How are schools going to look in the fall? Local school district educators and parents are meeting to draft plans. Weighing heavily on the minds of many is this question, will public schools survive? Will teachers still have a role to play in the education of students? First comes safety. Schools might require a longer period […]
Hire, Don’t Fire, Teachers! They’re the Educational Superheroes to Help Students Through this Crisis!
Once upon a time, this country waited for Superman to save its schools. Teachers are today’s Superheroes. They face this crisis with strength and determination. The elite can write their blueprints. It’s the teachers who get the job done. The country should be hiring, not firing, its teachers. The Learning Policy Institute reports grim statistics about […]
Who’s Behind America’s Superintendents and School Transformation?
The School Superintendents Association (AASA) recently met in San Diego. Superintendents from around the country gathered to discuss what they saw as important to school leadership and public education. The future of education was a prominent theme of the meeting, with the overall focus on one word, transformation. They saluted digital and futuristic learning, reflected […]
‘Screens in Schools Action Kit’ to Help Parents Push Back Against Edtech Overuse
Parents and educators worry about how much time students spend facing digital devices. Here is a useful resource to help children live lives that aren’t dominated by screen use. Contact: Seth Evans, Chair, (seth@commercialfreechildhood.org) Screens in Schools Work Group, Children’s Screen Time Action Network Advocates Release ‘Screens in Schools Action Kit’ to Help Parents Push […]
The Science of Reading Plot to Replace Reading Teachers with Phonics on a Screen
Not only are school districts spending huge sums on laptops with little research to indicate students learn better on computers, they’re also pushing children to face screens to learn the most serious subject, how to read. They’re doing this alongside efforts by corporate reformers to kick teachers out of the classroom, and by promoting the idea […]
Common Core, Camouflaged in Testing and Technology
Common Core State Standards (CCSS) might seem to have diminished, but the standards are still embedded in testing and technology and still hurting students. When the standards were first imposed on students, parents and teachers complained. Sandra Stotsky, now Professor Emeritus, was an outspoken critic of CCSSs. She had previously helped develop the Massachusetts standards, […]
Problematic “Scientific Based” Phonics: The Flawed National Reading Panel
It’s odd and detrimental that the National Reading Panel is highlighted in reports as science, used to promote phonics and criticize how teachers teach reading. It has become so intense that teachers are being advised to drop certain reading methods to focus solely on “systematic, explicit phonics!” The NRP was discredited long ago. Why it’s […]
Quit Using “Alignment” Referring to Children and Tests!
Alignment refers to a car’s wheels pointing in the right direction, or an orthodontist correcting a child or adult’s dental occlusion. Alignment is rigid. It’s right or wrong. Yet alignment has been used for years to describe how students learn in school. Children are not machine parts that need adjustment. What if consideration was given […]
Is NCLB’s Reading First Making a Comeback?
Reading First was President George W. Bush’s signature reading program, the cornerstone of No Child Left Behind. With a $6 billion price tag (a billion per year for six years), it promised “scientific proof” it would have every child reading by third grade. States had to apply for federal grants. Reading First centered around phonics. […]
The Technology Cheating Problem Is Still a Problem
While many were appalled at the celebrity college entrance scandal, there’s another scandal that gets minimal attention. Students cheat with technology! Cheating has always been a problem in school but with technology it runs rampant. In the classroom, teachers curtail cheating by supervising students in person. They learn about students and become familiar with their […]