It’s generally understood that integrating ed-tech into schools can be complex, but what’s less often discussed is that it represents one of the most universal pain points for administrators and educators today. And when you look at larger, more densely populated school districts ÁÁ¬ in urban markets like Los Angeles, Philadelphia, or Chicago ÁÁ¬ district […]
One of the worst "professional learning" experiences from my teaching days involved a clown nose. The entire teaching staff—700 of us—were gathered in the town's civic auditorium to hear a speaker. Talk about "sit and get." At a pivotal moment, the speaker had us reach under our seats and pull out the envelopes that had […]
Longtime Superintendent Bill Harrison started recruiting teachers from abroad in 1997 in the face of a shortage in North Carolina. "We thought international teachers would not only fill a slot but add a cultural component" Harrison says. The then-superintendent of Cumberland County Schools contracted with a company called Visiting International Faculty. Twenty years later, Harrison […]
Welcome to the second annual game-based learning special report in District Administration. Games continue to grow in popularity in K12 lessons ranging from science and math to English and social studies. They include alternate reality games that hook students' imaginations and introduce social-emotional learning lessons to help students process feelings and thoughts. In a soon-to-be-released […]
If you have ever been to Disney World, you have experienced the pinnacle of customer service. Disney is intentional in its commitment to creating a positive, memorable experience for its guests. Disney has a specific training program for all employees, predicated on creating magic. Disney's core values are clear in the actions of each employee, […]
Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District, near Madison, Wisconsin, was facing the potential loss of a large number of substitute teachers about four years ago. The pool of substitutes was filled with retired teachers. Due to changes in retirement benefits, retired teachers would not be able to concurrently collect retirement benefits and work as substitute teachers […]
When Teasley Middle School in Cherokee County, Georgia, opened for the 2013-14 school year, teachers and administrators were looking for an opportunity to help students in grades 6 through 8 better understand STEM learning content. Teasley is a Title I school with more than half of its students receiving free or reduced lunch. It also […]
Going from rhetoric to reality in the era of outcomes. Elliott Levine is HP’s Director of Education & HP Distinguished Technologist. What are school districts doing right, and what are they doing wrong, when it comes to education technology? School districts want to see change happen and they seem to be willing to put a […]
Herb Miller, Director of Education, OverDrive Education How do you build a digital reading platform that is easy for both students and teachers to use? There are four main pillars to effective digital content implementation. One, you have to be easily able to get the top content that any student or teacher may be looking […]
When beginning kindergarten, Latino students are three months behind in math literacy when compared to their white peers, says a 2017 study conducted by Child Trends, a nonprofit research organization that works to improve the lives children and families. The study, "Making Math Count More for Young Latino Children" cites poverty in Latino households as […]
