This article originally appeared on Bluff City Education on September 30th, 2014 This past week the Tennessee Consortium on Research, Evaluation and Development at Vanderbilt released the results of their 2014 First to the Top Survey of Tennessee Public School Teachers. Notably, their survey data revealed declining support among teachers for the Common Core State […]
Current Events in Education
Posted inClassroom Management, Current Events in Education, Featured, High School, Middle School
High School Classroom Management 101: Building Relationships
Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships. Stephen Covey from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Current Events in Education, Featured, How to Fix Education, Uncategorized
CA politician discusses willful defiance, educational priorities
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] Recently California Governor Jerry Brown signed in to law AB 420, which limits suspensions and expulsions due to willful defiance in K-12. Last week I had the opportunity to sit down […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, High School, Instruction & Curriculum, Instructional Strategies, Literacy, Uncategorized
Teachers Observing Teachers – A Closer Look
“How can we ask ourselves to go observe other teachers in other buildings, when we don’t even observe the teachers in our own building?” This question was recently thrown out by me at a PLC meeting where we were discussing teacher actions that we can take as part of our goal for our Professional Learning Community. When the […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Instructional Strategies
Teaching Writing to Struggling Students
The first year that I was in the classroom I was surprised when I assigned a writing task on the play, “The Crucible” that many of the kids were excited to express their feelings about the antagonist, Abigail and protagonist, John. For an entire class period we walked through the writing assignment and discussed possible ways […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Middle School, Uncategorized
An Organizational Structure That Works in Urban Schools
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”] Many people will tell you that urban schools can’t succeed without involved parents, motivated students, adequate supplies, and a safe neighborhood. While all of these factors would make the success of […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, How to Fix Education, Opinion, Principals' Corner
Custodial Care: Respecting the Essential Education Support Services
Who are the custodians at your school? Do you know them by name? Do you know their strengths and weaknesses? Are you reliant upon them? The crazy mess with custodial services in Chicago has made national news. Last year the Chicago Board of Education contracted custodial services with Aramark and Sudexo. Sudexo is primarily working […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Middle School, Principals' Corner, Uncategorized
Urban Education, Stereotyping and Michael Brown
When Michael Brown was killed in Ferguson Missouri, I was struck by the fact that he could have been any one of the young men I taught in my 30 years in an urban middle school. This got me to thinking about how low performing schools and stereotypes of poor children and children of color […]