Back to: Alliance Blog

What We're Reading: Week of January 17, 2022

January 21, 2022

I hope everyone enjoyed a restful and reflecting Martin Luther King Jr. weekend! This week, we’re reading stories on COVID-19’s impact on young people’s mental health, how policymakers can strengthen work-based learning, and more. As always, thanks for reading with us!

COVID-19
New Research Shows How Bad the Pandemic Has Been for Student Mental Health, EdWeek
A new analysis of research across 11 countries including the United States in the journal JAMA Pediatrics finds widespread anxiety and depression among those 19 and younger in the earliest days of the pandemic, exacerbated by greater screen time and less physical activity, and coupled with fewer adult supports to ensure children stayed out of dangerous situations.

Omicron surge worsens teacher shortage, closing more California schools to COVID, CalMatters
The omicron variant of COVID-19 has hit California’s teacher workforce so hard that many schools are weighing closure and in some cases forced to dip into emergency days. The quality of instruction is suffering, but some teachers say they still prefer this to remote instruction.


Equity
How California districts seek to recruit, retain Black teachers amid shortage, EdSource
As America attempts to reckon with racial injustice, some California school districts are adopting teacher pipeline programs specifically targeting potential Black teachers while also making efforts to retain teachers and listen to what might turn them away.


Higher Education
A Playbook to Help Colleges Students Across the Degree Finish Line, Diverse Education
As the pandemic continues to make completing a degree harder for many, the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), a nonprofit research and advocacy organization, published a playbook to help institutions support these millions of people with some credits but no degree.

​​Associations challenge selectivity in college admissions, call for simplified policies, Higher Ed Dive
Colleges with selective admissions should evaluate whether these practices are compatible with their goals of advancing historically underrepresented students in higher education, a new report urges.

Report Examines Dual Enrollment Programs in 16 States, Inside Higher Ed
A new report released by the nonprofit Southern Regional Education Board looks at dual-enrollment programs across 16 states, breaking down variances, shared elements and practices worth watching. It finds differences in how such programs are funded, student eligibility, workforce and educational goals, and more.


Policy
California college students can get $10,000 for community service under new program, The Sacramento Bee
California college students will soon be able to participate in a new community service program aimed at helping them pay for college and reducing the amount of debt they take on.

How Elected Officials and Policymakers Can Strengthen Work-Based Education Programs for a Future-Ready Workforce, The 74 Million
Fixing the school-to-career pipeline will become the driver of economic recovery. Schools must have the support to prepare learners for opportunities in indispensable high-wage, high-skill occupations that have proven resilient during economic upheavals, writes NAF's Tiffany Barfield.