Penn GSE News Archive
How about a domestic sister cities program, so that Americans can get to know one another
Jonathan Zimmerman proposed a domestic sister city program to alleviate partisan divisions and remind Americans of their commonalities.
Penn students and staff rally to help preserve affordable housing for West Philadelphia residents
Krystal Strong protested on campus with students and faculty and members of the surrounding community to stop the sale of subsidized rental units and the displacement of Black and poor Philadelphians in University City.
Biden's free college plan never happened. Are debt-free degrees the answer to student loan crisis?
Laura Perna spoke about how so-called College Promise Programs that reduce the costs of attending college may encourage more students to enroll — but cautioned a number may still be deterred by fears of hidden costs.
Ohio State U. Unveils a Plan for All Students to Graduate Debt-Free
Laura Perna discussed how the challenges of constructing debt-free degree programs may be daunting for colleges, but the ends justify the means: The programs create a more socioeconomically diverse student body, to the benefit of everyone.
Telling the truth about critical race theory
Jonathan Zimmerman asked, “Can we be honest about critical race theory (CRT)?” He argues the topic has become highly politicized. To confront biases, one must share different versions of America with students and allow them to use critical thinking skills to confront conflicting truths and weigh opposing arguments.
How better funding can increase the number and diversity of doctoral students
Walt Ecton discusses financial concerns as one of the most significant barriers to applying to doctoral programs. An introduction of comprehensive funding packages that cover tuition has led to an increase in the number and diversity of students in doctoral programs.
LGBTQ students say high school support groups are life-changing. Why does Philly only have a dozen?
Mike Nakkula comments on the development of LGBTQ student support programs in the Philadelphia public school system. “Being closeted and hiding are major risk factors,” Nakkula said. “Creating spaces in schools where students feel like they have a chance to voice their concerns, that’s a critical developmental act.”
Fall Back
Michael Gottfried said COVID-19-related school absences may disrupt all students’ learning. “Part of me is just like let’s just go back to Zoom for everyone,” he said. “I want to be in person more than anyone else. That is, the last thing I want to do is sit on Zoom and teach. So I feel for these kids. But what kind of learning is it going to be without a real fallback plan in place?”
As 9/11 drifts into history, Colorado has no statewide standards on teaching kids about it September 11, 2021
Ameena Ghaffar-Kucher's “Teaching Beyond September 11” curriculum has sparked conversation of the importance of learning about 9/11 in school. Many states, including Colorado, do not have a school curriculum that teaches about the “increasingly distant historic event.” There is hope that students “would understand everything that happened that went into that event taking place and they would work to make sure that event never takes place again.”
New Data Shows Building Knowledge Can Boost Reading Comprehension
Brooks Bowden cautions that while the effect sizes in the ARC Core research study were large compared to studies of older students, there are few similar studies of kindergarteners to provide a basis for comparison.
How do you teach 9/11 to students too young to remember? Philly-area educators tell how they make it real
Ameena Ghaffar-Kucher spoke about “history from the last 20 years that is completely neglected.” The “Teaching Beyond September 11” curriculum “is really speaking to that gap and helping young people understand just how the world has changed as a consequence of that awful day,” she said.
Democrats' free tuition plan could save community colleges at a critical time
Laura Perna spoke about efforts to make community college tuition-free. "There's power in the message that tuition is free. Figuring out how much college costs is complicated," she said.
Understanding the pandemic classroom
Caroline Watts discusses educators’ experiences during the early days of the pandemic, lessons learned and how the classroom might be different in the coming months.
‘I have faith in what I cannot imagine, because I couldn’t have imagined what happened July 11’: Philadelphia Cubans on the hope, stress of island protests
Amalia Daché criticizes people who have blamed the U.S. embargo and not the Cuban government for the crisis in Cuba. “She was shocked to see how the U.S. media and Twitter were taking Afro-Cubans out of the narrative and blaming the U.S. and the CIA for the demonstrations,” she said.
Teachers are leaving the profession due to COVID-19 stresses
Richard Ingersoll comments on teachers leaving the profession if the economy continues to improve and they continue to feel stress. “Typically we find that employees across the economy tend to quit less during economic downtimes,” he said. “There’s a lot of indications that in fact, during the pandemic, teacher turnover and teacher retirements may have even gone down.”
New study shows Latinx students attend class more if the teacher is Latinx
In new research published in Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Professor Michael Gottfried, along with J. Jacob Kirksey (Texas Tech University) and Tina L. Fletcher (Penn GSE), concluded that Latinx students with Latinx teachers attend school more, a relationship that does not exist for white students.