In October 2012, my local newspaper published “Exhaustion of the American Teacher” by John Kuhn. I remember reading the article once. Twice. Four-hundred times. It simply spoke every frustrated, burnt out end of my professional being. If you haven’t read it yet, please stop reading this article and go there. So, like any curious reader, […]
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Posted inFeatured, Parents
20 Tips for Successful Parent-Teacher Conferences
For most teachers, November marks two things on our schedules: Parent-teacher conferences A day of Thanks that they’re over Let’s get you from point 1 to point 2 with our 20 tips for Parent-Teacher Conferences PRE-CONFERENCE: 1. Learn your school’s culture regarding that day. The first years I taught at my current school, I […]
Posted inFeatured
Dear Parents of Children with Learning Disabilities
Dear Parents of Children with Learning Disabilities, I cannot tell you how many times I’ve sat in an IEP and watched your faces as the team discusses the strengths and weaknesses of your child from an academic viewpoint. I can see the fear, confusion, worry, and sometimes, anger on your face. I can feel your […]
Posted inHow to Fix Education
[Election 2016] What Do We Tell Our Children?
Last night, in an upset many did not see coming, reality show star, Donald Trump was announced President-Elect of the United States. As I stared at the screen, I initially was too shocked to even react. In the polls leading up to the election, it was clear that he was “gaining ground” but to see […]
Posted inTeacher Leaders
Have You Hugged a First Year Teacher Today?
Surviving the First Year It was just weeks into my first year of teaching. I knew at age 22 that teaching would be the hardest undertaking of my life, but I didn’t realize how hard that would actually be. Now I was on my lunch break, and sitting in the small teacher’s lounge with my head hanging […]
Posted inOpinion
Why We Need to Vote Down Ballot
I’m just as overwhelmed by the 2016 presidential election as any of the rest of our readers. The problem is we’ve already made up our minds – so we’re ready to vote and move on. According to Rasmussen, less than 2% of Americans are undecided on whom to vote for in this nearly infinitely long and […]
Posted inTeacher Burnout
Stress and Mess: Deliberate Practice and Professional Obligation — Part II
In Part I of this collaboration, some of the sources of teacher stress are described. The growing obligations, the expanding roles, the duties assigned to/taken on by/falling into the laps of teachers are growing. At the same time, respect for the profession and the people committed to it needs to be renewed and reinforced. Here […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education
Transforming the ‘Trump Effect’ in Schools
As early as March of this year, teachers were reporting a significant increase in anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant, and bullying behavior in their students since the start of the 2016 presidential race in what has become known as the “Trump Effect.” The Southern Poverty Law Center tries to get some data on these anecdotal reports, and ran […]