ACP eligibility in their school districts. They can also learn about which schools have the lowest broadband adoption rates in their area. This valuable data will enable school leaders to better tailor communications around the ACP and direct families to resources that can assist in supporting Internet adoption. 

“Ensuring every student in America has access to reliable, high-speed Internet in the classroom and at home is a top priority for Comcast’s Project UP. The combination of historic investments in universal broadband, public-private collaboration, and private industry support will together ensure that neither availability nor affordability stand in the way of achieving connectivity for everyone,” said Broderick Johnson, EVP of Public Policy and EVP of Digital Equity, Comcast Corporation. 

“At Discovery Education, we are on a mission to prepare learners for tomorrow by creating innovative classrooms connected to today’s world. Today, no matter where learning takes place, access to and adoption of high-speed Internet is an essential ingredient for student success. As Comcast’s education partner in this work, we’re proud to support efforts to ensure students and families have the tools necessary to meet the demands of the modern learning environment,” said Amy Nakamoto, EVP of Social Impact, Discovery Education. 

“Today, 17 million unconnected households are eligible for low-cost, high-speed Internet under the Affordable Connectivity Program. Civic Nation is partnering with the U.S. Department of Education, school districts, and organizations across the country through Online For All to close this gap and ensure every student and family has equitable access to learning, both at home and in the classroom,” said Kyle Lierman, CEO of Civic Nation. 

Additional key findings from the study include: 

• While educators believe their school district leaders are aware of the negative impacts the digital divide has on learning outcomes, there are numerous other factors being prioritized over home Internet adoption. 
• 86 percent of educators surveyed elevated student well-being as the most important issue for schools to address, followed by school safety, and equity and inclusion more broadly. This places more emphasis on policymakers, school officials, institutions, and the private sector to show how digital equity and home broadband adoption facilitate broader equity issues and level the playing field for families seeking opportunities for their children. 
• Further, coupling Internet access and adoption with an ability to address other school concerns, such as providing supports for student well-being and growth, has the ability to keep digital equity as a top priority for school leaders and help them serve broader needs for their students. 

There is widespread agreement that the pandemic forcefully evolved and rapidly closed gaps in the digital divide as schools moved swiftly to remote learning. This cultural shift was met with success stories of connectivity and technological advancements, but also shined a light on students and families who did not experience equitable access to learning because of lack of connectivity or devices, or other barriers that made remote learning cumbersome. 

This study and partnerships were made possible by Project UP, Comcast’s comprehensive initiative to advance digital equity and help build a future of unlimited possibilities. Part of Comcast’s $1 billion commitment is prioritizing Internet connectivity and its impact on education. In addition, through providing low-cost broadband through Internet Essentials to families and the Internet Essentials Partner Program (IEPP) for schools, Comcast continues to ensure there are no barriers to home connectivity that could impede learning. 

This press release originally appeared online.

Key points:

• Reliable in-home high-speed internet is a essential, yet many low-income households do not have access
• Key actions can help eliminate barriers and ensure access
• See related article: High-speed internet is a basic necessity–not a luxury–when it comes to learning

New research examining national attitudes toward home broadband and the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which offers discounts on home internet service and related equipment to low-income families, provides insights on how to close the digital divide and connect households to reliable high-speed internet.

Titled Mind the Gap: Closing the Digital Divide through affordability, access, and adoption, the report from Connected Nation (CN), with support from AT&T, provides new insights into why more than 30 million eligible households are not opting to access internet service at home or leverage the ACP. The findings are the culmination of quantitative and qualitative research from households in five select markets: San Francisco, Calif; Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas; Milwaukee, Wis.; Cleveland, Ohio; and Charlotte, N.C. 

The data shows that, nationally, more than 1 in 4 low-income survey respondents do not subscribe to home internet service. This rate is higher in cities with lower median household incomes.

“It is all too easy for us to make assumptions about why a family or individual is not subscribing to high-speed internet,” said Tom Ferree, CN’s chairman & CEO. “But Connected Nation’s staff has worked in the space of digital equity and inclusion for more than 20 years, and we have learned in that time that the answer is not always the obvious one. This is a nuanced issue, and it’s critical for us to identify the pain points and work together to find solutions for not only expanding access to broadband but also helping people adopt and use the resources it offers.” 

“Too many people – particularly in our most vulnerable neighborhoods – aren’t accessing what the internet offers, like opportunities to apply for jobs, seek education, secure health care and so much more,” said Mylayna Albright, assistant vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility at AT&T. “By learning more about the barriers to internet adoption, we can continue to help provide targeted support and resources to connect more people to opportunity,”

Nearly 9 percent of low-income respondents surveyed said they don’t subscribe because the monthly cost of internet service is too high. While the ACP can help reduce the cost, the most common barrier to using the program was general awareness (35.8 percent are unfamiliar with ACP) and concerns about eligibility (30.5 percent of nonparticipating low-income households did not think they qualify).

However, 82.4 percent of the respondents who participate in the ACP say they were very satisfied or mostly satisfied with the program’s sign-up process, and that most use their internet connection for valuable resources such as homework, telework, participating in video meetings, and taking online classes.

The report offers five recommendations that can positively impact access and adoption of home internet service, particularly among the most vulnerable populations:

Services should be promoted by local, trusted entities. For many focus group participants, ISPs or the federal government are not likely to be trusted. An offer made by either of these entities is likely to be looked upon with skepticism. Plus, with fraudulent offers bombarding them every day, many consumers are wary of promises that seem too good to be true.

Promote digital equity programs in a variety of ways. Digital access programs must be promoted where their potential enrollees are. If an individual doesn’t go online, they are probably not going to see a social media ad. If individuals are not aware of a program, they can never benefit from it.

The benefits of home internet access need to be highlighted. For many households that do not subscribe to home internet service, the top reasons are the ability to go online someplace else or that a smartphone provides all the internet access they need. While a mobile device may suffice for streaming videos or social media, it creates a challenge when conducting research for school, filling out a job application, or sharing detailed information with a health care provider. In those instances, home internet service becomes a necessity.

Target the needs of populations who are least likely to subscribe to home internet service. There are several demographic groups who can benefit from improved home internet service, such as low-income households who find it difficult to afford home internet service. Promotions designed to get more people connected to home internet service must be targeted to the intended demographic; generalized advertising, or ads that fail to address the issues that specifically affect a given market segment, will not be effective in closing the digital divide.

Provide as much detail as possible, because potential enrollees want to know more. Many survey respondents and focus group participants who qualified for the ACP program said they had not explored enrolling due to the belief that they were ineligible for the program. Why waste the time and effort of filling out the application, they ask, if they know they are only going to be rejected?

Key points:

• The digital divide is growing wider, exacerbated by unequal access
• Edtech software can bridge the divide by ensuring students have equal access to resources and support
• See related article: 4 ways school leaders can target the homework gap

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront the stark reality of inequities in our education system. As schools shifted to remote learning, a digital divide emerged, leaving countless students on the wrong side of the equation. The unequal access to technology and the internet has widened the gap, hindering the academic progress of many young minds. However, in the face of this challenge, lies an opportunity to foster equitable learning through thoughtful implementation of software solutions. 

Before the pandemic, the digital divide was already a concern, with disadvantaged students lacking access to essential learning resources. However, as classrooms transitioned online, the divide became larger and larger, exposing the vulnerability of marginalized communities. As a former educator, I have witnessed this divide and know firsthand how limited access to devices, high-speed internet, and adequate tech support create barriers to learning, perpetuating a cycle of disadvantage and hindering students’ potential. 

Thoughtful implementation of software in education can be a game-changer, paving the way for equitable learning opportunities for all. By harnessing the potential of technology, we can bridge the educational divide and create an inclusive and equitable learning environment where every student has access to high-quality education and resources. 

Classroom management software plays a crucial role in promoting equitable learning opportunities for all students. The power of technology is that it empowers educators to create inclusive and personalized learning environments that address the divide.

Today’s flexible solutions allow educators to seamlessly adapt to diverse learning styles and abilities, ensuring that no student is left behind. Teachers are also able to use these tools to better accommodate learners with disabilities and learning challenges, fostering a supportive and nurturing educational experience. Through real-time monitoring and data-driven interventions, educators can identify struggling students and provide timely support, bridging learning gaps and promoting academic success.  

By prioritizing students’ physical and mental well-being, education systems can implement innovative software that tracks the well-being of students. This will contribute to a comprehensive approach to education, ensuring that every learner’s emotional needs are addressed. Through comprehensive features, technology will empower educators to identify students who may require additional support, bridging the gap between academic success and emotional well-being. By fostering a supportive and nurturing atmosphere, technology enables students to thrive academically and emotionally, regardless of their background or circumstances. Embracing these systems in educational institutions will help create an inclusive and caring learning environment, where students feel valued, understood, and empowered to reach their full potential. 

With the ever-increasing demand for remote and hybrid learning models, edtech software can bridge the digital divide by ensuring that students have equal access to educational resources and support, regardless of their geographical location. This software enables seamless and secure remote connections to school networks, allowing students to participate in virtual classrooms and access educational materials from anywhere. Facilitating remote learning enables those facing geographical constraints or other challenges to remain actively engaged in their educational journey.  

Embracing this software empowers educational institutions to offer inclusive and equitable learning experiences, where every student can participate, learn, and succeed, irrespective of their physical location or circumstances. These solutions are helpful tools in creating an inclusive educational landscape. Such technologies offer innovative features and functionalities that empower educators to tailor learning experiences, foster student engagement, and provide crucial support to those facing learning challenges. 

Equitable learning is not a distant dream; it is a vision we can achieve with intentional efforts and strategic implementation of technology. By embracing thoughtful software solutions, we can bridge the digital divide and create a future where every child, regardless of their circumstances, has equal access to quality education. 

Related:
ISTELive, Abbott Elementary, and a push for Black educator representation
How I foster an inclusive classroom as a new teacher
What is the digital divide?

Key points:

• Being a successful teacher is about more than academics–you must understand students’ unique struggles
• Students thrive when they see educators who look like them, especially when that educator radiates positivity, perseverance, and respect
• See related article: ISTELive, Abbott Elementary, and a push for Black educator representation

As a teacher at High Road School of Delaware, an individualized special education program aimed at strengthening each student’s academic, social and emotional abilities, job skills, and self-esteem, I serve a community of young people who share a rich spectrum of experiences. Becoming a special ed teacher was not the career I had pictured for myself – but now I can’t imagine doing anything else.

After serving in the Air Force with stints in Italy, Guam, and the UK, I found my purpose back in the States, working with children and adolescents with special needs. It all began when my mother’s friend, who operated a group home, offered me a job. While working in this position, I found myself drawn to the complexities and rewards that come with serving populations with the greatest needs.

That experience led to the High Road School of Delaware, where I began teaching during the 2022-2023 school year. Every day since, I’ve learned something new about patience, team dynamics, and preempting behavioral triggers.

My military background taught me independence and how to work collaboratively. I’ve learned to ask for help–a crucial aspect of creating a supportive environment for our students. At my school, we strive to foster a setting where students feel comfortable being themselves, without fear or embarrassment.

I empathize with being misunderstood and bullied–experiences that shaped my own school years. Overcoming adversity became a personal strength. Enduring bullying taught me resilience and self-worth. It’s important to me to create a nurturing, inclusive space where all students feel seen and valued. Empowering them to overcome barriers is my mission. Together, we shape their future success.

My role as a Black male figure is also critical, especially to the young students who come from challenging backgrounds. They need to see a mirror of themselves that radiates positivity, perseverance and respect. We engage in conversations that challenge their worldviews, opening avenues to express their feelings in healthier ways.

Every day I’m reminded that my reactions set a tone. I live by example. I teach the kids that we can break stereotypes, overcome expectations, and be the person we wish to be.

Why do I teach? Because I love seeing people succeed. As a father to two little girls, I understand that the act of teaching never really stops. It’s in the way we guide them in everyday tasks or how we encourage them to reach for their goals. This job lets me do what I love every single day – nurturing growth, encouraging learning, and celebrating the small wins, like reaching an IEP goal.

My advice to new teachers? It is not just about the academics, but understanding the unique struggles of each student and being there to guide them through it all. It’s a journey, and I am grateful to be a part of it.

Related:
A small number of teachers can double the racial gap in disciplinary action
3 supports for educators implementing restorative justice practices

Los Angeles Unified School District usually gets a bad rap when it comes to the implementation of tech. There was a ransomware attack at the beginning of school in 2022. Then there was the $95 million payroll system snafu back in 2008. And who can forget the $1.3 Billion iPad Fiasco in 2015?

So it’s great to hear some good news coming out of the district. It was even greater to hear it from industry veteran, Elliott Levine, Qualcomm’s Director of Worldwide Education, the company that commissioned the research from Project Tomorrow, and who always provides a great interview. Click through to listen for some big-picture analysis of the survey results you can scroll below:

Project Tomorrow recently released data on how connected digital learning devices have benefited families in Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Commissioned by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., the survey was fielded to 3,000 parents in English and Spanish in May 2023.

The district has provided high-speed internet service to families where that need is unmet for the past two school years via its All Families Connected initiative. Chromebooks powered by Snapdragon with LTE proved to be an ideal technology solution due to the always-connected capabilities, strong performance, and privacy features that were provided to more than 160,000 students.

According to the survey, 94% of parents felt it’s important that their children have access to technology outside of school to support academic success. Further, 53% of English-speaking parents reported that LAUSD-provided internet access has a big impact on their child’s learning capabilities, and 85% of Spanish-speaking parents agreed. 

Additional findings include:

• 85% of Spanish-speaking parents and 79% off English-speaking parents report their child(ren) use their LAUSD-issued devices at least a few times a week to support schoolwork
• 59% of parents say their child would not be able to do homework if they did not have these devices
• 94% of parents say that the school district should continue to provide students with digital learning devices that have built-in internet access for learning at home to bridge the digital access divide

Key points:

• The jump in racial gaps caused by top referrers is largely driven by referrals issued for more subjective reasons
• Repeated disciplinary actions can hurt student engagement, achievement, and long-run success
• See related article: Addressing the digital divide’s effects on education and the workforce

The top 5 percent of teachers most likely to refer students to the principal’s office for disciplinary action do so at such an outsized rate that they effectively double the racial gaps in such referrals, according to new research from the American Educational Research Association (AERA).

These gaps are mainly driven by higher numbers of office discipline referrals (ODRs) issued for Black and Hispanic students, compared to White students. The study, published in Educational Researcher, a peer-reviewed journal of AERA, was conducted by Jing Liu at the University of Maryland, College Park, Emily K. Penner at the University of California, Irvine, and Wenjing Gao at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Based on highly detailed school data, this first-of-its-kind study documents teachers’ use of ODRs and examines the role referrals play in racial disparities in exclusionary school discipline. Office referrals are typically the first formal step in the discipline process and precede the potential use of further formal consequences, including suspension. The authors drew on data from the 2016–2017 to 2019–2020 school years involving more than 2,900 teachers and 79,000 students in grades K–12 in 101 schools in a large, diverse urban district in California.

“We were really surprised to find this small group of teachers engaged in extensive referring and how big an impact they had on expanding racial disparities,” said Jing Liu, an assistant professor in education policy at the University of Maryland, College Park. “The positive takeaway was that the group of top referrers in our study represented a relatively manageable number of educators, who could be targeted with interventions and other supports.”

The jump in racial gaps caused by top referrers is largely driven by referrals issued for more subjective reasons such as interpersonal offenses and defiance—as opposed to more objective reasons such as violence, drug use, and class skipping. The increased ODRs also partially, but not entirely, convert to increased racial gaps in student suspensions, with a much larger conversion rate for the Black-White suspension gap compared with other racial group comparisons.

In May, the Biden administration issued a letter to school leaders indicating that schools that unfairly discipline students based on race could be in violation of Title IV of the Civil Rights Act.

Liu and his colleagues found that the top 5 percent of referring teachers issued an average of over 48 ODRs per year—roughly one ODR every four school days. That is several times greater than the rates of their average-referring colleagues, who issued less than one ODR for every two months of school. Top referrers accounted for 34.8 percent of all ODRs.

Top referrers effectively doubled the Black-White, Hispanic-White, and multiracial/other-White ODR gaps. The ratio of the Black-White gap in ODRs was about 1.6-to-1 when considering all referrers but jumped to 3.4-to-1 when including top referrers.

Prior research has shown that receiving referrals, especially frequent referrals, is a strong precursor for receiving suspensions, which can hurt student engagement, achievement, and long-run success. The body of research evidence also indicates that implicit or explicit racial bias contributes to racial disparities in exclusionary discipline.

“It is important for teachers to be aware of their referring frequency and the reasons for their referrals so they can be more aware of the potential impact of their actions on students and adjust how they approach student misbehaviors accordingly,” said Liu.

“Schools leaders need to know that they can leverage information about referring frequency to identify the top referrers and the specific school contexts where extensive referring is concentrated,” Liu said. “Targeting support and interventions to these individuals and contexts might ultimately reduce the overall use of, and racial disparities in, exclusionary discipline.”

The results from Liu and his colleagues suggested that teachers who are White, early career, and who serve middle schools are most likely to engage in extensive referring. As teachers accumulate more years of teaching experience, especially after three years, their likelihood of being a referrer or top referrer quickly drops.

“Given that top referrers tend to be teachers early in their careers, targeting professional development supports of classroom management skills for this group of teachers might also be a viable approach to reducing their referring frequency,” said Liu. “Our analysis highlights that structural supports at certain school levels are warranted.”

This press release originally appeared online.

Related:
5 tips to help districts bridge the equity divide
Digital learning is helping this school close achievement gaps

Key points:

• Black male teachers are desperately needed in U.S. schools
• Getting more Black teachers–and Black male teachers–means suggesting education career paths early on and understanding students’ cultural experiences
• See related article: 5 ways the homework gap is worse for students of color

Representation matters, and when students have educators who look like them, it does wonders for their learning experience. At ISTELive 23’s opening mainstage event, featured speakers sat down for a chat about the challenges around representation and getting more Black educators—particularly Black male educators—into classrooms.

Director of ISTE Certification Carmalita Seitz sat down with Joyce Abbott, the inspiration behind Abbott Elementary’s name and a recently retired educator; Tyler James Williams, 2023 Golden Globe winner for best supporting actor as teacher Gregory Eddie on Abbott Elementary; and Sharif El-Mekki, CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development to discuss just how much representation matters for students and teachers.

“Immediately after we wrapped Season 1, we had an overwhelming respect for what educators do and felt a need to advocate for educators,” Williams said. This advocacy is especially critical for Black teachers and Black male teachers in particular, he added. If Abbot Elementary can represent Black educators and give educators a stress-relieving laugh that buoys them as they go back to their classrooms the next day, that’s a win.

“We need Black teachers. Back in the 1800s, in this city, Caroline LeCount said we need more Black educators for Black children,” El-Mekki said. “About 1.3 percent of our teachers are Black men in this country. Invite them into the profession. Continue inviting them into the profession. Many young Black youth say they were never invited into the profession. When you see them doing great things, like great leadership, tell them, “That’s what the best teachers do,” and help them connect the dots. Help them shape the narrative of what dope teaching looks like.”

El-Mekki added: “Black pedagogical frameworks, a Black historical lens, and Black teaching traditions are critically important, and if more people understood it, we’d be in a much better place.”

“It takes people like you looking at this critically saying, ‘OK, here’s what needs to be implemented, here’s what isn’t being taught, here’s how it CAN be taught.’ We see how a lack of education in our world today has led to a growth of misinformation. That education needs to start when they’re children,” Williams told the audience.

Understanding the population they serve is critical for teachers who are not of color to help with diversity in the classroom, Abbott said.

“You have to be in the company of educators of color just to learn some things,” she said. “The Black male educator—that is SO important. A lot of times in our schools, you do see Black females at the helm—they’re the strong ones in the school. This is what students see at home—in our communities, a lot of our students come from single-parent households with a mother or grandmother. They don’t see a lot of positive Black male role models, so when they see that in school—I just think that’s so important. If you don’t understand the population you serve, it’s going to be difficult to make an impact and be successful. You have to understand what [students] go through outside of their [classroom] walls.”

Suggesting education as a career path early on is of particular importance, El-Mekki said, noting that while white women often heard people tell them they’d be great teachers as early as third grade, Black men don’t usually hear the same encouragement until after college.

“Make sure we do the intellectual rigor to understand students’ culture, history, and help them connect the dots between what you’re teaching and real-world relevance,” he said. “Just imagine if they know you see them—and that they’re inspired to be your colleague one day. That’s how you start rebuilding the profession and uplifting the profession.”

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At ISTELive 23, balancing humanity with AI

Key points:

• A new $930 million investment can help close digital equity gaps by expanding much-needed internet access across the nation
• Middle mile internet infrastructure, which moves large amounts of data across vast distances, is an essential part of the grants
• See related article: 5 strategies to tackle the homework gap

The Biden-Harris Administration has announced $930 million in grants aimed at expanding middle mile high-speed internet infrastructure across 35 states and Puerto Rico. The grants are part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. Under the Biden-Harris Administration’s Internet for All Initiative, the Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program invests in projects that build regional networks that connect to national internet networks.

Middle mile internet infrastructure carries large amounts of data over long distances, increases capacity to local networks, boosts network resiliency, lowers the cost of bringing high-speed Internet service to unconnected households, and helps connect unserved regions to the Internet backbone.

“Access to internet is no longer a luxury and thanks to President Biden’s leadership, we are taking action to close the digital divide for everyone in America. The Middle Mile program will invest more than $900 million in the infrastructure needed to connect communities, military bases, and Tribal lands to the Internet, lower the cost of access, and increase bandwidth,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Much like how the interstate highway system connected every community in America to regional and national systems of highways, this program will help us connect communities across the country to regional and national networks that provide quality, affordable high-speed Internet access.”

The $1 billion Middle Mile program funds construction, improvement, or acquisition of middle mile infrastructure, along with administrative costs associated with running the program. Middle mile projects do not directly connect end-user locations. Details of the awards are available at InternetForAll.Gov.

“The Middle Mile program is a force multiplier in our efforts to connect everyone in America,” said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communication and Information Alan Davidson. “Middle Mile infrastructure brings capacity to our local networks and lowers the cost for deploying future local networks. These grants will help build the foundation of networks that will in turn connect every home in the country to affordable, reliable high-speed Internet service.”

New Middle Mile Grants

• The middle mile projects will cover over 350 counties across 35 states and Puerto Rico.
• The projects will deploy over 12,000 miles of new fiber that will pass within 1,000 feet of 6,961 community anchor institutions.
• All projects use future-proof fiber as the primary technology.
• Awardees are investing an additional $848.46 million of outside match funding into the projects.
• Grants span from $2.7 million to $88.8 million, with an average award amount of $26.6 million.

Background on the Enabling Middle Mile Grant Program

• Over 260 applications were submitted totaling $7.47 billion in funding requests.
• Applications for the Middle Mile program were due by September 30, 2022. NTIA extended the application deadline to Nov. 1, 2022, for eligible entities that submitted applications for projects that would deploy in certain areas impacted by natural disasters.
• To raise awareness of the program and guide prospective applicants, NTIA performed extensive outreach, including hosting 12 public office hour sessions, conducting four public webinars for prospective applicants, and participating in six industry-led conferences to discuss the Middle Mile program.
• Eligible awardees for the program included states, Tribal governments, utility companies, telecommunication companies, and nonprofit entities. For a full list of eligible entities visit InternetForAll.Gov.

Additional grants will be announced on a rolling basis

Connecting all communities across the United States to high-speed Internet service is central part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to rebuild our economy from the bottom up and middle out by rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure. The Investing in America agenda is driving over $470 billion in private sector manufacturing investments and creating good-paying jobs.

NTIA thoroughly and objectively reviewed applications using a three-stage process: Initial Administrative and Eligibility Review of Complete Application Packets, Merit Review, and Programmatic Review. Reviewers evaluated applications according to the criteria set forth in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

Internet for All

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes a historic $65 billion investment to expand affordable and reliable high-speed Internet access in communities across the U.S. NTIA’s high-speed Internet grant programs funded by the law will build high-speed Internet infrastructure across the country, create more affordable high-speed Internet service options, and address the digital equity and inclusion needs in our communities.

The Federal Communications Commission’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) provides a discount of up to $30 per month toward Internet service for eligible households and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands. Visit GetInternet.gov to learn more.

For more information on the Biden-Harris Administration’s high-speed Internet service programs, please visit InternetforAll.gov.

This press release originally appeared online.

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Key points:

• Educators will likely need to expand their definition of diversity
• Self-reflection is an important part of ensuring diversity in schools
• See related article: 3 supports for educators implementing restorative justice practices

The greatest social justice movements teach us that progress isn’t linear, but is rather dynamic. This means that progress doesn’t transpire overnight. It doesn’t transpire instantaneously with one motion or action, but is the product of concerted efforts compounding to create change. This also means that in the midst of fighting for what is right, resistance sometimes hidden in the form of defeat and regression can take place.

In the case of fighting for educational equity, this means that creating schools that honor and celebrate diversity, affirm students’ identity, develop a sense of social and critical consciousness within students, cultivate inclusivity, and provide equitable access and outcomes for all students can often feel nearly impossible. With bans on teaching Black history; book bans that prohibit certain texts that center the histories, perspectives, and lived experiences of marginalized communities; and other unjust and discriminatory practices, educators, parents, and education advocates may wonder if there is any hope for diversity, equity, and inclusion within schools.

The answer is yes. No matter where you and your school are within your DEI efforts, here are two considerations to overlay in contemplating how to deepen your work and ensure it is meaningful, authentic, and taking real–not performative–roots.

Expand your definition of diversity

I define diversity as representation across the board–or in other words, it is a variety of areas of identity or difference. This definition is very important to note, because far too often, the word diversity is used as a synonym for race and ethnicity.

It’s common, for instance, to hear a company leader note that they’ve made a diversity hire, and in this case, they are usually speaking to having hired a person of color. It is also commonplace to hear a parent speak to the fact that their child attends a very diverse school, and by this, they are often referring to their child attending a school that is racially and/or ethnically diverse. Last, but not least, another example would be hearing someone speak to the notion of their school or school system having a diversity issue, and often by it, they are meaning that their school or school system may be experiencing tensions, conflict, or challenges that are racially driven in some manner.

Is race diversity? Yes. However, diversity isn’t just about race. Diversity is a broad undertaking of the consideration of many different identities, representations, and differences, so it’s important to know that we have to name precisely and specifically what types of diversity we as individuals, we as schools, we as school systems, we as nonprofits, and we as education companies we are speaking of, focusing on, and centering. In no way will you ever be mindful of 50 million types of diversity as you move about your day teaching students, leading campuses, managing organizations, and leading systems, but the goal is that you understand that diversity encompasses race but is also deeper than just race alone.

Diversity is and speaks to the wide variety of forms of representation and truly the importance of ensuring that you carry consideration for multiple perspectives, viewpoints, lived experiences, backgrounds, voices, and needs in what you say and do in your work each day. When you push for diversity, push that race and racial/ethnic diversity be centered in what you’re doing, and also push that within racial diversification, you’re also mindful of other aspects of diversity our students, families, colleagues, and stakeholders embody, so that we not embrace one aspect of who they are, but we make room for other aspects of our students’ and even adults’ identities as well.

Engage in inner work alongside your school initiatives

Whatever you’re doing, please look in the mirror simultaneously–and honestly first–because it is easier to analyze and critique the actions of institutions and systems, which should be held accountable, but it must be met with the commitment to also critically examine oneself just the same. In order to make true, enduring, and the most meaningful change, your journey of centering and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion must involve committing to the do the work at the individual level (i.e. intrapersonal work or often what would be considered the “inner work”); the institutional level (i.e. which encompasses both your departmental or team level work, as well as organization-wide efforts); and advocating for systemic change (i.e. macro level changes across organizations and systems) as well.

It’s quite easy to adopt a purely technical lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion work as a leader. This might look like falling into the trap of believing that the adoption of a checklist or framework along with your team’s fidelity and consistency in its use will drive your school or district to become a more inclusive environment, an embrace of diversity in its many forms, and equitable outcomes for children. This might also look like falling into the trap of believing that a singular diversity, equity, and inclusion training or a series alone will address your need to center and advance DEI within your school, school system, or education adjacent organization. Am I saying that checklists aren’t effective? No. Am I saying that trainings are ineffective as a method of centering and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion? No again. Tools have their place and are important. In fact, as leaders, tools often help us to institutionalize practices within schools, districts, and education-adjacent organizations as a whole, but there is no checklist, framework, or tool that can replace the inner work needed for the journey.

The absolute best thing you can do as an educator is embrace the fact that the work of DEI must begin with you. You cannot advance an agenda that you are not willing to first examine at the intrapersonal level, which means that this work requires the courage to explore your own lens, schema, world views, socialization, bias, privilege, and shortcomings. In other words, you can be a well-meaning educator and still not effectively center DEI. The question isn’t what your intentions are. The question is whether you are willing to examine how what you house inside – your mindsets, your beliefs, and your blind spots, for instance – directly or indirectly impacts others, namely children, every day.

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Educators are embracing restorative justice practices to facilitate safe and relational school environments and address inequities in school disciplinary practices. Research-based guidance offers insights on how to structurally support educators through restorative justice implementation, and there are resources for teachers and support staff as they integrate restorative practices into their roles.

Educators play an important role in restorative justice (RJ) implementation–they are often tasked with ensuring that RJ practices are implemented in classrooms, and they engage in many of the day-to-day interpersonal RJ practices. Because transitioning to RJ is a long and challenging process, it is necessary to provide educators with resources that can help them along the way. Without these broader systemic supports, it is possible that RJ programs may not be equipped to be successful in the long term.

With the need for systemic support for educators in mind, here are some ways to support educators in playing an active role in the development and implementation of RJ programs.

1. Provide educators with training, coaching, and resources to recognize their roles within their school.
To start, it’s important for educators to recognize their role within their school systems, the power they wield, and how to incorporate RJ into their role. To support this growth, consulting and partnering with RJ experts through professional development trainings and coaching services can help educators navigate the transition to RJ.

If the resources allow, it may also be effective to have a full-time staff member or teacher on special assignment dedicated to supporting educators in a school district. Additionally, guided workbooks like Restorative Practices at School are useful tools for educators to reflect on their journey and circumstances that many may face when beginning to incorporate restorative practices at school

2. Make RJ part of the norm, not an afterthought
In the worst instances, implementing RJ may become another large initiative that teachers are asked to embrace, which can feel burdensome amidst all the expectations that educators are navigating. Because of this challenge, it is important to find ways (when possible) to integrate RJ practices into standard practice rather than designing practices that feel like additional activities that are difficult to schedule. To assist with this, digital platforms like Amplify RJ have curated workshops, resources, and ongoing discussions with RJ practitioners to share ideas about how to integrate restorative practices into daily practice.

3. Trust, buy-in, and power sharing are essential
Most importantly, it is crucial that educators are systemically supported and can lean on one another in the implementation of RJ. This means transitioning from a traditional top-down implementation approach and building the infrastructure for an approach that incorporates more input from educators, students, and families in addition to administration.

For educators, this means building trust and capacity among staff to practice RJ with other adults in their schools, because building a commitment to RJ involves all stakeholders, not just those involved in cases where conflicts with students arise. Building the appropriate trust may take time, but it will also help prevent RJ from becoming siloed among a small handful of educators. Building trust may also assist you in navigating challenges or uncomfortable moments during the implementation process.

Work worth doing
At their core, RJ practices are aligned with many of the values that educators already share. The difficulty is recognizing that RJ may look and feel different to each person and, thus, should not be thought of as a one-size-fits-all philosophy. Because of this, committing to RJ is committing to a process of growth whereby learning and direction are shaped, in part, by all stakeholders. For educators, this means it is important to design systems in ways that encourage and reinforce this shift in operating, along with developing the appropriate trust and infrastructure to assist with integrating RJ into your day-to-day practices.

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3 ways educators can embrace and enable inclusive programming
How to foster antiracist learning environments in schools

Are girls really underrepresented in STEM? Yes. 

In the U.S., the workforce is pretty evenly split between men and women, but in STEM fields men make up 73 percent of the workforce to women’s 27 percent. Why?

It’s easy to want to find a well-meaning solution for this disparity, or even to brush it off as unimportant. But achieving a gender parity in STEM fields (particularly computer science, engineering, and programmers, among others) isn’t just a feel-good social justice crusade. The number of open tech jobs far outpaces the population of traditionally qualified candidates—data projections have pointed to a global shortage of 85 million tech workers by 2030.

It’s not a matter of encouraging girls to pursue STEM programs just for the heck of it, to prove they can and earn a good paycheck—it’s a matter of graduating enough highly-skilled workers to meet economic demand.

Still, the imbalanced statistics for the genders in STEM are damning. What can K-12 schools do to play their part in preparing the next generation for a talent-hungry workforce?

Let students lead

Anna Auer, a junior at Pacelli High School in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, is pursuing her own career in STEM (currently eyeing a pre-med, clinical lab science path). She wasn’t always on track toward a STEM career—on the contrary, she’s a relative newcomer. She described the way a bio teacher’s style helped lead her to a love of science. 

“We picked the way we learned,” she explained. “It was much more our pace, and hands on—I really like learning that way.” Auer describes how at the high school level, she and her peers were given the opportunity to choose their classes. She chose science-based classes and loved them. 

Ditch the gendered language

One suggestion experts offer companies hiring for STEM roles is to be extra deliberate about the pronouns, descriptions, visuals, and other messages they use in hiring. One of the main objections cited in the theories of why girls are steered away from STEM is the overwhelming male-dominated culture (which recent census statistics happen to back up, as discussed above). Not only do recruitment pros run the risk of having applicants self-select out, but they may also give the wrong idea that they prefer male candidates for whatever reason.

It’s the same concept in school. Instead, keeping language neutral in the classroom, descriptions of courses, and other communication doesn’t ever leave out boys from the invitation, it simply ensures that girls and nonbinary students are equally welcome. 

“I think growing up there’s stereotypical girls’ jobs and guys’ jobs. In elementary school, you see scientists as a boy. It’s very stereotypical and it’s not true,” Auer said of her experience with gender imbalance in STEM fields. “There’s a lot of women in STEM. It’s powerful.”

Challenge implicit biases

Explicit bias is easier to combat, but its insidious sibling implicit bias is much, much more difficult to spot—in fact, it’s imperative that the most open-minded of us must realize our own implicit bias steers our decision-making more that we’d care to admit. Since its debut on the scene in 1995, researchers have worked hard to figure out what drives implicit bias (things like our natural instincts for pattern recognition, our penchant for shortcuts, and societal cues), but one thing is very clear: these biases are solidified at an alarmingly young age and applied to the very young as well.

The American Association of University Women (AAUW), which originated its research in a paper disproving the myth that college impairs a woman’s fertility (seriously) offers an alarming observation that parents and teachers often underestimate girls’ math abilities as early as preschool. Speaking of math anxiety, AAUW also mentions another implicit bias in math teachers, who assume girls need to work harder to achieve the same level as boys, grade them harder, and pass on the myth of the “math brain”–the belief that there is a biological, cognitive difference between males and females.

Auer agreed that shifting into STEM was a little different than other courses in previous grades. “Some material is challenging—different ways of thinking, different labs. Not only the material but the ways of learning.” Still, once she understood, she appreciated the challenge.

It’s easy to get bogged down in the gloomier, unbalanced side of women in STEM. Really, really easy. Slowly and steadily, women are gaining—from 8 percent of US STEM workers in 1970 to 27 percent in 2019 (while the total of women in the workforce went from 38 percent to 48 percent). But Anna Auer’s experience has only been encouraging, and she recommends STEM to girls anywhere.

“When I got to high school, everyone was taking chemistry, so I did too. I thought it would be so hard and awful. It was hard, but I really liked it!” 

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Give teachers ownership to make computer science a success
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While the homework gap has existed for some time, the massive virtual learning spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic shed a bright light on the challenge of ensuring all students, no matter their geographic location or socioeconomic status, have access to the right learning devices and to reliable, high-speed internet access.

During a CoSN 2023 session, edtech stakeholders convened to discuss innovative strategies around closing the homework gap and how schools—at the local, district, and state level—can ensure home connectivity for all students.

“During the pandemic, the [homework gap] really gained the awareness of a much wider audience, because all students and families were impacted by the need to be online simply to be in school during the day,” said Michael Flood, SVP and GM, Public Sector at Kajeet.

During the panel discussion, a number of common themes emerged as strategies for school leaders to try as they seek to implement policies and practices designed to close the homework gap and bring connectivity to their school communities.

Set high goals when it comes to making sure every student has an appropriate device that connects to high-speed internet at any time from any location. Every student should have a device and an anytime, anywhere high-speed internet connection. Rural areas are especially in need, noted John Parker, VP of data science and research at Innive Inc.

“We’re seeing a massive different in urban connectivity and rural connectivity. We have a long way to go on rural connectivity—it’s almost painful. It’s a continuing issue to deal with,” said Parker.

Know your data–including student engagement and logon data–to best understand your school and district challenges. Build a plan around that data.

“Lots of districts started harvesting data from their LMS [during the pandemic],” said Parker. “That’s one of the best places to start.” Examining logons for digital tools and resources is helpful, too. If data indicates students are not logging in to complete or turn in assignments, there’s a high possibility that those students have challenges connecting to the internet or securing an appropriate device.

“Harvesting this information around logons was extremely important, and still is, because it tells you a lot about engagement and home connectivity. If students aren’t logging on, that’s a big issue,” Parker added. “We also realized the importance of families being involved. Who has access to the parent portal, and how many times have families accessed it to get information?”

Conducting regular surveys and creating student engagement records (consisting of attendance records, LMS logons, edtech tool logons/use, and whether messages to students are read or remain unread) are two steps districts can take to get a better sense of where student and parent engagement sit. That data can help schools identify the students and families with engagement and/or connectivity issues, and schools can take specific interventions to correct those issues.

Form partnerships to achieve your goals. Working with state offices and partnering with telehealth, businesses, and local economic councils can help spread the word about the importance of students and families having connectivity.

In order to deploy devices and internet access during the pandemic, “we saw lots of partnering—some districts couldn’t do it alone, so they partnered with country offices, state departments, and so on. That made a gigantic difference,” Parker said.

“To a degree, there’s a shift in the landscape of responsibility as we come out of the pandemic,” Flood said. School leaders should look at the investments made to the Affordable Connectivity Program, and they should be aware of the resources applied under the Digital Equity Act, he advised. Connecting with state broadband offices or agencies, which are focused on making sure all households and businesses have the broadband connectivity they need, is a valuable step in a district’s own connectivity plan.

Advocate for funding to support the technologies and programs that will help you close the homework gap. Educators at all levels should tell stories about what’s happening in their districts as they talk with state departments of education, policymakers, legislators, and local businesses about where students do and do not have connectivity and what the district needs to help those students.

Deadlines for projects and services funded by the Emergency Connectivity Fund are approaching, and while an extension of that temporary program is possible, nothing has been confirmed. Schools should have a plan addressing how they will ensure student internet connectivity without the emergency funding, which was always intended to be temporary, advised Brian Stephens, director of stakeholder engagement at Funds For Learning. Upgrades to the federal E-rate program could help, too.

“One thing the FCC has discussed is expanding the E-rate program to school bus Wi-Fi. That’s a potential funding sources schools might be able to look to in terms of getting connectivity off campus,” Stephens said.

“Encourage schools not to forget about their voice in terms of advocating for funding, policy, and whatever needs to happen to see these plans come to fruition,” Stephens said. “The problem is still there; it’s been there for a long time. We’ve got data on cost and engagement—we can collectively leverage all that data to have a strong voice to influence future policy decisions. Schools and libraries are a big part of that.”

“Schools were pressed into service to solve the home connectivity problem during the pandemic, but it’s a problem that goes far beyond the students,” Flood said. “If districts can establish a common plan for every student to have a device, and every device to have connectivity everywhere, set that as the gold standard and build all their processes around achieving that end, that will get them to that core solution—every student, connected everywhere, for learning.”

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Strategies to tackle the homework gap