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 […]
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 […]
Districts spend over $25 billion annually on teacher absences, and consistent absences negatively impact student achievement, past studies have shown. "What's the Real Story on K-12 Employee Absences" a January report from Frontline Research & Learning Institute, examined teacher and classified staff (such as aides and administrative assistants) absence data during that month from 4,776 […]
In what appears to be an average classroom, students from Pullman School District 267 in Washington wear devices that measure their pulse, eye movements and brain waves as a teacher gives a lesson. The classroom is part of the Neurocognitive Science Lab at Washington State University, which opened this year. The lab, funded by the […]
Burdened by demands to show outcomes and achievement, early education classrooms are often reduced to scripted lessons and meaningless craft work that imparts little learning. In her book The Importance of Being Little (Viking, 2016), Erika Christakis shows how the ever-increasing pressure to deliver has caused teachers to inadvertently stifle children's natural sense of wonder […]
The arts survive in American education, despite pressures placed on school leaders to focus on high-stakes tests in math and English. As of March, 27 states identify the arts as a core academic subject. And 49 states and the District of Columbia have adopted elementary and secondary standards for the arts, according to the "State […]
Teachers learn how to use multimedia in the classroom through networking: both in person and on social networks. Twitter is a solid resource, says Matt Miller, a teacher and author of Ditch That Textbook. "There are some really robust, engaged communities on Twitter through certain hashtags, where teachers are sharing ideas and asking and answering […]
Teachers at Southwest High School in Jacksonville, North Carolina, allowed students to bring their smartphones to class to watch short math videos. The 'a-ha' moment came when the students used the phones to record each other solving math problems, and then created a repository of problem-solving videos. Teachers at Southwest High School in Jacksonville, North Carolina, allowed […]
Teenagers and young adults have higher STD rates than any other age group, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So Los Angeles USD started using an app this semester to better connect students to free HIV and STD testing. "The students can now find health services they need in their local area […]
