Guest Column
In this month's Guest Column, Augsburg College education professor Joseph Erickson makes a strong case for making service-learning the centerpiece of TEACHER PREPARATION. Noting that cognitive learning is important, Erickson maintains that "students not only need to read and compute, but also must relate, conflict, reconcile, judge, decide and reflect," all outcomes of service-learning. Read more in his compelling column.
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Back to top.What States Are Doing
CALIFORNIA Assembly Bill 1775 requires the governor to proclaim each January 30 Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution. The bill encourages all public schools and educational institutions to conduct exercises on that day remembering the life of Fred Korematsu and recognizing the importance of preserving civil liberties, even in times of real or perceived crisis. During World War II, Korematsu was arrested and convicted for defying the exclusion order mandating that he, and others of Japanese ancestry, be interned in concentration camps.
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/09-10/bill/asm/ab_1751-1800/ab_1775_bill_20100924_chaptered.pdf
NEW YORK has enacted the "Dignity For All Students Act," aimed at creating a school environment free of harassment and discrimination. Assembly Bill 3661 includes policies and guidelines for employee training and the development of nondiscriminatory instructional and counseling methods.
http://public.leginfo.state.ny.us/LAWSSEAF.cgi?QUERYTYPE=LAWS+&QUERYDATA=@LLEDN+&LIST=LAW+&BROWSER=EXPLORER+&TOKEN=50537889+&TARGET=VIEW
Back to top.Good Reads
Research on civic engagement gets a thorough examination in The Handbook of Research on Civic Engagement in Youth. This major compilation of existing research on YOUTH CIVIC ENGAGEMENT covers a broad array of topics which will interest researchers and policymakers. Editors are Lonnie Sherrod, Judith Torney-Purta and Constance Flanagan, all noted for their research on youth civic engagement. For more information, click on the link below.
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A revised fact sheet on YOUTH TURNOUT in the 2010 elections, using re-weighted exit poll data, is available from CIRCLE (Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement). To learn more about the approximately 22.8% of all eligible young voters ages 18-29 who participated in the 2010 election, visit the CIRCLE Web site to read Young Voters in the 2010 Elections.
http://www.civicyouth.org/reweighted-exit-poll-data-suggest-youth-turnout-may-have-reached-22-8/
Back to top.NCLC News
NEW FOUNDATIONS CHARTER SCHOOL in Philadelphia is highlighted in a new multimedia service-learning Web site from the National Youth Leadership Council (NYLC). New Foundations is one of NCLC's Schools of Success. To view the video, visit NYLC's Lift Web site.
http://lift.nylc.org/
TUPELO MIDDLE SCHOOL, another member of NCLC's Schools of Success, is featured in an article in the Tupelo Daily Journal. Read how students made community connections while learning and using technology skills.
http://nems360.com/view/full_story/10543314/article-Tupelo-middle-schoolers-create-a-memento-for-Traceway-residents
Back to top.Meetings & Events
Plans are going forward for the Schools of Success SHOWCASE, May 4-5, 2011, in Nashville, Tennessee. This important element of the Schools of Success initiative involves convening the schools in order to: 1) showcase service-learning projects, 2) share best practices/challenges, etc., and 3) receive professional development around designing and implementing high-quality service-learning.
Have you registered for the National Service-Learning Conference? Take advantage of the opportunity to hear from civil rights leader Dorothy Cotton, along with Greg Mortenson and Grant Wiggins. This year's conference, titled "THE TIME IS NOW," will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, April 6-9, 2011. To register and learn how you can be involved in the largest gathering of youth and practitioners involved in service-learning, visit their Web site.
http://www.nylc.org/conference
Start planning now for GLOBAL YOUTH SERVICE DAY (GYSD), April 15-17, 2011. GYSD describes itself as the largest service event in the world, celebrated in over 100 countries. Find out more at their Web site.
http://gysd.org/
Back to top.Names in the News
NCLC joins the rest of the country in mourning the death of SARGENT SHRIVER. Many of us champion the cause of civic engagement and service. Sargent Shriver lived that cause. To the many voices that have paid tribute to his outstanding legacy, we can only add our gratitude for his example, his lifetime of service and civic participation.
PAUL BAUMANN, NCLC project leader, has been awarded the Alexander Ringer Award for doctoral research by the Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE). OAKE is the professional organization for music educators in the United States whose teacher education programs he researched for his dissertation: In Search of Signature Pedagogies for Teacher Education: The Critical Case of Kodály-Inspired Music Teacher Education.
Back to top.Other Useful Web sites
The Siemens Foundation has announced the launch of the third annual "We Can CHANGE THE WORLD Challenge," a program designed to educate, empower and engage students and teachers across the United States to become agents of change in identifying and solving environmental problems. The challenge encourages all students, from kindergarten through grade 12, to team up with their classmates to create replicable solutions to environmental issues in their schools (grades K–5), community (grades 6–8) and world (grades 9–12). Visit the program's Web site for complete application information and resources, and to register for the challenge. Deadline is March 15, 2011.
http://www.wecanchange.com/
The Center for YOUTH VOICE in Policy and Practice focuses on what youth can accomplish when given the opportunities and supports they need, and what they can contribute when their ideas and voices are taken seriously.
http://www.centerforyouthvoice.org/Center_for_Youth_Voice/Home.html
Back to top.International Focus
More findings from the 2009 International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement International CIVIC AND CITIZENSHIP EDUCATION Study have been released. Initial findings were reported in June. The new reports feature an Extended International Report and European Regional Report. The 2009 study considered how well young people are prepared for their roles as citizens and found, among other things, noteworthy differences between high and low achievers and between males and females. The study focused on countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
http://iccs.acer.edu.au/index.php?page=initial-findings
TakingITGlobal, based in Canada, is the largest online community of youth interested in global issues and creating positive change. They envision "youth everywhere actively ENGAGED AND CONNECTED in shaping a more inclusive, peaceful and sustainable world." Primarily serving youth 13–30 years of age, their mission is enabling a collaborative learning community that provides youth with access to global opportunities, cross-cultural connections and meaningful participation in decisionmaking. To learn more, visit their Web site.
http://www.tigweb.org/
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