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Rhode Island to offer computer science to all students by 2017

Adam Galvan | May 12, 2016

Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo plans to bring computer science courses to every school in the state by the end of 2017. To ease concerns over a lack of teachers trained to teach the subject, the state has formed the Computer Science for Rhode Island (CS4RI) initiative to supply the needed PD. That professional development […]

Yoga mats roll out around the world

Ariana Fine | May 12, 2016

Children across the nation learned downward dog, the tree and the frog, among many other yoga positions and movements this past spring. The first Kids' Yoga Day rolled out at 11 a.m., on April 8 with more than 25,000 children in 46 states and 21 countries. Teresa Ann Powers, a yoga instructor and author of […]

Customer service tips for school administrators

Adam Galvan | May 12, 2016

Customer service is not traditionally thought of as part of a district administrator's job—but learning effective communication skills can sometimes mean the difference between retaining or losing students to charter schools, according to a new report from K12 Insight. "We have to understand that we do have customers—we're not a monopoly just because we are […]

Schools say goodbye to the long summer

Adam Galvan | May 12, 2016

In Baldwin Community Schools, students had been returning from summer break having lost more than six weeks of learning—two weeks more than is typical. The district is located in the lowest-income county in rural Michigan, where 94 percent of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Superintendent Stiles Simmons resolved the learning loss issue in […]

Resolving problems for students with imprisoned parents

Adam Galvan | May 11, 2016

More than 5 million American children face a rarely discussed educational challenge that has profound impact: seeing a parent spend time in prison. One in four black children in 2014 had a parent behind bars by the time they were 14 years old—more than double the rate for black children born in 1978, according to […]

What's behind bad student behavior?

Adam Galvan | May 11, 2016

Students who end up in detention more than just once or twice may be hungry for any kind of attention because they crave a relationship with a teacher or are neglected—or worse—at home, says Fred Hanna, author of the book Therapy with Difficult Clients. "You will settle for bad food sometimes if that is all […]

New direction for school detention

May 11, 2016

While detention remains a staple of student discipline across the country, many school leaders are looking at ways to modify the practice, or even replace it, with approaches that may be more effective in actually reducing bad behavior. Classic detention, where bored students sit silently and unproductively in classrooms after school, has limited value as […]

What's best for school buses?

Ray Bendici | May 11, 2016

Xenia Community Schools in Ohio faced a crisis in 2012 that forced administrators to slash $10 million from its annual budget. The district signed a five-year contract with a transportation contractor and saved $458,000. Still, such a move can be a challenging—and sometimes controversial—issue for many districts. Xenia Community Schools in Ohio faced a crisis in 2012 that forced administrators […]

Demystifying the Role of Reading Comprehension in the Common Core

May 12, 2016

The role of reading comprehension in the Common Core may seem like a mystery. In this new whitepaper, reading expert Dr. Maureen McLaughlin unlocks this mystery and provides practical, classroom-ready strategies for helping students reach their greatest potential in reading.