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Should We Still Be Concerned about COVID, or Is It Finished?

5/27/2022

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PictureThoughtful bears wear a mask.
Many people are saying, “Oh, COVID, that’s gone, everything’s fine now,” but is it? 
 
Let’s check the facts for this week:
 
“The U.S. is averaging 108,065 cases a day, up 53% from two weeks ago….  Cases are higher in nearly every state, but the Northeast and Midwest are being particularly hard hit ….”
 
New York and Los Angeles are on high alert and urging people to wear a mask.  Philadelphia and Massachusetts have very high numbers, and COVID may even be worse than what is being reported because many people are doing home testing and not reporting positive test results. 
 
This is not a political stunt.  This is real, and we need to remember that one million people have died in the U.S. from COVID. 
 
COVID is back.  Actually, it never went away, and the BA.2.12.1 is said to be even more contagious.  So, get vaccinated and put your mask back on.
 
 
Mandatory Mask Mandates  
      
Several schools are calling for mandatory mask mandates.

Brookline, Massachusetts (near Boston) has reinstated an indoor mask mandate for the town, including the schools.
 
“The mandate that began Monday requires everyone to wear a face covering over their mouth and nose while inside the library, senior center, all public schools and any other town-owned indoor spaces where the public gathers.   … school dashboard, [has tracked a] steady upward trend since mid-April…. Data shows 232 students and staff in the district of more than 7,700 students tests positive last week.”
 
It’s not just Brookline.  On May 24th, Philadelphia public schools also reinstated a face-mask mandate for students and teachers. 
 
Of course, some students and teachers never stopped wearing their masks.  Even when school boards gave in to the hysterical screaming over the fear of masks, some students and teachers, the smart ones, kept right on wearing their masks every single day, all day long. 
 
As one man said, “I accidently fell asleep with my N-95 on; I’ve never slept better.”
 
So, with mask mandates returning, can the chanting, screaming hoards on the sidewalks and at the school board meetings be far behind?  No, they’re probably printing off new signs right now.
 
But what about the children?
 
 
New Vaccines for Children

​There are new vaccines for children.  The booster for children 5 years and older is available now.  The vaccine for children under 5 years of age will hopefully be ready in June.

  • “… children 5 years and older already have access to a COVID-19 vaccine -- and now a booster shot -- through Pfizer's two-dose vaccine….”
 
  • “Three doses of Pfizer and BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine produced a “strong immune response” in children under five, according to results from a clinical trial….”   
 
So, what is stopping parents from getting their children vaccinated?  Will misinformation on social media keep parents from vaccinating their children?  I hope not.  A study from Brown University this month stated that 318,000 lives could have been saved in the U. S. if people had just been willing to get vaccinated.  Unfortunately, some of those people who died were children.
 
I can hear it now on the talk shows and social media sites.  They’ll be screaming and yelling that children don’t really get that sick.  That is false. 
 
As Ibukun Kalu, a pediatric-infectious-disease specialist at Duke University stated, 
 
“But children do fall seriously ill with COVID-19. Since the pandemic’s start, the virus has killed more than a thousand kids; thousands more have developed a serious inflammatory condition called MIS-C. The Omicron wave hospitalized the youngest Americans—the least vaccinated Americans—at rates higher than in any other surge.”
 
As Dr. Kalu explains, we should be taking every opportunity to vaccinate our children to protect them from getting COVID.  Vaccinations save lives.  Vaccinations keep children from getting severely ill.  Forget the misinformation on social media, save the children.  Children do not get a chance to decide for themselves.  We, as adults, must make the decision for the children. 
 
Misinformation Kills

Yes, I know, everyone is entitled to an opinion, but facts are facts, opinions are opinions.  No, there are not two sets of facts.  “Alternative facts” do not exist; that is just misinformation and lies.  The fact is we need to vaccinate our children.  And yes, they should be wearing masks.
 
Vaccinating children is a medical question, not a political play toy.  Yes, COVID has killed children.  Yes, we have the vaccine to keep that from happening—if we will only use it.
 
Mary Papenfuss wrote in a recent article for Huffington Post,
 
“While COVID-19 death rates in regions are affected by several factors, including things like wealth and access to health care, death rates closely followed rates of vaccinations, which Republican lawmakers, activists and media personalities often railed against. Not only did they urge people not to get the vaccine, but often spread frightening disinformation about the vaccines.”
  
Unfortunately, doctors and experts fear that many children will die even though the vaccine is now available for them.  Don’t let politicians dictate how you care for your children.  As I have said before, take medical questions to doctors and political questions to politicians.  COVID is not a political question.  It is a medical issue.  Save the children; get your child vaccinated.
  
As Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at Brown University School of Public Health, said,
 
"How you vote should not predict whether you die of COVID…."
 
So, yes, we should definitely be concerned about COVID.  It has not disappeared, and it is just as deadly as always. 

It has been proven over and over.  When you put the vaccine and the N-95 mask together, you have provided children and parents with a degree of safety from COVID.  No, it’s not perfect. Also, as has been proven, if you take the masks away, the vaccine may not be enough to keep you from getting sick.  So, give your child every chance to grow up and be an adult.  Get your child vaccinated and give them a mask.
 
Next time, I want to explore new research that is just becoming available showing that there may be a connection between COVID-19 and the new severe cases of hepatitis in children.

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Nothing Happens.  Will We Change After Uvalde?  Can We Change?

5/26/2022

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PictureA Love Wreath
A 19-year-old Texas youth recently said,
 
“We are tired of fearing for our lives. 
We are tired of prayers without action.”
 
A young self-proclaimed teen activist made this statement after the deadly shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday. 
 
As the young teen explained, even the “active shooter drills” can be terrifying for students.
 
"I was terrified. There were countless days where I was afraid to go to school … it wasn't your school today, but you have no way of knowing if it's going to be your school tomorrow…."
 
She went on to say,
 
"I was 10 years old when Sandy Hook happened, now 10 years later the same thing is happening and nothing has been done to stop children from dying in schools."
  
Yes, it is hard to imagine that in 10 years we have done absolutely nothing to keep children safe in school.  Politicians are lining up to blame each other.  Yet will anything really change?  Probably not.
  
Prayers are good, but as this young adult points out, we need to do more.
 
 
What Should We Do?
 
Students frequently fear going to school.  People march in the streets and scream and yell for the “freedom” to buy more and more guns.  Politicians argue and give speeches that accomplish nothing.  More children die. 
 
Most of the solutions being offered by politicians are worthless.  As Zeeshan Aleem pointed out in one news article, handing out guns to teachers will not help and neither will turning the school into a windowless prison.  Interesting article, I hope you read it.
 
So, what is the answer?
  
As a psychologist, I believe that you always need to look at the root cause of a problem or situation.  Absolutely no 18-year-old should ever be allowed to buy an assault rifle with tons of ammunition.  Yet, the problem is deeper than just getting guns off the street, but that’s a good place to start.
 
 
Something Needs to Change
  
If you look back at almost every school shooting, there were warning signs.  We absolutely must stop ignoring these warning signs.  The reports are sketchy on the news, but if the reports are accurate and the shooter actually cut his own face and bragged about it, that is a warning sign that should not have been ignored.  If the shooter actually threatened another teen’s life or said, “I’m going to kill you.”  That’s a warning sign.  Such warnings should never be ignored.  Yet, teens are afraid to report such actions.  I can understand and sympathize with their fear.  Our system frequently does not support the victim.
 
 
Change
 
What if we had a national hotline for reporting questionable behaviors?  What if when a student is threatened at school, they could call or text and report behavior that they feel might be dangerous? 
 
What if it was totally anonymous?  What if students felt safe to come forward and report questionable behavior?  What if such calls were reviewed by actual mental health professionals with the training to know the difference between someone who needs help and someone who was just complaining?
  
Yes, I have no doubt that there would be several prank calls, but if investigating such calls for help could save children’s lives, wouldn’t it be worth it?
  
Yes, our thoughts and prayers are with the families in Uvalde and all families who have been touched by violence.  Next, we need to stop the violence so that no more children or teachers die.  Children shouldn’t be afraid to go to school.

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What Kind of Tutoring Programs Do We Need to Correct the Learning Losses Caused by COVID?  Part 2.

5/21/2022

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PictureForthcoming book, available soon on Amazon.
Everyone agrees that we need quality tutoring programs.  Yet, we also know that many tutoring programs of the past have not been successful.  Where can we find guidelines for developing quality tutoring programs?
​
Unfortunately, when I looked for guidelines, I only found general suggestions.  Some were good, such as this one from Potsdam State University of New York.  Be honest, flexible, patient, and a good listener.  Good ideas but not enough.
 
I searched for more.

​Derry Koralek and Ray Collins give advice on how to set up a tutoring program and interview potential tutors.  A good list of ideas, but still, how can the actual tutor know how to develop a quality program? 
 
I kept searching.

James Larson provided a bit more content on exactly how to structure a tutoring session—from the tutor’s point-of -view.  I particularly liked his statement:
​
            “Adapt your teaching method to the student’s learning method.”
 
Yet still, I’m not sure a tutor could develop a “quality” tutoring program just on Larson’s advice.  Therefore, we need to develop guidelines that will help us create quality tutoring programs. 
 
In response to my earlier definition of tutoring, I have had requests for such guidelines. Therefore, I have compiled Five Keys to Successful Tutoring.  As always, I am referring to reading tutoring.  Yes, we need tutoring in math and other subjects, but my work and research are exclusively in reading. 
I welcome your responses.
 
__________

For more about my earlier definition, reread:  Will Tutoring Correct the Learning Losses Caused by COVID?  Part 1
__________
  
 
Five Keys to Successful Tutoring
1. Focus on the student:  Tutoring is not about educational trends or test scores.  Tutoring is about the student.  Before you can help a student improve, you must understand what the student needs to learn in order to improve.  You cannot just sit down and start teaching.  You must learn as much as possible about the student you are working with.  What does this student need to be successful in the classroom?  What has caused this student to fail to learn and why?  The “why” is very important.  Then, establish tutoring goals based on the student’s needs.  I taught a 15-year-old, who had failed for 9 years, to read. The school said that the student would never be able to learn to read.  I was successful because I first tried to understand exactly what the student did and did not know about letter sounds.  Then, I used vowel clustering and taught the student to read.  Tutoring can be very successful, but you must look at the individual needs of each student.  There is no such thing as “one size fits all” in tutoring.  What works with one student, may not work with another student.  You must individualize your instruction to fit the needs of each individual student.

​2. Select a teaching curriculum that fits the student's specific needs.  Do not just use the curriculum everyone else is using.  Select your tutoring curriculum carefully.  I have used vowel clustering for the past 23 years in my work with all ages.  I have worked in both inner city and rural locations.   I have worked with students diagnosed with dyslexia, ADHD, Aspergers, autism, and an array of cognitive processing problems.  Vowel clustering allows me to adjust my tutoring lessons to the specific needs of each student.  This is very important.  Oftentimes, we expect students to adjust to the curriculum.  Instead, we should be selecting a curriculum that will adjust to the needs of the student.  I worked with a young student one year who had been held back in kindergarten. My first thought was, how can you fail kindergarten?  Unfortunately, the student was unable to memorize the required number of words to be promoted to first grade.  With vowel clustering, there is no memorization.  By the end of the year, the student was reading above his age level.  In my new book, shown at the top of the page, I give several examples showing how I adapted vowel clustering to meet the needs of each individual student.
 
3. Create a positive learning environment—even online.  A positive learning environment is more than just pretty pictures or motivating quotes.  A positive learning environment is how you teach.  A positive learning environment includes the words you speak, how you talk with your student.  Notice, I did not say how you talk “to” your student.  There is a difference.  Many students do not know how to communicate and interact with others, especially with a tutor.  Unfortunately, the same can be said of many adults.  Communication is more than just talking and listening.  Communication means trying to understand how and why a person feels as they do.  A positive learning environment must include good communication.  A positive learning environment also includes the way you teach.  Intrinsic motivation is better than extrinsic.  Intrinsic is driven by an internal desire to learn.  You want to tap into this internal desire to learn, to improve, to start over.  Offering a candy bar is extrinsic and can be classified as a bribe.  Extrinsic motivation backfires eventually.  It may seem to work at first, but it soon fades, and you are left with failure.  “Do it or else” demands do not work either.  Strive for intrinsic motivators.  I use hands-on learning techniques.

PictureFor more on the problems of using extrinsic motivators, read: Chapter 3, Motivation: Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic in Group Interventions in Schools: Promoting Mental Health for At-Risk Children and Youth. I even include a hands-on project that works perfect in a tutoring situation in this chapter.
4. Be willing to change your teaching methods if the student is not learning.  When you are teaching a student something new or a subject that they do not understand, you want to be patient and kind.  Don’t get upset if the student doesn’t understand, even after you explain a concept ten or more times.  Change your explanation.  Change the way you teach if necessary.  Be willing to find a new way to explain what you want the student to learn.  Remember everyone learns differently.  Check often to make sure the student understands.  I use hands-on learning techniques with all of my programs, including my one-on-one tutoring programs.  When students are involved in the learning process, it helps them to apply difficult concepts and ideas.  All of my students enjoy making rockets.  A paper towel tube or an empty plastic water bottle can easily be turned into a wonderful rocket covered in new “tricky” words to learn.  The student sounds the word out letter by letter or by sound cluster (decoding), puts the sounds together and reads the words (encoding).  Then, the student writes the word correctly on manuscript paper—emphasizing spelling and handwriting.  We review.  We make sure that the student knows and understands the meaning of each word.  Then, finally we add the words to the rocket.  Add some firy streamers and enjoy flying the rocket around the room.  We always use peaceful rockets, no violence.  And yes, you can make rockets online.  It’s a simple easy way to teach.
 
5. Measure improvement.  You cannot tell whether your tutoring program is successful or not unless you test the student’s improvement.  Therefore, you must use some form of measurement before you start tutoring so that you can tell exactly where your student is at the beginning of your work time together.  You must then retest periodically to make sure that your student is in fact improving.  Do not conduct a four-month tutoring program and only test at the beginning and the end of that four month period.  You will have absolutely no idea whether your tutoring techniques are working or not.  You must review and retest often.  Check at the end of each session to make sure that your student understood what you were teaching on that day.  Don't hand out a pop quiz; instead, review and have the student explain the concept to you.  If you are striving for a quality tutoring program, you must make sure that the student you are tutoring is actually learning the material that you are teaching.
 
Yes, we really can create quality tutoring programs that will help students overcome any and all learning losses from COVID and before.  But in order to do so, we must focus on the student, be flexible with our teaching methods, and create a positive learning environment. I use vowel clustering and hands-on learning techniques to help me create successful tutoring sessions that enable students to rise above failure and find success.  My forthcoming tutoring book, listed at the top of the page, will use each of these principles to help you the tutor be successful.

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Will Tutoring Correct the Learning Losses Caused by COVID?  Part 1

5/8/2022

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PictureMy new book is coming out soon. Keep an eye on this blog for updates, or click the link above to follow me on Twitter.
Tutoring is being discussed nationwide as a possible solution for correcting the learning losses that were caused by the pandemic, but will tutoring be enough? First, let's define our terms and establish exactly what we are classifying as tutoring.
 
What is tutoring?
There are lots of definitions, some complicated, others as simple as “to teach.”  Just saying that tutoring is teaching does not really tell us anything.  An article entitled, “What Tutoring is and What Tutoring Is Not” states that tutoring is a “systematic learning experience” that improves a student’s attitude toward learning a particular subject as well as their academic performance or improvement in that subject.  Tutoring is usually self-paced and may be conducted as an individual, as one-on-one, or in a small group.
​
This definition gives us three principles:  (1) tutoring is systematic, meaning it uses a specific curriculum designed to help students learn specific skills, (2) effective tutoring must improve academic performance, and (3) tutoring should improve the student’s attitude, and mental well-being toward learning, especially about the subject being taught.  As a psychologist, I believe this is important because I encounter so many students who say, “I hate reading” or “I’m dumb, I can’t read.”  It’s not enough to just teach skills.  We must also help students improve their self-efficacy—belief that they can learn.  Mental wellness includes helping students believe in themselves, believe in their ability to learn, and then demonstrating that the student is and can be successful with the subject being tutored. ​

PictureFor more about self-efficacy, see Chapter 7 in Group-Centered Prevention in Mental Health
Is homework a form of tutoring?​
No, just sitting down and helping a student finish their homework is not really tutoring, especially since homework has been proven not to improve academic performance.  We’ll talk more about homework later, especially the psychological harms of homework, but for now, homework cannot be classified as tutoring because it is not systematic and does not follow a specific curriculum.
 
If we are to correct learning losses, we need a program that improves academic performance.  This means that tutoring in reading must improve reading scores. It must teach children to read.  I talk only about tutoring in reading. 
 
As a psychologist, I work with students who are struggling or failing in reading because we have found that reading failure leads to many mental health problems.  You may be asking, why is reading failure more closely connected to mental health than math?  Because reading is necessary for every aspect of life.  If you cannot read, you cannot even fill out a job application without help.  I am not saying that math is not important.  Math is very important, too, but research does not show that failure in math causes the same level of mental illness that reading failure does.   

PictureSee Chapter 1 in After-School Programming and Intrinsic Motivation for more on the problems reading failure causes with mental wellness.
Is quality tutoring important?
If you do not have a quality tutoring program, even the best teachers cannot help students overcome learning loss. 
 
So, to answer our question:  Can tutoring correct learning loss caused by COVID?
​

Yes, it can.  Whether the tutoring being used by the schools will be successful or not though will depend on the “quality” of the tutoring offered. 

Tutoring is not a new concept.  Tutoring in school was being offered as far back as 1897.  Tutoring was also offered in the schools prior to COVID.  Yet over 60% of students could not read at grade level even before COVID. 


____________________


For more about the learning losses that existed in reading before COVID, see:  Reading Wars are Over!  Phonics Failed.  Whole Language Failed.  Balanced Literacy Failed. Who Won?  It Certainly Wasn’t the Students
____________________
 
That is why, if we are going to rely on tutoring to correct learning loss caused by COVID, we need to be careful about which tutoring programs we use.
 
In Part 2 of this discussion on tutoring, we will explore how to identify “quality” in a tutoring program.  If you do not use a quality tutoring program, you will not succeed in helping students overcome the learning losses brought on by COVID and the learning losses that existed in reading before COVID.  Yes, we must correct all learning loss and bring students up to their age level in reading.
​

[For a complete review on the problems with homework, read this excellent book by top experts:  Reforming Homework: Practices, Learning and Policies]
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    Elaine Clanton Harpine, Ph.D.

    Elaine is a program designer with many years of experience helping at-risk children learn to read. She earned a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology (Counseling) from the Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

    if you teach a child to read, you can change the world.

    Copyright 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 Elaine Clanton Harpine 

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