Category Archives: About K-12 International Education News

Kirsi Pyhältö, Ph.D. is Full Professor of educational sciences in the Faculty of Educational Sciences, at the University of Oulu, Finland, and research director in the Centre for University Teaching and Learning, at the University of Helsinki. Her research interests include school development, teachers’ professional agency, and student and teacher well-being. She has over 140 publications that include refereed articles, book chapters, and textbooks. Over the years Pyhältö has led several externally funded research projects on the above mentioned topics in collaboration with her colleagues. Currently, Pyhältö is leading two active research groups: Learning and Development in School http://www.learninginschool.fi/ and From a Ph.D. Student to an Academic Expert https://researchondoctoraleducation.wordpress.com/. Dr. Pyhältö is founding co- coordinator of EARLI Special Interest Group 24: Researcher Educationand Careers. For a full list of publications see: https://tuhat.helsinki.fi/portal/fi/persons/kirsi-pyhaltoe(677db559-b36b-44a4-90c6-d3e4bd87e94b)/publications.html. Dr. Kirsi Pyhältö can be reached at: kirsi.pyhalto@helsinki.fi

In this interview, part of the Lead the Change series of the American Educational Research Association Educational Change Special Interest Group, Dr. Pyhältö discusses her work on teacher agency and school reform. As she puts it:

Our recent research on teacher agency shows that a strong sense of professional agency contributes to school development in various ways. There is, for instance, emerging evidence that professional agency in the teacher community also promotes active and intentional teacher learning in the classroom. This implies that learning in and between the classroom and the professional community is one of the focal areas of teacher learning. Professional agency in the form of active and intentional teacher learning both in the classroom and in the professional community has shown to be associated with increased student engagement and academic success, reduced levels of early career in-service teachers’ attrition, teachers’ experimentation with innovative teaching methods and commitment in school development, and reduced levels of teacher stress. It can be argued that teachers’ sense of professional agency is a central determinant for the extent to which they are able to engage in continuous professional learning, contribute to school development, make a difference in their working environment, and continually develop sufficient strategies to cope with work-related stressors—to promote sustainable change in the society.

This Lead the Change interview appears as part of a series that features experts from around the globe, highlights promising research and practice, and offers expert insight on small- and large-scale educational change. Recently, Lead the Change has also interviewed Moosung Lee and Christina Dobbs.

This week, IEN provides a short overview of a few articles in the Chinese media discussing the outbreak of the Coronavirus as well as a quick scan of headlines discussing the outbreak’s impact on education in many parts of the world.

The coronavirus broke out in China while students were on break for their winter holiday, and most students were still at home when the situation began to get serious. Due to the on-going spread, the Chinese government postponed the date for returning to school until late February. But in late January, as Sixth Tone reported, China’s education ministry “ordered institutions to continue administering coursework online. Daily activities including flag-raising ceremonies, roll calls, and lectures are now conducted virtually.” As a consequence, “millions of Chinese students are starting a new school term not in their classrooms, but in front of their computers.” In some cases, teachers are making recordings to share online, while in others teachers are live-streaming their lectures/classes online. Xinhuanet profiled one math teacher, Zhang Sheng, who described his routines for live-streaming, recording videos, and homework. “’This has doubled my workload, but if it makes my students happy, I will do it,’” Zhang was quoted as saying.

Some see this as a big opportunity for online education in China while others see potential problems since most K-12 and university teachers and students are not familiar with online teaching. Equity and access to technology and the internet are also concerns. Students in urban areas are complaining of slow internet connections, but many students in remote places are finding it difficult to log into their courses at all.

Government guidance for schools and headlines about the outbreak and education in China

广东印发中小学线上教学指引：APP须经审核备案，要特别关注农村地区和留守儿童, China Education Daily ,
Online teaching activities instruction from Guangdong province education department: Online platforms (APPs) need to be checked and reviewed, and more attention should be given to rural students and children from migrant family

海南：停课不停学 不要把学生“锁”在屏幕前 小学中高年级学生每天在线学习不得超过45分钟, China Education Daily
Instructions from the education department of Hainan: Students should continue learning outside of school, while not being locked in front of digital screens. It is suggested that elementary students should not study for more than 45 minutes online every day.

停课不停学，我们在行动, China Education Daily
A document from Jiangxi province: Schools should have their own strategies and schedules to help students study online, especially for grade-12 students who are going to take the college entrance examination (Gaokao) in the coming summer. Specific learning platforms are identified to use for teaching and learning activities for the whole county.

Kids in Shanghai won’t be returning to school amid coronavirus outbreak, New York Post
The Shanghai government has announced that students will not return to schools now and the semester will start via online learning amid China’s coronavirus outbreak. K-12 students in Shanghai will start online classes from March 2.

Coronavirus outbreak forces China’s after-school activities to shut down — or move online, CNBC
As the virus keeps children at home, Chinese parents and schools are turning to online education, putting pressure on after school industry players to move online or get shut down.

Bans hinder international student travel, China Daily
Travel restrictions from the US government, visa issues and flight cancelations are hindering some Chinese students from resuming their studies after the winter break. US universities are using measures ranging from videoconferencing to online assignments to help Chinese students whose study plans have been disrupted by recent travel restrictions.

Free online learning platform for students sees smooth operation amid epidemic, xinhuanet
A free online learning platform was launched for China’s primary and secondary school students studying at home during the outbreak of COVID-19.

Online classes get mixed reactions from students, teachers, Sixth Tone
“…an increase in demand for livestreaming and other online education services is causing app crashes and other internet disruptions, with several related hashtags including “Tecent Classroom crashed” trending on microblogging platform Weibo.”

Online classes can’t replace classrooms, China Daily
China has been witnessing a different kind of new semester, in which the classroom was moved online, because of the novel coronavirus outbreak. Yet, problems emerged and show that online classes can never replace real classes, at least for now.

Recent headlines on the coronavirus outbreak and education around the world

Schools should prepare for coronavirus outbreaks, CDC officials warn, Education Week
“’You should ask your children’s schools about their plans for school dismissals or school closures,’ Nancy Messonnier, a director at the Centers for Disease Control, said during a press briefing on Tuesday. ‘Ask about plans for teleschool.’”

Coronavirus has reached the U.S. What can schools do? Education Drive
This article gives advice on how U.S. schools get prepared for the challenges caused by the spread of coronavirus.

If coronavirus gets worse in the US, online learning can fill the gaps, Education Week
The coronavirus outbreak this year has forced K-12 schools to close for a prolonged period of time, and e-learning has helped fill the gap in instruction. Similar measures could also be considered by U.S. schools.

Universities brace for lasting impact of coronavirus outbreak, Times Higher Education
The outbreak of coronavirus could serve as a good chance for universities to brace positive changes, such as improving online teaching and the use of education technology, and providing health services and hygiene standards. Furthermore, universities in China may consider making themselves more competitive and attractive among world universities.

Will coronavirus crisis trigger an enrollment crisis? Inside Higher Ed
U.S. colleges could see a major enrollment pipeline cut off this fall if the coronavirus epidemic persists. Meanwhile, Australian universities are missing more than half their Chinese students weeks before their fall semester begins.

The coronavirus outbreak is the biggest crisis ever to hit international education, The conversation
For Australian higher education, the coronavirus outbreak may be the biggest disruption to international student flows ever before.

Korea to postpone new school year as coronavirus spikes, The Korea Herald
“’To prevent the spread of infection, and for the safety of students and school faculty, the education ministry will postpone the first day of the 2020 school year at kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools across the country by a week,’ Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae said in a government press briefing.’”

Vietnam sharply divided on coronavirus school closures, VOA News
“Supporters want to keep students at home until April, while opponents say the panic is overblown.”

Coronavirus: Hong Kong school closures cripple bus companies, South China Morning Post
Drivers and minders on Hong Kong school buses have been left unpaid and threatening to quit, because of class suspensions aimed at curbing the coronavirus outbreak.

Education companies set back by China’s coronavirus crisis, EdWeek Market Brief
Education companies are feeling the effects of the spread of the coronavirus in the world in a number of ways. Education-focused businesses are worried about keeping China-based employees healthy and safe. Other companies that have developed products for use in the Chinese education market are seeing usage numbers drop as students and teachers stay home from school.

• Aidi Bian & Thomas Hatch

This post is the second part of a piece on the nonformal education work at The New York Public Library. In the first post, we reported on NYPL president Tony Marx’s work in implementing new educational programs.

Some Things Don’t Change

Since Tony Marx’s arrival in 2011, NYPL has undergone dramatic changes, particularly in its educational programming. Despite these changes, the Library’s work continues a long tradition embedded in its founding. “We’ve always been there, helping kids read, before they start school, once they’re in school,” Marx says. The Library has always been a place to explore learning as a lifelong pursuit. From its founding, Marx suggests that since its inception, learning has always been foundational to NYPL’s identity. Combining these goals and the Library’s already-present infrastructure, NYPL has been able to dramatically increase its presence in the nonformal education sector in the city. In this way, the library is the same place it has always been. It sits outside of schools, but it is a recognizable place of learning. If anything, these programs act to solidify NYPL’s mission.

In fact, the library has committed almost a billion dollars to improving its branches. Specifically, they are focusing on improving branches in outer boroughs, helping to work toward all New Yorkers having a civic space that could act as a learning center for the community.

A Unique Place In the Landscape

Though the Library aims to continue this mission, it is undeniably changing in more radical ways than it had in its first 100 years. As the library shifted from a passive to a more proactive role in nonformal education in OST spaces, the question was not only what to do or how to do it. Marx joined the NYPL at a moment when people questioned the very role of a Library in a city. At this time, Marx saw an almost-unique opportunity built into what many viewed as an existential threat to the Library. Large scale institutions with an established legacy almost never innovate at scale. Yet, when Marx took over as president of the NYPL, he recognized an opening.

NYPL is equipped with the resources of buildings and is known as a learning institution. It also sits outside the standard educational bureaucracy. Marx suggests that in the library there are “no judgements, no exams, no expectations other than we want to help.” Without the common constraints and regulations of other educational institutions, NYPL found the freedom to pursue the programs they have developed in the last decade. Of course, this freedom also comes with risks. The Library may not be beholden to much other than its patrons’ interests and needs, but many of these programs rely on funding sources such as grants or gifts rather than the more permanent, sustainable structure of public funding.  The Library may be less vulnerable to political shifts, but it is still exploring how to continue innovating without losing its position.

Marx offers a detailed story that illustrates this point:

 Two to three million New Yorkers live in the digital dark. They don’t have broadband at home. I discovered this for myself by meeting this kid. I’m leaving a branch in the Bronx, it’s after hours, a beautiful evening. There’s a kid sitting on the stoop and he has an ancient laptop and I say “what are you doing?” And he says “my math homework. It’s online, it’s assigned.” I say, “that’s great. Why are you sitting here?” He tells me it’s because he can’t afford broadband at home. “So,” the kid says, “I sit here after the library kicks me out and get bleed through the door.” I thought “oh my god, he’s trying to do his math homework. We want him to do his math homework. That’s crazy”. So, I come back [to the office]. I discover that there are millions of people in his situation, which is shocking to me. Maybe it’s shocking that I was shocked. And then I think, ok, let’s do something. We’re going to lend people broadband at home. We can play, at scale. So we raised millions of dollars from Google. We started lending to 10,000 families at a time Wi-Fi hotspots that they could take home for a year. Then, we said, ok, so this depends on soft money. At the time, with the Obama administration, we had the FCC interested in what we were doing. It was a national problem. But of course, things changed…

Additionally, the library may largely operate free of restraints, but it is not an island. The NYPL seeks connections with other institutional bodies in the city. Notably, Marx comments on how strange it seemed that when he arrived the largest library system and the largest school system did not often talk. He began meeting regularly with Chancellors of schools to explore how to increase learning. More, connections and this work in general helps reach more New Yorkers and directly responds to some of the systemic inequities youth encounter in the education system and beyond. For instance, as Marx sought funds to continue the broadband program, he found that in 2017, there was still a federal program offering broadband to kids who qualify for a free or reduced lunch. The Chancellor at the time told him that they could not do the program. The problem here was that the government would pay for the subscription, but they would not pay for the “little $50 box that makes it work,” as Marx puts it. Once more, the relative autonomy of the Library allowed them to pay for the devices and allowed the DOE to take advantage of the free subscriptions. The connection allowed the library to uncover a more sustainable model and provided a way for both the DOE and the NYPL to better serve New York City children.

The Library clearly fills a gap between school and OST education. Conversely, as many of these programs suggest, the Library is also pushing at the bounds of what nonformal learning can be at a large, institutional scale. As Marx and others in the Library continue searching, they aim to find new programs, new ways of connecting, and reach more families throughout New York City.

In this post, part of our series looking at educational change in nonformal settings, we speak with Anthony W. Marx, President and CEO of The New York Public Library. In previous posts, we’ve written about the Beam Center and CS for All.

 When Tony Marx traveled to The New York Public Library (NYPL) as a child, he found everything he could possibly imagine. The Library housed books, news, and all the information a future academic could desire. These days, Marx,  NYPL’s President and CEO, notes that almost every person walking around the city carries a library in their pocket. It would seem that in a world of smart phones, some might contend that brick and mortar libraries serve little purpose. Yet, Marx sees the rise of the internet and increased access to information as a unique opportunity for the NYPL. More than ever, he suggests, libraries can be active sites of learning.

Of course, NYPL has long been an institution devoted to education. From the time Andrew Carnegie’s donations helped build branches in communities throughout the city and across the U.S.,  NYPL has always been rooted in education. The Library welcomed kids learning to read and encouraging lifelong learning of New York City’s residents. Since Marx’s arrival in 2011, however, the library has undergone drastic changes in the shape and scope of their educational programming. In the last decade, the NYPL and its 88 branches scattered across the city have more actively focused their offerings to meet community needs and respond to the changing role of libraries. During this time, the NYPL as an organization has leveraged its status as a stalwart institution and its relative autonomy to greatly expand its role in the city’s educational landscape. Throughout these many changes, the Library has maintained its long history of providing space and learning opportunities for New York City residents.

“It’s Right There In The Name” 

Entwined with the notion that the Library has always been a place of and for education, it is also a place for the public. In Marx’s words, “We’ll take anyone who walks through our doors, without exams, without judgments.” As long as the Library is open, anyone that wants to can pass through its doors. For decades, this publicness allowed library branches to act as kind of educational safe haven. They could offer homework help after school or an air-conditioned space during summer breaks. At the same time though, the library largely played a passive role in education. While local branches did offer small classes or adult education programs, these were scarce and informally organized. Now there are 2 million visits to formal programs.

In a similar vein, the Library’s ongoing commitment to the public means that it is open, democratically available, but optional. “If we don’t offer what people want, they won’t come,” Marx suggests, “but they are coming in record numbers.” At the start of the 21^st century, with the Library’s offerings increasingly accessible simply by logging onto a computer, what people used to have to do by traveling to the Library, they could suddenly accomplish in the comfort of their own home. One might think that in modern times, the library as a public site had become obsolete. NYPL certainly had to wrestle with the question of how to best serve New Yorkers and entice them to come to the Library. But, Marx and his colleagues never saw these issues as problems.

Among many other initiatives, upon Marx’s arrival, the library began new, targeted educational programming. Where in previous decades the library had been more of an implicit educational site with a hodgepodge of offerings, they took on a more active role in New York City’s educational landscape. This expansion began in earnest in 2013, when Maggie Jacobs joined the library as the Director of Educational Programs. Surveying different neighborhoods to understand needs and opportunities in local branches, the library began developing new “Outside of School Time” models for New York City’s youth. Though still evolving, the library now operates several main educational endeavors.

One such program provides homework help in several local branches for 1^st through 8^th grade students. Library visitors still identified help with schoolwork as a service they most wanted from the library. With a staff of tutors, this program supports diverse groups of students in structured learning time. A related program creates a direct link between the NYPL and local high schools. The program offers an apprenticeship, guiding 10^th to 12^th graders toward becoming reading tutors. During the fall semester, they attend classes and train to become tutors. Classes in this semester also carry credits that the DOE recognizes. In the spring semester, participants work as paid interns, teaching reading to 1^st and 2^nd grade students. Another program offers a place-based digital curriculum for middle school students. Here, students research different aspects of their community and undertake projects such as

digital photography, podcasting, and neighborhood mapping. Finally, the Library has developed a program from a 15 million dollar “magic grant” from the Helen Gurley Brown Trust to academically support high school students. Students who participate in this program receive academic resources to apply for and succeed in college. Students also design and pursue a passion project and are able to receive grants for participating in other enrichment programs.

These programs both filled an educational gap in the nonformal space. Along with more traditional programs such as ESL classes or computer skills classes, the library increased its annual visits almost tenfold (to around two million people a year). Much of this work focuses on working with youth in underserved communities. To help make these programs a reality, the Library both increased direct partnerships with the DOE and others

Next week, we will share the 2nd part of this post.