eNotes
August 25, 2017In this Issue:
- FY 2017 REOPENING Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) -- Personnel Development to Improve Services for Children with Disabilities Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP)
- Instructional Practices that Foster Language Development and Comprehension Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences (IES)
- Quality Early Education and Child Care from Birth to Kindergarten Source: American Academy of Pediatrics
- Emphasizing Social Justice and Equity in Leadership for Early Childhood Source: WestEd
- Launch of Child Trends News Service (CTNS) Source: Child Trends
- U.S. Children with Epilepsy is Increasing Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
1. FY 2017 REOPENING Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) -- Personnel Development to Improve Services for Children with Disabilities
On August 11, 2017, OSEP published its reopened NIA in the Federal Register to allow applicants to submit or resubmit applications that meet the requirements to ensure that State Part C and Part B, section 619 programs receive the technical assistance necessary to implement high-quality comprehensive systems of personnel development. This notice reopens the competition until September 11, 2017.
The application package for the competition is now posted on the Department's website, and also on Grants.gov. The contact person is Tracie Dickson.
2. Instructional Practices that Foster Language Development and Comprehension
This new publication (August 2017) from IES identifies practices beyond evidence-based instruction aimed to improve student outcomes in large-scale reading programs. The evaluation brief examines practices related to growth in language skills and comprehension in listening and reading for students pre-K through grade 3 based on test scores and observations of instructional practices in 1,035 classrooms within 83 Title I schools during the 2011-2012 school year. Practices measured include engaging students in defining new words, making connections between students' prior knowledge and the texts they read, promoting higher-order thinking, and focusing instruction on the meaning of texts.
3. Quality Early Education and Child Care from Birth to Kindergarten
A recent policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics published in Pediatrics, August 2017, Vol. 140 (2) explains why quality early education matters and the barriers that challenge quality childcare. The author also provides recommendations for pediatricians, as well as community, state and national stakeholders for improving early childcare.
4. Emphasizing Social Justice and Equity in Leadership for Early Childhood
WestEd's Center for Child & Family Studies has recently published a book that explores the social justice and equity challenges affecting children around the world, provides educators with systems and strategies for implementing leadership, and voices the experiences of early childhood professionals working in a variety of settings.
5. Launch of Child Trends News Service (CTNS)
Child Trends has launched its new Child Trends News Service (August 2017), a collaboration between the Child Trends Hispanic Institute and Ivanhoe Broadcast News, supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation. CTNS develops video reports of the latest child development research that are designed to air on local TV news channels. Videos are available in English and Spanish and can also be viewed on the CTNS YouTube channel.
6. U.S. Children with Epilepsy is Increasing
According to this recent press release from the CDC (August 10, 2017), epilepsy is on the rise in the U.S., and 1.2 percent of the U.S. population (3.4 million people) reported active epilepsy in 2015. The number of children with the condition increased from 450,000 in 2007 to 470,000 in 2015. With at least 30 different kinds of seizures, the CDC states that recognizing a seizure is key to proper treatment. The CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report also states that epilepsy affects all ages and ethnic backgrounds, especially those with the lowest income. Likewise, children with seizures are more likely to live in poverty, and their parents more frequently report food insecurity.
The Epilepsy Foundation offers a Seizure Training for Child Care Personnel program kit for those interested.