Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #Ksed

Most recents (24)

Tax credit "scholarships" are tax avoidance for wealthy Kansans, not charity. Donations to public schools & other charities are tax deductions, but voucher supporters need extra incentives to prop up their programs which hurt KS students. An expansion is in #SB83. #ksleg #ksed
Our state also prohibits the collection of any information about who is participating in this tax scheme. This program should be ended, not expanded. #ksleg #ksed
"Despite voucher tax credits’ charitable facade, the reality is they allow wealthy families to opt out of paying for public education and other public services, and to redirect their tax dollars to private and religious instruction instead. #ksleg #ksed
Read 6 tweets
Kristey Williams is getting roasted at the Augusta Theatre by parents, teachers, counselors, the school board and more.
#ksleg #ksed
"We need Jesus before science and math." Kristey Williams
#ksleg #ksed
"When you were publicly promoting people for the school board did you have involvement in the new charter school your board members and supporters are leaving for" Audience question
#ksed #ksleg
Read 12 tweets
Kansans who believe in their neighborhood schools & the idea that our public schools are part of the foundation of our communities & our future, need to pay attention to what is happening in Topeka over the next 2 months #ksleg #ksed
Some Kansas legislators, helped by dark money groups, are pushing for nonpublic school vouchers that will take money from our neighborhood schools, while also giving huge tax breaks to the very wealthy
These critics are spreading misleading information about Kansas student test results, how much schools are funded and they falsely claim that public schools are resisting accountability
Read 8 tweets
So, I asked ChatGPT to list some things that public schools are required to provide for students that private schools are not required to provide.
A #Thread 🧵
#ksleg #ksed "#schoolchoice" #vouchers #SegregationCoupons #FullyFundSPED

Public Schools are required to provide...
1) Free education to all students, regardless of family income or background.
2) Special education services to students with disabilities.
3) Compliance with state and federal laws, such as those prohibiting discrimination based on race, religion, and national origin.
4) Meals to students who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.
5) Transportation to and from school for eligible students.
6) Curriculum alignment with state standards
7) Graduation and dropout rate reporting to the state
Read 10 tweets
How does school choice work? Here's a super brief summary🧵

Basically: instead of the state funding your local public school based on enrollment, it would set aside the per-student $ and connect it directly with your child instead of the school. #ksleg #ksed #novouchers 1/12
Two basic versions of school choice are vouchers (which work like "coupons" worth the amount of per student funding the state has given) and education savings accounts (which work the same way). #ksleg #ksed 2/12
To take advantage of the program, you have to 1) pick another school and 2) be accepted into that school.

But, there are challenges to both of these (read on). #ksleg #ksed 3/12
Read 13 tweets
This is a long 🧵 on open enrollment in Kansas. I think it’s important that we all know what’s on the table here. Most Kansans I have spoken with have no idea that their legislatures added this ti the school funding bill. #ksleg #ksed
#ksleg passed a bill that will give us open enrollment in public schools starting in 2024. At first, this sounds like a great idea: parents can choose any school in the state that they think is best for their kids (assuming they have the jobs & home-life that make it work).
Each school district will have to establish their maximum capacity each year and will be required to take any student (with few exceptions) in the state who wants to come until they hit maximum capacity. This sounds like a win for families, until you dig a little deeper.
Read 21 tweets
1/ This article is from New Hampshire but is applicable here in Kansas. The bad education bills that have been heard so far this session have had multiple Kansas parents, teachers, school board members and administrators opposing them, #ksleg #ksed
2/ with a handful of members of the State Policy Network supporting them. The State Policy Network does not advocate for public education, but supports privatizing education as a way to reduce taxes and shift the burden for funding education to families. #ksleg #ksed
3/ "Dark money is limitless millions used by the wealthy to set the policy agenda and pass their preferences – which involves lowering their own taxes, destroying unions, and providing profit opportunities. Where do they put their dollars? #ksleg #ksed
Read 7 tweets
"'We were in no way expecting what happened,' says Superintendent Adam Hatfield." @TheKLC

Expression of every aerosol scientist, engineer, etc., who've been promoting #COVIDisAirborne strategies since spring 2020: media.giphy.com/media/A928XcII…. #ksed #ksleg 1/

klcjournal.com/covid-19-schoo…
W/ the #DeltaVariant we knew districts would be taking larger risks than necessary if all relevant mitigation strategies weren't implemented - . That we haven't had more districts close for a period of time is pretty fortunate considering everything. 2/
That we're still arguing over the basics of how to respond to a pandemic driven by a predominantly airborne virus demonstrates a multi-level failure of public health & government, exacerbated by a history of underfunding public health, public education, current levels of... 3/
Read 4 tweets
This is an all hands on deck moment. In-person school is starting. W/ the #DeltaVariant, even w/ the majority of the relevant strategies in place, it’s going to be difficult to prevent transmission in our schools (linkedin.com/pulse/in-perso…). 🧵1/

#ksed #ksleg
In an elementary classroom w/ unvaxxed students, generally ASHRAE compliant ventilation/filtration, the addition of (1) portable HEPA filter unit, & theoretical 100% mask wearing (double layer cloth mask), max exposure is only about 1.2 hrs before an additional student... 2/
is potentially infected at full occupancy (assuming 1 infected student is present).

Accounting for the potential reality of younger kids not always effectively wearing their masks (50% mask wearing), the max exposure is under an hour before an additional student is infected. 3/
Read 17 tweets
These are the type of actions our pharmacies, hair salons, retail stores, offices, universities, k-12 schools, individual residences, etc., need to be taking, particularly w/... 1/

@KDHE @LDCHEALTH @lawrenceks @douglascountyks @UnivOfKansas @usd497 @LawrenceChamber #ksleg #ksed
a more transmissible strain spreading in the U.S. & months left before vaccination levels are where needed to be.

CO2 levels can be used to estimate ventilation levels, though it's important to account for factors like the number of people present, the size of,... 2/
the space, & the use of portable air cleaners. Pages 23-24 of this document from @HarvardChanSPH & @j_g_allen provide a means for estimating ventilation rates based on measured CO2 levels. 3/

schools.forhealth.org/ventilation-gu…
Read 16 tweets
This will continue until we all generally follow a coordinated strategy (if not from the national level on down, at least from the state level on down) that includes everything from building mods & mask wearing to rapid/frequent testing & contact tracing.

There has... 1/

#ksed
to be coordination among peer entities at the same level + coordination w/ those at upper & lower levels. There must be coordination w/ businesses & other organizations. To provide/distribute guidance, $, supplies, & other resources. To flexibly quarantine/isolate... 2/

#ksed
& shut down/reopen in a graduated manner as needed. There must be a minimum level of trust in institutions & in each other.

We don't seem to be anywhere near this, & we're headed into fall/winter. Most days as of late I'm not that hopeful for the remaining school year.

#ksed
Read 3 tweets
Thoroughly enjoyed this week’s @inquiringshow podcast consisting of @indrevis’s interview of Sara Hendrin regarding her new book: What Can a Body Do?: How We Meet the Built World. I love it when the tables are flipped relative to our views of the... 1/

stitcher.com/s?eid=77748790
built environment, particularly when that flipping provides a more comprehensive & inclusive focus on people. This idea isn’t new - that people are disabled not because of their bodies or brains but because of the physical environment we’ve created. But Hendrin provides... 2/
an insightful, inspiring, & hopeful take on it.

As they covered sign language in relation to the built environment, I couldn’t help but wonder how reopening schools would be impacted if we all generally knew sign language. Signing during... 3/

#schoolsreopening #ksed
Read 8 tweets
There will still be excuses made by those whose group identities are partially determined by downplaying the virus, "leaders" unwilling to admit previous mistakes, & districts/universities/organizations w/out the funding/resources needed to implement... 1/

#ksed #ksleg
ventilation/filtration related strategies. But it is good they can no longer point to @CDC guidelines as justification for their inaction.

#ksed #ksleg
And now w/ the CDC's questionable reversal, they can unfortunately still use the CDC as cover. Worse, whatever trust among the public still exists is further eroded.

Trust is critical, but it continues to be whittled away as we head into fall & then winter. 3/
Read 3 tweets
Whether or not the results of the 779 tests between 9/7 & 9/13 are a representative sample of the student body depend on sampling procedures & data analysis techniques we're not privy to. Though given that KU's testing at this point seems... 1/

#ksed

www2.ljworld.com/news/ku/2020/s…
driven more by limitations in it's ability to do more testing as well as laboratory limitations in processing the results, then it's likely this isn't statistically representative. The 10.9% positivity rate may underestimate the % of students infected between 9/7 & 9/13. 2/ #ksed
Unless the testing by Watkins was designed to specifically provide a representative sample, it's test results likely overestimate student body infection rates. These are students coming in w/ specific symptoms or other concerns. So the infection rate between 9/7 &... 3/

#ksed
Read 15 tweets
Monitoring & graduated sanctions are key for enforcing rules that benefit the campus & larger community, but that requires clearly defining who does the monitoring & enforcement ahead of time.

It also requires involving the relevant key... 1/

#ksed

www2.ljworld.com/news/general-n…
stakeholders (students, faculty/staff, administrators, neighborhood associations, Greek life representatives, city/county representatives, etc.) in the development/modification of those rules, as well as how they're monitored/enforced.

@UnivOfKansas & @lawrenceks obviously... 2/
aren't the only ones who failed last spring to effectively start planning for & addressing the behavioral challenges that were inevitably going to occur when campuses tried to reopen. It's been a common occurrence nationally, exacerbated by the lack of a national,... 3/
Read 4 tweets
"... the count that dictates how much funding the school district receives from the state."

While state incentives for districts to keep students engaged make some sense, it shouldn't be penalizing districts who are currently,... 1/

#ksed #ksleg

www2.ljworld.com/news/schools/2…
or will likely later in the year, be struggling to keep students engaged, or even enrolled. Doing so ignores the realities facing communities, districts, parents, & students this year.

And unless we a) ramp of the frequency/quantity of testing, b) improve basic community... 2/
behaviors like mask wearing & physical distancing, c) more consistently address building strategies like ventilation/filtration, & d) consider outside the box ideas like outdoor classrooms (even during winter) history.com/news/school-ou…, then in-person school will be... 3/
Read 7 tweets
Just as the pandemic has laid bare so many of our societal injustices & maladaptive structures, it has exposed our decades long underfunding of, & inadequate focus on, public education.

Facing that exposed truth,... 1/

#ksed

via @nytimes @emilybazelon

nytimes.com/interactive/20…
along w/ our collective failure to do what it would have taken to equitably/safely have in-person &/or online school, should make all of our faces turn red w/ shame. We have failed our students & educators.

If we can turn this around & begin to contextually... 2/

#ksed
the strategies experts, consultants, & others have spelled out for us, I also hope that we can use this as an opportunity to further dismantle the remaining elements of the industrial education model.

And adopt educational strategies more aligned w/ how we evolved... 3/

#ksed
Read 4 tweets
5 Concerns Over Air Ionization for Enhancing #IAQ – Especially in Schools.

1st, it should be acknowledged a) this is from a non-BPI manufacturer/distributor (though not necessarily a competitor), & b) it creates a bit... 1/

#ksed @lawrenceks @usd497

renewaire.com/wp-content/upl…
of a straw man regarding some newer BPI tech's reported non-ozone producing capabilities.

That being said, I'm generally in agreement w/ what's stated here. BPI manufacturers have historically touted their tech as a means for reducing ventilation rates, despite evidence... 2/
that this negatively impacts health & performance: linkedin.com/pulse/evolutio….

W/ the advent of the pandemic, they've now pivoted to focus on their tech's ability to control pathogens - a strategy that seems to have been pretty lucrative for some manufacturers/distributors. 3/
Read 7 tweets
I agree. We are failing our kids, miserably. But it's not for lack of good ideas. You & others have done phenomenal work in researching, compiling, & communicating key strategies.

We lack the necessary leadership in key areas - from local levels to the White House;...1/

#ksed
we even have leaders using the pandemic & it's suffering to sow division for their own gain. We also fail to recognize how our individual natures and our collective cultures work against implementing these key strategies, or taking the necessary actions to make those... 2/

#ksed
key strategies possible. As scientists, researchers, consultants, school district leaders, university administrators, etc., we also need to be talking much more about issues of leadership and behavior. ALL of us.

We'll keep failing our kids if we don't.

#ksed
Read 5 tweets
I'm "hearing" university anecdotes now regarding sound & intelligibility issues I brought up in this piece. The student complaints focus on the masks & "helmets" worn by instructors, but there is some reference to it being difficult to... 1/

#ksed

linkedin.com/pulse/reopenin…
hear/understand in the context of the background sounds. But no specifics yet on what those other sounds are - other students, ramped up mechanical ventilation, portable air cleaners, open windows, or something else.

There were also mentions of the accents of instructors... 2/
further increasing the difficulty to understand wearing masks and helmets. And that would go both ways. Students not used to hearing American accents would also have that difficulty.

For those classes w/ both options, it's driving some students to using the online format. 3/
Read 3 tweets
Our physical/social environments greatly influence the decisions we make & the actions we take. Understanding this is key to promoting desired behavior during a pandemic. It’s also key to preventing a lot of suffering.

linkedin.com/pulse/creating…
This plays right into the end of my essay in the previous tweet. A leadership change in Washington is a necessary component of the larger changes to our social environment needed to employ an effective national, coordinated response.

#ksed #ksleg

blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaig…
Read 3 tweets
It’s more difficult w/ greater risk. And some universities are setting R.A.s up for failure by not providing adequate training, PPE, & other support. But that’s really beside the point.

We live in a “loose” culture that places greater... 1/

#ksed

nytimes.com/2020/08/29/sty…
value on the individual over the collective. Giving up individual freedoms, particularly ones we’re used to having (or expect to have as we reach a new stage in life), to benefit the community isn’t the norm. Especially for those we don’t know or don’t recognize some... 2/

#ksed
connection w/. Given this, we haven’t fully thought through the changes needed to the social & physical environments that would “select for” the desired behavior among university students.

Pre-pandemic, the consequences for violating any rules... 3/

#ksed
Read 14 tweets
"Physical distancing should be seen as only one part of a wider public health approach to containing the covid-19 pandemic. It needs to be implemented alongside combined strategies of people-air-surface-space management, including hand..." 1/

#ksed

bmj.com/content/370/bm…
"hygiene, cleaning, occupancy & indoor space & air managements, and appropriate protective equipment, such as masks, for the setting."

It's determined by assessing a host of contextual factors (that also should include a greater emphasis on behavior). This also has... 2/

#ksed
a good visual tool to help assess risk.

@BranchPattern has been helping FMs/bldg owners determine the best combination of strategies for a given context over the last several months. Our Flu Infection Risk Estimator(TM) has helped w/ this effort: branchpattern.com/research/risk-… 3/ #ksed
Read 3 tweets
Trust is a critical element for effectively responding to a pandemic -trust in our institutions, leadership, experts, & fellow citizens. Actions like this destroy that trust.

In addition to simply demonstrating poor leadership at the... 1/

#ksed

ajc.com/news/universit…
university level, actions like this are also driven by the lack of a national, coordinated response effort & an environment of hyper-partisanship using the pandemic & our response as a marker of political & social identity.

Our individual & collective responses... 2/

#ksed
should reflect an identity of citizen, community member, neighbor, fellow human. It shouldn't be reflective of Democrat, Republican, conservative, liberal, rural, urban, etc. Though we have a lot of work to do to get to that point. 3/

#ksed
Read 3 tweets

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