The website I have been following has this link along the right side of the page, toward the middle. Each of the categories leads to articles written by the various sponsors who are experts in the headed fields. While all the links have pertinent, current information, the E-Learning category led me to an article that relates to
my discussion post suggestion this week


.

An article entitled Bringing World Language Education to Everyone describes a tablet program issued to 100 students in a small rural town in Vermont. It enables students beginning in kindergarten to learn Spanish, French, Chinese or German through interactive activities. The tablets go home with the children, where they can practice and easily involve parents. The following paragraph is from the paper, which does not designate an author but is more of an advertisement with validation.

                                      The result has been a different view of world

                                      languages, one that recognizes its importance in

                                      putting students on a path to academic achievement

                                      and cultural empathy. “The language program has

                                      grown from being perceived as an enrichment activity

                                      to a core subject area that is increasingly integrated

                                      with and central to the rest of the school curricula,”

                                      said Principal Johnston. “Middlebury Interactive’s

                                      courses have been transformative to our school and

                                      is unique in my 40 years of experience as an educator.”

To read the whole presentation, click on the link:https://fs24.formsite.com/edweek/images/WP-Middlebury_BringingWorldLanguageEducation.pdf

An area I found by a tiny link in the upper right corner of the screen was the Education Week Digital access. It displayed an interactive version set up like a paper hardcopy. In the "inside cover" was a listing of their supporters, which I was unable to find on the regular webpage. A short list of the many foundations includes:

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-supports college and career ready reporting and standards
Hope Foundation-supports educational equity and school reform
Joyce Foundation-supports improvements of the teaching profession
NOYCE Foundation-supports the institution of STEM in public schools
School climate and student behavior are supported by a number of different foundations, including but limited to Atlantic Philanthropies, Raikes Foundation, and California Endowment
The Ford Foundation supports visionary leaders and organizations on the frontline of social change, the strengthening of democratic values, the reduction of poverty and injustice, the promotion of international cooperation and advancement of human achievement.

There are so many more, all with FANTASTIC GOALS AND PURPOSES!! I love this website.

My e-newsletter alerted me to a free webinar High Quality Early Education: Policy and Practice with guests Laura Bornfreund, deputy director, Early Childhood Initiative, New America Foundation
and Debi Mathias, director, QRIS National Learning Network. They discuss current early-childhood policy, efforts underway to bolster preschool quality, and suggestions for improvements at the local, state, and federal levels.  Although I was not available to attend the webinar on October 6th, it will be available to me through the archives for 4 months.

This website is so full of information on current issues that it is impossible to read it all every issue. I have found it extremely resourceful every time I have gone to it regarding the subject at hand. By searching "excellence and equity", I accessed the following article:

Excellence and Equity: Policy Lessons From Around the World by Anthony Jackson. It was a summary of the ideas discussed at the 4th  International Summit on the Teaching Profession  held in Wellington, New Zealand.  this past April and attended by countries as diverse as Australia, Belgium, Brazil, China, Estonia, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Japan, Poland, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. The result of their discussions of what works to reduce the achievement gaps seen in lower socio-economic students was a combination of solutions, including bonus incentives, increased technology as additional teaching tools, training of skills and data to identify problems early, along with mentoring and coaching, forming collaborative cultures among teachers for support (Jackson, 2014).

Reference:

Jackson,A. (2014). Excellence and equity: Policy lessons from around the world. Education Week. Retrieved from:
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/global_learning/2014/04/excellence_and_equity_policy_lessons_from_around_the_world.html?qs=equity+and+excellence