Hip-hop has had an overwhelming influence on the Black community in America. For many within the Black community, hip-hop is more than music, it is Black culture; it provided a voice to the voiceless in America. Odenthal (2021) state:
“More than simply entertainment, hip-hop is a major part of contemporary identity circuits–networks of philosophies and aesthetics based on blackness, poverty, violence, power, resistance, and capitalist accumulation.” Contrariwise, Hip-Hop also has connotations of misogyny, rape culture, and hypermasculinity. Byron Hurt’s documentary Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes focuses on the levels of violence, misogyny, and homophobia in both Hip Hop and the Black community holistically. Hip-Hop artists embrace masculinity by “either stoically rejecting vulnerability or overcoming vulnerability through supposed greatness” (Jones, 2017). In hip-hop hypermasculinity is self-perpetuating, the more machismo the artist displays, the more popular they become (Jones, 2017). Artist sale a lifestyle of drugs, violence, and unrealistic views on women to consumers, and people who are openly gay are seen as a threat to that masculinity.

Hypermasculinity and homophobia are interwoven in the fabric of the genre because hip-hop embraces an aggressive and occasionally violent masculinity (Jones, 2017). It can be argued that all forms of music are heteronormative, however unequivocally homophobic discourses are lyrically overrepresented within hip-hop culture which creates a hostile culture that is historically anti-LGBTQ. (Durham, 2022). Popular hip-hop artist such as Jay-Z, Eminem, Nas, and Ice Cube, have all recorded blatantly homophobic songs, because making anti-gay sentiments was an innate component of their personas as emcees and gay stereotypes are thought to run counter to their masculine image . In Eminem’s song Criminal (2000) the rapper who is known for his homophobic lyrics, raps a rancorous verse against LGBTQIA+ individuals:
My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge
That’ll stab you in the head whether you’re a f*** or lez
Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest
Pants or dress, hate f****? The answer’s, “Yes”
Homophobic? Nah, you’re just heterophobic

The inclusion of these lyrics in hip-hop music goes back to “the machismo ideal of hip hop, and what better way to question the masculinity of a rival than insisting that he is gay” (Leake, 2021) Testimonials from rappers such as Eminem provide insight into why homophobic slurs are used so readily in hip-hop “the f-word is “the lowest degrading thing you can say to a man. With hip-hop’s tenuous grasp on masculinity it is no surprise that being queer or going against society’s construction of masculinity causes panic since that is against what is considered the norm. Such as when rapper Kid Cudi wore a dress and painted his fingernails on Saturday Night Live to honor the late Kurt Corbin, he faced hate for not adhering to what is considered traditionally masculine, and eventually deactivated his Instagram account for a while due to the vitriol he received. Or when Lil Nas X; who had to hire security after the constant hate on social media and backlash following the release of his video Montero. The video is in the same realm of explicitness as any in hip-hop video, however Lil Nas X a gay Black man is the one giving a lap dance to another man, so it now becomes an issue of morality.

Hypermasculinity continues to have a great effect on Black male culture since Black masculine aesthetic is always seen as “strong, assertive, hyperaggressive and hyper-heterosexual. Hypermasculinity continues to handicap Black manhood because it promotes ideas of misogyny, rape culture, and male dominance. To break this metaphorical shackle Black men must begin step away from the idea of hypermasculinity within Black culture and a good place to start, begins in the music loved by so many within the Black community.


Durham, E. (2022). Hip-Hop and Black Queer Defiance. [Master’s thesis, Grand State Valley University]. Culminating Experience Projects. 109. https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/gradprojects/109

Jones, I. M. (2017, December 23). How hip-hop is confronting toxic masculinity. HuffPost UK. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/ioan-marc-jones/how-hiphop-is-confronting_b_13787178.html

Leake, D. (2021, August 25). “no homo” – hip hop’s never-ending battle against homophobia. The Signal. Retrieved July 22, 2022, from https://georgiastatesignal.com/no-homo-hip-hops-never-ending-battle-against-homophobia/

Mathers, M. (2000). Criminal. On The Marshall Mathers LP. Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records.

Odenthal, K. (2014, March 18). How hip-hop music has influenced American culture and Society. Spinditty. Retrieved September 11, 2022, from https://spinditty.com/genres/Hip-Hops-Influence-on-America

 In 2018, nine percent of students enrolled in private schools were black (National Center of Education Statistics, 2019). Essentially, nine out of every one hundred students. This statistic motivated me to look deeper into what this may mean. Why was this number so low, and what could be done about it? Private schools are often springboards to high-level universities and larger overall lifetime earnings. The average lifetime earnings for an African American male with a high school diploma are $1,340,407.00. The average lifetime earnings for an African American male with a college diploma are $2,107,728.00. That is a considerable increase of $767,321.00 over their lifetime (Julian & Kominski, 2011). Why is it that the private school opportunity was only going to nine out of every one hundred students?

As I sat, reflecting on these statistics, I wondered about the true intentionality when people create spaces for belonging and for difficult conversations. I began my doctorate with this in mind. For my dissertation topic, which will be the onboarding and retention of black students in private K-12 institutions, I have read many articles and dissertations close to and about my topic. They all carry the same throughline: students need a sense of belonging for success. Black students, and all minority students for that matter, need space, sometimes physically, but for sure emotionally, where they are accepted, can speak freely about personal and pertinent issues, and are supported and recognized for their contributions.

 These spaces and senses should be for all students. The simple fact of the matter is that without intentionality from leadership through every facet of a school community, when any person walks into that organization if they do not feel like they belong, are deserving, or are seen; they will not function to the best of their ability, and they may not last in that environment at all. So, how do we authenticate an individual’s intentionality when attempting to create these safe spaces? We cannot probe for failure or create an ostracization scale; we must seek joy. We must seek to see and feel the comfort in expression and see and recognize individuals and promote the successes, the triumphs, and the quiet expressions of individuality and praise the courageous conversations that occur not only in the academic area but in the subtle passing in the hallways and spaces where we all interact and intersect. 

We must seek out and identify where the most subtle things have occurred, the concept that something has not happened but has ceased to happen. We must find where microaggressions have dwindled and may have disappeared. I do not think for one moment that microaggressions, overt displays of racism, and ignorance will not exist or do not exist; in fact, quite the opposite. However, I do contend that we must find and promote those occasions in which the students and the people have done something that has changed the interaction, the course, and even in the most minor of ways, to create a small contribution to a community within a community that moves the needle of experience in the right direction. A subtlety that grows into a fact, a condition, a circumstance that becomes woven so deeply into the fabric of a community that it becomes the community. It becomes who we are and what we do. 

We must ask our families and students what worked and where the positive impact was made. What mattered to you most? What changed or reinforced your course and path? Where did you feel seen the most, heard the most, and where were you your best?  So, authenticity? It must be found and praised. It can be discovered in our day-to-day interactions and small victories. Only from this recognition can we begin to change and reinforce policies, procedures, traditions, and ways of being to mesh and merge our communities within communities to become more whole. The outcome of success when a student has been provided with this opportunity is a significant increase in the quality of life and standard of living for those who succeed. 

References

Broughman, S.P., Kincel, B., and Peterson, J. (2019). Characteristics of Private Schools in the United States: Results From the 2017–18 Private School Universe Survey First Look (NCES 2019-071). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved [date] from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch. 

Julian, T., & Kominski, R. (2011, September). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 11, 2012, from Education and Synthetic Work-Life Earnings Estimates: http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/acs-14.pdf

Author: Edward L. King Sr.

Transition-related challenges hinder military veterans from excelling in higher education. Basically, transitioning from military to civilian life is a key hurdle for military veterans. For instance, they may experience challenges reintegrating into a family environment after years or months of being away on deployment. Particularly, challenges may be associated with the task of relearning family roles and responsibilities. Further complexities involve resource limitations. For instance, many families do not have the necessary resources to address the military veterans’ health issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) (Terry, 2018). In the long term, a combination of all these issues makes concentration in a class set-up difficult for a military veteran. 

In addition to reintegration-related challenges, financial difficulties are key hindrances to military veteran’s success in higher education. Basically, a majority of the veterans are low in income, given that their compensation package is quite modest. As a result, they are highly vulnerable to poverty and homelessness once they exit the profession (Terry, 2018). Furthermore, funding opportunities are quite limiting to enhance a military veteran’s success. For instance, the Post-911 GI Bill covers only 36 months of education (Terry, 2018). Therefore, students have to take high course loads to complete their studies before the expiry of their funding (Bass, 2021). Consequently, the program is quite stressful and a further contribution to financial and emotional challenges already facing military veterans.

Apart from financial issues, military veterans rarely excel in higher education after being out of a classroom setting for years. Basically, continuing education in the military mostly takes the form of online classes (Terry, 2018). Therefore, student veterans are not used to a traditional classroom set-up. On the same note, the age gap between military veterans and other learners is quite high, which further makes it harder for the veterans to feel at ease in such a set-up. Likewise, many military veterans take additional off-campus employment to support their families (Bass, 2021). As a result, there is a wider social gap between student veterans and their classmates who may have lesser responsibilities (Terry, 20 18). All these challenges make military veterans feel unprepared for the academic rigors of college life and may question the relevance of pursuing a college degree.

Besides the unfamiliarity with a traditional classroom set-up, the differences in structure between military and college life make it hard for military veterans to excel in higher education. Notably, academic institutions encourage learners to scrutinize the factual basis of others’ claims. In contrast, strict obedience to authority is highly emphasized and expected in the military (Semer & Harmening, 2015). On the same note, schools encourage learners to develop their viewpoints and mindset. Contrastingly, obedience to a clearly laid out set of commands and engagement in a highly-structured lifestyle is expected in the military service (Terry, 2018). In the long term, these differences make it hard for military veterans to get used to college life. Their training makes them unsure of the requisite responses to employ across various academic situations.

Lastly, the negative attitudes of college personnel towards military veteran students makes them failures in higher education. As Semer and Harmening (2015) note, some faculty members in higher education have a pervasive attitude towards student veterans. Notably, they exhibit pity, pretentious empathy, and condescension towards such students. Likewise, some faculty members view student veterans as having more problems than other learners. For instance, professors may perceive student veterans as academically underprepared and thus treat them with pity and disrespect. In extreme cases, the professionals may categorize student veterans as incapable of improving. In the long term, student veterans have limited room for academic excellence when their professors express little faith in them instead of according them the necessary support. The lack of support from faculty members renders them even more hopeless about excelling academically. 

References

Bass, E. (2021). Educational benefits for veterans: The Post-9/11 GI Bill. Educational Studies, 47(1), 108-116. https://doi.org/10.1080/03055698.2019.1665987

Semer, C., & Harmening, D. S. (2015). Exploring significant factors that impact the academic success of student veterans in higher education. Journal of Higher Education Theory & Practice, 15(7). http://digitalcommons.www.na-businesspress.com/JHETP/SemerC_Web15_7_.pdfTerry, A. D. (2018). Barriers to academic success experienced by student veterans. McNair Scholars Research Journal, 11(1), 12. https://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1137&context=mcnair

“Parents are a nightmare to work with!” “My one student’s parents are crazy- I try to avoid them as much as possible and only give them my minimal effort.” “I have one student whose parent never attends any meetings, answers any emails, and only gives me minimal contact- I do not think they even care about their child!”

Unfortunately, these are quotes from Early Childhood Special Educators that I have seen either on social media (Facebook Groups, Instagram, TikTok, etc.), or from individuals I have met in the past.

When it comes to promoting family engagement in the Early Childhood Special Education Classroom (ECSE), more often than not, I find that these individuals either lack training in working with families or are often hesitant to work with families as they find it as one of the more stressful and challenging aspects of their job.

Family Engagement in the Early Childhood Special Education Classroom is almost just as critical as the education that the young child is receiving. By involving parents in their child’s education through programs such as Parent Infant Programs (PIP) and Parent-Implemented Interventions (PII), teachers and educators can bridge the gap in communication and involvement through collaborating, training, and coaching parents on how to implement evidence-based practices with their home. Thus, not only benefiting the child themselves but also families and educators as well (thus only making our job easier in the long run).  

Thus, I think it is important for all educators to inform themselves of the importance of parent involvement and make it a part of their weekly planning. So how can we as educators find the courage and time to increase our parent involvement? I ask that you spend 30 minutes to 1 hour a week for one month communicating and creating ways to increase parent involvement. Whether it’s through a weekly newsletter, daily home notes, providing free-parent training, monthly/bi-monthly conferences, providing observation opportunities, and more. After one month of implementation, I guarantee you will not only have happier parents, but you will find that communicating with your parents is not only easier but has also become less stressful.

All in all, educators and families have the same common goal- for their students/children to be the best they can be- educated, successful, and most of all- loved.

Resources for Educators and Families: So how can educators and parents receive training on family engagement and Parent Implemented Interventions? Autism Focused Intervention Resources & Modules (AFIRM) offers a myriad of training both for educators and parents alike in the areas of autism itself, Evidence-Based Practices, and supplemental materials. See the information below

Video on the success of Family Involvement:

Resources:

Eicher, S. (2018, June 21). Supporting parents of students with special needs. Edutopia. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from https://www.edutopia.org/article/supporting-parents-students-special-needs/

Gartmeier, Martin; Aich, Gernot; Sauer, Daniela; Bauer, Johannes: “Who’s afraid of talking to parents?”
Professionalism in parent-teacher conversations. Special issue editorial – In: Journal for educational
research online 9 (2017) 3, S. 5-11 – URN: urn:nbn:de:0111-pedocs-152986 – DOI: 10.25656/01:15298

Virtual Lab School . (n.d.). Working with Families of Children with Special Needs . Virtual Lab School. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from https://www.virtuallabschool.org/preschool/family-engagement/lesson-4#:~:text=Positive%20interactions%20with%20families%20and,early%20care%20and%20learning%20program.

With impossible demands being placed on teachers, now more than ever, they could use a teaching assistant. Trained teaching assistants can offer teachers’ help in the capacity of impacting the instructional model, classroom management, and socialization for students. In fact, with the current spotlight in education on social emotional learning, teaching assistants can also help the teacher with the social and emotional health and safety of all students.  According to Bassile and Maddin (2002),  “The prevalent one-classroom, one teacher model asks teachers to be all things to all people at all times. It asks teachers to be content experts and pedagogues: to assess children’s socioemotional and academic development and manage classrooms of 30 or more students; to teach children of all abilities; to be role models and social workers; to be data analysts, trauma interventionists and a host of other roles.”

While accomplishing all of the roles and responsibilities required of teachers seems like an monumental task, many teachers put an extraordinary amount of pressure on themselves to achieve them while getting to know and meet the needs of every individual student in their classroom. “It’s an unreasonable expectation. It rests on the faulty assumption that all learners require the same thing from teachers and, therefore, any teacher can adequately serve every learner” (Bassile and Maddin 2022). 

With all this in mind, the most important aspect of a teacher’s job, outside of student contact time, is instructional planning for the academic needs of their individual students.  Yet teachers are so overwhelmed with meetings, training, and compliance paperwork that burnout is inevitable. Countries outside of the United States, however, recognize that teachers cannot do this work in isolation and include teaching assistants in the structure of their school staffing, especially in the primary grades. In fact, one school even goes so far as to acknowledge teaching assistants as the stars of their school. 

Redesigning the elementary classroom with a teaching assistant acknowledges and supports the evolving career of teachers as compliance aspects of their job will only continue to grow.  “If we want more people to thrive as educators, we need to redesign the job  (Bassile and Maddin 2022).  Aside from more pay, what better incentive can we offer to teachers than help in the classroom. By restructuring school staff to include a teaching assistant, school leaders can continue to recruit and retain highly-qualified teachers to educate the future generation.

Basile, C. G., & Maddin, B. W. (2022). The Next Education Workforce. School Administrator, 79(7), 13-17. http://lynn-lang.student.lynn.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/trade-journals/next-education-workforce/docview/2685100807/se-2

Teaching Assistants-Stars in our classrooms . (2013). YouTube. Retrieved November 13, 2022, from https://youtu.be/C6EFUInRHDs.

Does anyone know where all the teachers have gone?  Did they leave for the private sector? We need them back and quickly. How many classrooms across the nation currently have substitutes or non-certified teachers?  Are you concerned?  I know I am. I have teachers picking up extra classes due to the severe teaching shortage this year. This can’t continue much longer or the consequences will be severe. It seems like it got worse quickly after the recent Covid crisis. 

Many companies are having issues staffing their work forces post pandemic. Smet et al (2022) states, “What we are seeing is a fundamental mismatch between companies’ demand for talent and the number of workers willing to supply it. Employers continue to rely on traditional levers to attract and retain people, including compensation, titles, and advancement opportunities. Those factors are important, particularly for a large reservoir of workers we call “traditionalists.” However, the COVID-19 pandemic has led more and more people to reevaluate what they want from a job—and from life—which is creating a large pool of active and potential workers who are shunning the traditionalist  path”  The author shares this chart which shows perhaps an even more troubling future. 

Some say the pandemic caused people to go “YOLO.” If they aren’t happy in their jobs they are looking for ways to leave as the crisis made them realize life is short as many of them lost loved ones or were separated from loved ones for extended periods of time. Two of the top ten reasons that employees quit their jobs after the crisis were support for health and well being and caring and inspiring leaders. In fact, early in the Great Attrition,  the author found that “exiting workers told us that relationships in their workplace were sources of tension and that they didn’t feel that their organizations and managers cared about them. In this latest round, respondents again cited uncaring leaders (35 percent listed it as one of their top three reasons for leaving)” (Smet et al 2022). Recruitment efforts after the Great Attrition, according to the authors, must be authentic and creative. This authenticity and creativity is  most important for employers to keep in mind when recruiting because , “Workers know the difference, and they are voting with their feet” (Smet et al 2022). This is having a severe, negative impact on our schools as well. 

Educators and government officials are concerned about the teaching shortage crisis that has been exacerbated by the recent Covid crisis. The root cause is multifaceted according to Hoppenfetdt, director of support services for a large Michigan school district. She states she has not seen anything like it in her nineteen years in the school district and that its impact to the school community is significant. Diglio, a teacher that came back from retirement to help with the shortage, stated “The very profession that takes care of children, that are responsible for making sure that their needs are met and that they are achieving at a rate that they can graduate and be productive citizens, we’re losing that workforce” (Genovese 2022). Weingarten, American Federation of Teachers president stated, “Teachers and school staff have been struggling for years with a lack of professional respect; inadequate support and resources; subpar compensation; untenable student loan debt; endless paperwork” (Genovese 2022). The article ends with Weingarten elaborating, “The pandemic, combined with the political culture wars, made the last two years the toughest in modern times for educators. On top of all of that, the unthinkable happened again, when gun violence took the lives of 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas,” she added.

In addition to fear of school shootings and fear of retribution from parents for being too political in classes, teachers are leaving the profession for careers in the private industry that provide them with more flexibility. “Burned out teachers are leaving the classroom for jobs in the private sector, where talent-hungry companies are hiring them—and often boosting their pay—to work in sales, software, healthcare and training, among other fields” (Dill 2022) Her reasoning is that educators are exhausted post Covid dealing with switching back and forth from online to in person platforms, working extended hours, and dealing with challenging parents, students, and administrators. 

This shortage is affecting the entire nation. Deeply concerning to the author was the fact that,  “During the last decade, we saw double-digit decreases — coast to coast — in enrollments in educator preparation programs. Part of that was due to the layoffs and lack of hiring that ensued after the great recession. But it was also due to other factors such as perceived low wages (or actual low wages in some states), de-professionalization of the field due to increasing external demands, such as the over-reliance on standardized tests, and changing perceptions of the societal value of teachers. Fundamentally, one could argue that it boils down to how society does (or doesn’t) show its appreciation for teachers.” In 2018, a 50 year old  poll of public perception showed “ that for the first time in its history, a majority of respondents would not want their children to become a teacher.” Sadly, the author asks what we will do when there are no more teachers to appreciate. It is important to treat teachers with respect, ensure they feel valued, and return teaching to the honorable profession it once was. We can ill afford the consequences if we do not.

Sources

Genovese, D. (2022, August 11). Teacher shortages continue as the 2022-2023 school year kicks off: ‘we don’t have a workforce’. Fox Business. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/teacher-shortages-continue-2022-2023-school-year-kicks-off-we-dont-have-workforce 

Lane, Jason E. Opinion contributor. (2022, May 6). Teachers are quitting in droves: Appreciate them before they all disappear. The Hill. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://thehill.com/opinion/education/3479826-teachers-are-quitting-in-droves-appreciate-them-before-they-all-disappear/

Smet, A. D., Dowling, B., Hancock, B., & Schaninger, B. (2022, July 28). The great attrition is making hiring harder. are you searching the right talent pools? McKinsey & Company. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/the-great-attrition-is-making-hiring-harder-are-you-searching-the-right-talent-pools 

SUPPORTING THE NOVICE TEACHER

With eyes aglow, a freshly starched dress and a shiny new bag, a newly certified elementary school teacher leaves her home to confidently shape the minds of the future generation.  She makes a quick stop for fresh coffee on her way to fulfill her dream and in a spontaneous burst of excitement tells a gentleman in line that she is about to change the world. He looks her up and down and mutters “Those who can, do; those who cannot teach!” A shadow cast across her face.

 Have you heard that phrase? George Bernard Shaw first wrote this scathing aphorism in his play “Man and Superman” (1905) and it has plagued the teaching profession ever since.

 Shaw felt that teachers were the inept spillover of their vocational pool, that is, individuals who were not true experts in their field who settled for a life of teaching. Years later in 1986, the educator, Lee Shulman stated that “those who can do, those who understand teach” (Shulman, 1986a). Shulman felt that teachers possessed a special type of knowledge, in that they had the ability to transform content into material that could reach their students. He called this knowledge pedagogical content knowledge or PCK.  Shulman (1987) described pedagogical content knowledge as “that special amalgam of content and pedagogy that is uniquely the province of teachers, their own special form of professional understanding” (p. 8).  

A skilled Mathematics teacher for instance would understand topics such as calculus and deliver it using strategies that could reach students whereas a Mathematician would know calculus but would not necessarily be able to deliver it to students.

Shulman called his theory the missing paradigm because the theories on teacher knowledge that preceded PCK focused on the processes of teaching rather than on the content and skill of teaching.

Shulman emphasized the importance of teacher knowledge of subject matter, since he believed that this provided the foundation upon which an effective teacher could transform material through certain pedagogical practices to make knowledge accessible to student learners (Shulman, 1987). Teachers today usually hold a bachelor’s degree and are mandated to take teacher certification examinations. They are usually involved in professional development programs after graduation. So why then, does Shaw’s fallacy persist?

I can make a few suggestions.

The things that qualify a teacher as a professional in the field probably need to be re-examined. A bachelor’s degree in Biology for example would not equip an elementary school teacher to teach across the spectrum of subjects. Do these teachers therefore have a firm grasp on the content they are expected to teach? Teacher certification exams should also be considered, does the content in these exams equip them with the knowledge and skill they need to be considered experts in the field of teaching? Additionally, is there adequate, quality support for the novice teacher who has earned a subject specific bachelor’s degree and gained certification?

In keeping with support, teaching to the standards must be discussed. The “Every Student Succeeds Act” (2015), states that “all students in America be taught to high academic standards that will prepare them to succeed in college and careers” (USED, 2022). In terms of teaching, these Education Acts are indisputably well-intentioned, however, in my opinion these laws emulate the proverbial “cart before the horse,” in that the “high academic standards” in teaching, referenced by the ESSA, focus on teaching towards standards. The basic tenant of the law asks states to set criterion referenced tests for grades three to eight to measure performance. Teaching to these standards has altered the face of teaching and has ignored the importance of pedagogical content knowledge.  

In the face of fluctuating policies, the process of understanding what to teach and how to teach it, amidst changing benchmarks and standards can only be consolidated if pedagogical content knowledge is infallible.

Shulman’s PCK construct has stood the test of time and has been woven into many subject specific 21^st Century academic constructs. These are most prominently seen in Technology, Mathematics and Science.  I believe that there needs to be comprehensive PCK instruction for pre-service teachers, particularly those who are entering elementary education, that gets to the root of the content they need to master and the ways in which this needs to be transformed for successful teaching. This must permeate the exams that they write and the support they receive after certification, amidst policy changes. There is therefore a need to fully reclaim the lost paradigm in pre-service teacher education, to give our new teachers the opportunity to keep their eyes aglow.

References

Shulman, L. S. (1986). Those Who Understand: Knowledge Growth in Teaching. Educational
Researcher, 15(2), 4–14. https://doi.org/10.2307/1175860

Shulman, L. S. (1987). Knowledge and teaching: Foundations of the new reform. Harvard educational review, 57(1), 1-23. https://meridian.allenpress.com/her/article-abstract/57/1/1/31319/Knowledge-and-Teaching-Foundations-of-the-New

U.S. Department of Education. (2017). Every Student Succeeds Act. https://www.ed.gov/essa?src=rn

Twelfth-grade at-risk students who are failing in Public High Schools (PHS) are crying for help because they are frustrated and fearful of not graduating on time. The Education Glossary Reform defines at-risk students as those who “have a higher probability of failing academically or dropping out of school” and are “exposed to harm or danger” (At-Risk. (n.d.). The 12th-grade at-risk students run to their teachers, begging for help to graduate on time with their classmates. Teachers refer the students to their guidance counselors for assistance. The parents of the 12th-grade at-risk students are asking their children, “What are you doing?”, “Why are you failing?”, and “What is wrong with you?”

The 12th-grade at-riskstudents are then left to make hard decisions about their academic lives, which terrifies them. Why is this happening? Traditional Online Credit Recovery Programs (TOCRPs) are not addressing the time factor in raising graduation rates for our at-risk 12th-grade high school students. The Accelerated Online Credit Recovery Programs (AOCRPs) addresses explicitly the time factor that could be an addition to raising graduation rates for at-risk 12th-graders in a faster manner (Vaiana, 2017, p. 46).

An AOCRP is an identifiable and observable way to help at-risk 12th-grade high school students achieve higher on-time graduation rates (Vaiana, 2017, p. 46). Is it fair and wise to state that closing the time gap for at-risk 12th-graders to recover their lost credits would be the ultimate goal for administrators, guidance counselors, and teachers to utilize? (Vaiana, 2017, p. 46). I believe so! Educators working with at-risk 12th-grade high school students struggling to graduate can be given an additional choice of attending an Accelerated Online Credit Recovery Program (alternative school) or allowing at-risk students to continue with a Traditional Online Credit Recovery Program or dropping out of high school with no diploma (Vaiana, 2017, p. 46).

This blog addresses my bias of at-risk 12th-graders being overlooked. It promotes a solution of AOCRPs for at-risk 12th-graders planning to graduate. The AOCRP will empower all at-risk 12th-graders willing to take a leap and accelerate their learning by closing the time factor gap that prevents at-risk 12th-graders from achieving successful graduation outcomes on time with their cohorts. The idea behind implementing AOCRPs is for at-risk 12th graders to leave high school and succeed in their secondary education and personal endeavors of going to college or a trade school. What if you were an at-risk 12^th grader who had nine weeks to graduate, what option will you choose: TOCRPs or AOCRPs program?

References

(The glossary of education reform. Retrieved February 5, 2022, from https: //www.edglossary.org.).

Vaiana, B. A. (2017). A quantitative study on credit recovery curricula for improving high school graduation rates. Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

By Aiyeesha Hill

         The other day I received an email from my son’s teacher about a school trip to a career and college fair at another high school. My son just turned 18; he is Hispanic and has high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. The morning of the trip, he dressed in a shirt and tie and was ready to see opportunities for him. When I asked him if he had applied to any jobs, he said, “no.” When I asked if anyone was there to assist him, he said, “no,” I realized it was a pointless trip for my son. No one guided or helped him, and no one took the time to see if he may have had difficulty completing an application.  In addition, no one talked to him about college opportunities. His teacher sends emails with attachments about programs like vocational rehabilitation or college transition programs. I have yet to see high schools offer information sessions about how to transition their special needs child once they leave the k-12 system.   

  Black Indigenous people of color (BIPOC) families with children with high-functioning autism in low socioeconomic communities lack the knowledge necessary to make the vital decisions for their HF ASD child transitioning out of high school. Nor do they know how to obtain a comprehensive transition plan to guide them and their child on this new endeavor. Although access to college has improved for students with autism, they are less likely to transition successfully, which is essential to academic success.

         The reality is that many face an uncertain future after high school. They remain unemployed or do not enroll in college (CDC, Autism spectrum disorder in teenagers & adults 2022). Furthermore, “youth who are neither working nor enrolled in postsecondary education in the three years following high school graduation have increased risk for poorer long-term outcomes, such as poverty, mental health problems, and unemployment” (Eilenberg et al., 2019). This issue upsets me because these individuals are inevitably doomed to poverty and hardship. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

  Both high schools and postsecondary educators must collaborate to find a solution to improve awareness of college readiness programs for this marginalized group of individuals. They need to provide a pipeline of information on college readiness programs to our BIPOC low socioeconomic communities. These communities need more information on college readiness programs for their HF ASD young adults. High schools should provide information sessions for their parents while the student is in their junior or senior years. Getting emails is not good enough! I want educators to talk with the parents and explain the options as their child is about to transition into adulthood. They must do better. PERIOD!!!

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, April 6). Autism spectrum disorder in teenagers & adults. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved November 3, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/autism-spectrum-disorder-in-teenagers-adults.html

Eilenberg, J. S., Paff, M., Harrison, A. J., & Long, K. A. (2019). Disparities based on race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status over the transition to adulthood among adolescents and young adults on the autism spectrum: A systematic review. Current Psychiatry Reports, 21(5). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-019-1016-1