Once again families and a community are in mourning—this time in Santa Fe, Texas. Policymakers must address gun control, mental health services, and school safety. There’s another solution for schools. One that few education reformers entertain. Smaller class sizes and providing students with real personalized learning. Not sitting kids in front of screens for all […]
The Danger of Online (Or Any) Pre-Kindergarten Assessment
When did we become a nation that harshly judges how young children learn? How does such inappropriate evaluation of children make our country great? The focus should be on the children and their needs. Also, does online preschool assessment violate a young child’s right to privacy? I think parents and teachers should be concerned. I […]
Here’s to Moms and Teachers: Standing Together for Great Public Schools!
Happy Mother’s Day! And Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! It’s interesting that these celebrations both happen around the same time. I’ve written salutes in the past. Here’s to moms! Here’s to teachers! Moms and teachers work together to provide students the best education. Moms Moms don’t just bake cupcakes for bake sales, although if they do […]
How Did We Learn to Read? Is There a Teacher to Thank?
The debate surrounding how to teach children to read is ongoing. What we tend to forget and ignore is how we learned to read ourselves. I think it’s important to address what helped make us the readers we are today, or what problems we encountered. Perhaps we can recall what worked, and what didn’t, by […]
Beware of Tech Titans Bearing Gifts
Chicago is getting $14 million through the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) that will be used for personalized learning, placing children online for their schooling. They are advertising their gift as “Supporting Chicago’s Teachers in Personalized Learning.” The Chan-Zuckerberg website motto is “We believe in a future for everyone.” Here’s my question. Do they believe in a […]
Stealing Vocational Dreams: Pushing Career Education Too Soon
If you have a middle school student, chances are the school they’re attending is already discussing career options. While there’s always been a place at this age for discussing a child’s hopes and dreams for the future, the push to make career-ready children is creating a lot of anxiety among parents. Much of this involves […]
Can Students Have Teachers, Tech, and Librarians Too?
Is it possible in this fast-paced world, to see a future with technology and professionally credentialed librarians and teachers working alongside one another? Can we be one big happy family? My last post about the loss of librarians and libraries brought a comment from a Follett representative. Follett is a for-profit company that has been […]
Poverty & Reading: The Sad and Troubling Loss of School Libraries and Real Librarians
My last post listed reasons why many children don’t learn to read. Poverty was behind many of the items. Poor students attend poor schools where they miss out on the arts, a whole curriculum, even qualified, well prepared teachers. Students might end up in “no excuses” charter schools with only digital learning. But, next to […]
88 Reasons Why Children Don’t Read Well, and What to Do About It
The NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) reading scores are flat, and everyone is wondering why. I thought I’d create a list. Why aren’t America’s students reading better? What can schools and parents do about it? I love brainstorming when it comes to teaching reading, as you can tell. Here are some ideas. If you […]
Put Out to Pasture: Past Education Secretaries and Their Anti-Public School Connections Today
It’s interesting how previous education secretaries go on to jobs that are anti-public schooling, mostly promoting digital learning. Arne Duncan, who was President Obama’s education secretary, just resurfaced to write an Op Ed in the Chicago Tribune. He argues that education reform after his oversight is doing well. Of course many disagree. We know that […]