Fire the Canon: Curriculum is the Vehicle, Not the Destination It feels like every year around this time, the English department has a serious discussion about the curriculum. We start with valid PLC questions about key skills and standards at each grade level, but quickly devolve into how we taught specific canonical books and the […]
Posted inCOVID-19
#PandemicPedagogy: It’s Time to Break Up With This School Year
As the school year comes to a close, it is common for educators to reflect on the last ten months and think about how they’ll make next year even better. But as this whirlwind of a year winds down, many of us have not even an ounce left to give – for reflection, improvement, or […]
Posted inAsk a Teacher
Teaching is a Political Act, Just Not Like People Think
Sarah Styf is a 19-year high school English teacher currently on a teaching sabbatical. She lives in the Houston area with her husband and two children. She is passionate about education reform and civic engagement and recently started the podcast Lit Think with a former teaching colleague. She can be found on Instagram @sarah.styf and Twitter @sarahstyf. I sought […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Mental Health Awareness for the Teacher’s Soul
As I begin typing this article, it is 11:00 a.m. on a Wednesday. In April. It’s a school day but I’m currently sitting at my table in my backyard before a thunderstorm arrives. I’m not at school on this school day in the middle of the week because of- ANXIETY. I’ve suffered from anxiety for […]
Posted inBack to School
Joining or Avoiding the Educator Exodus
To stay or not to stay, that is the question. Saying that the 2020-2021 school year was difficult for teachers would be an understatement. We navigated virtual learning, hybrid learning, transitioning to 100% traditional learning in some cases, all while being evaluated and fearing contracting COVID-19 in our classroom. I’m not sure what the qualifications […]
Posted inAsk a Teacher
Building a Teacher Rep-utation
Kevin M. McIntosh’s short stories have appeared in the American Literary Review, Beloit Fiction Journal, Potomac Review, Chicago Tribune and have been nominated for Best New American Voices and the Pushcart Prize. He has had fellowships at the Ragdale Foundation and Blue Mountain Center. His novel Class Dismissed (Regal House Publishing, July 2021) is informed […]
Posted inCoronavirus
Reinventing Pandemic Schooling: More than Making Lemonade from Lemons
Dr. Helen Hoffman is a veteran teacher, author, and advocate for better schools. With 30 years of teaching at both the high school and college level, Helen’s mission is to shape the future of education by helping teachers create school experiences that are more engaging, enjoyable, and purposeful than our current ones. Her new book, […]
Posted inAdult Learning
Mismatched: Your Brain Under Stress is a Must-Watch Documentary for Educators
The Documentary Daniel Kirsch, Ph.D., is the President of the American Institute of Stress and is a resident of my hometown of Mineral Wells, Texas. I have met him on a handful of occasions and recently had the opportunity to watch a documentary he had a hand in creating, along with documentary filmmaker Justin Smith, […]