A teacher on Facebook commented on yesterday’s blog about the Fluency/Timed reading homework. She felt it necessary to insist students complete a timed reading homework assignment of 20 minutes or her students would never read. This particular teacher also recognized the argument against homework in general. But I don’t want to get into that right […]
Sucking the Joy Out of Reading—Fluency/Timed Reading for Homework
A parent I recently met, who is positively involved in her child’s education, noted her distain of having to document the amount of time her child and the family spend reading. There is nothing that sucks the joy out of reading more than the homework assignment of timing how many minutes a child and the […]
We All Know What Real Recess Looks Like
Lately there is a lot of talk about students getting fit after two decades or more of eliminating recess. With obesity, diabetes and ADHD on the rise, adults thought, hmm, maybe there could be a connection with inactivity. The conundrum is how to squeeze physical fitness in because no one wants to let go of […]
“Never Trust Tests!”—Yesterday, Today and Forever!
I was cleaning out a filing cabinet the other day and ran across some old reports I did for a class I took in college. The course taught us how to administer various tests to students with learning disabilities. We also learned how to interpret test results presented to us by the school psychologist. Teachers […]
What I Wish Corporate Money Would Pay For When it Comes to Public Schools
Do you ever think about what the so-called philanthropists could fund instead of all the privatizy, reformy, ideas that are damaging and pricey? Instead of CCSS/PARCC, DIBELS, teacher meddling, TNTP, TFA, NLNS,NCLB, and RTTT etc. etc. What ideas do you have for Mr. and Mrs. Corporation to really help America fund a great public school […]
Narrative Writing—Why We Should Give a [Expletive]
It’s been a year since David Coleman, president of the College Board and architect of the Common Core State Standard initiative, gave a speech to a New York audience, shocking many when he, while discussing narrative writing, said “as you grow up in this world you realize people really don’t give a [expletive] about what […]
The Public School System—Happy Labor Day!
This Labor Day, I pay tribute to everyone who works in the Public School System. A lot of critical jobs are lost when public schools close and changes are made to a school district. I am thinking Philadelphia here, although there are many other school districts which have changed drastically. A lot of these positions […]
The Strange New Education Vocabulary List
This week I heard several educators and parents mention the strange vocabulary being used in public schools these days. So I got out the vocabulary list I’ve been collecting for several years called The Strange New Education Vocabulary List. Many of these words come from business or the military and seem strangely cold in reference […]
Special Olympics—Endangered?
Recently, Special Olympics celebrated the anniversary of their 1976 event. This is a picture of Eunice Kennedy Shriver and a young competitor and winner from back then posted on the Special Olympics site on August 22. As a young college student, almost ready to graduate with a degree in special education, I volunteered in the […]
The Public School System and Mental Health Services
Two days ago we had another grim reminder that schools, like communities, are vulnerable to troubled individuals, often young people, possessing weapons. These events strike fear in the hearts and minds of parents and add fuel to the fire when it comes to the gun debate. While the gun debate goes on…. Most people […]