Common Communication Crises
The top five drivers of school communications crises for K-12 schools are school violence, parent activism, educator misconduct, labor issues and Title IX issues, according to an analysis of school and district administrator interviews, social media and traditional media coverage between 2022 and 2023.
In 2023, for example, an average of 130 news stories per day on school violence ran in traditional media outlets, which are two to three times more likely to cover violence at schools than similar crimes elsewhere. And 2023 saw a 2,280% increase from prior years in traditional media coverage of educators having accounts on OnlyFans, an internet content subscription site used primarily by sex workers.
Scores decline in Math & Science
State testing data released Friday shows students’ math and science scores slipped as they continue to struggle to catch up after the pandemic.
Texas elementary students who took the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness exam this spring saw striking drops in their understanding of science. Only 26% of fifth graders met science grade-level standards this year, a steep decline of 21 percentage points from 2019.
In math, Texas students lost ground after two years of modest post-pandemic gains. About 41% of students demonstrated an adequate understanding of math on their tests, with declines across grades compared to last year.
You are leading the Campus… Now what?
After long years preparing for a school leadership position—volunteering for faculty committees, juggling graduate school with your regular classroom job, envisioning yourself running your own school—you’ve just heard the words you’ve been waiting for: “We’d like you to be our next principal.” Immediately, a sense of accomplishment washes over you, soon followed by the question “Now what do I do?” Psychologists term this anxious feeling imposter syndrome, a sense of doubt that you really have the capabilities required for the job.
Supporting Female Leaders
In matters both big and small, women in education leadership are treated, spoken to and viewed differently than their male colleagues. And it impacts everything from their assignments and salaries to promotions.
The career moves that are open to aspiring women leaders often propel them toward a very real glass cliff — leadership roles in which the risk of failure is high. By failing to address this bias, states and districts are constraining the rise of some of their most capable current and would-be leaders.
Defining Priorities
We have all heard of the elevator conversation. It’s the moment you get on an elevator on the first floor and you select Floor 10. As the door closes, the person next to you asks a question of you. You have approximately 10-15 seconds to succinctly answer the question. In this scenario, the question would be, “What are the priorities for your school?”
Questioning the STAAR grading process
Some superintendents say new grading practices for the test, handed out more zeros to students than ever before, and they want answers.
Urban, suburban, big, small, it doesn’t matter where you look…superintendents are all waving the same red flag.
“We saw an increased number of zero scores on the open-ended responses. and so that caused us to express some concerns,” said Superintendent of Lewisville ISD, Lori Rapp.
Some call it AI, some call it a robot, whatever your preference, it is TEA’s new method to grade STAAR electronically and superintendents say the grades are surprising.
