The selective and convenient use of VAM (valued added measures) by reform advocates, along with other statistics lingo, has helped to frost over the veritable turd cake of ill-conceived reform efforts and the lack of accountability in areas it’s sorely needed. It’s true that there is no excuse for giving up on the obligation to help children […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
A Letter to First Day Families
You’ve enrolled at a new school!  Excitement, nervousness, and anxiety towards the unknown start to kick in.  Questions are filling your mind as you and your little one are headed to your first day of preschool.  Stop, take a deep breath, and relax.  For some, the transition to a new school is easy and takes little time at […]
Posted inHigh School, Interviews, Opinion, Principals' Corner, The Unemployed Teacher
Transition Time: Finding the Right School Fit Over Summer
Summer means leaving a school for greener pastures for many educators, but how is one to know if the new school is going to be better? Here’s a brief checklist I’ve used during interviews in years past to figure out whether a school is a possible home or a major flop: 1. Outlook and attitude […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
The Bathroom Battle Is Coming to Your School – Are You Ready?
When the U.S. Dept. of Education issued its “Dear Colleague Letter on Transgender Students,” it essentially asserted that transgender bathroom rights will be an issue that schools are expected to solve. This upcoming fall will no doubt make school bathrooms a boiling issue. Will you be ready for it? Schools have not been asked to take up a rights’ issue of this magnitude since Brown […]
Posted inOpinion
The Bathroom Issue– Me, Oh, My, What Shall We Do?
I have been an educator for over 20 years, but, first and foremost, I am a mother of two daughters.  While they are grown now, heaven knows I still think of them as my little girls.  As they were growing up, I always had a fear that someone would hurt them while my back was turned. […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
Teachers Must Take on Trump
As a teacher, I’ve always felt pressure to keep my personal political views out of my classroom. In fact, in New York City’s public schools the Chancellor’s Regulations which lay out a wide range of rules, regulations and policies, explicitly forbids teachers from mixing any sort of political activity with their teaching. But lately, it’s become […]
Posted inFeatured
How Humility Is Hurting Teachers
A favorite education professor probably told you that being humble is a trait of an effective teacher. They probably read a 2011 ASCD article about “what makes for an effective teacher” and shared it with their students. They probably also shared the notion that a great teacher continually puts others ahead of themselves. Dave Stuart, Jr. […]
Posted inFeatured
Experiences Matter in Education
I am thankful for my childhood, my family, and all the experiences I have had. I catch myself sometimes making a reflexive mental diagnosis for students who come from broken homes and bad influences.; judgments regarding why work doesn’t get done, why they behave a certain way, and so on. Despite what education attackers want […]