Feature Story

Teaching is not for the faint of heart.

“Teachers make 1,500 decisions a day,” said Kara Belew, a 2020 Kansas Teacher of the Year finalist. “It can be exhausting. But if you set your expectations, people will meet them.”

Belew, who teaches government at Andover Central High School, Andover Unified School District 385, was one of three certified teachers leading a group of registered teacher apprentices during an academy this week in Topeka. The event was at the Topeka Center for Advanced Learning & Careers, or TCALC, part of Topeka USD 501.

Preschool-aged children with autism in the Lansing Unified School District 469 early childhood program have begun building stronger connections among themselves and their neurotypical peers.  

“Once I read a little bit about it, I jumped on board,” Dr. Rebecca Dalton, principal of early childhood at USD 469, said of the Peer Inventions for Preschoolers with Autism, or PIPA, a research project of Juniper Gardens Children’s Project at The University of Kansas. The interventions that are part of the research began last fall at the beginning of the 2023-24 school year. 

For me, “cell phone” is a misnomer. It’s rarely used to call people. 

In my generation, when we hear the word “phone,” we think of talking on a device. For more than 100 years, that’s what we used it for. But these devices aren’t being used to call your friend or call home but rather to access a variety of information, videos and social media. They’re actually a smart computer device and it’s in the hands of every kid. 

The Kansas State Board of Education has directed the creation of a blue-ribbon task force charged with making recommendations for student cell phone use in the classroom. 

During their July meeting this week, board members asked Kansas Education Commissioner Dr. Randy Watson to form the group, which is expected to be comprised of two board members, students, teachers, principals and other education representatives.  

They will be asked to provide recommendations for a policy or guidance for the non-academic use of cell phones during instructional time. 

Using a support model of cohorts to maximize resources, coaching and training, Kansas districts and private schools are set to implement the second iteration of the Kansas Education Systems Accreditation, known as KESA 2.0, this fall.  

“We want to focus on fewer priorities and do those well,” said Dr. Ben Proctor, Kansas State Department of Education’s (KSDE) deputy commissioner for learning services. “We want our students to know more and be able to do more which will give them more options and opportunities as they go through school and ultimately graduate and go on in life."  

Members of the Kansas State Board of Education approved the school improvement model for KESA 2.0 during their July meeting in Topeka.