I’ll be honest—when I first heard about self-pacing, I was skeptical. Sure, in a perfect world where every student is motivated, organized, and on grade level, maybe. But in my real-world social studies classroom? With 30 students, wide-ranging reading abilities, multilingual learners, and a general aversion to primary sources? It felt like a lofty ideal […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Gratitude Tour: The Most Reverend Joel M. Konzen
In 1982, after teaching for a year in the DeKalb County School system, I learned of an English position at the Marist School in North Atlanta, GA. I discovered in my research before applying for the position that the goal of the Marist Brothers and Fathers is “to make Jesus known and loved through the […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Grade Inflation and the Illusion of Equity
As a high school history teacher, I find joy in making lesson plans that allow students to view their world through different lenses and make connections between the past and present. When I watch students experience that “light bulb” moment of recognizing how those in power distort history to maintain power or find empowerment from […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
When Growth Refuses to Look Like What We Expect
Yaneth is a multilingual learner who has been on an IEP since preschool. She is in sixth grade now, and she still cannot read. That sentence makes people uncomfortable. It invites questions—some curious, some accusatory. What intervention failed? What program didn’t work? How does this happen after so many years of schooling? What it often […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Teacher Diaries: I’m All Talked Out for Today
I suddenly know why teachers say they’re “exhausted” or “teacher tired” after all the events, expectations, and errands to the copyroom where I’m sure a handful of us contemplate “what am I doing here?” While we may know that we are there to make copies, and on a bigger note, to encourage the young minds […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
“I Might’ve Made a Mistake” – How the military uses public schools to ‘recruit’ marginalized youth for a lifetime of service
When the powers that be talk about sending kids to war, they aren’t talking about their kids. So, whose kids are they talking about, and where do those kids come from? I teach senior English at an urban high school in upstate New York. The poverty rate here is high. There are no Fortunate Sons […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
The Moral Challenge and Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Message to the Student Leaders
On Friday, mourners will have one last chance to pay their respects to the Rev. Jesse Jackson. The public homegoing service in Chicago marks the end of a two weeks of memorials that crisscrossed the country as the nation after the Civil Rights icon died on Feb. 17. His passing is not just a moment […]
Posted inSpecial Education
A Place to Belong: Life Inside an Enhanced Autism Classroom
Enhanced Autistic Support classrooms are rarely the topic of casual conversation, yet they are places where meaningful growth happens every day. Too often, students with autism are left on the margins of social circles in general education settings. In my classroom, that story is rewritten daily—one connection, one success, and one confident learner at a […]