In the latest American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) update presented by Dr. Marilyn Peterson of Nebraska Department of Education, we learned that all schools will want to work at staying away from the bottom of the Tier of Schools' list. To remain successful in providing the best possibility for growth in student achievement, I recommend a well-designed endeavor to assist educators with learning and implementing research-based strategies consistently across curricular areas. I encourage you to develop a plan to meet the needs of your students by enhancing the skills and knowledge of your staff. 

As you plan a comprehensive professional development program for your school or district, here are some important things to keep in mind.

Effective professional development is...

• Directly focused on helping to achieve student learning goals and supporting student learning needs.
• A collaborative endeavor - teachers and administrators work together in planning and implementation.
• School-based and job-embedded.
• A long-term commitment.
• Differentiated.
• Tied to the district goals.

The content of professional development programs is based on organizational needs. Research and best practice show that for continuous improvement, schools should focus on the following categories and the connections among them:

Instructional Leadership                 Curriculum Development
Instructional Practices                    Understanding the Learning Process
Assessment 
 
Professional development must be directly focused on helping to achieve student learning goals and supporting student learning needs. A good question to ask frequently while planning staff development is “How will this improve student learning?" Just as students need to see connections in what they’re learning, teachers in an effective program clearly see the connection of professional development to classroom practice.

Professional development must be intensive and sustained. It will involve observing good practice, practicing good practice, being coached in good practice, reflecting on good practice and repeating the process. Professional development will be structured so that it does not rely on sitting occasionally at the feet of experts in workshops. It will emphasize building skill and knowledge teacher to teacher, being informed from time to time by both the opportunity to observe exemplary practice and to benefit from experts.

ESU 10 stands ready to assist you with developing a plan to meet the needs of your students. Feel free to contact me at any time.

ESU 10 was host to 15 area high schools involving 90 students at the Fifth Annual Build a Computer Day on Monday, January 18, 2010.  The ESU 10 technology training team along with technology majors from UNK provided assistance to students as they built their computers.  Participants gained a better understanding of the working components of a computer and became familiar with Web 2.0 tools that support both education and personal use. 

Schools that attended include: Arcadia, Brady, Burwell, Cozad, Dundy County Stratton, Elm Creek, Gibbon, Gothenburg, Kearney Catholic, Loup County, Pleasanton, Ravenna, Sargent, Shelton and Wood River.   

ESU 10 is a part of the Central Region Brain Injury School Support Team (BIRSST). This team is available to provide consultative services to schools that teach students who have sustained a brain injury. The teams can provide Nebraska educators with information, materials, training and consultative services to support those students.

Brain injury is a leading cause of death and disability for children in the U.S.  (Dise-Lewis, Calvery, & Lewis, 2002). Brain injuries can be acquired or traumatic, and may involve loss of oxygen to the brain, bleeding in the brain, tearing of brain cells, or neurochemical disruptions. “Acquired” brain injuries occur as a result of acute health difficulties, such as stroke, substance inhalation, near drowning, or illnesses such as meningitis or encephalitis.  Common causes of “traumatic” injuries include motor vehicle accidents, auto/pedestrian accidents, child abuse, falls, or sports related injuries.

About 85% of traumatic injuries are classified as MILD, and up to 80% of these are not initially identified (Terryberry-Spohr, 2007). Mild traumatic brain injuries include concussion, brief loss of consciousness, or amnesia without loss of consciousness, but only 15% of mild injuries involve obvious symptoms, and those often result in negative routine neurological evaluations. On the other hand, 85% of mild injuries involve microscopic injuries that do not appear on CT scans or MRI reports (Terryberry-Spohr, 2007). MODERATE traumatic injuries include loss of consciousness for less than 24 hours, while SEVERE injuries involve loss of consciousness for longer than 24 hours.

Unfortunately, the strongest predictor of a head injury is a previous head injury, and 90% of repeat injuries occur within ten days of a previous injury due to subtle changes in balance and reaction time (Terryberry-Spohr, 2007). Recovery time for a mild injury with no loss of consciousness may last four to eight weeks; while for a more severe injury, the recovery time may extend a full year or longer.

Observable changes in students who have experienced brain injury include changes in attention, memory, and personality. Sometimes students become more restless, more easily confused, or more easily upset. Sometimes they experience physical symptoms, such as headache or fatigue. They may have more difficulty learning, completing school work, and maintaining interest in school. Students who have suffered a brain injury may benefit from a variety of instructional strategies and accommodations, dependent on their particular symptoms. Students who have suffered a brain injury may be eligible for accommodations and instruction through an Individualized Education Plan or through a Section 504 Plan.

March is Brain Injury Awareness Month. Additional information for educators and parents is available through Nebraska’s Brain Injury Resource Network:  NEBrainstorm at http://www.braininjury.ne.gov/ or on the Central Region BIRSST website http://sites.esu10.org/BIRSST. Your Central Region BIRSST contact is Patrice Feller, ESU 10 School Psychologist. You can email her for information about available supports at pfeller@esu10.org.

References:

Dise-Lewis, J. E., Calvery, M. L., & Lewis, H. (2002). BrainSTARS Brain Injury: Strategies for Teams And Re-education for Students. Denver, CO.

Terryberry-Spohr, L. (2007). Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Sports Related Concussions. Nebraska Brain Injury Conference. Grand Island, NE.

By Julie Everett, Professional Development Coordinator

To be an educator is to be someone that no one else can be. Each year, we are gifted with a new set of students, and what we do with them is different than what anyone else might do with them. We are not cookie cut by design. We are instinctively different. We are molded from our own educational backgrounds and experiences. We are knowledgeable from our college experiences that have come and gone.

All of past journeys make us unique--and almost alone in our independent ways. We have struggled. We have questioned. We have cried. We have worried. We have challenged. We have been challenged. We have taken risks. We have been frustrated with change. We have welcomed change. We have dusted ourselves off and celebrated that our failures have made us better...stronger…and more passionate about who we are, and what we aspire to be in this ever-changing world of education.

And really, it is that passion that ignites our dedication--a renewal of our faith in our chosen career path. Not just anyone can be an educator. It takes a strong-willed, change-driven, risk-taking, passionate individual to make learning happen for children. You are all of these things and more in your very unique and experienced way.

What have you done to celebrate YOU lately?

Take a few minutes and write down three things that you love about being an educator. Now put it in a place where you will see it tomorrow, and every day after that, until you celebrate YOU another time! Don't wait for another minute to pass without celebrating YOU as an educator. 

After all, you are someone that no one else can be.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with those kids. They never listen to a thing I tell them. I might as well be talking to the wall for all they care!”

Does this sound familiar? How do we get kids to listen and benefit from our experience and knowledge?  Maybe it’s just asking too much. Or is it?

We could blame this problem on the belief that youngsters are just headstrong and determined to learn the hard way. It’s also possible that many parents try to reason with their children at the wrong time. This greatly reduces their chances for success.

We’ve all watched parents give their children a “good talking to” with little or no positive results. This is unfortunate because the adult not only had good intentions but good advice to share. The only trouble was that the child was not in an emotional state that would allow listening and use of the adult’s wisdom.

The words we use with our kids during emotional times are wasted. They are either never heard or are turned against us. We all have difficulty listening during emotional times. It’s natural, at times like these, to focus most of our thoughts upon the emotions rather than the words being spoken. As a result, we remember the other person’s anger better than we remember the words.

A child at the dinner table who is not eating and who is complaining about the food provides a good example. Reminders in this case seem to do little good.

One parent might handle it by using angry-sounding words like, “What’s wrong with you? Don’t you come to the table with that attitude. You quit that complaining, or I’ll really give you something to complain about!” My guess here is that the child is thinking a lot about the adult’s anger and little about the wisdom of eating a good meal.

Use Soft Words with Actions

Another parent might replace these angry words with soft words and action: “I’ll be picking up the food and dishes in five minutes. I hope by then you will have eaten all you need to hold you until breakfast.” Nothing is said if the youngster does not eat. The words are saved for a time when the child will be better able to listen.

It is obvious that the child will be hungry later and say, “I’m hungry. What can I have?”

The wise parent knows that the youngster will learn more when few words are used: “I bet you are. That’s what happens to me when I miss my dinner. I bet you’ll be anxious for breakfast. Don’t worry. We’ll cook a good one.”

This parent chose to save the words for a time when the child was in the thinking state rather than in the emotional state. The best time for reason is when both the child and the adult are happy. This is the time when the best thinking and learning can take place.