There has never been greater potential to profoundly transform teaching and learning

Julie Young, 2011 winner of the McGraw Prize in Education, has been developing online opportunities for K-12 learners for two decades. 

As Arizona State University’s Vice President of Education Outreach and Student Services and a Senior Advisor to ASU Prep Academy, Young has helped create a rich, place-based program that allows ASU Prep’s full-time virtual students to take advantage of ASU’s campus locations, offerings, and faculty. 

Before Arizona State, Young served as the founding President and CEO of Florida Virtual School, a highly acclaimed online school that uses personalized, next generation learning solutions to teach more than 2 millions students in 50 states and 68 countries worldwide. 

We recently spoke to Young about innovations in education, improving equity, and how schools can help students recover from learning time lost to the pandemic. 

Q: What opportunities for innovation in education are you most excited about now?

A: Choice! I'm jazzed about all of the options that are coming with Education Saving Accounts (ESAs). Microschools, hybrid programs, and continued quality virtual education programs. They will push our brick and mortar schools to improve.

For examples:

• Personalized, adaptive learning tech that customizes teaching to students' strengths, needs. With AI advancements, we're unlocking a new frontier in targeted instruction maximizing each child's potential.
• Immersive technologies like AR/VR making learning experiential and engaging in unprecedented ways - whether virtually visiting any time period in history or exploring Mars! This scope of imagination can motivate students profoundly.
• Innovation hubs within schools that provide creative outlets for designing, building, inventing. Equipping students with cutting-edge digital fabrication tools and flexible spaces to innovate primes problem-solving skills vital for the future.
• Hybrid and microschool models blending phenomenal in-person mentoring with online access to a limitless trove of digital resources/networks. This community-driven, hyperconnected education experience is powerful.

At their core, each innovation strives to enable personalized education. We must continue dreaming big - then building the bridges that make those dreams reality for students worldwide. And I'm thrilled to champion this work alongside dedicated educators everyday. There’s never been greater potential to profoundly transform teaching and learning!

Q: Evidence shows students around the country are still affected by learning loss from during the pandemic. What practices or policies could help learners catch up?

There are no one-size fits all solutions as each student has individual and personal needs depending on their circumstances and gaps in learning. Here are a few ideas: 

• Implementing comprehensive diagnostic assessments to evaluate individual student gaps and needs. Detailed data enables targeted intervention plans.
• Expanding high-dosage tutoring programs and small group instruction for more personalized support addressing identified learning gaps.
• Extending instructional time and providing summer school/enrichment to accelerate learning to help compensate for lost in-person time.
• Leveraging tech tools for self-paced catch up on foundational concepts students might have missed. Adaptive programs should be used to tailor the instruction to each student's level.
• More frequent progress monitoring and feedback cycles to ensure intervention efficacy. Too often, these are scheduled, 3x a year check-ins and there is too much time between to make constant and immediate adjustments to the child's instruction.
• Comprehensive teacher training on learning acceleration strategies and tools to best support affected students. Many teachers simply have not been trained in the Science of Reading or intervention math strategies.
• State & district funding for evidence-based acceleration programs. Investment must be ongoing. This is not going away for a long time.
• Family engagement initiatives to promote at-home learning habits and deliver resources/support.

Q: What’s one tool or strategy we should be using to increase equity in pre-K-12 landscape? 

A: Establishing community schools can be a powerful step to promote equity. Done well, these schools act as neighborhood hubs which cultivate localized support and engagement. Schools used to be the center of a community; let's bring that back.

Q: What’s one piece of advice you have for parents of students just starting primary school? How about parents of secondary school students?

A: For parents of students entering primary school:

• Make reading together a regular activity and ask questions that allow your child to engage deeply with stories. This builds crucial early literacy skills.
• Encourage hands-on exploration and play. Things like blocks, puzzles, arts/crafts allow them to learn actively and strengthen motor skills.
• Begin teaching basic responsibility by assigning simple chores and habits like organizing belongings, putting things away properly, etc.
• Limit screen time and encourage active play. 

For parents of secondary/middle school students:

• Maintain open communication with your child and discuss what they're learning in school. Ask questions that allow them to think critically.
• Help organize their time by guiding them to balance academics, extracurricular commitments, and social activities appropriately for their age.
• Foster independence in managing their assignments and developing self-regulation abilities while providing support when needed.
• Be involved in school community events like academic meetings, productions, clubs to understand your child’s world.

The common thread is facilitating engaged learning, independence suited to their level, and being positively involved in the school community. Communication and gentle guidance are vital throughout.