ALAMLE Equitable Learning Environments Framework Development

On June 20, 2020, the ALAMLE board committed to developing supports for Alabama middle level educators who want to make their districts, schools, and classrooms more equitable learning environments for students.

Today, we invite you to join in that work. Please complete the form below if you would like to play a role in developing frameworks for thinking through anti-racist policies and practices for classrooms, schools, and districts.

A few notes before we dive in.

To start, while this is the first time ALAMLE is publicly and collectively taking explicit action to build a more just future for Alabama students, this is not done on a whim or because anti-racism and social justice are currently in the headlines. Learning and internal work have been going on behind the scenes for a long time, and we know that we must unite with other educators in putting that learning into practice to have a meaningful and lasting impact throughout our state.

Additionally, we know that our own learning and much of the content of these frameworks is shaped by leaders in equity and anti-racism, specifically leaders of color, who have been doing the work for years. We will be diligent in amplifying their voices and citing them to ensure that their efforts are not erased or unacknowledged.

Part of our commitment to equitable and just learning environments for Alabama's middle level students focuses on the development of frameworks that aid educators, schools, and districts in reflecting on and evaluating their practices and policies. We invite you to engage in this work to lend your expertise in service of students.



Statement from ALAMLE Board of Directors

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The board of the Alabama Association for Middle Level Education strongly affirms the statement on racial bias released by the AMLE Board of Trustees. We acknowledge that systems of education were designed to serve some students, not all. We acknowledge that we have individually and collectively often advocated for all students instead of confronting directly the policies and practices that make the challenges of young adolescence especially difficult for students of color.

We hereby commit to taking direct action to hold ourselves to a higher standard. We move forward in the work by addressing inequities in education as a professional organization and by supporting the work of our colleagues at the middle level committed to building just institutions of education.

In particular, we commit to the following actions:

  • Curating, creating, and sharing resources specifically designed to support middle level educators as they seek to implement equitable and anti-racist policies and practices within their schools. We call on our colleagues to empower students to engage in difficult conversations that explore past and present issues confronting black and brown students and to create safe space for students to voice personal experiences, future hopes, and ways to affect positive change in their communities and in the world.

  • Developing and disseminating a framework for middle level schools to use for self-examination, and for planning and implementing actions towards more just and equitable learning environments.

  • Serving as a conduit to connect Alabama middle level educators committed to working collaboratively towards these ends.

We call every middle level educator in Alabama to action today. We challenge you to join us in this commitment – a deep, long-range commitment to engage in ongoing growth and change on a personal level in the professional sphere. We also urge you to participate now in the actions outlined here. Write, speak up, share resources, start conversations. 

Alabama Association for Middle Level Education Board of Directors

Weekly Links #31

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Hey friends! How are you? No, really. How are you doing?

The news that we will not see our students face to face again this school year hit hard, and we know that everyone is grieving the loss in their own way. But we are also resilient and embarking on a new adventure. We will experience some frustrations and failures in the coming weeks. But we will also see some magic happening with our kids in the new spaces that we carve out together. And if we do it right, we will see one another on the other side of it all with a new collective vision of how to serve our learners.

With all that in mind, we have just one link for the week. It’s a good one.

Alabama Colleagues Offering Resources for Education aims to provide professional support and resources for educators developing high-quality online learning opportunities for Alabama’s students. The site will continue to curate vetted tools for use with a range of age groups and content areas, as well as contact information for consultants available to provide support. Go check it out!

Be safe. Stay healthy. We love you!!

Weekly Links #30

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Happy Sunday! Have you sprung forward?

This week is sure to be a doozy, what with the time change as well as a full moon and Friday the 13th to bookend the whole thing.

But there’s also Mario Day, Pi Day, and St. Patrick’s Day all in rapid succession. We got this. Let’s go!

Remove and replace video backgrounds with just a click.

100 Women of the Year.

10 nonfiction children’s books that humanize mathematics.

Watch and discuss YouTube videos together.

And in case you’re discussing handwashing with kiddos…

Tomorrow we’ll kick off Week 2 of our Middle Level Education Month party over on Twitter. See our posting schedule below. We hope you’ll join in the fun!

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Weekly Links #29

Happy March! Did you do anything cool for Leap Day? Enjoy your Sunday, and then come back here in a bit for a little reading.

Social media and today’s teenage girls.

So many images are now available through Smithsonian Open Access.

Need some good reads? Check out these excellent award winners.

March is Women’s History Month.

And since it’s Read Across America time, here’s a reminder to skip the cats in hats and celebrate our country’s cultural riches instead.

Weekly Links #28

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Happy weekend, folks! Are you thriving? Hanging in there with your sanitizers and disinfectants? We’re with you. Please partake of this week’s offerings as you rest up for the next installment.

A whatchamacallit in different languages. (Twitter thread)

Miami middle school students hope their magazine will help end gun violence.

Before students’ minds go deep, their bodies must actively engage with content.

Microaggressions in the classroom.

Weekly Links #27

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Happy Presidents Day! We hope you’ve been enjoying the long weekend. Here are a few items that piqued our interest over the last week.

Has the language of bullying in your school or community changed since the 2016 election? Trump’s rhetoric has changed how hundreds of children are harassed in American classrooms.

Do you get the Sunday Scaries? The Sunday Blues? Sunday Syndrome? You’re not alone.

Ken Burns documentary resources are now available for classroom use.

Kids don’t need to stay “on track” to succeed.

You know those Tik Tok dances your students are doing ALL. THE. TIME? Let’s use them as an opportunity to talk about who gets credit for what and the ethics of memes.

Enjoy your Monday, and have a happy week, friends!

Weekly Links #26

Happy Sunday, friends! We hope you’ve had a restful weekend and are readying the rain boots and floaties for another drenched week. Did you see any snow in your neck of the woods? It can feel like magic, especially if you get to share it with kiddos.

Here are a few offerings to wind down your weekend.

February 19 is the Day of Remembrance for Japanese-American Internment during World War II. Have you read George Takei’s powerful graphic memoir They Called Us Enemy? Definitely a worthy addition to your classroom library.

And speaking of observances, February 20 is United Nations World Day of Social Justice.

Have you used the New York Times Learning Network’s resources in your classroom? They recently created a YouTube channel to make their webinars for teachers available.

Assuming it doesn’t result in a Schrutebucks situation, Paygrade might be an interesting resource for helping students learn about managing money.

Last but not least, definitely check out Nikole Hannah-Jones on The Daily Show. If you watch nothing else, take a literal minute to listen to her from 3:38-4;38.

Happy Sunday!

Weekly Links #25

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Happy weekend, folks! We made it through the 24601 days of January!

Before we do anything else, we have to share a huge CONGRATULATIONS to our ALAMLE president - Dr. Andrew Maxey - who successfully defended his dissertation this week. We are super proud of his accomplishment! BTW, that’s him in the photo above, back when he was a middle school principal. He’s blurry because you gotta move fast around these kids (and occasionally employ a pair of wheels).

On to the links!

World Read Aloud Day is February 5. Are you participating with your students?

How IT staff can accommodate transgender and non-binary students and faculty.

How to make progress trackers and timelines with Google Sheets.

Turns out GPAs are better for predicting college completion than ACT scores.

The 3M Young Scientist Challenge is now open for students in grades 5-8.

Rest up, and we’ll see you next week!

Weekly Links #24

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Happy weekend! How was the week for you? From our experience, the four-day ones tend to be a little bizarre.

A few of us will be hanging out at the Alabama NBCT Network Conference this Saturday, so we’ll be sure to share a bit from there. Plus, our board will be meeting next week for the first time this DECADE. Can’t wait to share new things on the horizon!

In the meantime, check out these offerings from around the interwebs.

Rubrics and originality reports in Google Classroom.

Decolonizing YA speculative fiction. We’re all about some Tomi Adeyemi around here.

California considers permitting students excused mental health days. What are your thoughts on this? More systemic supports for both student and teacher mental health are badly needed.

Are you participating in the Future Voters Project?

January 27 is Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. And when we teach about horrific events in our history, it’s so important to talk about the resistance, too, not just the suffering. Plus, make connections between history and contemporary refugee crises.

Have a good one, friends!

Weekly Links #23

Hello, friends! How’s the long weekend treating you? Are you doing anything tomorrow to honor Dr. King’s legacy? How about with your kiddos next week? Check out our links below for related resources and ideas, as well as a few other items from around the web.

A Museum. A Memorial. A Message. It’s right in our back yard.

And it opened a new welcome center this weekend.

Dr. King’s legacy and choosing to participate.

The current #ClearTheAir discussion focuses on Dr. King’s Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? Check it out if you want to jump in and learn about how we can each do our part to be anti-racist. Upcoming discussions will center Cutting School: Privatization, Segregation, and the End of Public Education; How to Be Anti-Racist; and Understanding and Empowering Immigrant Youth in School Communities.

Jason Reynolds is the new national ambassador for young people’s literature!

Use GRASPS for real-world assessment.

Two states. Eight textbooks. Two American stories.

Strategies for teaching academic vocabulary.

A great update to Screencastify, one of our favorite tools for making classroom videos.

Weekly Links #22

Happy 2020! How was your first week back? It’s thrilling to begin another year with you.

Before we get started with this week’s links, we’d like to congratulate the newest members of our executive board. Brandon Kiser, who has served ALAMLE as our District 4 representative is now our vice president. And Harriette Thompkins, our District 5 rep, is our new secretary. Congratulations to them both!

Onward to a few bits from around the web!

Kamala Khan is the superhero zoomers deserve.

Teaching in the US vs the rest of the world.

Was your life changed by a book? The New York Times wants to hear about it.

NPR recently announced this year’s Student Podcast Challenge.

Have a great weekend! Stay safe out there!

Weekly Links #21

It’s Friday, friends. Let’s pause a moment, breathe deeply, and give thanks for this very special time each week. You know, teaching is a funny thing. Some days you’re nailing it. Other days you find a high-five buddy because you got through a class period without anyone crying, puking, or passing out on you. All days offer stories to tell and lessons to learn, though, right?

Speaking of Thanksgiving, if you’re planning some seasonally-themed lessons for next week, here are a few links.

Teaching Thanksgiving in a socially responsible way.

When trivia isn’t trivial.

Thanksgiving mourning.

And a couple of book recommendations.

Have a great weekend, folks!

Weekly Links #20: AMLE19 Edition!

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AMLE19 has come to an end! We hope you had a good week. We had a blast hanging out with some of you, as well as another 3000 more new friends. If you weren’t able to attend the conference with us, or just want to reminisce about some of the highlights, check out the links below.

Principal Kafele kicked off the conference on opening day and got everyone dancing.

Jessica Lahey got day 2 going with her keynote on the gift of failure.

We remembered that if you can’t manage them you can’t teach them and practiced great strategies with Kim Campbell.

Dr. Marcia Tate gave us brain-based ideas to help us grow students’ dendrites.

We used good questions to get WHOAs and WOWs from our kiddos with Erik Francis.

And so much more.

Plus, Andrew and Laren from your ALAMLE board wrapped up the conference by connecting and collaborating with other affiliate leaders from across the country. Stay tuned for us to put the ideas we collected into action in the new year!

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Weekly Links #19

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Happy Friday! We’re less than one week out from AMLE 2019, and we cannot wait to see some of you there! Are you joining us? Please hit us up on Twitter this week to let us know. Here are a few links for your weekend to hold you over til we see you in Nashville.

Why teens should understand their own brains.

More than half of U.S. children now own a cellphone by the age of 11.

Since potty humor is still a hit among some of our students….

What are your thoughts on TpT?

Weekly Links #18

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Happy Weekend! Here’s hoping any of the folks with disparaging words about middle schoolers have the opportunity to chaperone and observe the adorable, awkward glory that is a middle school dance. And here’s hoping your weekend is restful. This week was really a whole month, wasn’t it?

How does your school or team handle lunch seating?

“Poetry is not a luxury.”

Eight counseling techniques every middle school educator can use. (h/t to our founding secretary Erica Fox for the link)

A Halloween writing contest for middle school students.

Don’t forget about the ALAMLE Meet & Greet at the AMLE Conference. We hope to see you there!

Weekly Links #17

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One more week in the books! Was it the kind of week that feels like you’ve hit your stride in the semester? Or was it the kind of week that finds you scrounging desk drawers for quarters to get a necessary caffeine boost, hemming your pants with blue painter’s tape from your classroom cabinet, and realizing post-dismissal that you haven’t been to the bathroom all day. Whatever the case, you’re in good company. And you’ve got this. Get some rest this weekend, and let’s do it all again together come Monday.

Have you read Look Both Ways? Jason Reynolds books always fly off our shelves.

Create and run polls within Google Slides.

Secondary trauma is real.

Why intentionally building empathy is more important now than ever.

The intersection of science and art.

Have a great weekend!

Weekly Links #16

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Happy Friday! Here’s hoping your weekend is filled with fall-like temperatures, coziness, and plenty of rest. Snuggle up with a few of our favorite reads from the past seven days.

If you weren’t able to make it to the Alabama Conference on Grading and Assessment for Learning last weekend, check out the #ACGAL hashtagged tweets.

You can also peruse our tweets of Thomas R. Guskey’s keynote.

Media Literacy Week is coming up soon. Here’s a roundup of resources.

Why is middle school so hard for so many people? (h/t to Alabama ASCD for sharing this link with us)

Octopuses are incredible.

And finally, we spent some time this week with 8th graders at the Worlds of Work Career Expo. It is AMAZING. See the image above and follow along as we tweet about it this weekend.

Weekly Links #15

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Happy Friday! We hope to see many of you at the Alabama Conference on Grading and Assessment for Learning tomorrow. But if we don’t get to hang out face to face, we hope these links will keep you learning through the weekend. Have a good one!

Have you tried Be Internet Awesome for teaching digital citizenship?

Next Friday is the International Day of the Girl Child.

Check out EduProtocols. We’d love to know what you think!

A teacher’s love letter to Notice and Note.

We know about Greta Thunberg. Let’s talk about some more young activists fighting for the future of the planet.

And we hope you’ll follow along this weekend as we learn and connect at ACGAL. Be sure you’re following us on Twitter and Instagram!

Weekly Links #14

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Happy Friday, everyone! We hope your weekend is filled with tailgating or homegating or just hanging out and enjoying these last few days of September. Here are a few items to send you on your way.

Weeknight dinners around the world could yield rich classroom conversations and writing opportunities.

We need to speak up about climate change.

Loop looks like a handy system for gathering student feedback.

Let’s brush up on the impeachment process.

Imagine what school could be. (Hat-tip to Amber Chandler for this link share!)

You’re coming to ACGAL, right? It’s next weekend! LET’S GO!!

And we hope you’re planning to join us at the AMLE Conference in November, as well. If you’re headed to Nashville, be sure to join fellow Alabama educators at a meet & greet on November 7.

Have a great weekend!