School districts have struggled for many years with the escalating cost of healthcare. Do you have to reduce benefits to be affordable? Do you have to shift costs between the school district and the employee? Is there a better way? In Colorado Springs School District 11, we think we have found one. For over 25 […]
A third-grader studying the Spanish settlement of California found a virtual tour online and shared the trip with her classmates by slipping a smartphone into a Google Cardboard viewing device. Such limitless online resources represent a big, blended leap beyond the essays students in Coalinga-Huron USD in Central California used to write. Blended learning for […]
While auditing New Hanover County Schools in North Carolina, Nancy Braswell noticed assets coming into the district from unfamiliar sources. "Items were being received from Donors Choose and checks were being received through GoFundMe" says Braswell, internal auditor. When she investigated, Braswell found that teachers were turning to a variety of companies and nonprofits to […]
A new teaching model that's gaining traction in classrooms bases instruction on how different areas of the brain function. The Universal Design for Learning (UDL) consists of three primary principles to leverage the what, how and why stages of learning. UDL's guidelines also encourage educators to create flexible learning environments to meet the needs of […]
Twenty-three states have sued the federal government over a directive from the U.S. justice and education departments allowing transgender students to use bathroom facilities consistent with their gender identity. School leaders must also "provide transgender students equal access to educational programs and activities even in circumstances in which other students, parents or community members raise […]
Districts and states that have done the best job graduating homeless students have now seen some of their practices enshrined in federal law as part of the Every Student Succeeds Act. "The things some districts are doing well are now instituted as expectations for all districts" says Barbara Duffield, director of policy and programs for […]
Equity in K12 education doesn't mean the same thing as equality. In fact, achieving true equity often requires providing lower-income schools and students with more resources than are given others in the same district, says Joel Boyd, superintendent of Santa Fe Public Schools in New Mexico. "Fair student funding means some students are funded at […]
DeRay Mckesson is the interim chief human capital officer for Baltimore City Public Schools in Maryland, managing personnel, staffing, benefits and other related issues. The civil rights activist and former Baltimore mayoral candidate returns to the human capital office, where for 2 1/2 years he oversaw key reforms as a strategist and special assistant. He […]
Apart from the sciences, there are few areas as heavily steeped in research as education. But, as Stanford University education professor says Linda Darling-Hammond says, "too often, important education research is left on the shelf and not used to inform policy decisions." Apart from the sciences, there are few areas as heavily steeped in research […]
