–an installment in the ongoing series The Unemployed Teacher— I enjoyed a two hour coffee get together with one of my former students the other day. I was so energized after that meeting – and as I reflected on how proud I was of the path my student had followed after graduating from high school, […]
High School
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Instruction & Curriculum, Middle School, Opinion
What Frustrates Me About Non-Public Schools
This article is published simultaneously with its partner article, “What Bothers Me About Public Schools“ Let me preface this article by saying that I am in no way, shape, or form opposed to private or charter schools. There’s a school for every child on this planet, and for some students, it’s not a public […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, How to Fix Education, Instruction & Curriculum, Opinion, Principals' Corner
What Bothers Me About Public Schools
This article is published simultaneously with its partner article, “What Frustrates Me about Non-Public Schools.” As a teacher who will never say “I’ve seen or heard it all,” I have become disenchanted with public schools, especially in Oklahoma. I feel that our schools, overall, do a severe injustice to our students by not providing […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Current Events in Education, Featured, High School
What Are We Assessing? (Charter School Diaries # 10)
Week 3/11 – 3/15 One of the things that I love doing as a teacher, to keep my students focused on reading their notes from class when at home, is giving pop quizzes in class. My kids hate it… I hated it as a student, but I understand the purpose and I do it often. […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, High School, Interviews
"Why I Hate High School"
In a dynamic change from the usual session at a conference, on the second day of ASCD 2013 in Chicago, one of the sessions was hosted not by a group of educators, but by students themselves. In “Why I Hate High School,” a five-student panel, moderated by Mickey Revenaugh, of Connections Education, shared how moving […]
Posted inCurrent Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, High School, How to Fix Education, Instruction & Curriculum, Opinion
What We Forgot From School
My improv troupe has been going through a time of transition. When I came back this summer after my school hiatus, there were a lot of new faces and a few old ones – and things had changed, not necessarily for the better. Every group goes through highs and lows. The first time I was […]
Posted inBook Review, Current Events in Education, Featured, High School, Literacy, Opinion
"A Walk in the Woods" – A Great Choice for High School Non-Fiction
There is not enough non-fiction reading assigned in high schools. There are textbooks and fiction, mostly assigned by English Departments, but there is a dearth of good non-fiction texts offered to students. However, there is one safe text to assign, Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods first published in 1998. [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Current Events in Education, Featured, From the Front Lines, High School
Sorely Needed Planning Time (Charter School Diaries #9)
Week 3/4-3/8 The major happening this week at the school district was that our juniors (and some seniors) took the HSPA. The HSPA stands for High School Proficiency Assessment and it is the standardized testing tool used in the state of New Jersey; without passing, a student will not be recommended for graduation. In the […]