K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works. Here’s How.

1. K-12 Student and Teacher
Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Findings from the
Speak Up Research
Julie A. Evans, Ed.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Project Tomorrow
@JulieEvans_PT
September 17, 2020

2.  About Project Tomorrow and the Speak Up Research Project
 Context for today’s discussion:
o 90 days that changed K-12 teacher and learning
o The role of digital tools and resources
o Imperative of educational equity
 Strengthening the bonds of communications between students
and teachers
 Additional resources to share with you
 Let’s talk! Your thoughts, insights and questions
K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Findings from the Speak Up Research

3.  Nonprofit education organization supporting K-12 education since 1996
 Mission is to ensure today’s students are well prepared for the future
 Programs and research focus on role of innovation and new learning models
within the education ecosystem.
About Project Tomorrow
www.tomorrow.org
Speak Up Research Project: national research to inform
education, policy and business decisions about new learning
models and digital learning environments
Professional Learning, Evaluation & Efficacy Studies:
customized studies and experiences that support local
decision-making and implementations of new learning models

4. About the Speak Up Project
www.tomorrow.org/speakup
 Annual research project since 2003
 We provide education leaders with a suite of
normed online surveys to use to collect valid
feedback from their stakeholders
 All preK-12 schools – public, private, parochial,
charter, virtual - are eligible to use the tools
 Participating entities get summary reports
with all locally collected data + state and
national data for benchmarks
 Turnkey service provided by Project Tomorrow
with no charge/fee to participating districts
 National reports inform edu, biz and policy
Since 2003, almost 6 million K-12 stakeholders have submitted a Speak Up survey

5. More resources available at
www.tomorrow.org
Collection of national Speak Up reports and infographics
Targeted and thematic reports on topics such as:
Educational Equity
Digital learning trends
School communications
Mobile learning
Blended learning outcomes
Before and after school closures
Latest presentations, podcasts and webinars
Services: consulting, workshops, evaluation and efficacy
studies
✔ We have expertise in the evaluation of new learning
environments including mobile implementations, online
resources, blended learning and digital content usage

6. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Findings from the Speak Up Research

7. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
March 6, 2020
May 6, 2020
 48 of 50 states had closed their
schools or recommended closure
 Impacting 55.1 million K-12
students
Sudden shift to
remote e-learning

8. “The 90 days of change led to teachers rising to meet
the challenge presented by the pandemic. We saw
teachers coupling creativity with technology to foster
student learning during this time. However, the
experience of Spring 2020 cannot be merely an
experiment. It must be the beginning of an evolution of
learning where we can redefine what engagement
looks like starting this fall.”
Lesley Bruinton, APR, Public Relations Coordinator
Tuscaloosa City Schools, Alabama
90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning

9. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
New research from the Speak Up Project that can
inform and stimulate new local discussions on:
 The changing views of digital learning because of the increased
use of the technology tools during school closures
 The increasingly critical nature of understanding and addressing
equity considerations in K-12 learning
 The importance of effective student—teacher communications
to the learning process
 The long overdue need to change our thinking about student
ownership of learning

10. New 4-part report series from Blackboard
and Project Tomorrow:
https://content.blackboard.com/90DaySeries
#90DaysofK12Change

11. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
 New awareness and appreciation
for the value of digital tools to
support personalized learning
 Understanding that we need to do
more to support our teachers with
the effective use of these digital
tools
 Eyes wide open now about what is
needed to support remote learning
– and the identification of new
creative solutions

12. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
95%
97%
99%
Parents of School-Aged Children
K-12 District Administrators
K-12 School Principals
Parents and Education Leaders Agree:
The effective implementation of instructional technology
is important to students’ success

13. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
Benefits of digital learning for
personalization of the learning
process
% of Teachers – before
school closures
% of Teachers –
during and after
school closures
Students are learning at their own pace 56% 69%
Students are in control of the learning
process
46% 55%
Learning fits the students’ personal
learning approach
44% 52%
Facilitation of more student-centered
learning
43% 51%
Students are developing greater
personal ownership of the learning
process
38% 47%
Evidence of the changed views on the value of
digital tools within learning

14. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
Resulting in changes in teachers’ needs for
professional learning
52%
53%
74%
83%
120%
How to implement a blended or flipped
classroom
How to facilitate online discussion forums
with students
How to create my own videos
How to use social media to communicate
with parents and students
How to teach an online course
Percentage increase in teachers’ interest in PD topics
Impact of school closures and shift to remote e-learning

15. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
 Access to high quality, safe and
appropriate technology to
empower meaningful remote
learning
 Equity of access to learning tools
and experiences in school also
 Evidence of challenges with equity
education relative to students’
social and emotional well being

16. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
The unforeseen size of the “Homework Gap”
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/kids-action/publications/closing-the-k-12-
digital-divide-in-the-age-of-distance-learning#

17. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
Evidence of the lack of equity in school access to
technology
Usage
frequency
Majority
white
schools
Majority
minority
schools
Urban
schools
Suburba
n schools
Rural
schools
Title 1
schools
Non-Title
1 schools
Daily or
almost
daily
usage
57% 35% 32% 52% 50% 36% 57%
At least
weekly
usage
77% 57% 55% 71% 70% 57% 75%
Use of Google Education Suite in the classroom prior to school closures

18. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
Differences in the social-emotional well-being of students
65%
56%
43% 42%
57%
41%
33% 33%
There is an adult at
school I trust
I feel physically safe
at school
I feel emotionally safe
at school
My school cares
about me
Gr 6-12 Students in majority white schools
Gr 6-12 Students in majority minority schools

19. 90 Days that Changed K-12 Teaching and Learning
“Positive relationships between
teachers and students are
among the most commonly
cited variables associated with
effective instruction.”
Robert Marzano
Author, Educator, Thought Leader

20.  Increased importance of effective
student-teacher communications –
accelerated by the school closures
 Adoption of new tools for two-way
communications
 Reality: “one size fits none” with
most student-teacher
communications
 Elevation of important considerations
for school and district leaders with
new emerging communications tools
K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Key findings from this new report:

21. Audience poll
What tool have you used most often over the past 7 months
for your two-way communications with family, friends and
colleagues?
 Email
 Phone call
 Social media posts
 Text messages
 Video conference

22. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
“Communication is a good example of the value of
technology use for me personally. With technology, I can
easily talk to my peers and teachers about assignments,
homework, tests, etc. through social media, google
classroom, google drive, and email. This helps me develop
communication and teamwork skills that could be applied
to my future career.”
High school student from Alabama during the school
closure time period

23. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
K-12 stakeholder
“Students are communicating more with their
teacher(s) because of technology usage in the
classroom”
% of agreement before
school closures
% of agreement during
school closures
Students in grades 6-12 35% 48%
Teachers 37% 52%
Parents 33% 53%
Increased technology-enabled student-teacher communications

24. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Adoption of new digital tools for two-way communications
Digital tool: Email
 77% of students in grades 6-
12 say they now regularly
communicate with teachers
via email
 33% increase since school
closures
 Email communications for
students in grades 3-5
increased from 8% to 16%

25. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
“Technology has allowed me to communicate with others in a
matter of seconds. For example, if I am doing my algebra
homework online and I am struggling with a problem, I can
screenshot it and send it to my teacher through his email so he
can guide me in the right direction.”
High school student from Texas during the school closure time
“ … when I have a question to ask a teacher, I can just email
them and they respond quickly now.”
High school student from California during the school closure time period
Digital tool: Email

26. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Adoption facilitated by greater access to technology
Students report being assigned a Chromebook to use at school
School year reporting % of students in grades
6-8
% of students in
grades 9-12
2015-16 33% 21%
2017-18 45% 45%
2019-20 (before school
closures)
56% 35%
2019-20 (during
school closures)
80% 65%

27. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
 In 2015, only 14% of
teachers said they used
texts to communicate with
students – no change in 5
years
 Teachers were using texts
for communications with
colleagues (57%) and
parents of students (28%)
Digital tool: Text messages

28. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
K-12 stakeholder
I use texting to communicate with my teachers
% of agreement before
school closures
% of agreement
during school
closures
Students in grades 6-8 25% 62%
Students in grades 9-12 38% 69%
Digital tool: Text messages

29. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
“Texting allows students to ask me questions
they're too shy to ask in class. This tool has really
opened up communication.”
Teacher from California during school closure time period
Digital tool: Text messages

30. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Enabled by students’ access to personal smartphones
Students in kindergarten thru Grade 2
Students in Grades 3-5
Students in Grades 6-8
Students in Grades 9-12

31. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
How are you keeping up with school events and classroom news?
 Class websites – 57%
 Text messages from classmates – 43%
 Updates from classmates’ social media
accounts – 34%

32. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Let’s ask the students!
What are the most effective ways for students and teachers
to communicate?
In 2016: students said talking face-to-face in class was most effective

33. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
In 2020:
Different environment
necessitates different
modes of communications
between student and
teachers
Let’s ask the students!
What are the most effective ways for students and teachers
to communicate?

34. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
37%
41%
45%
49%
55%
56%
Auto phone message
Text message
Personal email
Preference - during school closures Preference - before school closures
What Gr 6-12 students say are the most effective
tools for two-way communications with teachers

35. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
But over 50% of students in grades 6-12 also wish their
teachers and schools used more social media for effective
communications – especially these tools:

36. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Important new considerations for educators:
 Policies regarding texting between students and teachers
 Policies regarding social media use
 Increased concerns around student data privacy and safety
 Expectations for message retention and district accountability
 Using personal devices and networks for communications
 Balancing convenience and expediency with responsibility

37.  Increased importance of effective
student-teacher communications –
accelerated by the school closures
 Adoption of new tools for two-way
communications
 Reality: “one size fits none” with
most student-teacher
communications
 Elevation of important considerations
for school and district leaders with
new emerging communications tools
K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Key findings from this new report:

38.  More data findings and insights to
inform your plans
 Additional thought-provoking
questions for school and district
leaders to use jumpstart new local
discussions. Use report within your
PLCs or planning meetings.
 Share your insights on Twitter at
#90DaysofK12Change
K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Release of this new report includes:

39. K-12 Student and Teacher Communication Works.
Here’s How.
Opportunity for you to provide a quote to be
included in the report – what are your insights on
this topic and the report findings?

40. New 4-part report series from Blackboard
and Project Tomorrow:
https://content.blackboard.com/90DaySeries
Next report: Sponsoring Student Ownership of Learning

41. Want to learn about the views of your stakeholders?
Participate in the Speak Up Research Project
www.tomorrow.org/speakup
 Surveys open from October 14 – May 29
 Pick the surveys you want to use – no limit on participation #s
 100% free: no need to create your own – use the Speak Up
surveys and get full data reports with comparative data
Online surveys for:
 Students (K-12) – English & Spanish
 Parents – English & Spanish
 Teachers
 School Site Administrators
 District Administrators
 Technology Leaders

42. National research findings from the Speak Up Project
Wednesday, October 21, 2020
9 am PT, 12 noon ET
Hosted by edWeb

43. Let’s talk!
Your thoughts, insights
and questions.
Julie A. Evans, Ed.D.
CEO of Project Tomorrow
949-609-4661
@JulieEvans_PT
jevans@tomorrow.org