Blog : 'EdVoices' Category

Archive for the ‘EdVoices’ Category

Attendance Is a Huge Problem, But There Is No Easy Solution

There is a clear correlation between attendance rates and school achievement. We know that the more time children spend in […]

Dangerous Hold Protections for Kids Are Simple and Don’t Need to be Repealed

The first bell had barely rung in the 2023 school year before students, parents, and educators were faced with a […]

Twice Exceptional Students and their Educational Rights

Children with disabilities have certain rights to an education, according to a provision in federal law known as Free and […]

The Broken Promise of Advanced Coursework for Students of Color (Like Me)

Hours before crossing the stage for high school graduation, I reflected on my journey. Meeting wonderful friends and mentors and […]

Legislators Need to Know What I Learned About Exclusionary Discipline

To learn more about discipline in Minnesota schools, I’ve had many conversations with students about whether they’ve experienced exclusionary discipline. […]

A Student Take: 7 Ways to Improve Student Mental Health

As a kid, it can be hard to ask for help. Parents can be oblivious to the fact that kids […]

What Are You? Putting an End to Guessing Games with Disaggregated Data

“Are you Japanese? No, Chinese?” I shook my head. “I’m Hmong,” I said. “Oh right! I should have guessed that […]

MN Youth Can’t Succeed without Proper Access to Mental Health Support

Content Warning: This piece discusses suicidal feelings. Mental health in the youth community is a very important issue that crosses […]

Experiencing MN’s Patterns of Exclusion in Advanced Coursework

In this day and age, we’re constantly told how much closer we are to equality than our predecessors, that the […]

Fighting for Our Kids: Special Education Services Need an Overhaul. But Will MN Invest?

The number of students with neurodevelopmental disabilities, like Autism, ADHD, and speech and language disorders, has increased since Minnesota’s education […]

We’re Tackling School Nutrition. Here’s Why Policymakers Should Care Too.

We can’t expect our children to focus on something as important as education if they are hungry. As parents, we […]

Students Don’t Need Mindful Moments. They Need Change.

White Supremacy with a hug. That’s what educator, activist, and founder of LiberatED Dena Simmons wrote in an article for […]

Black Boys: Love Them, Nurture Them, Empower Them

On a beautiful fall afternoon in Minnesota, drive around St. Paul, Minneapolis, or either of the Brooklyns (Brooklyn Park, Brooklyn […]

A Back-to-School Q&A: What MN Students Are Saying

After more than a year of restrictions and online schooling, most students are back in school buildings across the state. […]

As a First-Gen College Student, High-Level High School Courses Made the Difference in my Success

Going into my junior year of college, I’ve realized something crucial to my success—particularly as a first-generation student: The courses […]

6 Responses for People in Your Life Who Want to Ban Critical Race Theory

This piece was co-written by Jen Goepfert, Cristina Benz, Jill Merkle, and Kara Cisco It is possible that in the last […]

Don’t Forget About Us: Students are Still Missing Essential Resources for Learning

This post is the ninth in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Are Current Licensure Proposals Really for the Benefit of Our Children?

I am a bilingual teacher with a master’s in Education, a degree in Latin American Studies, and 15 years of […]

Proposed Bill Would Hurt Struggling Students (Like I Was) the Most

There are a lot of factors that go into whether students succeed in school. For me, the passionate teachers who […]

It’s a Pandemic, Don’t Leave Students Out of the Mental Health Conversation

This post is the eighth in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Will the MN House Act on Racial Justice? Why I Shared My Story

Growing up as a Mexican-American in Minnesota, my experience in the public school system was, at a minimum, alienating and, […]

Meet EdAllies’ 2021-22 EdVoices Cohort

This year we are thrilled to welcome 13 new EdVoices contributors to the EdAllies family. Through EdVoices, we help community […]

5 Lessons for Civics Teachers Navigating an Election Year

You’ve heard it ad nauseam this election year: Young people (yes, students) have the power to make a difference. But […]

What Students Are Saying About Going Back to (Virtual) School

It’s been said over and over, this school year will be unlike any other—with some students learning from home, some […]

A Student Perspective: Bullying in the Age of COVID-19

This post is the sixth in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Implicit Bias in Distance Learning: Students Weigh-In on Educators’ Expectations

This post is the fifth in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Pandemic-EBT Will Put $114M in the Hands of MN Families—If We Can Get the Word Out

This article was updated June 30 to reflect the increased per-child benefit and extended deadline. The deadline to apply was […]

Distance Learning Pulls Back the Curtain on What Teachers Have Always Known

This post is the fourth in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Finding My Place in Project-Based Learning and Social Justice During a Pandemic

This post is the third in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

More Than Just a Building: Getting By When School Supports Shift

This post is the second in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

Why Distance Learning Can’t Always Come First: A Student Perspective

This post is the first in our Education at a Distance series, centering the voices of students, parents, and educators […]

5 Things I’ve Learned So Far in the Dash to Distance Learning

Imagine you were about to start an online high school. Think of all the questions that you would have to […]

Can We Measure Student Engagement? Yes, and We Should!

Like many fourth-grade parents across Minnesota, I received my daughter’s third-grade MCA scores last month. And frankly, it’s easy as […]

Not Your Grandma’s Book Club: Unsettling the Status Quo in Education

Any number of things come to mind when you hear the word “book club,” but sparking disruption the education system […]

My Daughter’s Disability Was Not Her Destiny—and the Right School Made all the Difference

My daughter sat quietly at the table, just staring at the paraprofessional as he quizzed her. He got louder and […]

The Quiet Kids Still Need You

There are many benefits associated with having a diverse school staff. One that doesn’t get enough attention is how teachers […]

Why We Must Decolonize Civics

There’s an adage I use with my students often that the roots of our country will show up in its […]

Taking a Hard Look at Data and Making Harder Choices

We just wrapped testing season in Minnesota. And while Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) results can’t tell the whole story of […]

Classroom Diversity: Broadening Our Definition to Better Prepare Students

This spring, as a Capitol Pathways intern, I followed education-related legislation—topping the agenda was teacher diversity. Minnesota is making an […]

Instead of Locking Our Classroom Doors to Students, Let’s Give Them the Key

Every year, like clockwork, my colleagues and I debate how to address the issue of student tardies. I have little […]

Changes to Tiered Licensure Would Push Me Out of Public Schools

There’s been plenty of talk, and disagreement, about proposed changes to Minnesota’s new tiered licensure system: some people say the […]

3 Simple Ways to Make the Most of the MCAs

As a 15-year veteran public school teacher and a parent, I know just how important the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments are. […]

White Educators in Minnesota: We Need to Step Up

In the 2017-2018 school year, 47,199 African-American students took the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment in reading. 30,584 did not pass. 41,299 […]

While Adults Talk About Teacher Diversity, Nothing is Changing for Youth of Color

As a young person of color, I know just how badly we need to increase teacher diversity in Minnesota. That’s […]

Closing the Education Gap by Helping Kids Love Learning

As I’ve advanced through life, and seen my child, my grandchild, and my students advance in theirs, I have realized […]

Why School Was the Last Place I Wanted to Be After Being Stopped by a Cop

A few weeks ago, I was stopped by a cop while walking to school. I was taking my usual route […]

3 Steps for a Better Education Conversation

As an experienced educator, an advocate, a parent, a grandparent, and a former public school student myself, I have seen […]

Student Voice: Making Good Students and Citizens Through Community Involvement

This post is the second in a series from students calling for more community engagement opportunities in the classroom. You […]

The Lesson That Took Me 12 School Open Houses to Learn

I still remember my and my son’s first open house. All those crayons, his new backpack, all the excitement from […]

Connecting Students with Community: My Story & Call to Action

This post is the first in a series from students calling for more community engagement opportunities in the classroom. My […]

What Broadband Infrastructure’s Got to Do with Educational Equity

In conversations about opportunity gaps, I very rarely hear about one tool that has become increasingly critical to student success, […]

Getting Ready for College? Here are a Few Things to Expect

From the beginning of orientation, I knew college was going to be very different from high school. Once classes started, […]

Is School Integration About Helping Kids of Color Learn or Propping Up Whiteness?

Running in education and activist circles, I often hear white progressives say that integration is the key to closing the […]

6 Tips to Help You Advocate for Your Child’s Education

As a parent, one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is how hard, and important, it is to advocate for […]

True Life: Teacher Prep Didn’t Prepare Me to Teach

When I’m being honest with myself, I know I had no business in front of a classroom. I had no […]

Bullying is Complex. How We Talk About it Needs to be, Too.

There’s been a lot of talk recently about bullying, which has me thinking about how we talk, and don’t talk, […]

An Open Letter to the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board

Dear members of the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board: This morning, as I watched my two oldest kiddos jump […]

But Can They Read? Why We Should Care About Student Test Scores

I care about my students’ test scores. That sentiment is a bit taboo nowadays, especially in “progressive” and “liberal” circles, […]

Engaging Youth and Using Alternatives to End School Pushout

Having recently graduated from high school after attending various schools across Minnesota, and interning this summer with a juvenile defense […]

Stop Lying! Telling the Truth About School Choice

It’s back to school. An exciting yet nerve-racking time, especially for families starting out at new schools. There are few […]

Meet the First Class of EdVoices

When we founded EdAllies, we knew that a big part of our work would be fostering a new conversation about […]