April-2020-Advisor_2

COMMUNICATING

APRIL 2020 CEA ADVISOR 11

Iapichino-Dorr said, “I came here to gain more knowledge. I field calls from teachers about student behavior all the time, and I want to hear the commissioner’s perspective, learn what other towns around our state are seeing and doing, and come back and be able to support our teachers and students.” Tolland middle school teacher Celeste Estevez said she is interested in promoting social-emotional learning, noting that younger students are frequently tasked with work that is not developmentally appropriate, creating frustration and anxiety that lead to behavioral issues. One early elementary teacher, who asked not to be identified, looked back on a decades-long career she says has changed drastically and is coming to an end. Behind her decision to retire are escalating incidents of student behavior that have devastated her health and have pointed to deep, unaddressed problems among many students. She described, for example, an incident in which a frustrated five-year-old smashed her in the jaw with her head. Questioning Connecticut’s earliest-in-the-nation school start age, coupled with full-day kindergarten and increasingly rigorous early elementary curriculum that leaves little opportunity for student play, socialization, and quiet choice time, the veteran teacher said the young children in her classroom today are chewing through pencils. “They are anxious. They are chewing their shirts. And parents are distraught that their little ones are ‘failing’ kindergarten.” “There is no fun in our classrooms anymore,” Waterbury second-grade teacher Helen Kaminsky agreed. Answering the call Student aggression, Cardona acknowledged, is a major concern. To resounding applause, he told teachers, “You’re the frontliners when leadership is not working, and you feel the effects of that. We need to do a better job with early childhood education. We are not listening to what the research says about four-, five- or six-year- olds’ learning styles. We should not be shocked when we see kicking and screaming if we’re not programming for what kids need. We need instructional redesign.” He also said he is interested in protocol that CEA has helped establish to address student aggression. Such protocol, which has

At the packed forum, teachers lined up to share their stories, concerns, and ideas for policy change with Commissioner Cardona. Suggestions included everything from reduced testing to increased kindergarten start age, more effective training for school administrators, reasonable ratios of students to school counselors, psychologists, and social workers, and an emphasis on social-emotional learning and trauma-informed instruction—with adequate training.

“FOR FAR TOO LONG, WE’VE BEEN DEALING WITH THE SYMPTOMS AND NOT THE UNDERLYING PROBLEMS… NOT ONLY DOES IT CREATE TRAUMA FOR STUDENTS, IT CREATES TRAUMA FOR THEIR TEACHERS.”

Bloomfield teacher Elka Spencer talks about social-emotional learning.

protocol. “We can’t wait, however, for a positive culture to have safety in our buildings. Not only does it create trauma for students, it creates trauma for their teachers.” He added, “I want to have strategies that are going to outlast me—policies that honor the profession, that budget appropriately for resources, and provide support for teachers and students in their classrooms.” So many teachers lined up to share their stories with Dr. Cardona that time did not permit all of them to be heard before the forum ended. Recognizing teachers’ need to be heard and his own need to understand what is happening in classrooms, Cardona agreed to personally reach out to those whose remarks he was unable to respond to at the forum. Teachers’ stories were also videotaped—as was the entire Teachers Talk forum. The video is available to members only at cea.org/members/classrooms-in- crisis/index.cfm . For more on the subject of social- emotional supports needed to create safe learning environments—and how CEA and its members are pushing for Connecticut to do more—see pages 8-9.

Dr. Miguel Cardona, Education Commissioner

made a dramatic difference in school climate where it’s been implemented, was described by forum participant Vivian Birdsall, president of the New Canaan Education Association. New Canaan was the first district in the state to develop such protocol and incorporate related language into teachers’ contracts. Describing her district as highly affluent and high-achieving, Birdsall recalled a time when student aggression was first recognized as a problem. High school teachers, she recalls, were suffering physical injuries at the hands of students who had grown up in the district. A middle school teacher was bitten so badly that her injuries resembled a dog attack. Initially, however, teachers were afraid to document student aggression, fearing that they would lose their jobs. No protocol was in place then for reporting and addressing the problem. “With CEA’s help,” she said, “we

put together a flow chart illustrating the steps we would take to address student aggression. The adults in our children’s lives got together to develop this protocol. We realized that students were in pain and something was wrong. Everything we do is for our children.” She added, “New Canaan was the first district to have language in our contract addressing how to handle student aggression. CEA really had a handle on this, and they were so helpful. Once we put it together, our administrators were thankful. Parents were thankful. Teachers were thankful. Often there’s this idea when a young child lashes out that ‘He’s just a tiny second grader.’ But someday he’s not going to be in second grade, and he’s not going to be tiny. Every district should have this protocol.” Cardona agreed, acknowledging that not all schools have the kind of positive, collaborative culture that would be receptive to adopting such

CEA members and leaders listen to Commissioner Cardona’s plans to strengthen public education and provide supports for teachers and students.

Dr. Miguel Cardona with teachers Tricia Lee (Windsor Locks), Shay Lewis (CREC, Bloomfield), Celeste Estevez (Tolland), and Matthew Spector (Simsbury).