Be the Reason: The Educator's Role in Combating Child Maltreatment

Laws have evolved along with awareness of human rights, including the rights of minors, with increased protections for children and youth from harmful situations. Often children may not be able to put their experiences into words, or may not know they deserve safety and the fulfillment of basic human needs. Children may rely on adults outside the family to stand up for them. This is where educators and school personnel serve a vital role in our society: to watch over and shield our children and youth.

In this course, Sherry Williamson, Child Abuse Project Coordinator at the Arkansas Commission on Child Abuse, Rape and Domestic Violence, shares personal stories and professional insights that compel Arkansas educators and school staff to move beyond the discomfort that comes with facing hard realities. This fully narrated and interactive training features scenarios drawn from real-life experiences. We glean first-hand insights from Arkansas leaders who work to combat crimes against children. Armed with awareness, knowledge, and a sense of higher purpose, Arkansas educators and school personnel can be resolved in in their convictions to “be the reason” children, youth, and families survive and thrive.

This course meets the child maltreatment mandated reporter training requirements of ACA 6-61-133.

Professional Licensure Standards Board (PLSB) - The Code of Ethics Training Video (2018)

The Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators defines the minimum standards of ethical conduct for all educators. The State Board of Education approved the standards on September 1, 2008 and they were last updated at the beginning of the 2018/2019 school year. Arkansas law mandates that everyone with a valid Arkansas teaching license and all educators teaching under an Act 1240 waiver and pre-service teachers are required to abide by the Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators. Educational leaders from across the state join Eric R. James from the Professional Licensure Standards Board (PLSB) to explain what it means to be an ethical educator and abide by the Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education.

In this course, Daniel Collier, Technology Projects Coordinator for the Arkansas Department of Education addresses the FERPA basics, explores requirements for the protection of student records for Local Education Agencies (LEAs), explains who may and may not access student records, when those records may be shared, and discusses several of the applicable exceptions to the FERPA requirement for consent.

Professional Licensure Standards Board Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators: Ethical Scenarios in Education (2020)

Arkansas law mandates that everyone with a valid Arkansas teaching license and all educators teaching under an Act 1240 waiver, as well as all pre-service teachers, are required to abide by the Code of Ethics for Arkansas Educators. In this course, view scenarios based on actual cases that have gone before the Professional Licensure Standards Board ethics subcommittee and learn what standards were violated in each situation, as well as what sanctions were recommended due to the violations.

In this course you will analyze the details of real-life ethics scenarios, determining which standards from the Code of Ethics were violated in each situation.

Bullying: Separating Fact from Fiction

By the end of this course, learners will be able to define the principal elements of bullying and cyberbullying behavior, describe the impact of bullying on the health and well-being of young people, and recognize the role of teachers and educational professionals in bullying prevention. This course also dispels many myths about bullying and focuses on intervention and prevention and what educators can do to help.

This course features Dr. Joseph Wright of Howard University College of Medicine, who led this in-service training on May 24, 2016 at Lonoke High School in Lonoke, AR.

This course meets the anti-bullying training requirements of ACA 6-17-711.

Human Trafficking: Arkansas Code § 6-17-710 - U.S. Department of Homeland Security Blue Campaign

Whether it is through forced labor or sexual exploitation, human trafficking remains an issue in our society. As licensed professionals and other school officials, we are uniquely positioned to recognize when a student may have been exploited by another individual. This course features video segments from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Blue Campaign, which uses dramatizations to advocate for a general awareness of human trafficking and its indicators. An explanation of the reporting guidelines for mandated reporters in Arkansas is also provided.

This course meets the human trafficking professional development requirements of ACA 6-17-710.

Coaching Self-Expression: Go In, Poet

Arkansas 2019 Teacher of the Year Stacey McAdoo illustrates her relationship-based approach to nurturing self-expression in her students. This master teacher describes her underlying philosophy behind her guidance of The Writeous, a youth performance poetry collective founded by her and her husband, teacher Leron McAdoo. In these short mini-lessons, viewers watch Ms. McAdoo work intensively with individual students as she coaches them through revision of their work. This close-up view shines a light on how this master teacher creates a safe environment for creative risk-taking through the intentional actions of listening, affirming, mirroring, and provoking student reflection and self-assessment (LAMP). Ms. McAdoo views the writing of poetry as a communal art, and she advocates for teachers to collaborate with others as they support their students. While Ms. McAdoo primarily guides high school students in the artistic genre of spoken-word poetry, her feedback techniques are applicable to the teaching of the writing process as well as to coaching students in general.

The Science of Reading Part 09: Building Comprehension and Writing Through Vocabulary

Vocabulary is one of the essential components of reading instruction, but it is sometimes neglected as it can be tricky. How can effective vocabulary instruction be squeezed in to an already limited schedule? Which words are the best words to teach? How many new words do students need to learn in a year?

In The Science of Reading: Building Comprehension and Writing Through Vocabulary, literacy specialist William Van Cleave leads our discussion on vocabulary and best practices that can strengthen reading and writing skills. The topics covered in this course range from the development of vocabulary and how it affects reading and writing to choosing and teaching words in a way that will benefit all students.

Building Comprehension and Writing Through Vocabulary is the ninth course in the 15.5-hour Science of Reading learning path. It was recorded on March 2, 2019 at the Main Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. This series was developed to help Arkansas educators meet the requirements in the Right to Read Act (Act 1063 of 2017).

The Science of Reading Part 10: Morphology

Morphology, or the study of the forms of words, when embedded in deep research-based vocabulary instruction, helps students become better readers, writers, and thinkers. One of the perks of morphological study in vocabulary is that you do not have to be, or even act like, the expert – it’s all about exploring words with students to help them uncover meaning and deepen their understanding.

In The Science of Reading: Morphology, literacy specialist William Van Cleave explores morphology and how it impacts vocabulary, spelling, and comprehension. After reviewing the basic concepts and key terminology of morphology, Mr. Van Cleave shares several tools and strategies useful in vocabulary instruction that will help students develop the skills and confidence to explore words on their own.

Morphology is the tenth course in the 15.5-hour Science of Reading learning path. It was recorded on March 2, 2019 at the Main Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. This series was developed to help Arkansas educators meet the requirements in the Right to Read Act (Act 1063 of 2017).

The Science of Reading Part 11: Syntax Matters

Practicing with sentence-level skills is not just for elementary school, as it benefits older students as well. Syntax is the link between sentence writing and sentence comprehending for learners of all ages.

In The Science of Reading: Syntax Matters, literacy specialist William Van Cleave returns to lead our discussion on syntax and how its study impacts both reading and writing. Mr. Van Cleave provides a brief overview of parts of speech and their functions, as well as sentence parts and the types of sentences they can create. He goes on to discuss lesson structures and sentence-level activities that are useful for embedding the study of syntax into the content of any subject area.  

Syntax Matters is the eleventh course in the 15.5-hour Science of Reading learning path. It was recorded on March 2, 2019 at the Main Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. This series was developed to help Arkansas educators meet the requirements in the Right to Read Act (Act 1063 of 2017).