Civics—a mainstay in public schools for generations, but widely sidelined in recent years—is making a comeback. At the federal level, pending Senate legislation would require federal grant recipients to teach the U.S. Constitution—vital for students to understand the "fundamental principles and values on which our system is based" says Chuck Quigley, executive director for the […]
Lack of resources. Tight deadlines. Inadequate training. These scenarios can trigger anxiety, frustration or other negative emotions at public schools. "I felt all of these things" says Chett Daniel, a former fourth-grade ELA teacher at Neosho School District in Missouri. Daniel quit teaching last year to launch his own consulting firm, K12 HR Solutions. "Often, […]
Districts increasingly look outside of existing budgets to supply IT teams with the apps, technology and professional development today's K12 environment demands. Leaders who are solving this funding puzzle turn frequently to regional and national grant opportunities. "On the one hand, it's the best of times, and on the other, it's the worst of times" […]
In her book, After the Education Wars: How Smart Schools Upend the Business of Reform (The New Press, 2018), Andrea Gabor shows how corporate philanthropists have hurt, rather than helped, public education. From limiting the ability of teachers to do their job, to making poor-quality test results bellwethers of effective teaching, this influence has alienated […]
The New Orleans-based Healthy School Food Collaborative grew out of the challenges charter schools in Louisiana faced while recovering from Hurricane Katrina. At the time, James Graham was working as director of operations for KIPP, a charter management organization running eight schools in the city. In the wake of the storm, the state looked to […]
Today's school district food-service directors often find that joining purchasing cooperatives saves them at least 5 percent in food costs. Co-ops also save time by handling the request-for-proposal process and assisting with compliance reporting in the wake of increased federal nutrition requirements. In addition, co-ops track vendor performance and offer forums for sharing best practices. […]
In August, Woodbrook Elementary School in Albemarle County Public Schools in Virginia completed a renovation and expansion that features much larger classrooms to facilitate multiage learning. Each family at Woodbrook can choose whether to place their child in a traditional, single-grade classroom or in a multiage classroom with two grade levels combined. With the new, […]
When school leaders want to bring innovative practices to classrooms, what's the greatest challenge that stands in their way? Lack of funding? Inadequate in-house expertise? According to a recent SpeakUp survey (DAmag.me/su), 46 percent of administrators point to one key factor above most others: teacher motivation. This finding makes intuitive sense. Teaching children is no […]
The personnel function in public education is multi-faceted and it is one in which all prospective or practicing administrators must have a solid base of knowledge. With the exception of promoting and protecting the well being of the the students, I believe that the personnel function is the most important responsibility of school administrators; in […]
At a few remote Alaska schools, produce ranging from tomatoes and squash to bok choy and cilantro is grown in greenhouses heated by wood-fired boilers. This provides fresh greens and vegetables for the school lunch program in communities where some residents have to drive two hours, one way, to the nearest grocery store. Southeast Island […]
