Gone are the days when a mechanic can pop the hood of a car, take a look around and figure out what to do. Today's auto shop graduates use diagnostic software to determine a vehicle's problem, and then must explain the solution coherently, in a way that all customers will understand. Vocational education used to […]
The Common Core has lost another state, at least in name. In September, New York's Board of Regents voted to revise the standards and drop the Common Core name in favor of "Next Generation Learning Standards." The updates, which range from eliminating some standards entirely to small wording changes to others, will roll out in […]
Steven Yates has a message for would-be school librarians. "If you're coming to this because you like to read and you want to manage a collection of books, then you showed up about 30 years too late to the profession" says Yates, a former high school librarian who teaches in the school library media certification […]
With U.S. businesses of all sizes competing on the global stage, foreign language classes—and the teachers who teach them—are vanishing from K12 schools. Only about 10 percent of the U.S. population speaks a language other than English proficiently, and just 15 percent of public elementary schools offer language instruction, according to The American Academy of […]
Teaching religion in public schools has been illegal for decades. Teaching about religion, however, is not only permissible, but is gaining traction as a way to promote greater understanding in a world of conflicting dogmas. The National Council for the Social Studies in June published guidelines on how to study religion "in ways that are […]
When students can make sense of words, then they learn, grow and succeed. But getting to this point can be a struggle when students need to overcome reading challenges. Studies have shown that if students learn strategies for unlocking multisyllabic words and academic vocabulary with fluency and confidence, then they will achieve long-term results. In […]
During the 2014-15 school year, Pahokee Middle School principal Michael Aronson was asked by his superintendent to visit another school in his Florida district, Acreage Pines Elementary, which was an LSI School for Rigor. Aronson observed implementation sessions and side-by-side coaching. LSI researches and develops next-generation pedagogical models, data systems and professional development for K12 […]
The summer break was far from idyllic, marked by demonstrations, marches and even deadly violence across the country. For school leaders, fostering a positive school climate for returning students must be a high priority. In these troubling times, schools must place the highest priority on becoming an oasis of kindness and respect for all of […]
For many youths growing up in the age of Kendrick Lamar, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, the choice between taking orchestra, band or choir often misses the point. Building a school's music instruction around more recent artists and hits offers an alternative to a curriculum that's often based on classical, jazz and marching bands. "For […]
Teachers today have more control over how and when they receive professional development. Whether the learning is self-paced, online or partially in-person, more districts measure PD based on the new skills teachers can display in their classrooms rather than on how long they spend listening to an instructor. For example, veteran social studies teacher Kurt […]
