Over the past year, attendance has become a significant issue for many schools and districts. With students learning remotely, in-person, or through a combination of both, it has been difficult for educators to not only keep track of and assess student absenteeism, but also implement effective practices to support strong attendance rates. As more students begin returning to in-person learning, it is critical for schools and districts to revisit their attendance practices and policies and make sure they are using approaches aligned with research and best practices. It is also important to align student attendance with the goals and practices used within a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS). Below, we provide an overview of why attendance is so important, how it should be monitored, and how to effectively address issues with attendance at the school, classroom, and individual student levels.
Today March 26th, 2021 is International #SELDay. International SEL Day represents an opportunity to celebrate the importance of social-emotional learning, and leveraging the power of it as we prepare to reopen our schools and renew our communities.
To celebrate International SEL Day, our team curated a list of some of the most popular and useful resources. We hope you’ll find insights and practicable ideas.
Supporting students’ social-emotional development has always been essential. But this year especially, educators are realizing the critical role of social-emotional learning (SEL). In remote learning contexts teachers need to come up with creative ways to keep students engaged and connected as well as practice key social skills. Teachers working with students in-person may have found that their students are struggling with more social, emotional, and behavioral issues, given all they have gone through this year.
As we move into the final stretch of one of the most challenging school years in our history, teachers and students might be noticing a decline in stamina. No matter the learning context (remote, in-person, or hybrid) keeping students engaged in learning at this point in the year is a common challenge. Although numerous teaching obstacles remain, there are several small but significant things that schools and teachers can do to boost and maintain student engagement. Below we take a deeper dive into what student engagement really is and why it is so important. Then we discuss some practical approaches for keeping students interested and involved in lessons, activities, and discussions.
“How Are You Taking Care of You?”
Teaching is hard work. It is mentally, emotionally, psychologically, and physically demanding. It is also dynamic, engaging, at times even exhilarating, but always meaningful and tremendously important. In a typical year, you could describe most teachers as unsung heroes - paying for materials out of pockets, grading papers, or prepping materials late into the night, always straining to maintain that elusive balance between work and home. But this year... well, this year is not like other years. This year took the scale we use to balance work and home and sold it to the pawnshop for parts.
During this period of change and uncertainty, supporting students’ social-emotional learning and development, in addition to their academic learning, is critical. This is especially true for students who already struggle socially, emotionally, and behaviorally. Below are five evidence-based resources that can be used either by caregivers in the home or teachers remotely to promote key social-emotional competencies, such as self-regulation, self-awareness, social skills, and behavior management.