Like a lot of teachers, I've been spending a lot more time thinking and teaching about growth mindset lately. In recent years, growth mindset and its companion, "grit," have pretty much invaded every educational space. In fact, you can find plenty of articles and resources related to growth mindset right here on The Educator's Room. [...]
Last year I revisited James Baldwin’s “A Talk to Teachers” before starting the school year. I encouraged myself and other teachers committed to social justice to “go for broke.” I did lots of work I felt proud of in our classroom last year, working with our 5th graders to understand, analyze, and combat racism. They culminated [...]
I hate to do this, but... Merriam-Webster's dictionary defines culture as, "the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization." Why would I commit this writing 101 travesty? Because it seems as if a lot of schools do not truly understand what culture is. Before I talk about what [...]
On May 29th, Starbucks will close 8,000 of its stores for racial bias training. This is a response to the arrest of two Black men who were waiting to meet a friend at a location in Philadelphia. It made me wonder, what would it take to close public schools for a similar effort? If an [...]
On March 14th, 2018, teachers, students, and families will participate in a #NationalSchoolWalkout organized by the Women's March Youth EMPOWER. The walkout is meant to last 17 minutes in protest of congressional inaction after the 17 people murdered at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The Parkland shooting seems to have reignited a [...]