UVA School of Education & Human Development

🍎 Back-to-school season is just around the corner, making this an ideal time for educators to establish habits that support their well-being throughout the school year.

"The summer can bring some much-deserved space for educators to reduce their stress levels," said UVA School of Education and Human Development's Patricia "Tish" Jennings, a renowned expert on mindfulness and teacher stress. "But there is no way to bank enough mental and emotional well-being over the summer to sustain teachers through the school year, especially when many of them are also spending their summer days in professional development, taking extra courses, working a second job or reading and preparing for the next year."

Jennings suggests using the summer to begin a mindfulness practice that can continue once school starts, as small, intentional habits can make a meaningful difference.

Read more:

How Summer Mindfulness Practices Can Help Mitigate School-year Stress Though the summer is often busy, it might provide just enough space to begin a mindfulness practice that can make a positive difference during the school year.

Strengthening STEM education from Charlottesville to Kenya 🌍🔬

Professor Glen Bull is leading a project that connects classrooms across continents through open hardware and 3D printing. Charlottesville high school students are creating 3D-printed microscopes for use in Kenya, while Kenyan students are designing 3D-printed microcentrifuges that are being replicated in Virginia.

The reciprocal approach helps students learn from one another while strengthening STEM education and global collaboration.

Learn more about the project: https://ow.ly/NYE650Zsqhx

Summer offers college students a chance to step outside their usual routines — whether through travel, internships, summer jobs, classes, or simply trying something new.

According to UVA School of Education and Human Development professor Karen Kurotsuchi Inkelas, the experiences students choose during the summer can do more than fill their time. Exploring new hobbies and interests can help students learn more about themselves and build a stronger sense of belonging when they return to campus.

Read more about how summer experiences can support student success:

Summer Fun Can Help Students Find Belonging A UVA professor says summer can provide space for college students to discover more of what they like.

How much exercise is enough? What are the real benefits of physical activity? And do fitness trackers actually help?

In a recent video interview, Damon Swift, associate professor of kinesiology at the UVA School of Education and Human Development, explores these questions and explains how physical activity, diet, genetics, and primary care all work together to protect your heart and support long-term health.

His key message: Move more for your health — not just the number on the scale.

Watch the interview:

Move More for Your Health, Not Just for the Scale | More for Your , Not Just for the ...

"I always say I do research with youth, not on youth."

How can educators and researchers rebuild young people's trust in adults? In a new "Brief But Spectacular" video from The Learner Studio, Youth-Nex researcher Shereen El Mallah shares how participatory research approaches that center young people's voices can help create more meaningful educational experiences.

"If I'm going to design solutions for their education, what's the point if I don't ask those we're serving what they want their future to look like?"

Watch now: https://ow.ly/rpFM50Zoymz

News in Brief: Shereen El Mallah Discusses Rebuilding Young People's Trust in Adults In a new video interview, Youth-Nex researcher Shereen El Mallah shares how she works to build trust with young people in order to design better solutions for their education.

Tanya Evans, developmental cognitive neuroscientist and associate professor at the UVA School of Education and Human Development, is serving as co-director of UVA's Brain Institute.

In this Q&A, Evans reflects on the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and her vision for the future of neuroscience research at UVA.

Read more:

Tanya Evans Serving as Co-Director of the UVA Brain Institute Tanya Evans, a developmental cognitive neuroscientist, is building connections across UVA's neuroscience community as co-director of UVA's Brain Institute.

This summer, 10 future early childhood educators are participating in the third cohort of the Pathways to Success Early Childhood Educator program, helping strengthen the pipeline of high-quality birth-to-five educators in the greater Charlottesville area.

The program is a partnership between the United Way of Greater Charlottesville, UVA Pipelines & Pathways, the UVA School of Education and Human Development's Center for Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning (CASTL), and other community organizations. Participants receive 80 hours of paid training with evidence-based resources and tools, followed by ongoing professional development once they begin working in the field.

"Early childhood education is incredibly important work, but it is also hard work, and it is not always met with the pay or recognition it deserves," said Caitlin Ellis, director of outreach for the STREAMin³ project at CASTL.

"That makes it even more important to help educators feel supported, connected, and equipped from the beginning."

The program is already producing results. Participants from the first cohort received job offers by graduation, demonstrating how this partnership is helping meet a critical community need while preparing the next generation of early childhood educators.

Read more:

Local Partnership Leverages UVA Research, Resources to Prepare Early Childhood Educators The cohort-based training program aims to help future early childhood educators enter the workforce feeling prepared, confident and supported.

Education research shapes the policies and practices that help children and youth thrive.

Since 2004, the Virginia Education Science Training (VEST) Fellowship has prepared future education researchers to build the evidence that informs educational practice and policy. This spring, alumni, faculty, and students gathered to celebrate 20 years of impact and reflect on the fellowship's lasting legacy as the program concludes.

Learn more about the celebration and the fellowship's enduring contributions:
https://ow.ly/Wuwt50Zmyzc

Celebrating Two Decades of Training the Next Generation of Education Researchers Since 2004, the Virginia Education Science Training Fellowship program has prepared students for careers aimed at improving the evidence base in education.

Do kindergarteners really need to be doing this many worksheets?

Amanda Williford, a clinical psychologist and expert in early childhood education at the UVA School of Education & Human Development, shared with The Cut that there's no good evidence that assigning homework in the early elementary years benefits students — and if it makes kids dread school, it's definitely not worth it.

"Williford worries that the increased pressure on academics distracts from what kindergarten should really be about: developing relationships and the skills to regulate their emotions."

Why are so many kindergarteners bringing home homework every night? Read more:

I Hate My 5-Year-Old’s Homework Do kindergarteners really need to be doing this many worksheets?

We were thrilled to welcome Innovation Hub Teaching Fellows from Charlottesville Middle School to Grounds for the first day of their Summer Institute!

The institute marks the start of a year-long professional learning program that brings together educators, community partners, and Innovation Hub staff to rethink how learning happens through interdisciplinary, computationally rich projects centered on student creativity and real-world problem-solving.

To help kick off two weeks of professional development, the fellows visited the UVA School of Education and Human Development's Design Lab, where they explored technologies like 3D printers, laser cutters, and robotics that help turn creative ideas into meaningful learning experiences.

Charlottesville City Schools

Learn more about the Innovation Hub: https://ow.ly/SsEZ50ZljIE