Transitional English – Public Comment opens June 1st

Transitional English info is available for review now, and there are two upcoming webinars in which you can participate to learn more and ask questions!


Throughout the 2019-2020 school year, a statewide committee of educators representing school districts, community colleges, universities and state agencies came together to examine research and best practices and to develop competencies and course parameters for Transitional English to be offered to high school seniors throughout Illinois. Recently, the committee’s work was published in this draft Statewide Transitional English Course Parameters and Competencies document. Public comments will be collected between June 1, 2020 through July 31, 2020.

Information to login to each of the following webinars is being sent out to P-20 Network Newsletter subscribers on Friday, May 29th. If you do not currently receive the P-20 Network Newsletter, complete this short P-20 Network Newsletter Subscription Form before May 29th. After May 29th, for more information on logging in to these webinars, please contact Brooke Simon at the P-20 Network.

 

Introductory Webinar

On June 2, 2020, at 2.00 PM, Education Systems Center will be hosting a webinar to provide important background information regarding Transitional English.

 

Follow-Up Webinar – Brief Overview and Question & Answer Time

On June 9, 2020, at 2.30 PM, the P-20 Network and Education Systems Center will be jointly hosting a webinar to answer questions from practitioners about the proposed Transitional English Course Parameters and Competencies. Login information for the webinar is listed below. Organizations are also encouraged to submit questions about Transitional English ahead of time online.

May 2020

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Jocsan Martinez – Nuclear Power Plant Management

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads logoSince students cannot be engaging in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, we’re bringing people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely. These videos will allow students to learn about their work, the skills that are most important in their work, and to benefit from the advice that these professionals have to offer students.


In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview Jocsan Martinez, who is a civil engineer and shift manager for Exelon Corporation at the Byron Nuclear Power Plant in Byron, Illinois. The Byron Nuclear Power Plant can generate enough electricity each year to power over 2,000,000 homes, and Jocsan leads one of the teams that runs the plant’s main operations, which range from managing the layers of safety systems to performing important maintenance in order to produce power all day each day. Jocsan grew up in Chicago and attended Whitney Young High School before studying civil engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology. An internship at the Byron Nuclear Power Plant led to his eventual full-time employment there and a unique 5-week rotating schedule that features 12-hour shifts.

As a civil engineer, Jocsan’s job is part of the Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology, and Trades Career Pathway.

In this video, Jocsan describes engineers and their work by saying, “We solve problems, and there are always problems to solve.” Additionally, while he stresses the importance of math and science skills, he emphatically states that “teamwork and communication are key” to success in his work.

Watch this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads with nuclear power plant shift manager Jocsan Martinez.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released:

May 2020

P-20 Network Career Pathways User Group

The Postsecondary Workforce Readiness (PWR) Act created the Career Pathway Endorsements in Illinois. School districts across Illinois are increasingly exploring how they may offer Career Pathways Endorsements to students. As school districts navigate through implementing instruction aligned around the Career Pathways Endorsements, as a result of feedback with school leaders in a wide range of school districts across Illinois, the P-20 Network is launching the Career Pathways User Group.

The Career Pathways User Group directly builds on the central theme of the P-20 Network, the User Group is an opportunity for school districts to identify both challenges and solutions and to share ideas with one another to successfully implement Career Pathways Endorsements. The Career Pathways User Group is open to all school districts. User Group participants will be able to ask questions and share ideas with one another at any time, and there will be optional online meetings and sharing sessions led by User Group members to help one another spread best practices and problem solve how to overcome obstacles.

Sign-up to become a member of the P-20 Network Career Pathways User Group today.

May 2020

June 2020 Administrator Academy Opportunities – Online

Each year, school administrators in Illinois are required to participate in at least one Administrator Academy professional learning workshop. Given the unprecedented and extraordinary efforts of educators throughout Illinois over the past two months, many administrators found their original plans to participate an Administrator Academy were unable to be completed. As the P-20 Network had already been developing a menu of Administrator Academies to offer for the 2020-2021 school year, we are excited to offer four online Administrator Academy workshops this June.

These workshops are being offered in conjunction with the DeKalb County Regional Office of Education and registration links for each online workshop are posted on the DeKalb County ROE Professional Development website under the June 2020. Of course, teachers are also invited to these professional learning sessions, and Professional Development Hours (PDHs) will also be provided to those attending who are not administrators. Each workshop only costs $124 per participant.

  • June 10 – STEAMing it Up! Integrate science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics (STEAM) throughout the school (in conjunction with NIU STEAM) – Dr. Kristin Brynteson (Administrator Academy #3697)
  • June 12 — Illinois Transitional Math: All students ready for postsecondary math courses in their field of study (in conjunction with NIU STEAM) – Dr. Kristin Brynteson & Dr. Jason Klein (Administrator Academy #3696)
  • June 17 — How Data Demands Dual Credit for Everyone – Expanding Early College Options – Dr. Jason Klein (Administrator Academy #1895)
  • June 24 – Postsecondary and Career Expectations (PaCE) Framework: Are Your Students On PaCE to Thrive? – Dr. Amy Jo Clemens & Dr. Jason Klein (Administrator Academy #1890)

The P-20 Network is also actively developing additional Administrator Academies that we look forward to offering in the near future during the 2020-2021 school year. For more information, please contact Jason Klein.

 

May 2020

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Erika Sittler – Electrical Engineer

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads logoSince students cannot be engaging in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, we’re bringing people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely. These videos will allow students to learn about their work, the skills that are most important in their work, and to benefit from the advice that these professionals have to offer students.


In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview Erika Sittler, who is an electrical engineer for the City of St. Charles (St. Charles, Illinois). Erika provides background about arriving in Chicagoland as a 14 year-old and entering Schaumburg High School before attending Harper College and then the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As she moved through her higher education experiences, she focused on electrical engineering–partially because she did not think she would be interested or successful with the type of hands-on work with machinery that is often part of mechanical engineering. Today, one of Erika’s favorite aspects of her work is being in the field and helping to diagnose and fix broken equipment.

Erika’s job crosses multiple Career Pathways. As an electrical engineer, her job is part of the Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology, and Trades Career Pathway. Likewise, given Erika’s role in helping to maintain the city-owned electrical grid in St. Charles, Illinois, her position also has strong connections to the Human & Public Services Career Pathway.

Erika tells students that it is important to enjoy and be good at problem solving, writing, and math in order to do her job well. Put another way, Erika says that people who like to tinker and building things and who enjoy solving puzzles have important skills to do well as an electrical engineer.

Watch this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode with electrical engineer Erika Sittler.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released:

May 2020

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Steve O’Neil – Environmental Biologist/Wastewater Operator

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads logoSince students cannot be engaging in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, we’re bringing people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely. These videos will allow students to learn about their work, the skills that are most important in their work, and to benefit from the advice that these professionals have to offer students.


In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview Steve O’Neill, who is a Wastewater Operator for the City of St. Charles (St. Charles, Illinois). Steve speaks about his educational background, including the importance of one of his high school teachers at St. Charles East High School and earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Biology from Eastern Illinois University. Steve highlights the range of activities he encounters and completes each week in his work, ranging from biology in a lab setting to working with industrial machinery in the field, and he explains how he feels his work improves the world by maintaining human and environmental health within the community locally and by contributing to clean water globally.

Like many of the Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads guests, Steve’s work spans across a number of Career Pathways. In large part, his work is rooted in the Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources Career Pathway, but given the role of large, industrial machinery in Steve’s work, there are also significant elements of the Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology, and Trades Career Pathway. Finally, as is clear in Steve’s interview, his focus on being a public servant as a government worker also provides strong evidence of his job being part of the Human & Public Services Career Pathway.

In this episode, Steve spoke about how diverse his work is within a day and from one day to the next, and he also spoke about first being aware of the possibility of working for local government as a result of a summer job he held as a teenager. From that, he built and maintained relationships that then led to a long-term position and a career. Even in a job that requires dealing with raw sewage, Steve reminds students to “never shy away from an opportunity to learn something new.”

Watch this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode with environmental biologist Steve O’Neil.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released:

May 2020

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Joan Schouten – Government Purchasing Manager

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads logoSince students cannot be engaging in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, we’re bringing people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely. These videos will allow students to learn about their work, the skills that are most important in their work, and to benefit from the advice that these professionals have to offer students.


In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview Joan Schouten, who is the Purchasing Division Manager for the City of St. Charles (St. Charles, Illinois). Joan speaks about the importance of collaboration and organization in her work, and she discusses how critical it is that government’s use of the money that comes from taxpayers is efficient and ethical. Joan comments on the wide range of individuals with whom she is able to work in her role and how interesting it is to always be learning about new products, processes, and solutions as she sets-up and manages purchasing processes for the wide range of goods and services necessary to keep a city government operating.

As a purchasing manager, Joan’s work is rooted in the Business & Finance Career Pathway, but as an employ of local government, her occupation is also directly connected to the Human & Public Services Pathway.

Joan stresses that her work gives her a strong sense of pride as she feels like she is giving back to her community with the work that she does each day. Joan also finds her work incredibly interesting as she interacts with people in a wide range of industries and jobs regularly based on the many different goods and services that the city needs to purchase.

Watch this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads interview with government purchasing manager Joan Schouten.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released:

May 2020

Illinois Longitudinal Data System – An Introduction

The Illinois Longitudinal Data System (ILDS) was formed in 2013 as a collaborative body to facilitate the linkage of records across state agencies over time.  The objective was to more efficiently analyze data and program impacts across data systems to improve education, human services, and workforce outcomes.  By linking these records, research involving various data sources across multiple agencies could increase program efficiency and effectiveness.

To oversee record linkage, the ILDS selected Northern Illinois University (NIU) as the Centralized Demographic Dataset Administrator (CDDA) in 2015.  The ILDS pursued a federated model for the data system that allows each agency to maintain its own data and policies regarding use of that data, while allowing the CDDA to use data from the state agencies to match records and maintain a Master Client Index (MCI).  Contained in the MCI are a select number of fields and the CDDA-IDs, which provide the basis for supporting research involving records from across several state agencies.

Progress towards providing the CDDA-IDs for school districts and post-secondary institutions is being made.  As these IDs become more accessible for districts and institutions, there are increasing opportunities to conduct research using data from multiple state agencies.  Additionally, the IDs can support improved data sharing and research at the local level between school districts and postsecondary institutions.  To learn more about the potential of using CDDA-IDs for your district’s or institution’s research interests, please contact William Holderfield of Northern Illinois University’s Center for Governmental Studies at wholderfield1@niu.edu.

May 2020

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads – Jeff Carter – Electrician

Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads logoSince students cannot be engaging in face-to-face or on-site work-based learning experiences, we’re bringing people from a wide range of occupations to students remotely. These videos will allow students to learn about their work, the skills that are most important in their work, and to benefit from the advice that these professionals have to offer students.


In this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads episode, we interview Jeff Carer, who is an electrician and the owner of A and J Electric in Sycamore, Illinois. Jeff explains the process of becoming an electrician, which includes a four-to-five year apprenticeship, and he stresses the importance of ongoing learning throughout one’s career. Today, for example, Jeff continues to learn about updates to code in different counties and municipalities as well as a focus on safety as defined by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA).

As an electrician and a business owner, Jeff is in the Manufacturing, Engineering, Technology, and Trades Career Pathway as well as the Business & Finance Career Pathway.

In both his profession as an electrician and beyond as a former baseball player and current shark diver, Jeff has a unique perspective on his work, and he explains how much he enjoys that each day is different in his job. From working on the re-construction of Soldier Field to skyscrapers in Chicago to work locally, there is tremendous satisfaction Jeff finds from safely and successfully completing each job. Jeff also stresses the importance work ethic and a desire to learn – Arriving early and asking questions are two key examples of this.

Watch this Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads interview with electrician Jeff Carter.

To keep up-to-date as new Career Pathways Virtual Trailheads videos are released:

May 2020