To hear parents and the media talk, teachers don’t know how to teach reading. In Alabama, Education Week is bragging about a $48 million literacy program. It teaches teachers how to teach reading. Why? I find it a strange phenomenon. Reading instruction and identifying reading problems used to be a large part of learning how […]
Serving Moms of Students with Special Needs in Public Schools
This Mother’s Day I thought I’d direct my attention to moms who have students with special needs, and ask, “How could public schools do a better job of helping them out?” Of course this relates to dads too, but usually moms are more on the front line and it is their day! Education Secretary Arne […]
25 Reasons Why You Should Appreciate Public School Teachers
Please feel free to add to this list in the comment section. Teachers in public school teach all children—they reject no one. Teachers choose teaching because of their subject and mostly because they like the students. Teachers don’t pick their careers for the money. Their teaching is free (well except for AP). Many teachers pay-out-of-pocket […]
Dyslexia and Teachers in a World with No Special Education
What happens to students with dyslexia and learning disabilities when there are no more special education services? This from a teacher in Mississippi: I am an Inclusion teacher at my son’s high school. Our special ed department lost a certified position and two paraprofessional positions. Students receive services, but we have cut our presence in […]
The Library Stayed Open in Baltimore…
Last night, a former librarian whom I’ve gotten to know through FB, posted an article about how the library did not close in Baltimore during the height of the unrest. I found this almost spiritual in its significance. Libraries to me are filled with hope and meaning. The library also stayed open in Ferguson during […]
Recess and Behavior Problems: Foolproof Methods to Help Students Succeed
This will be my last post for those teachers who asked what they could do to deal with a student’s behavior if they didn’t use recess as a carrot for behavior. Troubling student behavior in today’s overcrowded, diverse classrooms is a huge problem for many teachers. I struggled even with smaller class sizes in special […]
Recess and Behavior Problems Part II: How to Use Behavior Modification Caringly
So what do you do with the tough kid who drives the class crazy with their behavior when you can’t use recess as a carrot? When I say “behavior modification” a lot of people will run out of the room. There is something unsavory about the idea of controlling behavior. Most of us, for example, […]
Recess and Behavior Problems Part I: Attitude Adjustment
My recent post “If You’re a Teacher Who Denies Recess…” raised some questions about what a teacher could do if they couldn’t use recess as a bargaining chip to get students to complete their work and/or behave. I thought it was important for me to address these problems. My attempt here is to show that […]
Dueling Disabilities and the Hijacking of Special Education Services
Senate education committee members recently argued about an amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, put forward by Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La. The amendment was to provide teachers with training to work with students with dyslexia. It turned into a dispute between parent groups and policymakers. No one seemed to realize that special education […]
The Day I Met Jeb Bush, and Why He Earns an F in Education
Years ago I met Jeb Bush under rather unusual circumstances. It was before he was governor and during the time his father was running for President. When I met him I liked him. He struck me as a genuine person. Unfortunately, today, like he grades public schools, I’d give him an F in education. There […]