Welcome back to the 2018-2019 school year! As the new year begins, we are happy to announce the upcoming launch of our new Early Learning Website. This site will include information for Preschool-3rd grade that we have developed over the past few years as well as new resources as they become available. Many of these resources have been developed collaboratively with state and local early learning partners. We will let you know when the new site launches!
Please reach out to a member of the Early Learning Team if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions about the new website or anything related to preschool-3rd grade learning.
Over the past year, members of the Early Learning Team, other Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) staff, and staff from other education, health, and human service agencies have been working to develop a Prenatal through Grade 12 framework for Family Engagement. This work has been supported by national and state partners, including the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), the National Association for Family, School and Community Engagement (NAFSCE) and the Policy Equity Group.
Over the spring and summer, the MA state planning team, along with its External and Internal Family Engagement Stakeholder Coalitions, have been in the process of developing elements, indicators and family engagement practices to include in the framework. Additionally, Massachusetts applied for a multi-year federal grant, Statewide Family Engagement Centers (SFEC) Grant, to continue to support the work of the framework, its implementation as well as other state and local family engagement initiatives. Please be on the look out for more information about opportunities for professional development as well as other resources that will be developed using this funding!
Elementary Principals Networking
The Early Learning Team and the Massachusetts School Administrators Association (MSAA) hosted 3 rounds of regional network meetings for elementary principals during the 2017-2018 school year. These sessions provided elementary principals the opportunity to network with area colleagues on topics related to early learning (Preschool-3rd grade), receive professional development, and discuss problems of practice.
At the end of August we surveyed elementary principals to determine interest in meetings for the 2018-2019 school year. We hope to kick-off this year’s series of networking meetings with a statewide event. Stay tuned for more information on the statewide event.
We also plan to hold 2 rounds of regional meetings in the winter and spring with dates and locations to be posted as soon as they are confirmed.
Early Learning Network Meetings
The Department’s Early Learning Team and the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) are working together to host regional networking opportunities this fall/winter. Proposed topics for the network meetings include:
An introduction to the new Guidelines for Preschool and Kindergarten Learning Experiences;
A discussion of the draft Prenatal through Grade 12 Family Engagement framework; and
Presentation on LGBTQ and gender identity in the early years.
Please look for invitations to these regional networking sessions in the coming weeks.
Elementary School Leadership for STEM Seminar
The Department's Office of Science and Technology/Engineering (STE) is collaborating with the Northeast STEM Network at Merrimac College for this special event on Thursday, October 25th as part of STEM Week celebrations. The meeting is open to all leaders who want to talk about Elementary School Science. Please share this opportunity with colleagues and register below.
EVENT Information:
Elementary Leadership for STEM Seminar
October 25, 2018
9:30- 1:00 pm (lunch included)
Location: Cascia Hall, Merrimack College, 315 Turnpike Street, North Andover MA
Agenda:
9:30 Check in
9:45 welcome
10:00 – 11:00 Keynote Dr. Christine Cunningham about what is working in the field of elementary STE education.
11:00 – 12:00 Strategies for Practice
12:00 – 1:00 Collaboration and networking lunch (lunch provided)
The Departments of Early Education and Care (EEC) and Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) invite:
Special Education Directors, Early Childhood Coordinators, Teachers, Early Care and Education Directors, Head Start Disabilities/Education Coordinators, Family Services Coordinators, PEG Coordinators, Early Intervention Directors and Community Partners
to join us for this year’s Building Inclusive Communities Initiative to:
Hear from renowned, national experts on inclusion - Rich Villa and Dr. Jacque Thousand;
Learn about regulations, polices, and best practices to create quality inclusive early childhood services;
Ensure services are grounded in access, participation and supports for children with and without disabilities;
Receive leadership strategies to support inclusion;
Learn support strategies to engage families around inclusive practices; and
Develop an action plan to begin to assess inclusion supports in your district and community.
Please register here for the October 29, 2018 Conference: bit.ly/BICOct29
Early Learning Projects Toolkit - Coming Soon!
The Early Learning Projects (ELP) funding in year 4 included the development of an ELP Toolkit, designed for the purpose of providing a resource to all school districts and ECE leadership in MA. The ELP Toolkit will be available in December 2018 and posted on the DHE web site. It provides a digital ‘how-to’ resource that can be utilized for any entity wishing to improve both learning experiences and outcomes for children from preschool through grade 3. The ELP Toolkit focuses on an ecological frame for the professional development and education of the early childhood workforce in a publicly funded mixed delivery system. It includes a project overview presenting the central concept for the projects and chapters on the four essential structural elements that contributed to their success – collaboration between Higher Education, Communities, Classrooms and the ECE Workforce. As a resource developed by funding from the US Department of Education and the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education, it is available to the public at no cost
Background Information: The Department of Higher Education administered federal funding for several professional development partnerships through the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) Improving Teacher Quality State Grant Program from 2014-2018. District partners participating in the development of theToolkit include Chelsea, Cheshire, Lowell, North Adams, Pittsfield, and Worcester Each funded partnership included at least one institution of higher education as the lead, a high-need school district per federal requirements, and one or more non-profit education partners serving children in the same school districts. Funds were used to conduct professional development activities in core academic subjects and in the science of early learning to ensure that teachers, paraprofessionals, and principals have both content and pedagogical knowledge that will enhance children’s learning. Awards were made for four years, on conditions of yearly progress and continued federal appropriation. The ESEA grant has been replaced by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) grant, which does not include an allocation to state higher education authorities. The grant ended in September 2018.
Social and Emotional Learning Standards Courses
The online courses on MA PreK and Kindergarten Standards for Social Emotional Learning and Approaches to Play and Learning are offered during SY 2018-2019 using the Blackboard learning platform. Participants may choose when to complete class work each week; the course includes weekly deadlines for assignments, requirements to interact with other educators via discussion board, and access to the course facilitator by email.
Available dates are listed below (click each course title for flier and registration information)
FALL 2018: Intro to SEL/APL standards
September 24-October 28 (this course could be delayed a week or two to allow for a sufficient number of registrations)
Caroline Blackman
caroline.blackman@gmail.com
Family Engagement in SEL (flier unavailable at this time please see email address below)
April 22-May 26
Jody Figuerido
j.figuerido@iepd.org
A message from Strategies for Children:
State budget recap: Best in 10 years for early education and care
“The recently passed state budget is one of the best ever for high-quality early education. As advocates, we will be pushing state administrators to get this funding out to families, educators, programs and communities.” – Amy O’Leary, Director of Strategies for Children’s Early Education for All Campaign
On Thursday, July 26, Governor Charlie Baker signed a $41.8 billion state budget for fiscal year 2019. The governor made no vetoes to early education and care line items. This year's budget is the first in 10 years to surpass the pre-recession high point (FY09) of state funding for early education and care. Highlights include $20 million for the early educator salary rate reserve, $10 million for a new early educator workforce development initiative, $5 million for preschool expansion and more. Visit our website for additional budget details.
Superintendents, assistant superintendents, principals, and charter school leaders will receive the update automatically. For others wishing to receive this update, please subscribe
