Whole Child Education

"If we believe in the 'whole child' approach for every child, it will be important to join ASCD and help create a national advocacy for every child in the 'whole society,' the larger state and federal arenas of power," wrote Chip Wood, cofounder of Responsive Classrooms, on the Yardsticks blog. "It is no longer acceptable to continue properly educating just some 'whole children.'"

Under-resourced schools and communities, such as the one at which Wood is currently an administrator, are struggling now more than ever. Stand with Wood and thousands of others to tell your state board of education that it must do more to educate each child, not just some. Sign the Whole Child Petition today!

The recession has forced many schools and districts to make tough decisions about where to cut spending and how to use their resources efficiently and effectively. Unfortunately, a couple of districts may have made money-saving decisions that will negatively impact not only students' health, but also their feelings of safety and support and their ability to stay engaged and challenged.

USA Today reports that some districts, including those serving Albuquerque, N.Mex.; Chula Vista, Calif.; Hillsborough County, Fla.; and Lynwood, Wash., are withholding hot meals from kids whose parents aren't paying the lunch tab and giving them cold cheese sandwiches instead.

It's common sense that hungry kids face greater obstacles in achieving at high levels. And the shame that kids may feel when they're pulled from the lunch line to receive an alternative meal isn't going to help them stay focused and confident in the classroom.

Schools and districts might not be able to solve this problem (and other problems related to the declining economy) on their own. In Albuquerque, unpaid lunch charges were on pace to reach $300,000 by the end of the year, which is almost six times more than its unpaid lunch charges in 2006. That's $300,000 the district can't afford to lose. Here at the WC Blog, we believe districts facing this issue can partner with their local communities to make sure every kid—not just those from families who can afford it—receives a nutritious, well-balanced meal.

There's got to be a better way. How can these schools partner with their communities to ensure that a healthy lunch is not a privilege but the right of each child?

"We are just students trying to become lawyers, doctors, congressmen like yourself, and one day president so we can make a change to not just the state of South Carolina but also the world," wrote 8th grader Ty'Sheoma Bethea in a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama and Congress. "We are not quitters."

When the president shared the student's letter and her appalling experience in a Dillon, S.C., middle school during his address Tuesday night before a joint session of Congress, his message was clear: our students won't quit on their education, and neither should we.

During his speech, the president articulated his vision for the country's future prosperity and included investments in education as one of the three pillars on which that prosperity depends. He then challenged not just educators and lawmakers but also students, families, and communities to take responsibility for making the U.S. education system the best in the world.

"Such ambitious goals begin with comprehensive support for the whole child," wrote ASCD Executive Director Gene Carter in response to the address. "It is essential that our children receive personalized learning opportunities that engage them in relevant curriculum and challenging education plans that lead to proficiency and achievement. We will work with national leaders to make this goal a reality by better aligning federal education and children's policies into a more coordinated system that best serves the students—from the crib to their career—along with their families, educators, and communities."

Speak Out for Whole Child Education

Changing the conversation about whole child education requires alignment from the White House to the schoolhouse. With a few clicks of your mouse, you can show your support by

• Signing the Whole Child Petition
• Supporting innovative high school redesign
• Prioritizing children's health
• Supporting students by increasing counseling services

We applaud the president's inclusion of education as a critical component in his blueprint to improve the nation and will not quit when it comes to ensuring education policies that support what is best for our kids. What do you think of the president's goals for education? What does this mean to your local school, school district, and students?

Music and other arts courses are important parts of a curriculum that challenges and engages the whole child. But is there evidence of a connection between music and student achievement? A few recent news items look into this question.

Science Daily reported on a new study in the journal Social Science Quarterly that looked at data from two national sources and concluded that there was a positive correlation between music participation and student achievement in math and reading, particularly in the high school years. But is music participation a cause of higher achievement or merely a symptom?

A school in Pennsylvania is seeking to answer that question. They're beginning a violin program and are embarking on a four-year study to examine its effect on test scores, in collaboration with a professor at Penn State Berks. 

The educators initiating the study "see a correlation between music education and academic performance. What they don't know is which comes first: Do students who play musical instruments tend to do better in school, or do some high-achieving students tend to gravitate toward music?"

Although we believe that arts education is instrinsically valuable, we're interested in seeing the results of studies like this one, and further exploration of how the arts can best be integrated into the curriculum. 

How do you see music education affecting students in your school?

Peter Holtz, an 8th grade English teacher at Ipswich Middle School in Ipswich, Mass., shares his advice for first-year teachers: Build relationships with your students. He writes,

By building relationships, you can shape the environment in your classroom so that every student gets the same message: "You belong here, and I'm glad you made it today. It is safe for you to try your best, and I expect nothing less from you. You are allowed to make mistakes, and I will still care about you even when you do." Once your students believe that you care about them, even when they mess up or drive you nuts, they will work hard to meet your expectations. (Read more.)

We know that students who feel supported by responsive, respectful adults—regardless of their role within a child's life—do better academically. When students believe that the adults around them care about who they are and what they know and what they can do, they are more likely to respond to what those adults value and take those values as their own. With everything a first-year teacher has to do and learn, it can be a struggle to focus on your relationships with students. How have you struggled to create meaningful relationships during the stressful first year of teaching? What strategies have you been successful for your students and you?

February's Whole Child Podcast features experts in urban education. Carole Levine, deputy executive director at the Parent Teacher Association, wrote in to ask one of our guests, Tatiana Epanchin, principal of Monarch Elementary Charter School in Oakland, Calif., about her views about and practices for engaging urban families.

Levine: How do you view the role of parents and families in urban settings where, often, they are lumped in with "community" and not acknowledged as the most powerful influence in their children's school and life success?

Epanchin: The role of family is crucial to student success. At Monarch, our approach is to consider the teacher as one leg of a stool, the principal as one leg of the stool, and the family/caretakers as the third leg of the stool. If one of those legs breaks, the student who is on the stool falls and cannot be as successful. We appeal continuously to families for support, ideas, and solutions. After all, the family members are the experts on their children. 

One way that we encourage families to be involved at Monarch is to ask for a 30-hour per year donation of time from each one. Although a few are unable to do this due to life circumstance, most of our families stay involved as it is an expectation. The work is various and pertains to working in the cafeteria to making phone calls in the office, to getting supplies ready for classes, to working in classes with teachers and students. We would be poorer for it without our family involvement.

Levine: How can our urban schools become more welcoming to families and start viewing them as real partners in education? 

Epanchin: I found that the best way to start this relationship was with "principal chats," where each week I met with a group of families with no agenda of my own. Each week I met with a different grade level.  I brought coffee and muffins, and we all sat around for an hour talking about the things that worried families about the school, about child rearing, about whatever. It helped build trust, and it wasn't mandatory.

How do your school and community engage families? What practices and views on parent involvement are not working for the whole family?

Download this month's Whole Child Podcast: Changing the Conversation About Education to hear more from our three guests about urban education.

The urgent work of getting kids to eat healthier foods has been a major issue in schools, newsrooms, and legislatures for some time. But the New York Times' Well blog asks if we need to be paying more attention to their "whole dining experience"—the climate of the lunchroom and the importance of taking time to eat and enjoy your food.

The blog hosts a Q&A on this topic with Arthur Agatston, a cardiologist and creator of the South Beach Diet. Agatston cites research that the last student in the lunch line may have as few as seven minutes to eat. He points out that taking time to eat leads to happier, more relaxed kids and can set an example that kids may bring home with them. He also promotes making lunchtime a fun learning opportunity—cartoon broccoli and fiber, anyone?

Should we be devoting more time for a relaxed and educational lunch? And if so, how can lunchtime be modified to afford more time and learning?

It's the middle of a busy week here at the Whole Child Blog, and we think educator Judy Willis's suggestion of taking a three-minute break to rest before synaptic overload takes over is good advice for all of us, not just our students.

What other tips, ideas, and methods do you use to help the students in your school and community feel more engaged and safe? Take a couple of minutes to share a personal story with us in the comments.

"Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the eighty-seventh general assembly of the State of Arkansas: That Arkansas resolves to support the Arkansas Whole Child Initiative to ensure that all of our children are safe, healthy, engaged, supported, and academically challenged."

Last week, Representative David Rainey introduced House Resolution 1013: Resolution to Support the Arkansas Whole Child Initiative. The Arkansas Whole Child Resolution outlines the basic needs of children that Arkansas policymakers are asked to support. The resolution sailed through both the House and Senate.

With $100 billion in emergency aid going to public schools and colleges, isn't it time to ask policymakers in your state to support the whole child? Do you want to see emergency funds used to ensure that students are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged? Download the free tool kit to pass the whole child resolution in your community or state, and be sure to sign the Whole Child Petition and forward it to friends.

Working at legislative warp speed this week, Congressional leaders ironed out the differences between the U.S. Senate and House versions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and are set to pass the landmark stimulus package by the president's February 16 deadline. The funding amounts for education in the agreement represent an unprecedented investment in children and schools. Although the figures were less than those in the House bill, the final numbers were higher than what had been called for in the Senate version.

As whole-child supporters, your voice was instrumental in limiting the cuts that had been initially considered in the Nelson-Collins Amendment to the Senate bill. Your messages were heard loud and clear and provided House leaders with the necessary leverage to preserve as much education funding as possible during the House-Senate negotiations. If not for your efforts and the efforts of educators like you, education funding in the stimulus bill would not be as high as it is.

The House is scheduled to vote on the now $789 billion economic stimulus bill today, and the Senate will likely follow no later than Saturday. The president is expected to sign the bill by Monday.

The unprecedented increases in funding for education programs contained in the bill will present a special challenge in distributing and implementing the resources. Moreover, the ARRA will give governors some flexibility with how to use money for education programs via the state stabilization fund, so it will be incumbent upon parents, educators, and community leaders like you to ensure that these funds are allocated appropriately and efficiently within your states.

Securing these resources for education has been a tremendous victory, but it is equally and vitally important to now demonstrate the benefit of these historic investments in education.

Stay tuned to the Whole Child Blog and your e-mail as we alert you to these opportunities to take action! 

In a television spot aired nationally, Whole Child Partner National Education Association urges all Americans to call Congress with the same message—tell members to fix the Economic Recovery Plan to increase funding for education to create more jobs.