Director's Greeting
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Constance V. Hines, Ph.D.
Interim Director
Featured in this newsletter:
- Science Teacher Action Research in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic
- Coronavirus School Closures and Learning Loss: Challenges and Promising Practices
- Educational Policy Information Center (EPIC)
- Speaker Series
- Scholars-in-Residence and STEM Fellow Announcement
- AP Summer Institute Highlights
- Summer Online Professional Development Reaches Global Audience
- Literacy Studies Professional Development Partnership
- Gulf Coast Partnership Resident Program, 2020 Graduates
- The Tampa Bay Wipro Science Education Fellowship Program
- Leadership Collaborative
- Tampa Bay Area Writing Project: Leadership Institute and Virtual Student Camp
- Upcoming Professional Development Opportunities
- Virtual Conference Save the Date! Reimagining Education: Opportunities for Achievement, Equity & Justice in a Post-Pandemic World
- What We're Reading
Science Teacher Action Research in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic, by Allan Feldman, PhD
This editorial is a product of the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools in Florida have been closed since early March and instruction has moved to being online. This is likely the case for most readers of this editorial as we try to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. For those of us who work in science education... Read more
Coronavirus School Closures and Learning Loss: Challenges and Promising Practices, by J. Howard Johnston, PhD
School closures can take a significant toll on student learning and achievement. The most common reasons for unanticipated school closings are weather-related, although disease outbreaks, such as influenza, can lead to extended closings to prevent spread or because of high absence rates among students and teachers.
Research on learning loss during these events and extended summer vacations indicates that students can lose knowledge and skills they have already acquired due to the missed time in school. These effects are more pronounced among economically disadvantaged children because... Read more
David C. Anchin Center Speaker Series
The Anchin Center speaker series presents cutting edge research and best practices for addressing the most important opportunities and pressing challenges in Florida’s schools.
In November, Dr. Nathan von der Embse, Associate Professor of School Psychology and an Anchin Fellow, shared insights with more than 60 attendees from area school districts on a series of studies highlighting the conflicting influences of stress and well-being on teacher burnout and instructional practices. The session focused on implications of that research for supporting teacher emotional health and developing educational policy. Nate was joined by panelists Ms. Tricia McManus, Assistant Superintendent in the Hillsborough County Schools, Ms. Andrea O’Sullivan, English Language Arts Department Chair in Polk County Schools and Dr. Mandie Dunn, Assistant Professor of English Education in USF’s College of Education.
Dr. Elizabeth Hadley, Assistant Professor of Literacy Studies and the 2019 Anchin Center Scholar-in-Residence, showcased her research and best practices for more than 120 area educators on “Talking to Learn: Supporting Oral Language Development in Early Childhood Classrooms.” Dr. Hadley and panelists Dr. Maria Carlo, Dr. Howard Goldstein and Dr. Trinia Spencer from the College of Behavioral and Community Sciences, and. Dr. Lisa Lopez from the College of Education shared insights on how teachers and parents can nurture children’s language development and prepare them to be lifelong readers through language-building conversation. Please click below to view the presentation.
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Vonzell Agosto, Ph.D. | Karl Jung, Ph.D. | David Rosengrant, Ed.D. |
Vonzell Agosto, Ph.D.
Karl Jung, Ph.D.
David Rosengrant, Ed.D.
AP Summer Institute, July 2020
The Institute was very well received by participants who shared that they gained a lot from the opportunity to build their knowledge around their AP courses from experienced and enthusiastic College-Board consultants, and from fellow participants. One teacher stated, "I felt our facilitator did everything she could to make sure the workshop was as helpful and engaging as possible through our online platform. She was very knowledgeable and was able to clearly explain concepts that seemed intimidating at first. I am very happy to have attended the workshop as I now feel much more prepared and confident as a new AP teacher." Participants logged in to synchronous sessions via Blackboard Collaborate and worked through asynchronous course content in Canvas.
We want to thank Caryn Musgrave for her excellent leadership in developing and supporting this important event, our APSI facilitators for their flexibility and expertise, as well as Huiruo Chen, Alexa Arata, Cortnie Seymour, and Megan Ghillyer for all of their assistance.
Effective Online Teaching Professional Development Reaches a Global Audience
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of educators were abruptly forced to move courses online where they scrambled to solve the unique challenges of distance learning. In efforts to support these teachers, the Anchin Center welcomed over 500 teachers and administrators from around the world in three sessions of Effective Online Teaching, our first course in a 3-course online professional development series. Participants joined us from 29 states in the USA and from 16 other countries, including Bahrain, Canada, China, France, India, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and United Arab Emirates.
Participants joined in one of three, two-week sessions: June 15-29, 2020, July 6-17, 2020, or July 20-31, 2020. This fully online and asynchronous course was facilitated by college faculty member, Dr. James Hatten, and was offered free to participants. The course supported both novice and veteran teachers in cultivating effective teaching practices in online environments.
The course was very well received by participants and many are expressing excitement about continuing in the series. One participant wrote, "I am so glad that I signed up for the Effective Online Teaching course. I knew I didn't like what happened last spring and if I needed to teach virtually again, I wanted better skills going forward. I never thought I'd enjoy online teaching or consider it as a career option, but after taking the course, I can see that there might be a place for it in my future."
The second course is the series, Building Relationships in Online Courses is open now for registration. A fall section of Effective Online Teaching is also open for registration. The third course will launch in the summer of 2021.
Gulf Coast Partnership (GCP) Program
The GCP is proud of the forty-eight assistant principals who completed the year-long program at the end of spring semester 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the program had to transition to an online delivery system in the spring. The 2019-2020 cohort was the 8th group completing the program. It has been sustained through a partnership with the David C. Anchin Center, College of Education's Education Leadership and Policy Studies Program, and the leadership development departments of nine Florida school districts. The nine district partners for 2019 - 2020 were Hernando, Manatee, Pinellas, and Polk school districts, as well as districts from the Heartland Consortium, which includes Hardee, Highlands, Hendry, Okeechobee, and Glades. The GCP leadership development training is a program that ultimately leads to Florida Level II Principal Certification. Four hundred thirty-one principals and future principals have completed the year-long program.
The 2020 - 2021 GCP Level II Principal Preparation Program started its 9th cohort in April 2020 and has a group of forty-eight new participants. Dr. John Mann continues to lead the program proudly.
The Tampa Bay Wipro Science Education Fellowship Program
The overall goal of this project is to prepare elementary, middle, and high school teachers to be science teacher leaders in their school districts. Emphasis is placed on developing teacher leadership skills and providing teachers the tools to become more effective instructors, to advance science education curriculum and engage in leadership activities such as mentoring new teachers as content area experts. A select group of 20 science teachers from the three partner school districts participated in the program during 2019-2020.
Tampa Bay Area Writing Project Leadership Institute and Summer Camp
The Tampa Bay Area Writing Project (TBAWP) hosted its Summer Leadership Institute online this summer 2020. At the Institute, teachers came together to write, discuss their teaching, and think deeply about the ongoing craft of teaching writing.
TBAWP also launched a new online summer program for students when their face-to-face campus had to be reimagined due to COVID-19 closures. The "Dear Writer" camp offered young writers 8-weeks-worth of writing prompts and engaging activities to keep students writing throughout the summer. Each week, campers received a package in the mail related to the camp theme of the week that included materials and writing activities that they can develop into longer pieces. Student campers then shared their writing with other participants for feedback via online discussion boards.
The Anchin Center is proud to support the ongoing work of the Tampa Bay Area Writing Project and is grateful for Dr. Michael Sherry's collaborative leadership of the group.
Fall 2020 Professional Development Opportunities
- Introduction to Effective Online Teaching: Online technologies have changed the shape of teaching and learning. Teaching online demands new approaches to facilitate learning and this course is an introduction to those approaches. An Introduction to Effective Online Teaching is the first course in a three (3) course series to support educators in best practices in online pedagogy. Reserve your space and register.
- Building Relationships in Online Courses: In this course, participants will learn ways to continue to build a positive classroom culture online where teacher-student relationships continue to drive and support student academic learning. Building Relationships in Online Courses is the second course in a three (3) course series to support educators in best practices in online pedagogy. Introduction to Effective Online Teaching is a prerequisite for this course. Reserve your space and register.
Literacy
- Reading K-12 Exam Preparation: This online asynchronous course will prepare you to earn a passing score on the Reading K-12 Subject Area Exam (035). A passing score on the Reading K-12 Subject Area Exam (035) is a state-approved pathway to a complete reading endorsement, a legislative requirement for any teacher who provides intensive interventions in reading. Facilitated by a literacy and reading expert, this course will review best practices in reading instruction and intervention. Reserve your space and register.
- B.E.S.T. Florida Standards in Language Arts: Offered in partnership with the Florida Department of Education (FDOE), this workshop will introduce participants to the newly adopted B.E.S.T. Florida Standards in Language Arts. In this online professional development opportunity, teachers will familiarize themselves with the new standards and the best approaches to aligned instruction and intervention in English Language Arts.
Mathematics
- B.E.S.T. Florida Standards in Mathematics: Offered in partnership with the Florida Department of Education (FDOE), this workshop will introduce participants to the newly adopted B.E.S.T. Florida Standards in Mathematics. In this online professional development opportunity, teachers will familiarize themselves with the new standards and the best approaches to aligned instruction and intervention in mathematics.
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Pedro Noguera, Ph.D. | Joan Hughes, Ph.D. | Eric Hall, Ed.D. |
Pedro Noguera, Ph.D.
Joan Hughes, Ph.D.
Eric Hall, Ed.D.
What We're Reading
- City Schools and the American Dream 2: The Enduring Promise of Public Education, by Pedro Noguera, Ph.D. & Esa Syeed, Ph.D.
- Research Review on Early Literacy, by Elizabeth Hadley, Ph.D.
- Tackling Equity in Disciplinary Practices, by Olayinka Alege & J. Howard Johnston, Ph.D.
About the David C. Anchin Center for the Advancement of Teaching
