The firing of a special education supervisor and the subsequent elimination of the position, in Wilson County, Tennessee prompted me to address concerns about a concerted effort underway to dismantle special education. There are signs all over. Most likely you have noticed them too. In the case of Wilson County, Director of Schools Tim Setterlund […]
KIPP and the Padded Room
Why does KIPP do padded rooms for kindergarteners and regular ed. students who have run-of-the-mill behavior problems? Calming rooms, in unique and very structured situations, might be justifiable for special education, but not regular ed. The justification for a padded room is that the student needs to be protected from self-injurious behavior or hurting others. […]
Suggestions for Parents Concerned About their Student’s Reading Difficulties
My post about reading picture books generated some comments on Facebook about difficulties students have tracking and mixing-up words. Having a child who struggles with reading is never easy. Sometimes you feel like they are on the verge of making a breakthrough—then they get a bad grade or test score and you are right back […]
Students with Disabilities and/or Gifted Students—Is Private School Better?
If you have a child with disabilities and/or a gifted and talented student, where should you send them to school? Should you homeschool? This is the dilemma facing many families. Parents wonder, is it worth it to pay to send my child to a private school? Would it really be better for them there? With […]
Drat Common Core and Potty iPads! Use This Instead to Teach a Child to Read
Don’t bank on narrow Common Core English language arts skills to teach your child to read. From what I see and hear, over and over, CC increases stress and reduces a lot of students to tears. It pushes very young children to read more difficult material before they are developmentally ready, and it focuses too […]
To the Pretenders Atop the Ed. Ladder–This is How You Spell D-I-S-C-O-N-N-E-C-T
One wonders what sort of alternative universe the so-called education leaders live in these days—most whom only taught a year—if they taught at all, and who most likely never bothered to lower themselves to take one of those silly courses about child and adolescent development. Across the country parents and teachers are rallying in their […]
Hey! Who’s that With the Baby Grand on their Back?
Memphis and the surrounding suburbs have been through quite a lot of “churning” with the school merger of the city schools with the county schools. Most everyone spots the corporate fingerprints. They’re all over the place. Chain charters, Teach for America, The New Teacher Project, Common Core, etc. are, with the help of Stand for […]
Great Public Schools Focus on Student Interests
I wonder how many parents out there remember when anyone at their child’s school asked these questions: What are your child’s interests? Does your student have any hobbies? How do they like to spend their free time? I am reading an interesting book called Tough Liberal: Albert Shanker and the Battles Over Schools, Unions, […]
Homemade Activities to Target Disabilities (and/or Just for Fun)–Puzzles!
Just in time for the holidays! I have blogged about not letting the current issues in public schools steal the today that you have enjoying your children and helping them to learn. I know that is easier said than done. But the teacher and mom in me wants to step away from criticism against Common […]
Does the Tea Party Love Teach for America?
I read an interesting blog post by Plunderbund all about Teach for America in Ohio. Cleveland pays $9,000 (for two years) in addition to regular salaries and benefits to hire TFA. In other places, like Memphis and Pittsburg, Bill Gates foots the initial bill to TFA, usually about $5,000 per teacher, and then the school […]