Ed100 Chapter of the Month #2: Students

by Jeff Camp | September 4, 2018 | 0 Comments
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Students are the Heart of Education

This post is the second of ten for the Ed100 Chapter of the Month Program, our biggest effort yet to help parent leaders make a lasting difference in their schools and districts.

PTA boards that begin using the Chapter of the Month Program right away will be on schedule to accomplish something very cool this school year. The idea is simple: at each monthly meeting, set aside 15 minutes to learn more about important education issues using Ed100. By setting a regular pattern, you'll build momentum for all of your board members to become Ed100 graduates together.

(If you don't get started at the beginning of the year, don't fret. You can set your own pace. All the elements you need are here.)

What's in Ed100 Chapter 2?

Who does the most important work in school? That's an easy one: Students.

Students are individuals, each with their own strengths, challenges, quirks and circumstances. Chapter 2 focuses on these future adults, their role in learning, and the many challenges that they may bring with them. For example, this is the chapter where we explore diversity, poverty, race and health (Lessons 2.1 through 2.3), as well as motivation (Lesson 2.6), special needs (2.7) and the particular challenges for undocumented students (2.9). Parents play a key role, which we discuss in Lesson 2.4.

The best way to learn from these lessons is to talk about them. As always, to help you get the conversation going we've prepared discussion guides in English and Spanish. Each chapter is matched with a brief summary video that you can use to bring everyone into the conversation (even if they haven't actually read the lessons). Here's the discussion guide for Chapter 2 in English and Spanish:

About the Ed100 Chapter of the Month Program

Each month this school year we will feature one chapter of Ed100 through email and social media. It's all scheduled. This month (September-October) is Chapter 2.

Ed100 Graduate CertificateTo easily earn your Ed100 Certificate this school year, start now!

If you start now and keep pace, by the end of the school year you will earn your Ed100 Graduate Certificate. You will also know a lot more about California's education system than you do today.

Ask your PTA board members to join you by signing up for Ed100.org. As you know, it's free (no catches) and available in English and Spanish. Sign up at Ed100.org.

To Do List

Sign up for Ed100.org (free) if you haven't already. Select a school in your profile.

Connect with Ed100.org on Facebook and Twitter if you use them. (Interaction will help you get much more out of the chapter of the month!)

Read Ed100 Chapter 2, taking the quizzes. (Remember: these quizzes are the way to earn tickets… and ultimately your Ed100 Graduate certificate. If you're lucky, a ticket you earn could win $1,000 for your PTA!)

Schedule and announce the time when your PTA board will discuss the Ed100 Chapter of the Month. As little as 15 minutes committed in the agenda of your monthly board meeting can make all the difference.

Review Chapter 2 by watching the short video about it on the Ed100 Chapter of the Month playlist on YouTube. If you have internet access at your meeting location, this video can help bring everyone into the conversation (including those that didn't do the reading).

Use the Discussion Guide for Chapter 2 (in English and Spanish) to help talk through the implications for your school or district.

Tips for PTA Leaders:

If you are trying to get an Ed100 group going in your school group or PTA council, a short presentation can help make it clear.

Your board members might not be the only ones interested in becoming Ed100 Graduates this year. If you have the opportunity to speak to your school community, why not invite them to join you? Tell them about your PTA board's plan to use the Ed100 Chapter of the Month.

You might also want to draw inspiration from the Ed100 Big Book of Questions, an ever-evolving public set of question slides for ALL of the lessons in Ed100. The slides don't give away the answers, but they tell you where to find them.

Here are two examples from lessons in Chapter 2:

Ed100 Lesson 2.7 - Do districts get extra funds for special education students?

Ed100 Lesson 2.8 - Over decades, has the number of foster kids increased or decreased?

How can we help you succeed with Ed100 in the coming school year? Drop me an email or leave a comment on this blog post! I'm jeffcamp@ed100.org.

P.S. Thanks to our friends at the San Mateo County Office of Education for translating our Discussion Guides into Spanish.

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