By Melanie Asmar, Yesenia Robles and Ann Schimke, Chalkbeat Colorado The union-backed majority on the Denver school board appears poised to consolidate power, as all four candidates endorsed by the teachers union were leading in the ballot count late Tuesday night. If the four win their elections, the board would be unanimously union-backed for the […]
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Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Opinion: Lessons from the pandemic — for teachers
Students and teachers face a steep uphill climb now after a year of interrupted learning. To me, the challenge seems daunting. But then I think about my students. I think about the boy who fled violence in Central America with only his father, leaving his mother behind; he was always eager to solve the most […]
Posted inCOVID, Education, Health, News, Politics and Government
Many Colorado students are back in class, but the state’s expanded school COVID testing program won’t start for weeks
Colorado’s new school COVID-19 testing program isn’t yet up and running as hundreds of thousands of students — many of them unvaccinated — return to class amid a surge in cases and hospitalizations caused by the delta variant. The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is running weeks behind schedule when it comes to […]
Posted inEducation, News
“Not waiting until summer”: Adams 14 leaders try to get ninth graders back on track after more than half fail two or more classes
Across the country, most students struggled with remote learning, but among high school freshmen in the Adams 14 district, more than half failed two or more of their classes last fall. “Once they fail a class, they fall behind for four years,” said Ron Peterson, the high school turnaround specialist for MGT Consulting, the management […]
Posted inCOVID, Education, News
Colorado districts prepare for CMAS testing amid uncertainty about federal waiver
Reluctant Colorado school districts are preparing to administer standardized tests amid uncertainty about whether the state can get any relief from federal testing requirements. Last Monday, federal education officials directed states to proceed with the administration of standardized tests, known here as the Colorado Measures of Academic Success or CMAS, because the tests will help […]
Posted inEducation, News
Colorado’s rules on reading curriculum apply to Aurora, but that was news to district officials
Some Aurora schools will have to switch to a new reading curriculum to comply with a state law requiring science-backed reading materials — even though district leaders initially denied that they would have to change. About one-third of the district’s elementary and K-8 schools use a program that has been soundly rejected by state reviewers. […]
Posted inCOVID, Education, Health, News
Some Colorado school districts are exploring new ways to reduce risk of COVID through air
As school districts begin their second semester trying once again to bring students into classrooms, more are adding new layers of protection — this time looking to address airborne transmission of the coronavirus. They’re adding filters to catch smaller particles, and retrofitting heating and air conditioning systems. And some are trying newer methods to treat […]
Posted inCOVID, Education, Health, News
Some school staff are eligible for coronavirus vaccine in Colorado right now, but not teachers
Teachers cannot yet get the COVID-19 vaccine in Colorado, but some school staff can. School nurses, health technicians who assist them, occupational and physical therapists, speech-language pathologists, campus security guards, and educators who work with children with serious disabilities are among those whose names have been submitted by school districts in the Denver metro area […]
Posted inEducation, News
Aurora Public Schools board approves closing two elementary schools as enrollment changes
Two small Aurora elementary schools will shut their doors for good at the end of this school year after a split Aurora school board voted to approve the superintendent’s recommendations. The board voted 5-2 to approve closing Lyn Knoll Elementary and Century Elementary and phasing out two other schools, Sixth Avenue Elementary and South Middle School. […]
Posted inColoradans, COVID, Education, News
Drool for school: Colorado schools add saliva testing to slow spread of coronavirus in the classroom
Elementary school students in Cherry Creek School District are getting a bonus lesson this year: While studying reading, math and science, they’re also learning the best way to drool into a test tube. It’s not a typical part of the curriculum, but collecting students’ saliva has become another critical step in keeping schools open safely […]