Ferlazzo teaches English and social studies at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento. He has written or edited 12 books on education, writes a teacher advice blog for Education Week and has a popular resource-sharing blog. He has written pieces for The Answer Sheet over the years, including one on how teachers can help students motivate themselves and this one, one of my favorites, titled: “NEWS BREAK (not breaking news): Teacher asks students to grade him. One wrote: ‘I give Mr. Ferlazzo an A at being annoying.’ ”
NOTE: As in the past, Ferlazzo says he does not presume to suggest that the following compilation is all-encompassing, and he hopes that you will take time to share your own choices in the comments. He starts this piece with what he thinks is the best education news of 2020 and then the worst — although the items in each category are not in any order of importance (except for the No. 1 event listed in both).
Ordinarily, Ferlazzo starts out with the best news, but this has been such a bad year, it seems more appropriate to recognize the worst first:
The worst education news of 2020
- I doubt that there will be any dispute on this one: The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted education for tens of millions of students (along with the lives of their entire families). The deaths of educators, the 1.2 million child coronavirus cases, and the countless numbers of family members and friends affected by the disease covid-19 have contributed to a tragedy of unimaginable proportions. Although it’s still not clear how this year’s changes will affect most students academically, it is a safe bet that our most vulnerable populations, including students with learning challenges, English-language learners, and those who were experiencing academic challenges before the pandemic, are taking a significant “hit” to their learning and to their mental health. In addition, many of their families have suffered huge blows to their financial well-being, and research has documented how economic insecurity can affect CONTINUE READING: A teacher’s list of the worst and best education news of 2020 - The Washington Post