I recently watched a segment on “Sixty Minutes” that featured an orchestra from Cateura, Paraguay, whose instruments were made entirely of discarded objects found in the local landfill…trash! The orchestra known as “The Landfill Harmonic,” or “Los Reciclados,” was created by Favio Chaevez and Nicolaes Goemez, and consists of a dozen or more children that […]
Featured
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Teacher Branding
{New Podcast} Staff Loungin' World Tour Interview
Welcome to Staff Loungin World Tour, the podcast where educators talk about education and fly around the world in a Lear jet sipping champagne and eating caviar while they do it In this inaugural episode of the tour Dave jets down to Atlanta to talk to Franchesca Warren, founder of the popular blog, The Educator’s […]
Posted inFeatured, Principals' Corner
Decreasing Our Drop-out Rate
In the U.S., one student drops out of school every 12 seconds. Too often we assume that students drop out because they are disinterested or lazy. Maybe we should be looking at our traditional high schools to see if they may be the problem. One model program that has been working since 1995 is Big […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, How to Fix Education, Interviews, Middle School, Principals' Corner, School Improvement
Inspirational Educator: Deborah R. Gerhardt
We at The Educator’s Room have a quest to locate and speak with any and every Inspirational Educator we can find. For this segment, we turn to North Carolina – currently a hotbed of pro-teacher – and much needed – educational reform. [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” […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, Instruction & Curriculum, Principals' Corner, Uncategorized
Fight! Fight! Illinois Teachers Refuse to Administer ISAT State Test
There is another battle this week between parents and teachers against Chicago Public Schools and it centers on testing. Threats from the board include disciplinary action against teachers including the revocation of teacher certification. Next week, the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) is administered to grade school students across the city and state. The test takes […]
Posted inFeatured
The Importance of Time Management to Having a Life Outside Teaching
Cross-posted at Bluff City Education During my first two years of teaching, it seemed as if I had no personal life. The demands of learning the craft required so much of my time and energy that I would often work 12 to 15 hours a day, with little energy or free time left over. I […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, Opinion
8 Things Needed in Education Certification Programs
As a classroom teacher, I have had at least ten student teachers and dozens of practicum students from seven or eight universities. I have also unofficially mentored many first-year teachers by having an open door to help solve problems and answer questions. Because of this, I can say without any hesitation that not all teacher […]
Posted inFeatured, High School, Instruction & Curriculum, Literacy, Middle School, Uncategorized
My Son Only Read One Book in Middle School
This morning as I helped my son organize his bookshelf I asked him a question that came over me as I looked over his Diary of a Wimpy Kid series on his shelf, “what books did you enjoy most while  in 6th and 7th grade?” He looked up at me like only a middle school […]