American democracy is at a crossroads. In November of this year, the American electorate will go to the polls to decide which party should control the Congress of the United States and set policy on the federal level. Majorities in many state legislatures and governorships across the nation will also be decided. As it stands […]
School Improvement
Posted inHow to Fix Education
And We Will Rise: Day 3 of the Oklahoma Walkout
We are on day three of the Oklahoma Walkout. Our governor made the comment yesterday that we [teachers] were acting like a bunch of spoiled “teenagers who want a better car.” One of our legislatures went Live on Facebook and said we were never going to be happy and that he “wasn’t supporting teachers anymore!” […]
Posted inClassroom Management, Confessions of a Teacher, Current Events in Education, Elementary School, Featured, High School, How to Fix Education, Instructional Strategies, New Teacher Bootcamp, Opinion, School Improvement, Special Education, Teacher Leaders, Teacher Self Care, The State of Education
Today We Walked-The Oklahoma Edition
Today we walked out in Oklahoma. Not out of selfishness or resentment. Not out of discourse for our jobs. Not out of spite. [bctt tweet=”We walked out – for our kids. ” username=””] We walked out because we do not have adequate supplies for our classrooms. We do not have a curriculum for our students. […]
Posted inAdult Learning
One Future of K-12 Education: From the Factory to a Personalized Model
From the Factory to a Personalized Model If you’re old enough, try to think back to the way teaching and learning was designed 40 or 50 years ago. The teacher was the “sage on the stage.” He or she had the subject information in their mind, and it was up to the teacher to make […]
Posted inTeacher Leaders
Dear Generation X: It is Now, or Never.
I see us on Facebook. On the soccer field. In the classroom. We are the generation born between 1961–1981. We are now finally of age. We thought adulthood began at 18, but that was just a stepping stone. No, we are now parents, for fuck’s sake. We are in charge. Many of us are educators. […]
Posted inSchool Improvement
Students Need “Specials”
What is the practical purpose of those “specials” kids have in school- you know, P.E., Art, Music, Library? There is even another special to simply help kids keep up with the gadgets that find their way into schools: a Technology class! Do these specials interfere with the demands for academic proficiency? Do they make it […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
Coaching the Coaches: the Benefits of Instructional Coaches
Many teachers consider themselves to be coaches rather than just instructors. We are not just imparting knowledge, but we are there to mentor our students and develop them into becoming better thinkers, writers, readers, doers. We don’t bark orders, rather we kneel down and workshop papers and assist in labs and calculations. It is reasonable to […]
Posted inInstruction & Curriculum
How stress is causing students to comitt suicide: What has changed and how can we help?
A school district 204 in Naperville, Illinois, was not on the news, not for its awesome test scores and stellar college acceptance rates. Last school year alone, District 204 experienced three student deaths, two of which were ruled to be suicides. According to Michelle Rusk, a suicide expert, she claims that the “community pressure placed […]