A new teaching method might help more Philly students learn to read

Head Start, the biggest preschool program in the country (with roots in President Johnson's 1965 War on Poverty), is improving -- in the past decade, continued bipartisan support, new evaluation measures and periodic audits, and an increasingly educated teacher force have led to rising test scores.

A national study revealed that expulsion rates of preschool students - especially Black males - were startlingly high, especially compared to any other K-12 grade. The pattern was also shown to create a vicious cycle, exacerbating the likelihood of suspension in later grades. But a remedy was already in place in Connecticut, where a mental-health professional was kept on-hand to provide behavior coaching for teachers, drastically reducing expulsion rates. Seattle looks to replicate their model.

A record number of children enrolled in preschool last year, thanks to COVID relief funding fueling the expansion of several state preschool programs. Some states also used the money to fund new programs like Michigan's Great Start Readiness program which offers free preschool to 4-year-olds from low-income families.

The "TA to BA" fellowship is Rhode Island program is helping veteran TAs become full-time teachers while diversifying the workforce. Through the program, fellows enroll in college classes and are able to present their lengthy classroom teaching experience and turn it into a certification, which will also allow them to be better compensated for their work. Equity Unbound, which developed the fellowship, is also looking to get approval as an alternative licensure program to decrease certification barriers for Teaching Assistants.

Outdoor schools are growing in popularity, but don't often reflect the diverse communities they serve. Two outdoor schools, one in New Mexico and the other in Washington state, are implementing programs and strategies to address the root of this systemic issue. Tiny Trees Preschool in Seattle has found success through its Redefining The Outdoors program, which gets more families of color involved in the outdoors, and by offering tuition assistance to families of color and those facing economic hardships.

Chicago-area high school teachers are approaching the mental-toll of election cycles on their students by rethinking curricula. Some teachers are approaching election anxiety by hosting empathetic dialogues by addressing students' anxieties and exploring their individual powers. Students also completed lessons that required them to have conversations with the adults in their lives regarding general voting information. Other educators are placing emphasis on exploring media literacy and understanding online propaganda with students.

Trauma training for police and community workers teaches them how to make tough situations, such as the arrest of a parent, easier on young children. Painful memories can alter perceptions of police for a lifetime.

Should police be law enforcers or social responders? Some leaders say "guardian" duty is at least important as purely law enforcement tasks, sometimes known as "warrior" work. That idea is rooted in centuries-old principles of policing.

Washington’s Transition to Kindergarten initiative provides state-funded pre-K programming for 4-year-olds, helping them learn classroom expectations, social emotional skills, and foundational academic concepts before starting kindergarten. More than 7,000 spots were available this year, but recent state budget cuts have slowed the program’s expansion.

Starting in 2024, local Maine school districts began offering early education services for disabled children, taking over the responsibility from the state's Child Development Services agency. There are now 34 districts providing special education services to about 550 preschool and pre-K students, and educators say the shift is allowing them to begin building relationships with students and their families much earlier.