Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Like millions around the world I was thrilled to see the first images of the James Webb Space Telescope. Images called the cosmic cliffs showed the birth of a star. I was amazed at the capabilities of this new […]
current events
No, Slavery Was Not “Involuntary Relocation”
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! On Thursday, the news broke that a group of educators in Texas tasked with updating the social studies curriculum for second graders proposed teaching slavery as “involuntary relocation.” The workgroup says that language aims to address the lack of slavery […]
Mr. Courtney’s Publicly Funded Snake Handling Divinity School
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! For 23 years, I have been a public school teacher. Yet, never once have I shared my religious affiliation nor religious beliefs with my class, nor with a single student for that matter. With very rare exceptions, I never […]
What Recent SCOTUS Decisions Mean for Education
SCOTUS: While abortion was the most volatile decision made by our Supreme Court last week, SCOTUS made a slew of key decisions over the last few days. These decisions can have far-reaching consequences for students and educators alike. Carson v. Makin One case, Carson v. Makin, most directly impacts education by addressing the ongoing debate over […]
Get Ready to Teach About January 6th
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! On January 6, 2021, the students in the class of 2023 were sophomores in high school. They were probably recently back from winter break, sitting in class near the end of the day when rioters smashed the first windows smashed […]
Ohio House Bill 99 is Dangerous for Students and Teachers
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! With lawmakers questioning the ability of teachers to assign appropriate books, it is baffling that some states are moving to trust school staff with firearms. One week after the school shooting in Uvalde, the Ohio House passed HB 99, a bill […]
Wear Orange to Honor Uvalde and Too Many Others
Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Why Wear Orange on June 3-5 This year, on June 3-5, I will wear orange to honor Hadiya Pendelton, a young shooting victim in Chicago, and join the movement her friends started. I first learned Hadiya’s name when I […]
You Showed Up: Reflections On Another School Shooting
Reflections On Yet Another School Shooting Have you signed up for The Educator’s Room Daily Newsletter? Click here and support independent journalism! Like so many others, I found myself sitting in my car in the school parking lot a few minutes longer than usual Wednesday morning. I didn’t know how to describe what I felt […]