Tennessee

In Tennessee, the Microschooling Movement Shows No Signs of Slowing Down

Published

8 months ago

March 17, 2024

In Tennessee, the Microschooling Movement Shows No Signs of Slowing Down

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

I recently heard someone dismiss microschools as insignificant in the education space due to their size. It’s true that microschools are intentionally small, typically below 100 students, but they are steadily growing nationwide. Small things sometimes make the biggest impact. For example, the 33 million small businesses in the U.S. form the backbone of the economy, comprising 99.9 percent of all companies and employing more than 61 million people.

Small is scalable.

In addition to their small size, microschools are also usually low-cost, highly personalized learning programs, often with a creative curriculum and supple scheduling. They were gaining momentum pre-pandemic and took off following COVID school closures and prolonged remote learning. As someone who has been following alternative education trends for years, I suspected microschooling — and its cousin, homeschooling — would remain above pre-pandemic levels even after schools returned to normal. But I have been pleasantly surprised to see a continued acceleration of these programs in many areas of the country.

Tennessee is a case in point. I recently visited five microschools and related learning models around Nashville and Chattanooga. All of them have launched in the past four years and most opened within the past two years. Their enrollment is quickly rising, and some have already hit capacity with long waitlists. Demand for these start-up schools shows no signs of slowing.

The oldest of the programs I visited opened in August 2020. Located on an organic farm in Smyrna, Tennessee, about 20 miles outside of Nashville, Bloomsbury Farm School began with one teacher and five homeschooled children, including farmer Lauren Palmer’s own five-year-old. By January 2021, the program had 30 children and two teachers. Today, it is a Reggio Emilia-inspired K-5 farm school, with additional parent-child programming for littler ones, that serves 86 children.

Lauren Palmer and Kaiti Dewhirst at Bloomsbury Farm School (Kerry McDonald)

Blending core academics and interest-driven learning, along with abundant outside time and opportunities to help with farm duties, the farm school is currently at maximum enrollment, with dozens of children on a waitlist. All of the children are recognized homeschoolers, with most attending two to three days a week. The full-time, five-day option costs $900/month. “For the majority of our families, COVID was the catalyst to them beginning their homeschooling journey,” said Kaiti Dewhirst, Bloomsbury Farm’s Director of Education. She says now these families don’t want their children in a conventional classroom. “They see the farm school as an opportunity to preserve childhood wonder.” Dewhirst and her team are in the planning stages of determining how to extend their program to middle school and beyond, as well as serve more families on the waitlist.

In Franklin, another Nashville suburb, Harpeth Montessori opened its doors as a recognized private school in fall 2021 with over 40 learners, including toddlers to fifth graders. Today, it has nearly 100 students and 16 staff members. Founders Greg and Jennifer Biorkman never expected to own a school. Both have backgrounds in business and sales and were working full-time jobs when COVID hit and disrupted the education of their two young boys. They decided to create their ideal learning environment with trained Montessori teachers and a focus on child-centered learning.

“We truly could not find a school we wanted to send our children to,” said Jennifer. “It was simple supply and demand.” Last year, Greg left his corporate job to oversee Harpeth Montessori full time, and is planning to expand the program to middle schoolers in the fall while managing a growing waitlist.

“This community is very open to alternatives to conventional education but there are not a lot of options,” he said, acknowledging that there is a lot of opportunity for other entrepreneurial parents and teachers to launch small schools.

Further south, the Chattanooga area has some of the newest microschools and related learning models in the state. In fall 2022, Rebecca Ellis opened Canyon Creek Christian Academy in Chattanooga with 32 K-6 students. A Charlotte Mason-inspired hybrid homeschool program, Canyon Creek learners attend full-time classes three days a week focused on core academics and deep nature study, while working through curriculum at home on the remaining two days. Today, Canyon Creek Christian Academy has more than 50 learners with five full-time teachers and additional part-time instructors.

The Academy recently leased additional church space next door to continue to accommodate its growing enrollment. “We are getting more kids trying to pull out of the public school system,” said Ellis, who says her program’s low-stress, child-focused environment is appealing to parents — especially those whose children are growing anxious in test-heavy conventional schools. Canyon Creek’s low annual tuition, currently set at $3,750, is also attractive, costing significantly less than other local private schools.

Just a few miles down the road in Chattanooga, Discovery Learners’ Academy also opened in fall 2022. Founded by Rachel Good, who worked as a public school teacher in Washington and Tennessee for over eight years, Discovery Learners’ Academy, is a state-recognized private school with a personalized educational approach that opened with 21 learners and today has 50 — about 15 of whom attend part-time as homeschoolers. Half of all the school’s students are neurodiverse, a population that Good caters to as a former special education teacher. Indeed, her inability to fully serve special needs students in the conventional school system was one of the reasons she left the public schools. “I was always trying to advocate for these kids and was always hitting a brick wall,” said Good.

Discovery Learners’ Academy founder Rachel Good caters to the needs of nuerodiverse students with hands-on manipulatives scattered throughout the microschool (Kerry McDonald)

At $7,000 a year, Discovery Learners’ Academy is about half the cost of most traditional private schools in the area, and less than the $10,850 a year that the local Hamilton County public schools spend per student. Even so, tuition is still financially out-of-reach for many families, and the school currently doesn’t qualify for the state’s small education choice program. “It’s so heartbreaking when a parent asks if they can use their voucher here and I have to say no,” said Good, who is supportive of current efforts by Tennessee lawmakers to expand school choice policies.

The newest microschool I visited in the Volunteer State opened in August in Cleveland, just outside of Chattanooga. Triumph Acton Academy is a home-based learning pod for homeschoolers that is part of the fast-growing Acton Academy network that includes more than 300 independently-operated, learner-driven microschools, serving thousands of students.

In spring 2023, Alexis and JT Rubatsky listened to a podcast with Acton Academy co-founder, Jeff Sandefer, explaining the philosophy of learner-driven education where young people are empowered to pursue their passions while mastering core curriculum content. They were hooked, and knew immediately that it was the type of education they wanted for their two boys, ages six and 11. “Our kids weren’t thriving in school, and as a teacher, I saw that there was so much focus on the tests, on shoving information down their throats,” said Alexis, who quit her job teaching high school biology in the local public schools to open Triumph. The year started with five learners, including the Rubatskys’ two boys. Half-way through their first year, enrollment has more than doubled to 11 learners and the founders know it won’t be long before they outgrow their home-based classroom for a larger space.

“I would love for there to be lots of options,” said Alexis, who is encouraged by the growth of microschools and related models in Tennessee and across the U.S. She is already connecting with local founders like Rachel Good, who is working to build community among the entrepreneurial parents and teachers who are creating these new options. Working collaboratively, these small schools can have an even greater impact.

“I want to support these innovative educators,” said Good. “We need to have that variety of options.”

Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter

Source link

Click to comment

Tennessee

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Published

3 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Tennessee reading law: Less than 1% of third graders held back in 2024

Just 0.88% of Tennessee public school third graders were held back this year under the state’s controversial reading law, despite 60% of the class falling short of a state reading benchmark this spring.

With around 74,000 third graders enrolled in the 2023-24 school year statewide, that works out to 655 students who were retained, according to data from the Tennessee Department of Education. The state reading law took effect last year and led to the retention of 1.2% of third graders in 2023, which came out to 898 students.

The law primarily determines children’s reading proficiency by their English language arts scores on the standardized Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, test.

The 60% who fell short on this year’s TCAP represent roughly 50,000 students. However, that number does not include students who were exempt from being held back. Here are those exemptions, including how many students met them:

11,468: Students with disabilities or suspected disabilities that may impact their reading
3,511: Students who are English learners with less than two years of English language arts instruction
2,596: Students who were held back in a previous grade
2,345: Students who had other exemptions determined by their local education leaders

Exemptions were up to the districts to sort out. The remaining students had to successfully take one of the state’s many “pathways” to avoid being held back.

Here’s a look at how those students fared.

How Tennessee third graders moved on to fourth grade

Third graders who scored “below” or “approaching” expectations on the English language arts section of the TCAP had several options to avoid being held back.

Retakes were offered to third graders shortly after the spring TCAP. A total of 3,274 made a passing score and moved on to fourth grade. Another 99 students won an appeal because they faced a catastrophic circumstance around the time they took the TCAP.

Third graders who scored as approaching proficiency had three options to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified for each one:

1,124: Enrolled in summer school, met 90% attendance and showed adequate growth
7,426: Opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
3,262: Scored in the 50th percentile or higher of a state-approved universal reading screener and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade
2,895: Won a parent appeal and opted into an academic remediation plan in fourth grade, which includes tutoring

Third graders who scored as below proficiency had one option to move on to fourth grade. Here’s how many qualified:

3,411: Enrolled in summer school, met a 90% attendance rate and opted into state-provided tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade

Students who qualified for tutoring in fourth grade must meet an individualized growth goal by the end of fourth grade. This growth goal does not apply to two groups who opted into tutoring: Those who won an appeal, or those who scored as “approaching” on the third grade TCAP and scored in the 50th percentile or higher on the third grade universal reading screener.

A total of 1,950 third graders who fell short on the spring TCAP either did not enroll again or had data that has not been reported to the state. The data reflects reports from districts as of Sept. 6, according to the state department of education.

How the Tennessee reading law affected fourth graders

Fourth graders who enrolled in yearlong tutoring to avoid being held back in third grade must pass the English language arts section of the TCAP or hit individualized growth goals set by the state. However, the reading law does not mandate that they be held back if they do not meet those goals.

Instead, it requires the student’s parents or legal guardians, principal and English language arts teacher to determine what’s best. They can either decide to retain the child or promote them to fifth grade with state-provided tutoring in place.

According to the state department of education, here’s how fourth graders enrolled in tutoring this year fared:

5,389: Promoted to fifth grade with tutoring in place
3,996: Met adequate growth goals
1,740: Scored proficient on their spring TCAP English language arts section
132: Retained in fourth grade

A total of 906 fourth graders either did not enroll again or had data that was not reported by their district, according to the state education department.

Where can I learn more?

More information on the third grade reading and retention law from the Tennessee Department of Education can be found at tn.gov/education/learning-acceleration.

Source link

Tennessee

Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Published

10 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

Former Titans Coach Named Top Candidate for Jets

Former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel remains a hot name, and he may have another head-coaching job as soon as next season.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated recently named a bunch of potential candidates for the New York Jets job in 2025, and Vrabel was at the top of his list.

“Mike Vrabel makes the most sense to me, mostly because he won’t stand down to an owner, and that’s exactly what the New York Jets need,” Breer wrote.

The problem with that is Jets owner Woody Johnson is known to be a meddler, so he a Vrabel-Johnson partnership may never actually come to fruition.

Still, Vrabel could end up being a perfect fit for the Jets from a stylistic perspective given that New York is built upon a strong defense.

It’s not the first time that Vrabel has been linked to Gang Green, either.

Vrabel actually did a very solid job during his time with the Titans, going 54-45 while making three playoff appearances—including a pair of AFC South titles—across five seasons.

Things went south over Vrabel’s final two years in Tennessee, with the Titans going just 13-21 during that span. However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the problem was not with Vrabel.

Vrabel is currently serving as an assistant for the Cleveland Browns, but it seems like only a matter of time before he lands a better job elsewhere.

The 49-year-old also had a 14-year NFL playing career from 1997 through 2010, spending time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. He won three Super Bowls with the Patriots and also made a Pro Bowl with the squad in 2007.

The Jets have been one of the league’s most disappointing teams this season, as they are just 3-8 in spite of having one of the most star-studded rosters in the sport.

Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

Source link

Tennessee

Tennessee man convicted for Jan. 6 riot found guilty of plotting to kill FBI agents who investigated him

Published

18 hours ago

November 20, 2024

Press Room

Tennessee man convicted for Jan. 6 riot found guilty of plotting to kill FBI agents who investigated him

A Jan. 6 rioter who breached the U.S. Capitol was convicted of trying to have law enforcement personnel, including the FBI agents and employees who were investigating him, murdered, the Justice Department said Wednesday.

Edward Kelley, 35, of Maryville, Tennessee, who was convicted of assaulting law enforcement officers and other crimes during the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, was found guilty on Wednesday of conspiracy to murder employees of the United States, solicitation to commit a crime of violence, and influencing or retaliating against federal officials by threat.

The jury agreed on a verdict after an hour of deliberation following the three-day trial, WBIR-TV reported.

NIKKI HALEY PENS SUPPORTIVE OP-ED IN FAVOR OF TRUMP AHEAD OF ELECTION DAY: ‘EASY CALL’

Jan. 6 rioter Edward Kelley seen at the U.S. Capitol. Kelley was convicted this week of plotting to kill the FBI agents who investigated him. (Justice Department)

Federal prosecutors at his trial in Knoxville, Tennessee, said Kelly developed a “kill list” of FBI agents and others who participated in the investigation into his conduct on Jan. 6 while awaiting trial for his involvement in the Capitol riot.

He distributed the list, as well as videos containing images of FBI employees identified on the list, to a co-conspirator as part of his “mission,” authorities said.

SUPREME COURT RULES IN FAVOR OF JAN. 6 CAPITOL RIOT PARTICIPANT WHO CHALLENGED OBSTRUCTION CONVICTION

A scene from the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in 2021. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)

Kelley’s co-defendant Austin Carter, who pleaded guilty in November 2023 to conspiracy to kill FBI agents and is awaiting sentencing, testified that Kelly said he needed to “take out” the FBI. He said that he and Kelley planned attacks on the Knoxville FBI Field Office using car bombs and incendiary devices appended to drones.

He also testified that the conspirators strategized about assassinating FBI employees in their homes and in public places such as movie theaters.

Edward Kelley inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. (Justice Department)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Recording introduced by prosecutors showed Kelley directing the plan, and giving instructions to “start it,” “attack,” and “take out their office” in the event of his arrest. He was also recorded stating: “Every hit has to hurt. Every hit has to hurt,” authorities said.

Kelley is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7, 2025. He faces up to life in prison.

Source link