Links To Center of Excellence Resources

Articles:

• Halting African American Boys' Progression From Pre-K to Prison: What Families, Schools and Communities Can Do! - Oscar A. Barbarin, Tulane University, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Volume 80, Issue 1, Pages 81-88
  

  African American men figure so prominently in the correctional system that the number of African American 4-year-old males can be used to model the number of people who will be incarcerated 15–20 years in the future.

  For the full article, Click Here

• The Condition of Education
  

  This website is an integrated collection of the indicators and analyses published in The Condition of Education 2000–2010. Some indicators may have been updated since they appeared in print.

  For the full article, Click Here

• Teacher Demographics and Student Achievement in High Poverty Schools, Teacher Education Journal of South Carolina, 2009 Edition - J. Zachary Williams, Debra Smith Lee, Presbyterian College
  

  With the implementation of the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, teachers are expected to achieve “Highly Qualified” status. This designation requires full certification, a bachelor’s degree, and subject competence. It is designed to identify teachers who have the knowledge and skills to positively impact student learning outcomes. However, national studies indicate a lack of “highly qualified” teachers in high poverty schools. Yet there are high poverty schools where students exhibit high academic achievement. This research looks at that issue and focuses on selected teacher demographics and student achievement in a sampling of high-achieving, high poverty and low-achieving, high poverty schools in South Carolina.

  For the full article, Click Here

• The Worst of Times – Report by Southern Education Foundation (SEF), June 15, 2010
  

  The Worst of Times: Children in Extreme Poverty in the South and Nation analyzes the latest census data for children in extreme poverty and finds that more than 5.7 million children lived in extreme poverty in the United States in 2008 in a household with an income below 50 percent of the federal poverty line—and 2.4 million or 42 percent of those children lived in the South.

  For the full article, Click Here

• Study: Health concerns impede learning for disadvantaged students
  

  Successful student learning is tied to a number of health problems that affect a disproportionate number of disadvantaged students, a Columbia University study set to be released today shows. Researchers reviewed more than 300 studies on six "educationally relevant health disparities" -- including vision problems, physical inactivity, inattention and hyperactivity, and lack of breakfast -- that have been shown to impede learning, affect more students from disadvantaged groups and respond positively to efforts by schools to improve them.

  For the full article, Click Here

• Trends in Infancy/Early Childhood and Middle Childhood Well-Being, 1994-2006
  By: Kenneth C. Land

  This article analyzes the trends in the wellbeing of children from the years 1994-2006 and found results yielding six conclusions: 1) overall improvements in the well-being index are reflected across all age groups 2) the health domain overall is on a severe decline that is being led by rising obesity rates and babies being born at low birth weight 3) some areas of health show steady improvement 4) safety is on the rise 5) educational attainment is also on the rise and 6) family economic well-being is more than likely going to decline in the years ahead. Theses conclusions suggest that it is important to invent in the well-being of children from birth so that they will be prepared to take a path toward success throughout their lives.

  For the full article go to: http://www.fcd-us.org/usr_doc/EarlyChildhoodWell-BeingReport.pdf
  

• Poverty and Potential: Out-of-School Factors and School Success – March 2009
  By: David C. Berliner – Arizona State University

  Out-of-School factors (OSFs) have been found to play a powerful role in generating the existing achievement gaps. In this article, Berliner details seven common out-of-school factors that are common among the poor that have been shown to significantly affect health and learning opportunities for children and also limit what schools are able to accomplish on their own. These factors are related to physical, sociological, and psychological problems, all poverty induced, that children often bring to school with them. These problems include attention disorders, excessive absenteeism, and oppositional behavior, among many others. These OSFs must be addressed in order to for national aspirations to not be thwarted and to have more success in the schools.

• Tough Questions for Tough Times – October 2009
  By: William Parrett and Kathleen Budge

  This article showcases schools that have overcome the powerful and pervasive effects of poverty on a student's learning by using their best practices. Sustained improvements usually began with an individual or a small group of leaders committed to equity and the goal of successfully teaching every student. Leaders in high-performing/high-poverty schools began by asking questions. The questions leaders ask fall into three domains that deal with 1) building the necessary leadership capacity; 2) focusing the staff's everyday core work on student, professional, and system learning; and 3) creating and fostering a safe, healthy, and supportive learning environment for all. These questions may benefit all schools by supporting and sustaining student success.

• School Jumps from Worst to Among Best
  By: Heather Clark

  A drastic turnaround was made at Tohatchi Elementary School in New Mexico. The demographics of poverty and language have added up in the past to some of the worst test scores in New Mexico, but with the help of hard-working principal, George Bickert, this changed dramatically. Bickert turned academics into a challenge, one that he believed these students could win. And win they did. Tohatchi boosted both its math and reading scores dramatically from 2006 to 2009, according to state data. The most important lesson to learn is that school staff should know their students. If you know what categories students fit into and find out what students need then positive changes will follow.

  For the full article go to: http://www.gnn.com/article/tohatchi-elementary-school-improves-from/713142

• Disparities in Early Learning and Development: Lessons from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study – Birth Cohort (ECLS – B)

  By: T. Halle, N. Forry, E. Hair, K. Perper, L. Wandner, J. Wessel & J. Vick

  This research report examines childhood social indicator disparities to paint a picture of children’s developmental status at a national level at ages nine months and twenty-four months. Topics covered in the report include: 1) Disparities in cognitive development, general health, and social-emotional development at both 9 and 24 months of age as determined by family income, other demographic factors such as race/ethnicity, home language, etc. 2) Disparities for cognitive development, general health and social – emotional development at 9 and 24 months when the child has only one risk factor versus many risk factors, and 3) The proportion of infants and toddlers that have multiple risk factors such as low family income and an English as a second language home.

  For the full article go to: http://www.childtrends.org/Files/Child_Trends-2009_07_10_ES_DisparitiesEL.pdf

• The New First Grade: Too Much Too Soon?
  By: Peg Tyre

  This article focuses on the new work ethic that many schools are embracing, which includes getting children started with reading lessons and math worksheets rather than finger-painting and story time. Some children are thriving with the new system but others are failing before they ever get started in school. The pros and cons of earlier emphasis on core subjects are reviewed and examples are given of children who are and are not succeeding under the new ways of the school systems.

  For the full article go to: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14638573/site/newsweek/print/1/displaymode/1098/

• Children and Poverty: How teachers overcome barriers
  By: Bayne Hughes

  This article describes Bobbie Solley’s experience at Somerville Road Elementary School in Decatur, Ga. Her experience started out as a trip to teach the teachers of the school how to teach writing and ended up being an eye-opening experience of what working with children of poverty is really like on a daily basis. She highlights that the three most important things you can do to enhance learning in children of poverty are to read with them, talk with them and to write about their experiences. Each of these is essential in enhancing children’s development at an early age.

  For the full article go to:
  http://www.fmucenterofexcellence.org/fmu/pdfs/Children%20and%20poverty-article.pdf

• How do you get out of poverty? STUDY, STUDY, STUDY
  By: Mary Dolan

  This article describes a family’s struggles of living below the federal poverty line with a family of four, the link between poverty and education, the poverty cycle and how it is passed along from parents to children and also the importance of parent involvement and teacher preparedness in education. These factors all play an essential role in breaking the vicious poverty cycle in both the Pee Dee region and nationwide.

  For the full article go to: http://www.theitem.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006110220157

• “From Cradle to Career: Connecting American Education from Birth through Adulthood”

  This is a PowerPoint describing the importance of viewing K-12 education through a wider lens, starting earlier and ranging from birth until adulthood. It also describes the state’s efforts in aligning education starting at birth and spanning into adulthood. There are aspects of factors that affect education such as poverty and parental influences that are discussed in detail.

  For the full article go to:
  http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/qc/2007/QC07_PressConference.pdf

• The Effects of Poverty on Teaching and Learning
  By Karen M. Pellino

  This paper examines effects of poverty on teaching and learning, poverty as a risk factor and the many challenges that arise in teaching children of poverty. Implications of brain-based research reform of curriculum and adaptation are also discussed in the paper.
  Pellino describes poverty as an issue that many United States children are coming face to face with each year. She also reminds readers of the high price that children of poverty pay and how more and more children each year are entering schools with circumstantial needs, such as poverty, that schools are not prepared to meet.

  For the full article go to: http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/teaching/poverty/print.htm

• Educational Equity on Trial

  A message board with questions, comments and answers on the “Educational Equity” topic. Issues of equity and segregation in the Hartford, Connecticut are discussed along with reports on the long running school equity lawsuit, Sheff v. O’Neill.

  For the full article go to: http://www.fmucenterofexcellence.org/fmu/pdfs/edweek-org_article.PDF

• Creating Good Schools for Children in Poverty through Title I Schoolwide Programs
  By: Ellen M. Pechman; Leila Fiester

  This article synthesizes research on schoolwide projects with the views of experienced practitioners, to identify the principles guiding effective schoolwide projects. The most successful programs build on a framework that includes eight features: a shared vision, time and resources for planning and program design, skillful management and a well-defined organizational structure, a clear focus on academics, continuing professional development schoolwide, a commitment to cultural inclusiveness, patent and community involvement, and an accountability orientation. Promising Practices that future Title I schoolwide programs can adopt to reorganize schools, streamline management, and upgrade the curriculum for children in schools serving communities with the highest concentrations of poor families are also discussed.

  For the Full Article Abstract go to: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~content=a785040642~db=all

• How Understanding Poverty Can Help Low – Income Children Learn

  This article introduces Ruby Payne and describers her “framework” for understanding poverty. It tells of her realization that the behavior low income students might appear wrong to teachers from middle and upper-income backgrounds, but made sense in the context of students' day to day lives. She shared her observations with other teachers and her philosophy became so valued she ended up writing a book about it.

  For the Full Article go to: http://www.education-world.com/a_issues/chat/chat119.shtml

• Children at Risk
  This article discusses the substantial percentage of children who are disadvantaged in terms of resources available for appropriate development. It also discusses the percentages of children who live in poverty and who face problems when they begin school due to the achievement gap. Finally, the disadvantages translate into shortfalls in achievement, pro-social behavior, educational attainment, and, later in life, greater rates of unemployment and criminality.
  For the full article go to: http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9144/index1.html
  
• Gap in Teacher Quality Falls on Income Lines
  By: Ledyard King
  This article discusses how it is easier to find a highly qualified teacher in areas where parental income is higher. With low test scores and high drop-out rates, schools in high-poverty areas have consistently had a tougher time attracting and keeping highly qualified teachers, which is a disadvantage to the children in those areas and could lead to future problems for the children who attend those schools.
  For the full article go to:
  http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2006-04-26-teachers-poor_x.htm
  
• Child Poverty is Highest in Rural Counties in U.S.
  By: William O'Hare and Mark Mather

  While poverty is thought to be a problem confined to urban areas, William O’Hare and Mark Mather showcase data released by the Census Bureau in 2008 indicating most of the counties with high child poverty rates are located in rural, remote, and sparsely populated regions of America. The child poverty rate for the most remote rural counties in America is higher than the rate in the most urban counties. Over half of the 100 counties considered to have the highest child poverty rates have populations of 20,000 or less.

  For the full article go to: http://www.prb.org/Articles/2008/childpoverty.aspx

• Schools Alone Cannot Help Poor
  This article summarizes the findings of a report for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. It highlights that a quarter of poor children in England gain five good GCSEs compared with half of all pupils. School quality accounted for a fraction of achievement variations in students and family disadvantage was found to be passed down from one generation to the next in the underachievement cycle. Other factors such as how children felt about themselves and their learning also were pinpointed as needing more investigation to find out their true influence on achievement.
  For the full article go to: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6982090.stm
  
• Children in Poverty

  This article outlines factors that can increase poverty and the groups who are most likely to be living in poor families these include: Black and Hispanic children, children living in single-mother families, and children under age 6. Also, the authors tell us that poor children are disproportionately exposed to risk factors that may impair brain development and affect social and emotional development.

  For the full article go to: http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/indicators/4Poverty.cfm

• The Achievement Gap: Overcoming the Income Gap (article) INFOBRIEF
• “Poverty in America with Some Focus on South Carolina” by Richard D. Young
• Recent Research on the Achievement Gap
• National Center for Children of Poverty article, Sept. 2006
  • “Effective Preschool Curricular and Teaching Strategies”
• Rand Corporation – Children at Risk - Consequences for School Readiness and Beyond
• Preparing teachers for children in poverty…
• http://www2.edtrust.org/EdTrust/Press+Room/High+School+2005.htm
• http://www2.edtrust.org/EdTrust/Press+Room/Funding+Gap+2005.htm
• http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2006-04-26-teachers-poor_x.htm
• http://search.learningpt.org/query.html?qt=achievement+gap
  • “Breaking the Link Between Teacher Expectations and Black Students’ Performance”
  • “Teachers Make a Difference in Student Performance”
  • “Researchers Offer Lessons Learned to Overcome the Achievement Gap”
• http://www-gse.berkeley.edu/research/crede/tools/aera/position_paper.html
  • “Closing the Achievement Gap Through Teacher Preparation”
• http://www.edexcellence.net/foundation/publication/publication.cfm?id=363
  • “How Well Are States Educating Our Neediest Children”
• http://www.nwea.org/assets/research/national/AchGap_11.11.061.pdf
  • “Achievement Gap: An Examination of Differences in Student Achievement and Growth”
• Risk and Protective Factors for Childhood Vulnerability
  • Dr. Doug Willms (2007 COE Spring Colloquium speaker)
• http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2007/01/04/17wellbeing.h26.html
• http://www.thestate.com/editorial-columns/story/185851.html
  • “Schools Can’t Repair All of Poverty’s Ills”
• http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/6982090.stm
  • Schools alone ‘cannot help poor’ – BBC News
• http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3785/is_199809/ai_n8814936
  • Teaching for Meaning in High-Poverty Classrooms – www.FindArticles.com
• Preparing Teachers for Children in Poverty – The School Administrator – Dec. 05
• http://www.childtrendsdatabank.org/indicators/4Poverty.cfm
  • Children in Poverty
• http://www.uwsp.edu/Education/lwilson/poems/dressings.htm
  • Poem:Dressings
• http://www.prb.org/Articles/2008/childpoverty.aspx
• Child Poverty is Highest in Rural Counties in U.S.
• http://www.ncfr.org/about/news_read.asp?id=1070
  • National Council on Family Relations – “Future of Children Fall 2007 Journal”
• Researchers Gain Understanding of How Poverty Alters the Brain
• Poor Rural Children Attract Close Study
• What We All (Supposedly) Know About the Poor: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Ruby Payne’s “Framework.” – Available in the Center of Excellence Office Resource Library
• http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/teaching/poverty/print.htm
  • The Effects of Poverty on Teaching and Learning
• http://www.combarriers.com/pdf/TP0151Overcoming.pdf
  • Overcoming the Silence of Generational Poverty
• Poverty and Potential: Out-of-School Factors and School Success – David C. Berliner, March 2009
• Childhood poverty, chronic stress, and adult working memory - Gary W. Evans & Michelle A. Schamberg, February 2009
  

  
  

   

home | overview | grant | directory | goals & activities | partner districts | participating districts
partner organizations | upcoming events | press releases | evaluation reports | contact us | message board archives
copyright © 2005- 2009 fmu center of excellence | site design & hosting by apex marketing & design, an sc seo company south carolina