Latinos for Education’s Post

Bill to mandate ‘science of reading’ in California classrooms dies. Supporters vow to bring the issue back next year https://lnkd.in/e5SNMeXr In 2023, just 43% of California third-graders met the academic standards on the state’s standardized test in 2023. Only 27.2% of Black students, 32% of Latino students and 35% of low-income children were reading at grade level, compared with 57.5% of white, 69% of Asian and 66% of non-low-income students. 

Five ways to promote inclusive and equitable education for underrepresented students: 1. **Diverse Representation**: Ensure that the curriculum, textbooks, and teaching materials reflect diverse perspectives and experiences, including those of underrepresented groups. 2. **Culturally Responsive Teaching**: Implement teaching strategies that acknowledge and incorporate students' cultural backgrounds, languages, and experiences into the learning process. 3. **Equitable Access to Resources**: Provide equal access to resources such as technology, textbooks, extracurricular activities, and support services to all students, regardless of their background or socioeconomic status. 4. **Community Engagement**: Foster partnerships with local communities, families, and organizations to create a supportive network that helps underrepresented students thrive academically and socially. 5. **Professional Development**: Offer ongoing training and development for educators to increase their cultural competence, awareness of implicit bias, and ability to create inclusive learning environments for all students.

Meet Michelle Henry. She's an English teacher who's piloting an Asian American studies course at her school, Simsbury High, in Connecticut. The course will be offered in four schools for dual college credit through the University of Connecticut's Early College Experiences program. Michelle was part of an innovative "curriculum lab" consisting of high school teachers, students, and other educational experts led by Dr. Jason Chang, Director of UConn's Asian and Asian American Studies Institute, that developed model lessons and professional development plans in 2023. These curricular and pedagogical resources, delivered to CT's department of education last January, are aligned with state social studies standards that were revised last fall and will serve as the foundation for the required implementation of Connecticut's Asian American and Pacific Islander history curriculum starting in the 2025-26 school year. As their program officer at The Asian American Foundation, it's been an honor to learn from and support UConn AAASI's transformative work, which extends beyond CT and across the northeastern region. They provide assistance to implementation efforts in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Michelle is also one of the relatively few K-12 Asian American teachers in the U.S.--only 2% of our nation's K-12 teachers are Asian American. At the same time, the Asian American population is the fastest-growing racial group in the U.S. (24 million and rising, or about 7% of the entire population), and with it, a growing K-12 student population (over 2.7 million, or about 5.5% of the entire K-12 student population).* Clearly, there's a significant gap. When more and more states are passing legislation to require instruction of Asian American (as well as Pacific Islander) history in their public school classrooms--such as CT back in 2022 and Delaware this past week, whose grassroots advocacy efforts were both led by state chapters of Make Us Visible, another TAAF grantee--what does it mean when the large majority of K-12 teachers delivering AA or PI content aren't AA or PI themselves? How can we increase the pipeline of K-12 AA&PI teachers--more Michelle Henry's--who would arguably be the most motivated to ensure the meaningful teaching of AAPI history? And how can we prepare all K-12 teachers to teach AAPI history with fidelity to Ethnic studies, whose cross-racial emergence in the late 1960s also bore the fruit of Asian American studies? How do we not just scatter, but also water, its seeds?

As we celebrate April as National Multilingual Learners Advocacy Month, I would like to share again an article I co-authored with Jennifer D. Morrison and Wang Chuang. Our study shows the positive impact of bilingual preschool education on the academic achievement of multilingual learners. The data from reading and math standardized tests demonstrated that MLs who matriculated from a bilingual preschool outperformed their ML peers from kindergarten to 2nd grade. #MultilingualEducation #AcademicPerformance https://lnkd.in/eRjshwMZ

Inclusive education isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s essential for preparing students to thrive in a diverse world. Yet, many school curriculums are ill equipped to reflect the richness of the communities they serve. When students see themselves in their lessons, the impact is transformative: 💡 Higher engagement and academic performance 🌍 Greater understanding and respect for different cultures 💪 Boosted confidence and sense of identity At FOBBS, we’re working to make culturally inclusive resources—like our in-app daily quiz on Black Britons —accessible to schools across the UK. These aren’t just resources; they’re pathways to a more equitable and informed future. It’s time for a shift. Students shouldn’t have to wait until university—or beyond—to learn about the contributions of Britons like Mary Seacole, Olaudah Equiano, or Sislin Fay Allen. It's not all doom and gloom though. Some schools are going above and beyond at providing inclusive educational resources in their schools. How is your school ensuring that all students feel seen and valued in the classroom? Let's start a conversation Kevin Buchanan, Gerry Robinson, Likhon Gulam Muhammad, and Chris Deller FCCT. Together, we can shape the future of inclusive education.

It was so inspiring to be in beautiful Portland, Oregon last week, presenting with two Oregon literacy champions, Dr. Lisa McCall and Sarita Amaya, as part of the Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents conference. We’ve been in a literacy crisis in this country for so long, it’s easy to think we’re doing all we can— or to blame COVID — and lose the sense of extreme urgency around ensuring all kids are proficient readers. The longer this takes, the more kids fall through the cracks without learning to read, and it’s not acceptable. Knowing you can’t read when most of your peers can is really hard—kids struggle with shame. I know teachers are also frustrated because they just don’t have enough time in the school day to deliver high-quality Tier 1 instruction AND give each individual child the precise amount of direct instruction and practice they need to become fluent readers. The kids at schools across Oregon, including students from Tigard-Tualatin and Beaverton, are killing it! The students who are furthest behind are making the most progress. For every week in the Ignite Reading program, we see students making at least 2 weeks of academic progress, including multilingual learners and students with IEPs. It’s a clear testament that kids can become fluent readers when we give them the right curriculum and targeted differentiated instruction to get them there. Thank you to our district partners in Oregon and around the country who are doing what it takes for kids. They know that most kids need differentiated instruction to learn to read, and they need a curriculum grounded in the science of reading. Kids do not have time to waste. Solutions exist. It’s time we used them. #Education #Literacy #IgniteReading

Did you know that there has been a 33% rise in the number of English learners in the United States between the 2000–01 school year and the 2017–18 school year. Here’s an extensive collection of research on the Latine community and education:

How do assessments and accountability impact Latino educators and students? Explore insights from Latinos for Education's latest research and learn why eliminating bias in assessment tools is crucial. Read more: https://hubs.la/Q02F3NDG0

As an Equal Justice America Fellow, I will post reflections on my work at the Education Law Center throughout the summer. Here is my third reflection: To believe that there is less than a month left at ELC is hard to believe. I have been working on awesome projects thus far. I have been writing compensatory demand letters, which are ways to ensure children are getting the necessary resources to make up for the loss of education. I have been surprised to learn how school districts still need to implement the required services for children, especially in early intervention settings, to ensure children are thriving and provided with adequate and equitable education. I have learned through my research while developing a factsheet that oftentimes times children who are transitioning from early intervention settings to a school program setting often lose the required services that they continue to need to make progress. The factsheet that I have developed for ELC will be a wonderful resource for families to ensure that children who are transitioning from early intervention to school programs have a smooth and effective transition. Additionally, I am excited to begin a deep dive into how schools are failing to provide an adequate education for multilanguage students. This is a topic that I am especially interested in as my former experience as a teacher evidenced the lack of ESL programming for multilanguage students. Through this research, we can see the gaps and how the Equal Opportunity Act applies to students who are ELLs and ensure schools are appropriately programming to meet their needs. I am excited for the next few weeks and also sad that it will be coming to an end shortly!  #EJAFellowUpdate Equal Justice America

This is for all of the students who fell through the cracks and silently struggled through school; for the parents whose attempts to help their children learn how to read have been futile; for the well-intentioned teachers who didn't have the necessary resources and support; for the advocates who have fought tirelessly for change; and for the 1.2 million students each and every year to come, across the state of California, who will now be seen and heard. Identifying K-2 students at risk for reading difficulties is a powerful step, but it also is just that: *A* step. There is still a monumental task ahead of California and the nation at large to turn students' literacy rates around. For now, though, I am basking in this win. https://lnkd.in/gHuAxm-v