From: ASCD SmartBrief <ascd@smartbrief.com>
Sent: Jul 12, 2023 15:10:41.000000000 UTC
Subject: Mo. district stakeholders say improvement plan is lacking
To: jeff_james@iss.k12.nc.us <jeff_james@iss.k12.nc.us>

ASCD SmartBrief
Teachers tap podcasts as educational tool | Study: Reading, math scores are worse than pre-pandemic | Helping yourself and mentees see positive, not negative
Created for jeff_james@iss.k12.nc.us |  Web Version
July 12, 2023
ASCD SmartBrief
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Teaching and Learning
Teachers tap podcasts as educational tool
(Pixabay)
Educators are recognizing the value of podcasts as a teaching tool, using them in project-based learning, lectures and to enhance school climate. Incorporating podcasts into instruction gives students a platform to express themselves, allowing even the quietest students to find their voice and share their thoughts and ideas in a safe and engaging manner.
Full Story: Education Week (7/10) 
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Study: Reading, math scores are worse than pre-pandemic
(Ariel Skelley/Getty Images)
Despite government investment and accelerated learning efforts, fourth- through eighth-grade students are doing worse in math and reading than they were before the pandemic -- "backsliding" with declines of up to 15% for math and 19% for reading -- according to a NWEA study of 6.7 million students' MAP scores. Providing 4.5 months of extra math and 4.1 months of extra reading is likely the only way to catch up, says study co-author Karyn Lewis, director of NWEA's Center for School and Student Progress.
Full Story: K-12 Dive (7/11),  The New York Times (7/10),  CNN (7/11) 
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Readfetti Decodable Readers Align with Science of Reading
Support your students on their journey from decoding to fluency and comprehension with NEW Readfetti Decodable Readers. These colorful evidence-based readers implement Science of Reading principles while engaging your K–2 students in the joy of reading and learning.
View Samples
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Transformational Leadership
Helping yourself and mentees see positive, not negative
(Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images)
Avoiding key leadership traps can help you be a better leader as well as provide stronger mentoring to up-and-coming leaders, writes Adam Bryant in "The Leap to Leader: How Ambitious Managers Make the Jump to Leadership." Bryant discusses ways you, or your mentees, can handle traps such as fear of failure, unpleasant realities and victimhood.
Full Story: SmartBrief/Leadership (7/10) 
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Tips for effective standards-based grading
Standards-based grading systems help shift grading policies toward a focus on learning and growth – yet take some adjusting during the rollout period. Download this infographic to learn about actionable steps that can help you launch standards-based grading systems in your schools.
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Technology in the Classroom
K-12 IT leaders share how they're shaping education
(Ed Jones/AFP/Getty Images)
The integration of education and technology has become inseparable in classrooms, and K-12 IT leaders have played a crucial role in driving this transformation. The influential individuals featured in this article share how they have embraced innovation and worked toward creating equitable learning experiences for students and educators.
Full Story: EdTech (7/10) 
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A group of researchers developed a free tool called the Adaptive Experimentation Accelerator, which uses AI to help educators improve their teaching materials through adaptive experimentation. By harnessing the power of AI, the tool enables teachers to identify specific interventions that work best for individual students, creating a more personalized and effective learning experience.
Full Story: EdSurge (7/11) 
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What do educators think of ChatGPT?
Academic integrity leader Turnitin recently partnered with SmartBrief to poll educators on their use of and feelings towards AI writing. The results reveal both the challenges and opportunities of this rapidly evolving technology. Check out the highlights in this infographic.
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Managing Budgets
A plan to address key challenges in the St. Louis, Mo., school system, such as population decline and school choice has been released more than two years after it was initiated. The report lacks specific details and concrete strategies, disappointing former officials and stakeholders who believe it missed the opportunity to tackle the pressing issues facing the education system.
Full Story: St. Louis Post-Dispatch (7/10) 
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New from ASCD
In the new issue of Educational Leadership, Michael Fisher and Heidi Hayes Jacobs discuss the growing importance of “prompt literacy” in working with AI tools and provide a framework for developing this skillset with students.
Many teachers who differentiate instruction would love to integrate technology in ways that transform learning for their students. University professors Clare Kilbane and Natalie Milman offer effective strategies for educators on how to design instruction with technology that promotes more equitable, efficient, effective, and engaging learning.
LEARN MORE ABOUT ASCD:
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Policy Watch
Teaching license compact can help tackle teacher shortage
(Unsplash)
Ten states are participating in the Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact, a reciprocity agreement allowing teachers who have earned a bachelor's degree, completed a state-approved teacher licensure program and possess a full teaching license to receive an equivalent license in other states without additional requirements. The compact is intended to streamline the licensing process and increase teacher mobility while addressing teacher shortages.
Full Story: Education Week (7/10) 
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Faculty Lounge
Analysis: Board games, dominoes can increase math skills
(Pixabay)
Children playing family-style games developed "better" to "much stronger" math skills than those who didn't, according to a meta-analysis of 19 studies involving 25 games such as Chutes and Ladders and dominoes. The play time during the studies averaged 20 minutes per day, twice a week, over 90 days.
Full Story: CNN (7/10),  CTV News (Canada) (7/9) 
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